Even though I've learned a lot during my time with IDUG, there is still plenty that I have not learned or mastered yet. One of these things is packing and preparing for a conference (or any other kind of trip for that matter). For some reason, there is this huge amount of work that I always...
Last month I shared a few lessons I learned during my time volunteering with IDUG. Although I could fill a book with all the things I've learned as a volunteer, I'll highlight just a few more takeaways that I think could benefit everyone interested in volunteering with IDUG. After the...
The announcement of the new Board of Directors slate in the IDUG monthly newsletter reminds me that my presidential term is almost over. Although the past year has been challenging and demanding from time to time, it was a very valuable experience—as has been most of my service with IDUG. It's...
This is the note that comes with mixed feelings as it is the last one I write as IDUG’s president. It has been an extremely busy year that has absolutely flown by with much joy. I’m not saying that previous president’s that I talk to lied about how much work there would be, but let’s say they...
My first IDUG was in Amsterdam in 1998 (I think). I'd been encouraged by Phil Grainger to submit an abstract and was astounded when it got accepted. My first thread chair was Bjarne Nelson (no relative), and my presentation was entitled "Small Town DBA : DB2 for the Rest of Us". I recently...
IDUG’s EMEA DB2 Tech Conference Planning Committee building the grid for Barcelona. Building the best possible grid is a lot of work! There are hundreds of abstracts, hours of review, prioritization of the topics, assuring the best possible speakers and presentations, balancing the...