[Haifux] Where were the organizers?

[Orr Dunkelman]

As Orna had already pointed out there is usually someone there to take
care of stuff, and once in a while there isn't.

It is not the presenter's fault (and if this was implied than this was
a problem), but as I've written earlier - for future reference, ask
Moti, or call one of us. Specifically, this time it was a mess due to
unfortunate personal circumstances.

As for your email Nadav, I strongly disagree.

On Fri, May 21, 2010 at 9:15 AM, Nadav Har'El <nyh at math.technion.ac.il> wrote:

> Just as an example, when I gave my Hspell presentation a couple of months
> ago, I had a few moments of worry. First, the fascists at the gate didn't
> let me in - apparently they didn't get the fax that was suppsosed to have
> been sent by someone in Haifux.

While I do not like the security at the entrance to the Technion, and
find them annoying, they are far from fascists. Due to many reasons,
there is an access control at the Technion (not only due to security
reasons, btw), and the fact that someone tries to enforce this, does
not make him (or her) into a fascist.

Yes, the policy sucks, but please blame the responsible people for
that (namely, Kabat Hatechnion, Israeli Police, and some parts of the
Chamas, as well as thieves).

> Please remember that some (?) of the Haifux presenters haven't been in that
> lecture room in years. Some of them haven't been in the Technion in years -
> if at all. How exactly do you expect them to manage on their own??

Usually there is at least one person who knows who to talk to or knows
Orna/Eli/My cell phones. We also try to communicate with the lecturer
before hand, if neither of us has his phone number (so we could call
the lecturer).

> That projector isn't exactly national security... What would it hurt to
> duplicate the key and give it to many Haifux regulars?
Yes. It would.

These are the regulations of the CS department at the technion that
allows us the use of its facility.

If you find a better location in Haifa - we can consider moving there,
but until then, they are our hosts, and as such, we follow their
regulations, to the latter.

> How difficult is it to have a smoother car-permit process?

In the Technion - terribly. This affects not only lecturers at haifux
(which again a "donation" of the CS department), but also real issues
within the technion (try to be a girl being dropped off at night at
the gate, 'coz the security guard refuses your companion to give you a
ride to your dorms). For sake of fairness, there used to be some
mechanisms in the past to bend slightly the rules, but they all had
their own downsides.

Just to put you at "ease", even I, as a lecturer of a course at the
Technion, and an advisor of a masters student at the Technion has to
suffer the stupid regulations.

> Blaming the presenters on not taking care of these things is a bit silly, I think.
The only point I agree with.

> In the real world, when I present in a conference, or invited to a meeting,
> or whatever, all I have to do is show up on time, with whatever I was asked
> to bring in advance. I don't have to verify in advance (how can I?) that
> the other side's meeting room will be open, or that the projector I was
> told in advance that they have wouldn't be locked. If I'm told I can come
> with my car, I expect that to be true, and again, don't need to "verify" that
> this is indeed true.

Please recall that we are hosted at the Technion, not a "real part of
the Technion".
And yes, as the person who gets the free horse, you need to check the teeth.


Orr.

-- 
Orr Dunkelman,
Orr.Dunkelman at gmail.com

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