From a great article: How to get the most out of conferences - UIWEB.COM

"Posters: Some conferences have poster areas, where professionals or students put together summaries of their work for people to look at. This can often be a lot of fun. ... Sometimes there are scheduled times where the posters are manned, so you can ask questions of the people that did the work. This can be great fun. Don't be shy: usually they're thrilled that anyone is looking at their stuff, much less asking questions. "

My husband is a research scientist, and things begin what they are, I've wandered around a few of his conferences. Science conferences pretty much always have poster sessions, and I saw what a really terrific icebreaker they were for strangers to start conversations.

We did it last year at the IA summit, and we're doing it this year. If you are attending, take advantage of this to both meet folks and learn what they are doing....

Anyhow, I'll be around. This is what I look like, feel free to come introduce yourself. If we meet saturday night at the bar, make me drink water... I don't know how I'll make those 8:30 sessions.

Potential conversation starters --
"Is food really that much better in France?"
"Have you ever eaten tongue?"
"Don't you think you are a bit silly in differentiating rules and guidelines"
"Do you secretly hate Jakob?"
"Are you double jointed/Explain your scars"
"What's your favorite greek island"
"Why is Wurman relevant?"

Potential conversation enders
"Why did you choose the name Asilomar?"
"What's up with Yahoo mail?"
"What's up with this Bush guy" (for non-americans)
"What's going on with Yahoo! Search?" (I'll have to just look coy, due to NDA)
"I like your book" (I'll blush and not know what to say-- better to insult or question it. ;-)
Mention Google.

Looking forward to seeing/meeting you all!!!!

Persuasive Technology is in turns fascinating and sinister.
This book is a must for any designer working in the technology field. B.J. Fogg is clearly a upright fellow, yet the techniques he offers to persuade desired behavior are so clearly articulated that it is easy to see how they will be used for unethical ends.

Stanford professor Fogg lists many positive uses for these techniques, such as educating teens about domestic violence, or teaching diabetics to monitor their blood sugar levels, or getting RSI sufferers to stretch-- yet it's no effort to image the dark side. A later chapter on ethics does just that, showing his student's experiments in designing unethical tools, such a Pokémon game that coaxes personal information out of children and persuades them to bug their parents for toys.

That said, ignorance is not an option. We need to understand these methods, as designers and as users. I had never seen Amazon' Gold Box as more than a very silly bit of foolishness.. now I understand it for the highly crafted and effective sales tool it is.

Even if persuasion turns you off, you need this book for chapter 7, on web credibility. Check out the website for a taste. Design and information architecture are critical pieces in the struggle to differentiate a site from the vast number of personal sites and imitators sites... an increasingly difficult task for users.

When you finish this book, the hackles on your neck will rise, you'll feel lightly slimey-- but you will be a better designer and a smarter consumer.