Where to pick up pre-paid badges?

[jeddhor]

I bought my badge online this year; my question is, do I have to still stand in LineCon to pick up the badge, or is there a special (significantly faster) place to go?

[number6]

I bought my badge online this year; my question is, do I have to still stand in LineCon to pick up the badge, or is there a special (significantly faster) place to go?

When you examine the details of the online badge purchase, details are provided:
URL1=https://shop.defcon.org/products/def...tration-ticket

DEF CON is a cash-at-the-door kind of conference. Paying in cash helps protect your privacy, and search warrants can't vacuum up PII we don't collect. You will always be able to lay down US dollars in the reg line.

Still, the experience of DC29 taught us a few things. Some of our attendees work DEF CON into their business travel schedule, and the option to pre-reg with a credit card over the web made things much easier for them. Some of our attendees need to manage a group purchase, or want a more detailed receipt.
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For everyone who fits into those categories, we’re happy to announce that we’re keeping the option of online registration. You’ll be able to use shop.defcon.org to buy your ticket and get your receipt. We hope the online option makes the process more streamlined for those who need it. We thank people for their patience and feedback as we navigate the changing landscape.

The price for DEF CON 30 is $360, with a processing fee of $9.66 added to online orders.

Tickets are transferable. The fee to cancel a ticket until July 15th 2022 is $34.66.

The fee to cancel after July 15th is $84.66.

MAKE SURE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IS CURRENT. We cannot change it after the ticket is sent.

Pre-registration does guarantee you'll receive a DEF CON 30 Human badge when redeeming your ticket in Las Vegas.

Fine print: Currently we cannot provide beachballs and pizza to the online purchasing experience. For that, you’re gonna need LineCon.

The online purchase is for pre-registration.
What you get when you order online is a piece of paper with a code to be redeemed for a physical badge at DEF CON.
This line from the item description explains that:

Pre-registration does guarantee you'll receive a DEF CON 30 Human badge when redeeming your ticket in Las Vegas.

If I were to guess, there will probably be 2 lines:
1) For people that did not buy a badge online, seeking to pay cash to avoid a paper trail for more privacy
2) For people that wanted convenience of an online transaction to buy a token with a code they want to provide and redeem for an actual DEF CON badge

Assuming this is true, there would be some kind of line for getting a badge either way.

As for where to redeem your online token/code for a badge? as we get closer to DEF CON, you should be able to visit the main site and find the collection of pages for DEF CON 30 should include links to download "DEF CON 30 Maps" either as a single download, or several. The maps should indicate where badges are sold/picked up.

URL1=https://defcon.org/html/defcon-30/dc-30-venue.html
At the end, as of July 4, 2022:

...
Stay tuned for Maps of the Convention Spaces!

I'd expect to find maps which show where to buy badges or redeem codes to pickup badges mentioned on that page. Once you are onsite, there should be signage and/or people directing would-be attendees into which line to use for either redeeming a code or paying cash for a badge. It is also possible there will be one or more info-booth available to ask, in case you are unable to find the line(s). If you can't find it on the website, or maps, or on-site wandering around, locate a goon on-site and ask them. They may not have the answer, but they might be able to refer/direct you to a goon which has answers or where to find an Info Booth. (There can be a great deal of specialization at DEF CON with goons from different departments specialized in different things. A goon busy with one task may not have the latest information that an Info Booth goon has. A Goon directing you to another goon isn't trying to be mean, but to avoid giving outdated or incorrect information.) Goons usually have "goon badges" (which are often red and differ from "human" badges) and goons on-duty usually are wearing a "DEF CON Goon" shirt for the occasion. In this case, a "DEF CON Goon" shirt for "DEF CON 30" in 2022.

There should eventually be a calendar showing when badge-sales or code-redemption would start. This may appear in one of a few places. Somewhere in the DEF CON 30 pages on the main site or, on the https://info.defcon.org/ page which historically includes a schedule of many official and unofficial contests, events, villages, parties, workshops, paid-training, social-gathering and more.

HTH