Next week I will be traveling to the Las Vegas Convention Center to attend InfoComm for the first time. You could say I'm feeling a little excited about this opportunity. I honestly can't wait to get on the floor, attend classes and keynotes, meet new people, see new technology, and get a feel for where the industry will be headed in the immediate future. I have not been to an AV related trade show since the Audio Engineering Society Conventions in 2006 and 2007 so I am eager to take in a good dose of AV technology.
If you can't make it to the show but you'd like to come along for the ride I'll be tweeting all week using the @AVShopTalk twitter account. Twitter is a great way to stay current with breaking tech news. Also try looking up the hashtags #InfoComm14, #AVselfie, #ProAV and #AVtweeps periodically during the week to see what topics are causing the biggest buzz.
I guess this trip could be described as a rite of passage for an AV professional like myself. Up until now I never had the opportunity to attend. I took an entry level installation tech position with HB Communications back in 2007. Being brand new to commercial AV and being low man on the totem pole I wasn't even aware of the InfoComm show back then, much less was I invited to attend on the companies dime. Seven years later, I am a system designer with Image Stream Medical and I am grateful to have this opportunity not only to attend the exhibition but also to continue my audio video education through taking some classes.
I'm scheduled to take 5 classes including the CTS-D Prep Class, Secure AV, Demystifying Ground Loops, AV Design in Healthcare and Designing with AVB. I'm going to feel like a college student all over again and it's going to be awesome. I guess that just shows how much of a geek I am. I have been wanting to get my CTS-D (Certified Technology Specialist - Design) for about 5 years now and this trip will essentially be the next logical step in my preparation to take the CTS-D exam.
There is a slight bitter sweet feeling to all this. In fact it ended up being a tough decision for me. Don't get me wrong, it was a very good day when my manager called me into his office and told me I was going to InfoComm. I was thrilled. The only down side was that one of my buddies was getting married that week and if I went to InfoComm14 I would miss his wedding. And then there's the whole Fathers Day thing. I will be missing that too. If anyone reading this has kids they'll understand that having a two year old daughter and not being around for fathers day is a major bummer. That's how it goes sometimes, however in the grand scheme of things I really can't complain. I believe this will be a worthwhile investment of time for me as an AV professional and that it will bring value to my company.
