Re: Bottom feeders

[Bill Manning <bmanning at zed.isi.edu>]

% > > We *should* worry about people who come to the IETF once and never come 
% > > back - because they probably came to the wrong meeting, and went home 
% > > unhappy.
% > >
% > > Brian
% > 
% > so assuming that a lot of folks come to the IETF expecting something
% > different than it is, and going home disappointed, what can we do to 
% > make future prospective attendees more aware of what they're getting into?
% > 
% > Keith
% 
% I remember my first trip to IETF.  I thought that I could simply
% arrive and get a standard adopted.  That was three years ago.  Many
% RFCs later I'm still here.  But it is not because involving myself in
% the IETF was easy.  For a long time I felt like an outsider.  Even
% after attending a year's worth of meetings.  But I kept attending
% because I had something that I wanted/needed to accomplish.
%
% Jeffrey

	I enjoyed a much different experience. I was asked by a couple of
	WG chairs if I would be willing to take on tasks that needed to be
	done, was invited to share opinions and thoughts by folks on the
	IAB... as a first time attendee. Getting involved was easy. Those
	responsible encouraged new blood.  Recent experience seems to indicate
	a "winnowing" process is now in effect, making it harder, perhaps 
	much harder to allow individual contribution. If I was starting today,
	I'd avoid the IETF as a venue. 

--bill