[Coco] CoCoFest (combined 8 bit?)

[farna at att.net]

I've been involved with AMC cars for a long time. There used to be five major clubs (now four) that usually didn't play well together. There was an occassional local show that two chapters nearby would cooperate on, but never a national show. Finally, the Kenosha Historical Society (AMCs werebuilt in Kenosha, WI) asked about getting a big turnout for an all AMC show in 1998. Someone told them the only way to get a truly big turn-out was to talk the clubs into having their national meetsall at the same place and time. The biggest club committed to the idea as long as the show field could be parceled off to segregate the clubs and the non-club cars that would show up. Once one club committed, the others didn't want to look like the stick in the mud that didn't support a "homecoming" event for their cars, so all attended and got along (one didn't have their national there, but did sponsor a regional). Now we have one of these every three to four years and it's a major event, tho
 ugh mo
st of the clubs just use it as a regional. Still, it's the only time to see over 1000 AMCs on a field together -- the biggest national club show only draw 200-300 cars at the most.

The point is, if you contact the other computer clubs with the idea of sharing a large show area, can segregate displays and vendors, and guarantee they will have the space they need, it should work. You need to start now for a show two years from now, and be flexible on where it will take place. Or plan the thing in Chicago and just talk to the groups in that area. I suggest you start there, and see if enough interest can be generated for an all 8-bit micro show. 

At this point I don't think it will take away from a CoCoFest. The fest is so small now that the costs for a nice hotel conference hall is getting high -- break even is the best the Chicago club can do. The CoCo might not be the largest displayer at an all 8-bit show, but it would be interesting to see what others are doing. Some of the hardware and such can be crossed over, and just maybe some vendors and/or programmers will get an interest in such. It would be nice for a CoCo programmer and say an Atari programmer to swap programs and cross port programs, and hardware makers to make minor mods to things like the Atari USB so it will work with the CoCo, and have a CoCo programmer write a driver. Everyone could win. 

--
Frank Swygert
Publisher, "American Motors Cars" 
Magazine (AMC)
For all AMC enthusiasts
http://farna.home.att.net/AMC.html
(free download available!)