The regional nature DatacenterDynamics conferences continues to be a strength of the groups events. I was reminded in particular of this phenomenon while visiting Washington, DC, last week. Speakers at the event brought a distinct Washington, DC, flavor to the panels and sessions. For instance, Richard Spires, CIO at the Department of Homeland Security, delivered the keynote. Other sessions included EPA personnel describing  Energy Star. Plus the 7x24Exchange's DC chapter  organized a panel called The Shape of Government Data Centers to Come.

This panel  included speakers from Power Loft, Freddie Mac, Geico, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  

Questions from the floor indicated that the many of the attendees did not have far to travel to get to the event. As a result, each DatacenterDynamics event has a different flavor and exposes new audiences to both national trends but also to regional factors influencing local firms and professionals. 

DatacenterDynamics does not really take the summer off, having had a large meeting as well on July 16th, but the pace of events does seem to increase with scheduled events in Chicago, St. Louis, Dallas, and Toronto this fall. I urge you to take advantage of the location-friendly nature of these events, either at one of these cities or at another location in 2011. 

I'm also planning to attend events sponsored by 7x24Exchange in Phoenix in November, Data Center World in Las Vegas, Tier1 in Washington, and Interop in New York City because these events will also include excellent panels, good networking, and hands on opportunities with products. 

Plus join me in supporting these groups; they and others provide the platforms on which we exchange information that help us solve our problems and resolve the big picture issues faced by the industry.