How do conferences use social media?

One of my pet hates is when conference organisers set up social media sites - specifically Facebook and Twitter - for a conference and then don't follow through on the commitment during the conference. A library conference a few years ago did this, had 'Follow us on Facebook' and 'Follow us on Twitter' plastered all over the conference home page but when it came to the conference itself, absolute silence. As someone who couldn't attend that conference I was more than just a tad annoyed as I expected the conference organisers to take that commitment seriously and maintain the ongoing flow of communication. Not so.
Back in February this year I attended VALA in Melbourne and was struck by how well the social media, specifically the tweeting, was managed by conference organisers. Not only were organisers observed to be actively tweeting during sessions (from the conference identity) but responses to questions were prompt and agenda updates provided regularly. They showed how it could be done.
Just the other week I followed the ALIA Biennial 2012 conference from afar and was again impressed by the way conference organisers ensured that the conversations flourished on Twitter and Facebook throughout the conference. Not only was there direct engagement but they also made obvious use of scheduling tools like Hootsuite to manage programming details, share session papers, and so on.
This week I'm following another library conference and so far I've been quite disappointed by the lack of engagement from conference organisers on Twitter and Facebook. There appear to be a few photos going up on Facebook today (one lopsided) but next to no action on Twitter itself since yesterday and then only a handful of comments came through (indeed most of the tweeting seems to have occurred primarily pre-conference). The bulk of the tweeting is coming from participants at the conference and even that is reasonably sporadic, obviously the proportion of tweeters is significantly lower at this conference than at either VALA or ALIA2012. Which is a shame as I'd really like to know what's going on and if I can't discover that from the tweet stream than the whole thing becomes of little use to me and all I come away with is a sense of dissatisfaction and feeling that it could all be done so much better.
The moral of the story?  If you are going to promote social media streams at a conference then you must also accept the responsibility for ensuring that you maintain an ongoing outgoing and engaging dialogue with others via those streams.  If that means utilising a roster so that various staff can share the load, then do that.  If that means using other tools like Hootsuite to schedule tweets and/or posts than do that. Don't expect the social media stream to maintain itself, that's your job.

sigh, rant over...

Halo4

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I will be the first to admit that every one in my immediate family are Halo fans - big Halo fans. So learning the release date of Halo4  is a huge event in our calendar (06/11/2012).
What is it about this single game that can instigate a series of rivalries between family members as to who gets to play it first?  (Trust me guys, it will be me - I've had the darn game on pre-order for the last 6 months!!)
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Every element of the Halo franchise is an experience. It is this experience which brings you back time and again; playing and replaying; again and again and again.
I've spoken about Halo before, it combines elements of  role-play, first-person-shooter, epic scenery, haunting soundtrack, and a story-line with massive appeal (so massive that Greg Bear has since taken on the task of writing the Halo: Forerunner saga).
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The Halo series follows Master Chief in his epic battle against (and later with) the Covenant in, on, and around a massive space structure known as a 'halo' ('cause it's round ...). It also combines a couple of spin-off elements: Halo Wars (a real-time strategy game set prior to Halo1), Halo3 ODST (featuring the UNSC's Orbital Drop Shock Troopers), Halo Legends (a dvd featuring 7 stories form the heart of the Halo universe), and Halo: Reach (set directly prior to the events of Halo1). In 2011 a 10th anniversary edition of Halo: Combat Evolved (Halo1) was released making great use of new technologies for enhanced graphics and user experience.
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I really enjoy the Halo experience, but for me that experience steps outside the game itself into all the other experiential elements - eg, the books. Being able to read the surrounding stories when I'm not playing allows me to continue the experience and often hightens that experience because now my game-play benefits from a  whole range of back-story elements that other family members do not have (mainly 'cause I read a lot faster than them).
Given we'd already played the Halo series through  (at least twice) I finally got hold of a walk-thru which is now very well-thumbed as my family go back again and again and actually take the time to look for those extra elements they missed the first time. Their enjoyment (and experience) is enhanced as a result. It has also strengthened the cooperative play elements of the game (which is always good for siblings who would otherwise be seeking to wipe each other out) - working together they use the walk-thru with one spotting while the other reads and the third plays. They take turns. They cooperate. They learn.
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And then there's the Halo Encyclopaedia... yep, it's brilliant.  To quote from the publisher..."This is a must-have guide to the Halo universe. Humanity teeters on the brink of extinction, as hostile forces and ancient mysteries threaten to snuff out our first fiery foray into the universe. Take a trip into the world of Halo and discover everything you ever wanted to know about the characters, weapons, vehicles, equipment and locations from Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo Wars and Halo 3: ODST. From the Colonial Administration Authority to the UNSC, you'll find an overview of Halo's human history and structure and gain insight into key organizations. Discover all about the Covenant - its history and religion - as well as the Forerunners, Flood and much more. It's what Halo fans have been waiting for." — Dorling Kindersley

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Enough said really...

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Libraries could learn a lot from Halo - imagine walking into your local library and having the same experience* you get from immersing yourself in the Halo universe... I know my family would simply keep coming back for more. It's worth thinking about.

*By 'experience' I mean the rewards of the experience, the way a person 'feels' about that place and about what they have just done - not so much about the first-person-shooter and role-play elements or game-play itself (just so no one misunderstands me).

Read the latest GameInformer #29 for a more detailed synopsis of Halo4.