Hello Jack and other SAS-L Friends,

I've told key SAS personnel directly that I want those two hours of my life back. It was the worst opening session that I remember having sat through.

I might also add that the Mad Doggy loves a good sales pitch. However, I don't think that the opening session was effective even on that level.

IMHO, SAS does a good job of listening. I hope to see a shorter, more informative, and more entertaining opening session in Montreal.

- Michael "Mad Doggy" Davis

At 11:12 AM 4/28/2003 -0600, Jack Hamilton <JackHamilton@FIRSTHEALTH.COM> wrote: >There hasn't been much discussion on the list this year of the SUGI >opening session. Was it non-controversial, or has everyone given up on >it, or what? > >My take: > >- There was a lot of useful information which could have presented, but >it wasn't. In terms of getting a message across to a largely technical >audience, the session was not a success. I doubt if a non-technical, >managerial audience would have been impressed either. > >- The session took twice as long as advertised, and that was too long. >Too much skit, not enough information. > >- The entertainment, a magician, was impressive, but irrelevant, and in >some ways conveyed the wrong message. > >- Some of the objectionable elements of old opening sessions were gone, >so improvements have been made. > >I've heard from several people that SAS Institute doesn't exercise >much, if any, control over the content of the SUGI sessions, but that it >views the Opening Session as its opportunity to speak to SUGI attendees. > That's reasonable. I don't know how much SAS subsidizes SUGI, but it's >probably a good amount, and they deserve to get some attention for their >money. > >If you think of SUGI as being like a free weekend at a resort, and the >Opening Session as the two hour session with the time-share operator >that you have to sit through to get the weekend, then maybe the Opening >Session is more tolerable. > >Is there anything in particular that SAS-L readers would like to see in >the opening session that we're no longer seeing, or anything that >definitely ought to be dropped? Or is it just that they should do a >better job using the current format? > > > > >-- >JackHamilton@FirstHealth.com >Manager, Technical Development >Metrics Department, First Health >West Sacramento, California USA

Michael L. Davis Vice President Bassett Consulting Services, Inc. 10 Pleasant Drive North Haven CT 06473-3712 E-Mail: michael@bassettconsulting.com Web: http://www.bassettconsulting.com Telephone: 203-562-0640 Facsimile: 203-498-1414 Messages: 888-477-1412