Things I learned at CHI 2006 in Montreal

• In a small community such as HCI, everyone knows everyone. This is one of the biggest examples of how the world is getting so much smaller.
• Because I don\’t do txt msging regularly, I will always miss it when I receive one
• Girls in their teens need privacy. Both uk and the Us. Obviously.
• Don\’t lose your program the first day. Although if you do, make sure you find someone you know in every session to ask to borrow it.
• As a citizen of Montreal, you are required to go to a French-speaking school if one of the parents are French. Otherwise, English. English is perceived as more useful for worldly jobs.
• Montreal music is great – listen to Plants+Animals and Orilla Opry
• Andrew Rose is still so awesome
• Have a lot of business cards available (as well as resumes)
• Ever thought about working for the department of defense? Think so now!
• Intimacy between two lovers can be established through the use of slippers!
• If none of the authors can make it to the conference for their paper presentation, they can always ask the primary author\’s fiancee even if she was never involved in the work. And it will be a great talk.
• Gotta have a plan B if any technical problems arise
• Scott McCloud knows comics. And pretty much that.
• We all know that Georgia Tech pulled that fire alarm because they wanted to shift people from the Hyatt to the Fairmount. Right? Right.
• Universities such as UToronto can hold (college-style) parties in a hotel room
• If you know someone who works in the company (and you can make a sad puppy dog face), you can always get into the party even if you\’re not on the list
• Interactive exhibits from Singapore are always so weird. Interactive chickens? Space invaders on the floor?
• In HCI, you can really research things you enjoy. Like studying the social dynamics of WoW. Playing mobile games. Or your own life.
• When asked a difficult question after a talk or at your poster, always answer \”Absolutely!\” or \”That\’s a great question!\”
• Security toolbars don\’t always prevent phishing attacks. They must be well-designed and unintrusive.
• the student design competition is still hard to figure out
• 2$ and 1$ coins are actually quite useful
• always crash the SV parties. because when you\’re in a room of graduate students, things can go crazy
• people will remember the girl with blue hair and roller blades
• i <3 coffee/tea breaks
• i also <3 flickr
• the best part of CHI is not the presented research, but always, always the people you meet and get to know