Will this be your first time at CodeMash? Or maybe you are a veteran… Either way, we look forward to seeing you soon! Please read “What to Expect”… v2.0.2.0!  This is a two part article. We’ll have another entry for Thursday/Friday, so stay tuned!

First things first. To make sure you (and the rest of us) have a great time at the conference, we ask that everyone follow the basic rules of 1-2-3.

  1. One shower a day. Good hygiene is crucial to everyone’s enjoyment of the conference.
  2. Two meals a day. We know it’s hard to break away from sessions, board games, and the factory, but please eat at least two meals a day.
  3. Three hours of sleep. Many are up early for breakfast, go to sessions all day, hit the Artemis simulator, a reception, then an after party later on. That’s cool if that is how you roll, but getting three hours of sleep each day is a bare minimum to keep you functioning. Plus you need time to charge your phone.

Be sure you are familiar with our Code of Conduct. By having a ticket, you were required to agree to it, but we want to reiterate the importance. Making CodeMash a safe place for all attendees is our top priority. We do not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s get down to business!

Tuesday & Wednesday – Pre-Compilers

Schedule at a glance 

  • Breakfast: 7-8 am
  • Sessions: 8-12 am
  • Lunch: 12-1 pm
  • Sessions: 1-5 pm
  • Dinner- Tuesday Night Only: 6-7:30pm
  • Party – Tuesday Night Only: 7pm-12am

If you’re coming on Tuesday you are in for a real treat. The Pre-Compiler is intended to give you much more concentrated time on a topic, and many incorporate hands-on activities to help augment your learning.

Before you Arrive

Arriving On Site

    • Most likely, you’ll want to get checked into your hotel. If you are staying on site at the Kalahari, hotel check-in won’t be available until after 4pm. Arrived before then? You can still check in and request a text message when your room is ready. For other hotels, check-in times may vary- please refer to the hotel web sites for that information.
    • The Conference is held in the convention center. It is located on the opposite end of the resort than the water park.  You can view the floor plan in the Mobile App, which includes information on where sponsors are located. The general floor plan is also available from the Kalahari Website.
  • Head to the Orange Booth for registration. It is located towards the center of the conference area.  You will see a large bronze Lion near the registration booth. It’s hard to miss. (Note: there is another Lion near the Coat Check- don’t try to register there).

Registration

  • Registration will be open on Monday night at approximately 6pm. It will also be open right before breakfast Tuesday and Wednesday morning, and throughout the day. (The shortest lines will be in the evening.) Registration for the main conference ticket holders (Thurs/Fri only) will not be available until after 6pm on Wed.
  • Please bring you EventBrite ticket, or have your ticket available on your mobile app. We simply need the bar code on your ticket (either paper or on your mobile device). If your dog ate your ticket, don’t worry- we have a special line for you, but it’s going to take more time to manually check you in.
  • We will hand you your badge and some other stuff when you register. The wonderful intern volunteers will also do their best to explain how things work (like how to redeem soda/snack tickets).
  • Hoodie pickup will be across from Zebrawood (outside of suite 4). You can get your hoodie at any time- we will remove the “punch” on your badge once you pick it up.  PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE only request the hoodie in the size that you put on your ticket. Otherwise, someone who registers later may not get the right sized hoodie, and that’s just not cool. No extra hoodies are available, so please don’t request one for your cat (or significant other, child, pet sloth, etc.).

Pre-Compilers: What to Expect

  • All sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday (Pre-Compiler days) are in 4 hour blocks. Why so long? It’s so you can get into some hands-on activity and/or really dive into a deep topic.
  • Some sessions are repeated. Some are not. (Hint: check the schedule)
  • Some sessions have two parts to them (a half day in the morning, a half day in the afternoon).
  • New for 2020: Registration is strongly recommended for Pre-Compilers. Register Here. (4 day ticket holders only).

The Law of 2 Feet

  • Don’t feel bad about leaving a session! If it’s not doing it for you, don’t feel obligated to stay. The speakers won’t mind, and you should do what you can to get the most out of CodeMash while you are here.
  • Simply head for the door and find another session. If you are doing some kind of pair programming activity (or something collaborative in nature), consider giving any co-participants a heads up as well, so they can adjust as needed.
  • Keep in mind that other sessions may be full. If you can’t find another session you like, consider attending some of the other activities that will be running concurrently.

Food & Beverage

Attendee Meals

  • Meals are only for Attendees with badges (this includes Attendees, Speakers, and Sponsors with full badges).
  • All attendee meals will be served in the Kilimanjaro Ballroom.
  • Breakfast and Lunch will be provided for Attendees with badges (this includes Attendees, Speakers, and Sponsors with full badges).
  • An attendee dinner is included on Tuesday night. However, there is no dinner on Wednesday, so you have from 5pm – 8pm on Wednesday on your own. There are several restaurants in the Kalahari, and many in the surrounding area.
  • Special Meals: If you indicated that you need a special meal when registering your ticket, pick it up in the main dining hall. The location is to the far left, by the buffet lines, if you are facing the stage. Please check in each day at the window. If the buffet food meets your needs, you are welcome to get food from there as well.

