My first time attending DefCon this year and overall my feelings towards it are/were: meh. This is just my take and opinion. tl;dr at the bottom.

Now I know there are different ways to do DefCon from what I’ve seen, and there’s always going to be pluses and minuses. Its a great place to meet people you don’t usually get a chance to as well as meet new people and network, to make friends, and learn about various things that interest you. Which is what I think these conventions are mainly about. Also I did have to pay for this out of pocket as my company was only able to accommodate my ticket, but nothing past that.

Expenses - DefCon itself, the price is pretty OK, but Vegas itself, was not. Hotels, even with the DefCon block code was a fair chunk. Food was almost mind blowing, whether I was inside the hotel, went down the strip, or any form of fast food, it was all a fair bit. We rode the monorail to most places as we got the pass and could ride it unlimited times a day. Food at the LVCC was too much as well. Most other conventions I’ve been to have given at least a food voucher to get one meal during the day. My hotel didn’t have a microwave to take back any leftovers, but I’m sure that’s just by design to get you to spend more. You could take a taxi/uber around to other places but obviously that can also be a bit depending how much you use it. But obviously that can be a small bit as well to uber to/from places where to eat some place “cheap” the price difference was minimal. If I didn’t have to worry so much about being able to eat, I would have been able to buy a few more things or even attend some of the workshops that required preregistration.

Linecon - just insane. I understand this is their first time at the convention center and this is a very large and well-known con with people coming from all over, but to stand in line for hours to get your badge(which obviously is required), then add more hours if you want any official merch. Its no wonder they have nothing going on day 1 because everyone is in line literally all day. If someone bought their ticket online, why not let them buy merch online and have it all together when you get your badge. I understand standing is line for some is part of the experience, and its a fantastic way to network and meet people but that still shouldn’t be the way to go about it by standing in line all day on Day 1. If you have any form of knee/back/leg/etc issues, you’re gonna be in for a bad time as it’s standing 98% of the time.

Villages - Some villages were nice, approachable, would talk and interact, while others, there was little to no interaction and just told to go sit down on the area and meet people. Eg. Hardware Hacking Village. I’m new to soldering, so I was looking for someone who could help me learn and understand. When I got there, the people behind the table basically said to go sit down and see if someone is willing to help but a lot of them were also new. I was fortunate enough to talk to someone on Reddit prior to the con who was willing to help and teach me. Other villages had minor interaction and conversation. A very large number of villages had CTFs going on, which is great as it can give people a way to learn and talk to others for help. I did not jump in on some of these and I do regret it a bit but that part is on me.

Vendors - Day 2 when they opened the villages and Vendors was chaos. Some areas it was a struggle to even walk through, let alone get TO the vendor to buy things. I’m sure this is due to people wanting to get things as quick as possible before they sold out, which I understand, but just very packed and hectic. Was looking forward to meeting some people who I’ve known online that were helping at the vendors but they were so packed it was a very quick “Hi, bye, move along” area. Going back on Day 3 and 4(before they closed off all the villages and vendors for them to pack up and get ready for closing ceremonies) it was less crowded but still mostly packed. Some people behind the table were mostly marketing and wasn’t able to get good conversations about their products rather “I’m just the information hand out person”. They were set up primarily for sales, nothing else ($90 T-shirt).

Groups - The groups were pretty awesome actually. If it was your first time or just coming alone you could go into the Lonely Hackers group to network and meet people. There was some others in there that didn’t really have a name but was still very cool getting to hang out and network with people while playing Quake 3 on a LAN connection. Other groups were just smaller awesome hangout spots.

Talks - There was A LOT of talks, as expected, and finding them through the Hacker Tracker app was a lot to sift through and read. Some of the talks I went to were very meh, rushed through all of it and were VERY technical which is kind of off putting to me but that will also depend on an individuals opinion on that. Others were great and had nice demos, the chance to ask questions, etc. The talks on “TRACK 1 TO THE LEFT!! 2, 3, AND FOOOOUR TO THE RIGHT!!”, was mildly difficult to hear in some cases with it being in a very large open room and other talks going on in a relatively close proximity. Some speakers still made it clear and easy to understand while others, not so much.

Workshops/Trainings - I didn’t get to attend any workshops but they were either sold out or I couldn’t afford them as I had already had to pay out of pocket.

Parties - Most the parties in the convention hall were fine. Good music, good people, just not a great way to network and communicate as most people sat around not really talking or were looking to talk. I attended GothCon which was cool, that was one I was able to talk and network a little bit but if you didn’t already know someone, some people there had no interest in talking to you (Also, some people don’t know how to read a room.. In a room of everyone standing, dancing to music, and talking, why come in at a table full of people, and just setup shop with your laptop and all your accessories taking up a fair bit of table space and not talk to anyone..?). The after parties; this is a pain point for most cons I go to. I have no idea where they are, no idea where they get posted or anything. I heard of one but it was very late and almost finished by time I heard anything about it. I am honestly lost on how people hear about it or find out about them.

Goons - I’ve heard some “horror stories” about goons, thankfully I don’t have any. Most I talked to were very helpful and talkative. There were a small handful that were just assholes and clearly power hungry but I didn’t bother with them as I had no need to, but seeing how they were with others in line and such just gave me a bad taste in my mouth about that individual goon.

The heat - I understand its a desert, in the middle of summer, but fuck the heat in Vegas. I have no issues with showering but having to shower 3-4 times a day just from being outside for 10-15m is a bit ridiculous to me.

tl;dr: It’s a good con to go to if you can get your employer or someone to pay for, but paying out of pocket isn’t something I would recommend. Great place to meet up and network with people, learn some things.