I’ve been so fortunate over the nearly ten years that I’ve worked with Drupal to attend eight of the last DrupalCons. That’s every one in person since Denver in 2012.
I’m incredibly sad that we had to change to a remote format this year, but am 100% behind the decision and as always, thank the Drupal Association and the countless number of folks working hard to put on the event. I can’t imagine the shadow that would hang over the event if it was in person and cannot imagine the impact even one case of Covid might have on our community (and statistically, we know it would be more than one).
Instead of dwelling on the present situation though, I wanted to dig a bit into some of these past cons and share some of my experiences. More, I wanted to encourage folks who may be newer to the community (or even brand new to DrupalCon in this virtual world) that this IS a community worth investing in, there are people out there that will welcome you with open arms, and I hope that one day you have the same chance that I do to look back with fond memories of DrupalCons and other camp meetups.
The People
My first several DrupalCons were a humbling experience, to say the least (especially that first, in Denver). I didn’t know anyone. I was the only person from my organization to attend. I hadn’t been to a “big” tech conference before. It was definitely a learning experience.
Perhaps the thing that confused me so much, then, was everyone everywhere talked about how much the people in the community at these events meant to them. They were so excited to see people at the conference they hadn’t seen in a long time, to work together, etc. I just couldn’t understand (then) how that could be. There were thousands of smart people all talking about cool things and I didn’t know any of them. Then, I attended my first Birds of a Feather (BOF).
At the time, I worked at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Washington State. I didn’t really know what I was in for, but I attended the Drupal4Gov BOF in Denver. Fast forward 8 years and I’m the tech lead for Drupal GovCon and a regular participant in Drupal4Gov events. Many of my closest friends in the Drupal community are a part of this group. We slack and text throughout the year. We hang out at conferences. It took a few years of actively participating in the BOFs and other meetups at DrupalCon to get to know them and participate, but it was well worth it!
I strongly recommend looking for smaller group settings at these conferences where you can actually meet people who have similar interests to yours. If you can identify a camp to get involved with, so much the better! For my, GovCon was my real entry into the the Drupal Community and I’m so thankful for the folks in that group for welcoming me with open arms. It wasn’t a “local” camp (in fact, it was about as far away from where I live as possible given my west coast location) but that has hardly stopped them or me. The only real drawback is I miss a lot of their regular in-person meet ups.
Now that I work at a company that is so specialized in Drupal, DrupalCon also gives me an opportunity to see colleagues and friends from work that I rarely get to see in person. Even if you’re not working at a “Drupal company” if you can convince your employer to send more than one of you, it makes things that much more comfortable. You can split up which sessions you attend in person, you have someone to talk to at events, etc. After that first conference in Denver at least one or two other folks from PNNL went to the conference with me (and it was awesome)!
The content
You may not realize this, but you don’t have to actually attend DrupalCon to take advantage of the content presented there. Of course, it’s better in person! But so much of the conference for me is about networking and doing things in person, I often skip sessions entirely and watch them online.
For instance, here’s every session and keynote from DrupalCon Seattle in 2019. Available for free you YouTube (see the 1/159 icon in the top right to access other videos).
The material I’ve seen presented at DrupalCon is some of the coolest application(s) of Drupal I’ve seen in my tenure. It’s well worth revisiting!
I’ll also say that even though I’ve been fortunate enough to present at three DrupalCons (2017: Baltimore, 2018: Nashville, and 2019: Seattle) I have tried to get a talk in basically every other year (including 2020) and didn’t. That’s alright! I think speaking at the con is super cool, but it isn’t a deal breaker to not attend.
Final Thoughts
Since that first conference in 2012 I have been to many other tech conferences. There’s definitely something special about the energy at DrupalCon. It’s one of my favorite weeks out of the year and I hope that 2021 will bring the community another opportunity to come together and celebrate in person.
Related Content
Here’s my 2020 schedule for Acquia Engage!