Coffee, Sodas, and Snacks

  • Coffee is available all day, but not in the hall during meals. During meals, Coffee is moved to the dining room. 
  • Snack stations will be open throughout the day, and will have a variety of healthy and less healthy snacks and beverages. You will be able to redeem your “snack and soda” tickets on your badge at these stations. Pro-Tip: Use it or lose it- snack tickets can only be redeemed on the day listed.
  • Snack stations are in the Zambezi booth and next to Marrakesh. Coffee will be in the regular hallway spots (outside suite 6), and outside the Atrium.

Other Activities running during the Pre-Compilers

  • Many non-session activities are also running concurrently with Pre-Compiler content.
  • 3d Printing and Artemis/Laser Tag: 3d Printing will be held in the CodeMash Maker Space (in the past, we also referred to it as the “Factory”), which is located in the Executive Center and specifically, in the Guava and Tamarind Rooms. Tickets are not required for 3d printing (just show up), but tickets will be required for Artemis/Laser Tag. Tickets will be available on Eventbrite (the same link used to buy tickets for CodeMash).
  • Artemis/Laser will be running in Salon C&F (just remember: Captain Firk).
  • Boardgames will be held in Salon B&G (as in BoardGames).
  • The CodeMash Maker Space will start on Tuesday afternoon and will be held in the Empress board room. Stop by and meet with other makers, or get a ticket for a project on EventBrite. Some projects are free. Other projects are paid, but you get to keep what you make. Learn more here.
  • Build a Pinewood Derby Car. More info here.
  • The CodeMash Capture the Flag will be underway throughout the week (do at your own pace).

KidzMash

  • KidzMash is open to families of attendees, as well as attendees. Read all about it here.
  • KidzMash registration will be during the same hours as regular attendee registration, but is located by the Disapproving Gorilla at the base of the grand staircase to the hotel, near the Acacia room.
  • KidzMash sessions are listed along with the Session Schedule. They are held in the rooms that are closest to the hotel portion of the Kalahari (near the large stair case): Ironwood, Crown Palm, Acacia, and Banyan.
  • New in 2019: KidzMash Divez. These are two hour sessions, for older kidz (ages 12+). We still also have the one hour KidzMash Sessionz for kidz of all ages.

Sponsors

  • We couldn’t make CodeMash happen without our sponsors. They help underwrite many of our costs.
  • This year, there are a few Pre-Compiler sponsors: Jumpstart, Inc. and M&T Bank. Please stop by and say hello, and thank them for sponsoring the Pre-Compilers.
  • Main Conference Sponsors will be setting up on Wednesday afternoon, and they will be staffing booths starting on Thursday morning.
  • Check out the official sponsor listing here.

Evening Festivities

  • Tuesday night: Dinner will be from 6-7:30pm.
  • Wednesday night starting at 7pm: Corey Haines will be hosting the infamous Lightning Talks! These are a series of (usually) really interesting talks, all of which are only 6 minutes each!
  • Wednesday night starting at 8pm: the Welcome Reception is in and around Marrakesh (the bar/restaurant area in the Convention Center). It will sprawl into the hallway as well.
  • During the Welcome Reception, we also have a band lined up! Front Country will be rockin’ the house! Check them out here.

Special Accommodations 

  • Don’t want to wear your coat around all day? No problem, we offer a coat check, located between the conference center door and Aloeswood.
  • If you would like to have a quiet time/prayer room, come to Orange Registration and request a key. The room is located in Hospitality Suite 2.
  • Kalahari provides a mother’s room, which is located near Suite 2. Please request a key at Orange Registration.

All Gender Restroom Options

  • Because we want everyone to have a safe and comfortable CodeMash, we wanted to let you know that this year we will have two all-gender restroom options.
  • Between Indigo Bay and the registration booth, located centrally on the conference floor, we’ll have a pair of all-gender, multi-occupancy restrooms.  All-gender restrooms are just that—they’re available for anyone who just needs to go, regardless of their gender.
  • We’ll also have a discreet single-occupancy all-gender/family restroom located near the Speaker Lounge.
  • All other restrooms within the venue will be the usual men’s/women’s restrooms as marked.
  • Of course, we encourage you to always use the restroom that makes you feel the most comfortable.
  • Thank you in advance for abiding by the Code of Conduct and respecting your fellow attendees. After all, we’re all drinking the coffee. It has to go somewhere.

Whew, is that all?

  • We’ve got most of it covered, but there are other things going on we might have forgotten to mention.
  • Be sure to stay tuned to our major comms channels (Twitter, Slack)!