tbd/con is a week away! more details on our kooky venue
What's the point of a 2D pixel-art world?
👋 Hi,
tbd/con is next Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 23-24. Free. Program at gazzetta.xyz/tbdcon-program.
The venue is a 2D pixel-art world set inside of gather.town. You walk around it as a small avatar. That's a deliberate choice, and here's why:
Most virtual events are a grid of faces and a speaker. Everyone is either on stage or muted in the audience. The thing conferences are actually for, the conversation in the hallway with someone you didn't plan to meet, doesn't really exist online.
In this world, you hear the people near you and only them. Walk up to someone and their video fades in; walk away and it fades out. Conversation happens because you walked over or sat next to someone. Weird? Yes, beautifully so.
We're also trying something with the venue itself. The way the day runs is built into the map.
Each circle has a podium. When a speaker finishes, they walk to the beach or the bar or listen to the next session. Anyone who wants to keep talking follows them there, while the next speaker starts, just like in real life.
The beach has two coves, so two conversations can run without hearing each other. There's a tiki bar, a pier for quiet, hammocks, and a photo spot.
On the 24th, the night market opens for the unconference. Nine stalls around a square, with a soapbox in the middle. Pitching a session means standing on a crate and seeing who walks over.
None of that works on a Zoom call. We don't know yet how much of it works with 150 people in it. That's part of the experiment, and we're excited you'll be in it.
How Gather works in greater detail, in three minutes: gazzetta.xyz/how-to-gather. You don't need to read it, it's just a reference. And you can always email us at tbdcon@gazzetta.xyz.
Use Chrome if you can, on a laptop or desktop. Headphones help. Stay muted unless you're speaking.
The venue link will be shared the morning of the 23rd. Spread the word about tbd/con all you like, registration is still open at tbdcon.ai.
Wednesday starts at 9:00 ET with the opening plenary. Come five minutes early to explore.
See you soon!
Patrick, Madison, David and Zig