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We're all running here and there to conferences and meetups–not the least of which are the upcoming BlogHer conferences. Traveling, traveling . . . but in a high-tech, gadget-happy world, what do you pack? What do you leave at home?
I'm very curious about this, because the conversation at conferences has largely switched from live blogging to Twitter. Which means phones can do it all. And because schlepping a bunch of heavy stuff all over a conference center gets tiresome. And because I ran into the fabulous tech-wonderful Sarah Dopp, founder of Genderfork, at SXSW last March and she was packing only a small notebook and a pen! Sarah explains,
I've given up on carrying around my laptop at conferences. It's heavy, it's hard to keep it charged, it's too big to lug around for the after-conference cocktail hours, and it makes me more social. I've found that combining old school with new school seems to be the solution: a small moleskin notebook with a reliable ballpoint pen, and an iPhone. The pen and paper are for notes, and the iPhone's for photos, twittering, and looking up the conference schedule if they've made a mobile version of it available. (Tip: If cell phone service is iffy in the conference hall, I'll take screenshots of the schedule so it can live in my photo archive instead of on the web browser.) If I'm thinking ahead that morning, I'll even wear cargo pants so it can all fit in my pockets, and I won't have to carry a bag.
Another great tip I picked up is putting a small stack of my business cards in my conference badge holder (you know, those plastic sleeves that they slip your name into and stick on a lanyard around your neck -- they can hold a lot more than your name). Then I know they're always on me, even if I've gone back to my hotel room to change my clothes before the evening.
With Sarah as my mentor, here's what I've decided to lug about during the day. A small notebook and pen! My iPhone for tweets and some pictures. My Sony DSC-H2 because it has flash, 12X zoom, does video, and it hangs around my neck without tiring me out. Business cards stashed in my badge. I feel lighter just typing that. I'll bring my MacBook, but won't carry it all day. In the evenings, I can use it to upload the camera's photos and do any blogging I need to do while in my room.
I asked a few others who plan to attend BlogHer conferences to share what they intended to bring.
Kalyn from Kalyn's Kitchen plans this:
I'm not too into gadgets for a blogger! I'm bringing laptop, wireless mouse, maybe keyboard, dslr camera + 2 lenses, camera battery charger, and low-tech cell phone. That's it!
(I will confess though that I'm thinking seriously about buying an iphone. Just waiting to see what my new house payment is going to be!)
I have a Flip video camera (retirement gift from my brother!) I'll definitely bring that too, but might not use it.
Mir from Woulda Coulda Shoulda said,
I'm bringing my new MiFi because the internet connection at BlogHer is usually spotty. (And because I can have up to 5 people using it at once, I figure it's a great way to make friends! Ha!)
Mir, can we be friends? If you say no, Liz Henry from Composite is my fallback person to go to. She says,
I carry the Airport Express with me, which is a tiny little box the size of a laptop power brick; plug it into the hotel ethernet cable, and then everyone in the room can use the wireless
Liz also reminds people to carry power strips.
Elisa Camahort Page from Worker Bees Blog and BlogHer, sent this list.
- Having just traveled for the first time with my new Kindle?
Absolutely must-have- iPhone...provides constant touch to Twitter and email, so I don't
always have to carry laptop- MacBook Pro Laptop...mostly for catching up in my hotel room and
doing real work- iPod...this is just for the plane trips. I have nearly 90 GBs of
music, so could never put it on my iPhone- Noise-canceling headphones...again for plane trip
- Flip video...that I will likely bring with all good intentions, and
rarely use- Digital camera...same as with Flip. I carry it everywhere, and
don't use it nearly enoughIt's actually kind of scary to think about the aggregate value of
