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Cocktails for programmers

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Re: Cocktails for programmers

#121

Post by teddyh »

jlgreco wrote: post #115
teddyh wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You are saying that conferences should not be like parties, because conferences are not like parties Not quite. What I am saying is that conferences and parties have different goals. The goal of a conference is to advance the field. The goal of a party is to have fun. The goal of a conference is not advanced by organizing a party, nor is the goal of a party advanced by organizing a conference. A conference can (and…

> The goal of a conference is to advance the field. The goal of a party is to have fun. The goal of a conference is not advanced by organizing a party, nor is the goal of a party advanced by organizing a conference. That is nothing more than your personal take on what a conference should be. The reality is that many conferences aren't like that. It is no skin off your back if other people have a different idea if wha…

I still think you see me through some kind of tinted shades which makes you think I am saying things I am not saying.

However, I have run out of ideas on how to explain myself in yet other ways.

EDIT: I think now that we are having a word definition debate here. When you say that “many conferences aren't like that“, then I would call those themed parties, not conferences.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#122

Post by teddyh »

untog wrote: post #120
teddyh wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These conferences are not supposed to be maximizing the "fun" factor for the attendees. The conferences are, first and foremost supposed to be useful for collaboration and networking in their stated field .

A lot of people network through socialising and, yes, drinking.

Yes. But if the socialising and drinking activities are not organized to be conducive to networking, then it's a party with no benefit to the goals of the conference.

See my comment here https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6376546 where I already agreed that “a conference can (and perhaps should) have many elements of a party in it”.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#124

Post by ibejoeb »

ddoolin wrote: post #114
ibejoeb wrote: post #112

Gotta chime in here because I do this professionally. This is why people don't like cocktails. These are seriously terrible. I wouldn't serve any of these, ever. I don't want to be overly negative here, but no number of pull requests will fix this. Rather than try to salvage these, I will offer take out anyone who's interested and introduce you to a bunch of the top folks in the food and drink biz. There's really not…

I disagree that "this" is why people don't like cocktails. That's a very broad statement, encompassing thousands of (existing) drinks that are great. I think it's more of a taste preference and has little to do with bad prior experiences. If said people are basing the totality of drinking cocktails based on their first go at it, there may be a bigger problem there.

Over here (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6374955) you say, "I never quite acquired a taste for more refined liquors."

Why not? I'm afraid you haven't had anything good. There's no reason you shouldn't like "more refined" (good) products if you like the bad ones. Also, it's not just the quality of the product. For instance, Jaegermeister is a quality product, but the drink he makes with it is arbitrary. Would you like a tomato, peanut butter, and mustard sandwich?

The offer stands. Take me up. I'll buy you a drink.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#125

Post by teddyh »

untog wrote: post #119
teddyh wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> you can't force people to sit down and talk nodejs with you if they want to drink instead. Apparently, if you give most technical conference attendees the option (and venue, drinks, transport, etc), they will opt for going drinking in environments not suited for conversation. If this happens, I interpret it as a failure of the conference organizers. Why? Because their job is to organize a conference , not a party.…

Conference attendees are still paying customers. Giving them what they want tends to result in repeat business.

An analogy might help: If people like more sugar in their food, and adding sugar to it increases sales, then what we ultimately will get is not food, but candy, labeled "Food".

Therefore, even giving paying customers what they not only ask for, but actually do want, might still not be a good idea.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#126

Post by jberryman »

ibejoeb wrote: post #124
ddoolin wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree that "this" is why people don't like cocktails. That's a very broad statement, encompassing thousands of (existing) drinks that are great. I think it's more of a taste preference and has little to do with bad prior experiences. If said people are basing the totality of drinking cocktails based on their first go at it, there may be a bigger problem there.

Over here ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6374955 ) you say, "I never quite acquired a taste for more refined liquors." Why not? I'm afraid you haven't had anything good. There's no reason you shouldn't like "more refined" (good) products if you like the bad ones. Also, it's not just the quality of the product. For instance, Jaegermeister is a quality product, but the drink he makes with it is arbitrary. Would…

Open-face peanut butter and tomato happens to be an excellent sand which, BTW :) requires a good tomato. Sprinkle with a tiny bit of garlic salt or chili powder.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#127

Post by jlgreco »

teddyh wrote: post #121
jlgreco wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The goal of a conference is to advance the field. The goal of a party is to have fun. The goal of a conference is not advanced by organizing a party, nor is the goal of a party advanced by organizing a conference. That is nothing more than your personal take on what a conference should be. The reality is that many conferences aren't like that. It is no skin off your back if other people have a different idea if wha…

I still think you see me through some kind of tinted shades which makes you think I am saying things I am not saying. However, I have run out of ideas on how to explain myself in yet other ways. EDIT: I think now that we are having a word definition debate here. When you say that “many conferences aren't like that“, then I would call those themed parties, not conferences.

You're saying that conferences should not place too much emphasis the party aspects, because that is not the purpose of a conference. Right?

Well I'm saying that I think that is too imposing.

It would be like me saying that bowling alleys should be careful not to place too much emphasis on drinking, because the purpose of a bowling alley is to compete with others at rolling a ball at things. Who am I to say that others shouldn't think that the purpose of bowling is to drink with friends while occasionally rolling a ball around? I shouldn't impose my idea of the purpose of bowling on other people.

I hope it is clear what I mean.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#128

Post by asdasf »

mtts wrote: post #116
mixmastamyk wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd suggest trying a better tequila.

There's no such thing. Tequila is nasty poor man's liquor, only made palatable to yuppy palates by insisting you can only enjoy it by inbibing in a taste bud numbing cocktail of salt and lime juice before you drink it. That said, I enjoy a good (=nasty) tequila every now and then. Just like I enjoy a good glass of paint thinner aka Moutai on occasion: give the ol' taste buds a little workout.

Is that supposed to be a poor attempt at satire or something?

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#129

Post by teddyh »

jlgreco wrote: post #127
teddyh wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I still think you see me through some kind of tinted shades which makes you think I am saying things I am not saying. However, I have run out of ideas on how to explain myself in yet other ways. EDIT: I think now that we are having a word definition debate here. When you say that “many conferences aren't like that“, then I would call those themed parties, not conferences.

You're saying that conferences should not place too much emphasis the party aspects, because that is not the purpose of a conference. Right? Well I'm saying that I think that is too imposing. It would be like me saying that bowling alleys should be careful not to place too much emphasis on drinking, because the purpose of a bowling alley is to compete with others at rolling a ball at things. Who am I to say that othe…

I think you are doing the same faulty comparison you made with board games in another comment. The purpose of all those activities (party, board games, bowling) is to have fun. I'm saying that the very definition of a conference is that it has a different goal. Conferences can (and should, by all means possible) be as fun as possible, but with the goal of the conference taking slight precedence.

Since having a party-like atmosphere will make people come to the conference, by all means conferences should have them. But one should keep in mind that the party-like atmosphere does not obscure or negate the purpose of the conference in the first place.

Re: Cocktails for programmers

#130

Post by reinhardt »

rfnslyr wrote: post #91
teddyh wrote: post #24

The title “Cocktails for programmers” gives me the same feeling as would the phrase “Leaf blowers for stamp collectors”. Yes, a stamp collector might use a leaf blower, but it would not be relevant to collecting stamps. On the contrary, using a leaf blower while collecting stamps would be… inadvisable.

I HATE FUN TOO LETS NOT HAVE FUN TOGETHER.

I had fun once. It was awful.
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