Tag Archives: Comic Con

Solving Comic-Con Ticketing Issue (#SDCC)

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Today I was all primed and excited that San Diego Comic-Con registration was going to resume today, November 22nd, 2010 after their initial failure earlier. My excitement was derailed when I found myself endlessly trying to reload the registration page so that I could get both Scott and I registered for the event. As I sat thinking about what must be happening in the bowels of Comic-Con an idea struck me square between the eyes.

If the problem is with overloading then the solution is distribution. SDCC already has a good aggregate measure of population densities based on ZIP Codes. Create a flurry of virtual web servers to handle incoming registrations for bands of ZIP Codes, such as 00000-10000, 10001-20000, so on and so forth. Then on the main Comic-Con.org page have individual links so that we can sort ourselves, thereby spreading the incoming load amongst 10 different servers instead of just hitting one. This is a solution that I think will work and would make everyone happy.

Now if someone at Comic-Con would notice this and see that it might be a solution for them…

Comic Con Day 2 -San Diego

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I’m sitting in the Sails Pavilion after enjoying a spot of lunch, which was a few oatmeal cookies and two bananas washed down with some bottled water. So far ComicCon has been like it has been in years past, very very busy and lots of great reveals and sneak-peek screenings. My iPad gets recognized and doubly-so when people see me reading comic books on it. I’ve attended a very digital comic heavy convention so far and the industry has caught a whiff that they may be behind the herd when it comes to releasing digital comics. I laugh at this, because they are very behind the curve. They are trying to approach the situation as a kind of transmedia experience, that people want a rich experience with audio, animation, video, and links. It is my opinion that they are right on for 2001. As for 2010, this should have all been old hat and the next wave they should be preparing for is the collision of digital comics and social networking. How do you mix comic books, digg, Twitter, and facebook all together? That’s where the future lies, until the herd moves on into post-social networking.

Seeing people getting all ooh and ash over digital comics when I’ve been enjoying then since April gives me a strong feeling of chagrin, i’ve been there, done that. What is new for me? I suppose I have to make it up for myself to really get any kicks anymore.

ComicCon 2010 has several oddities worth noting:
– more energy spent arranging shuttle services has made the con much easier to get to
– housing botch was annoying and demonstrates the inanity of the housing system
– line management in the exhibit hall needs more work
– out of control spontaneous photography in the exhibit hall clogs flow, they need photo zones
– DC’s snarky and immature preparations for releasing their signing schedules demonstrates that they don’t take their fans as seriously as Marvel does. The schedule needs to be online, in iCal format, and published two weeks before the start of the con.
– Artists are a capricious lot. Artists Alley needs a cork board for contacting free-range artists. We want to shower you with cash, but we need to see you first!

Next up are a batch more panels and perhaps some irrelevant wandering in the exhibit hall. 🙂