MacWorld Boston is a Joke (And I’m not laughing)

by Gregory Ng Jul 12, 2005

First off, I’m sure the conference itself will be informative and the attendance will be moderately successful. But this show is a disgrace to all that is holy in the Mac Community.

Last year I said, “Screw Apple. If you don’t want to come that’s fine. We’ll have a great showing in spite of you.” This year my official stance is, “Apple, please come back and save this pitiful excuse for Mac geeks to get together and get off work.”

The members of the press seemed to be more excited about the lunch vouchers than the actual convention.

The Exhibit Hall should have been renamed “Exhibit Hallway.” The entire exhibitor area was barely bigger than Apple’s showing at MacWorld SF in January. And the exhibitor list consisted of only a handful of reputable names—names I can count on one hand. Quark. JBL. Peachpit. Version Tracker.

And when Version Tracker is on the list of reputable names, you know you are in trouble. Hint: Use MacUpdate instead. You’ll be glad you did.

Now for the organizers. The signage is horrible. It looked so makeshift I would have swore there was a flood in the basement and they needed to relocate all the rooms. It took me 25 minutes and 4 members of the MacWorld staff to find the Media Registration booth. Then the computer went down and I had to wait another 15 minutes for my badge.

As I sat there, patiently waiting, I took solace in the fact that I would get a MacWorld branded plastic bag to hold all my exhibit hall goodies. Not so fast there partner. Apparently your registration fee didn’t cover bags this year. Thank god for DiscMakers from Booth #413: The official conference bag distributor. (Kidding)

Living in the Boston area, I will always appreciate my convenient proximity. But next year, this should be back in NYC. Hear that Apple? You win. I’m crying uncle. Take us back and put us out of our misery!

Comments

  • um, what’s wrong with VersionTracker?

    Or alternatively, what’s so great about MacUptdate?

    Oliver had this to say on Jul 12, 2005 Posts: 15
  • I guess I was not too clear with my Version Tracker comment. I was just so upset with the poor showing at MacWorld that i didn’t proofread my post!

    Version Tracker is great. But Version Tracker also covers updates for PCs as well as Mac.

    My point is that when one of the 3 most recognizable names at the exhibit hall isn’t even a Mac only vendor, we have problems.

    I applaud Version Tracker for being there.

    Gregory Ng had this to say on Jul 13, 2005 Posts: 54
  • Wouldn’t that not-Mac-only comment apply to all of the companies you mentioned (Quark, JBL, Peachpit)?  Not to mention the not-there Apple (Final Cut, iTunes, etc.).

    Kirby had this to say on Jul 13, 2005 Posts: 1
  • I almost went to MacWorld Boston; I cancelled my hotel reservation the day before I would have left. I was looking over the exhibitor list with a friend who was also planned to go and thought, “hey, almost no one’s going to be there!” Glad I cancelled.

    I remember my first MW-B, back in the summer of ‘95; now THAT was a show. Even the final year in Boston was a lot of fun. Looks like it’s just whithering away.

    Scott_R had this to say on Jul 14, 2005 Posts: 17
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