from Hacker News

Employer gave me a conference budget for next year. Can I get suggestions?

by Justen on 8/22/17, 5:07 PM with 5 comments

I've never looked into them before. I'm a js/c# dev, but I think we can go to conferences like Google I/O if we like. Which ones do you like or suggest I look into attending?

  • by BjoernKW on 8/22/17, 8:02 PM

    I like to recommend going to conferences that broaden your horizons or give you a different perspective.

    Going to a developer conference as a developer might seem like an obvious choice but going to an event with a slightly different though still adjacent topic might provide a better learning experience and allow you to get to know people from outside your usual circle of interest.

    Design conferences are particularly intriguing for developers. I can highly recommend both Reasons to: (https://reasons.to) and beyond tellerrand (https://beyondtellerrand.com/). Both have a similar background and deal with design and web topics as overarching themes with talks ranging from front-end technology in general, data visualisation, to typography and art (as of lately including quite a bit of generative art).

    Events like that can be very inspiring and they can provide you with insights from other subject areas that you would've never thought to have an impact on your daily work.

  • by eb0la on 8/24/17, 12:32 PM

    O'Reilly Strata Data Conference in San Jose. I attended this year and it was awesome (I guess other OReilly Conferences are equally good, but since Orailly is based in the valley I guess they can get the best speakers there), plus you get 3 months of Safari books online with it.

    I always wanted to go to a hacker conference in the Netherlands that happen every 4 years (hip'97 / etc...) but I never can make it because always happens something... like getting married, having babies, etc... I guess going to Defcon would be a "safer" bet.

  • by levthedev on 8/22/17, 9:14 PM

    You should definitely check out !!con. They have really fascinating and weird talks about all sorts of interesting CS and design topics. Plus, it's pay what you can and is located in New York, so there's lots of interesting stuff to do nearby.

    My favorite talk from this year was about implementing an algorithm for HDR photography purely in Microsoft Excel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkQJdaGGVM8

  • by Jeremy1026 on 8/22/17, 8:00 PM

    What is your budget? As that might affect what you should go for to maximize your benefit.