It’s hard to believe it is conference season again. VMworld 2015 is only a month away (or less), and while VMware folks are gearing up to deliver the goods, you should also be getting ready in order to maximize your investment. Conferences are not just about the monetary investment, but also the personal time that we give up to travel across the country to acquire new knowledge.

This is my 6th or 7th VMworld this year (I lost count), so if VMworld 2015 will be your first one, you are in for a treat. I personally like the venue in San Francisco, not only is it familiar for returning attendees but also allows you to explore a great city. Did I mention they have really good breweries close by?!?!

In the United States, the venue will be the same, as I stated before, San Francisco Moscone Center. If you are registered, make sure you also register for the individual sessions. If you do not, you will have to wait outside and see if there is room available after the subscribed attendees have been seated.  Partner and TAM day are held on Sunday, so there is already a good amount of people at the conference center during that weekend. There is also a 5K fun run on Sunday Morning for charity. I participated last year and it was quite fun. More info here.

Last year vBrownBag hosted “Opening Acts” which were panel based discussions on many different topics. It is definitely worth your time. Follow vBrownBag on Twitter and visit Opening Acts 2015.

During the conference, there is a lot going on. Sessions from General sessions, deep dives, or just vendor based sessions are just some of many ways to acquire knowledge and professional connections. Make sure you network with other fellow geeks, you never know who you are going to meet, and often times it benefits you in different ways. Talk to the vendors. Yes, not just collect swag, but go talk to them. Many times I’ve been looking for a solution to a business requirements and my google search did not help, then I find out that one of the vendors has developed exactly what I’ve been looking for.

I hope to see many of you in San Francisco very soon…