Hello again. The PASS Organization has once more allowed me to sit at the bloggers table for the key note. I’ll be posting updates as the information unfolds.

[8:06] The crowd is filling in. this looks like one of the biggest crowds I’ve ever seen at the summit. The organizers have done a great job so far. Thanks for all the hard work guys.

[8:10] SQUEEEEE! I just met Dr. David Dewitt and got a picture with him. I’ll post it after I get home and find the cable.

[8:22] Watching the videos of different people on the big screen talking about what they like about the PASS Summit is really cool.

[8:26] Rushahb Mehta is introducing the board and the Partners of the PASS board. We now have a new additional structure which is three people from different regions of the world, Rob Farley Raoul Illyes and James Rowland-Jones.

[8:28] The organization is up to 430k training hours this year if you count up all the various ways the organization reaches out to people through the Summit, 24 Hours of PASS, Rally, Virtual Chapters, SQL Saturday and the PASS Chapters. The organization really has grown a lot. Plus, they’re working with SQLBits and SQL Relay in the UK.

[8:32] They have a bunch of the bloggers and twitterers up on the screen. Nice to see everyone. It’s also nice to say that I know most of them and I’m friends with most of them. This is an amazing community.

[8:36] The different ways that we have for networking are excellent. The First Timers method for introducing people to each other has really taken off from last year. Then there are all the receptions and the Women in Technology lunch. There are just some great ways to make connections within this community and those connections really will help you in your job and your live.

[8:41] Yes, please visit the vendors and thank them, even if you don’t buy anything. And fill out your eval forms, it’s the one give you can give back to your speaker. If they did something wrong, let them know what it was. If you didn’t like their presentation, let them know why.

[8:42] Key note speaker is Ted Kummert from Microsoft. His topic is The New World of Data