NotaCon

[Deviant Ollam]

Well, I recently got back from my first NotaCon... and I have to say that it's immediately on the list of "events that kick ass which I'm never going to miss again." It's still a very small conference (who the hell really wants to go to Cleveland voluntarily?) but it's starting to really grow this year and attract some great people.

We ran Gringo Warrior in the lockpicking room and everyone had a blast. Heh... and with the help of Heidi potter and a few ShmooBalls there were some changes made to the game...

That, plus all the really great artwork and music elements, was more than enough reason to attend. When you factor in the insanely outrageous parties along with RoofCon...

... it was really worth it. It's actually terrific having one small con like this in an out-of-the-way city at a place like the Holiday Inn. It keeps the costs and hassle down a lot. It was really inexpensive to attend, and when you have hotel staff knocking on doors saying things like "Look... is there anything you can do with the windows or the bathroom fan to keep some of the pot smoke out of the hallway?" one is almost reminded of DefCons way back in the day at dirtbag hotels when it was just a tight group of good friends and smart people.

[streaker69]

Re: NotaCon

Why does the guard appear to have breastiges this time?

[Thorn]

Re: NotaCon

Why does the guard appear to have breastiges this time?

The hormones for the sex change have started working.

[Xodia]

Re: NotaCon

NotaCon was awesome when I went two cons ago. It sucks I had to miss it this year. There isn't a ton to do in the area, but there is a great mix of people there.
Did they give numbers for attendance? I'd be interested to hear how many people were there. My drunk dial from the Cinci2600 folks didn't really explain alot.

[valanx]

Re: NotaCon

They said about 350 people I believe. Quite a few ended up in the Lockpick Pagoda and kept at it until the wee hours. I didn't have a chance to leave much but everyone had a good time from what I did see.

Thanks to Deviant for coming out!

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: NotaCon

Quite a few ended up in the Lockpick Pagoda

yeah, i'll be the first to admit that Shane and Dosman fucking took me to school when it comes to flare and panache in setting up public lock boards...

those black slats are all modular. they break down and can be swapped around between pagodas. the small eye bolts that hold padlocks on the side edges anchor the black boards in place. everything was cut and sanded, stained and sealed to perfection. absolutely fucking primo work.

[valanx]

Re: NotaCon

Thanks!

We are already talking about designs for our next project. Ark of the Covenant 2.0 may end up taking us until Notacon 6, but it will be worth the wait.

Our only casualty was the Mr. T poster.

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: NotaCon

We are already talking about designs for our next project.

this is where i have to reveal my horrid ignorance and disconnect between name, nicks, and faces. were you one of the folk i met at the village at NotaCon? Dosman with another nick? Shane, perhaps?

[valanx]

Re: NotaCon

Shane, perhaps?

Sorry, its Shane.

The design idea for those walls started back at Defcon last year when I was up in the village. I thought that if something broke or needed to be altered it would be easier to have the panel removable than to have to get in there while everyone was working on the other locks. Once I moved and met up with dosman, the design portions matured and were realized. That roof was a pain, mainly because of the lack of tools and partially because I have no idea what I'm doing most of the time. But it ended up coming together pretty well and I will post some of the photos I have later. Next time, I'll document the work a little more.

While the walls don't fit into boxes like Gringo Warrior, they do break down enough to fit into my trunk and back seat.

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: NotaCon

Sorry, its Shane.

ah, alright man. kickass. sorry to spill the beans on your clark kent identity here on the forums, heh. ah well, you tend to be more public about it than me.

I was up in the village. I thought that if something broke or needed to be altered it would be easier to have the panel removable than to have to get in there while everyone was working on the other locks.

yeah, your design is fucking fantastic. if there was any way to get it out to DefCon i'd love to see the pagoda setup in the village. maybe we need to speak with anyone who is driving from the east coast or look into crazy cheap ground shipping options. You know that large wooden artillery cannon crate that i had sitting on the Gringo Warrior course? I have more of them. I'd be willing to bet that you could pack almost an entire pagoda or two into a crate like that. I don't even want to imagine what shipping would cost there, however. Then again, if you were willing to sacrifice one checked bag... i bet you could get the whole thing close to 50 lbs. and fly with it, hehehe.

Once I moved and met up with dosman, the design portions matured and were realized.

ah, you're both in the same area... i didn't know that. where abouts are you located? (you can PM me that response if you prefer) you'd be welcome to join the east coast TOOOL people at group meetings or group shooting events that our friends all organize.

That roof was a pain, mainly because of the lack of tools and partially because I have no idea what I'm doing most of the time. But it ended up coming together pretty well

well, it wound up looking great, man. terrific work.

[valanx]

Re: NotaCon

I've checked shipping rates, they may be doable unless these weigh a lot more than I'm thinking. Broken down I can get two full walls into a 48x13x14 setup.

Do you need extra panels? I don't know how much got beat on to the point of needing repair last year, but if that pick rapist that was at notacon shows up I may need to bring three extra walls.

[Samurai Drifter]

Re: NotaCon

Sounds awesome, had I a) been able to make it to Cleveland and b) not been at my local anime convention that weekend, I definitely would have tried to go.

But, then, there's always next year. One con a year is never enough.

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: NotaCon

I've checked shipping rates, they may be doable

don't kill yourself over it... i mean, there will be lots of local equipment i think. but if there's a way to get things out there that doesn't break the bank, well... it would just make the room look so fucking badass!

if that pick rapist that was at notacon shows up I may need to bring three extra walls.

heh... yeah, Shitadel... if he turns up i think the replacement walls will only be necessary if we knock some stuff over in the process of throwing him out of the room.

[Miss Jackalope]

Re: Shipping

Not sure where you were looking at shipping:
FedEx ground is cheaper then UPS after about 17lbs. Then it goes to about a $1 a lb. Not sure if you were checking regular freight rates or ? Not sure how much they tack on for size of items as well though.

.02

[valanx]

Re: NotaCon

[QUOTE=Deviant Ollam;93871]don't kill yourself over it... i mean, there will be lots of local equipment i think. but if there's a way to get things out there that doesn't break the bank, well... it would just make the room look so fucking badass!

I'm sure there will be plenty of local stuff, it isn't going to require me to put a kidney in hock or anything, I just need to get a box (or build one) that will fit this stuff. The only ammo box that would do would maybe be a stinger missile case, and I'm pretty sure someone would stop me at the door were I carrying that around.