When it comes to note taking, I’m a pen and paper kind of gal. I hail from the times when not every Jane, Sally, and Betty had a laptop. We had to rely on spiral notebooks and ball-point pens and we liked it!
However, I was unsure about taking my pen and paper to a technology conference. I mean, BlogHer 07 is the height of it, isn’t it? I wondered if I would look like a complete dork carrying my elementary school gig around instead of my laptop. So I succumbed to the pressure and packed up my computer bag with all the cables, cords, and peripherals I could manage and set off for registration.
It took me about ten minutes to realize I was going to have a permanent limp or hump because I had purchased the heaviest, most elephantine "laptop" known to mankind. The quotes are there for the obvious reason that the thing was no longer in that category as far as I was concerned. Antique Mommy was in the same boat since she rarely changes her technology (ask her about her cell phone sometime). We glanced at each other and agreed without speaking we would need to hoof it back to the hotel (or find the shuttle) and dump the laptops. At this point neither of us cared as much about being cool as we did about our aging bones.
For the rest of the two-day conference I carried pen and paper to each of my sessions. I sat at the back of the room so gear-heads could have the tables and outlets, but I got my notes all the same. I’d like to share them with you, because I’m nice like that.
I attended these sessions:
- Tax Information (for those of us thinking of making money with our blogs)
- Streamlining Workflow (who doesn’t like to be efficient?)
- Tools to Build Traffic and SEO (that’s Search Engine Optimization)
- Several others that didn’t really lend themselves to note-taking
If you’re interested to see my cryptic notes and links to many of the hand-outs, you can download my Word document.
More about BlogHer 07 tomorrow.
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Or I could just mentally file a little memo that reminds me that my fellow Okie and virtual acquaintance Chilihead learnt her some right nifty stuff when she went to the big city and when I have questions, I’ll go pester her.
I’m sure you’ll be hearing from me…
Wow. Incredible information – very concise and easy to follow. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Chili! I plan to pilfer everything I can from your notes…
I’m with you on the note taking with pen/paper. I’ve often wondered what a college lecture class is like these days…all those computer keys clicking away. I don’t even own a laptop, not a PDA. I keep a Franklin Covey (handwritten) address book and calendar. Along with handwritten notes about everything under the sun. And I like it. I really, really, do. Coolness is overrated!
That’s awesome, thanks!!
While Chilihead was sitting in the back of the room taking copious notes, I stepped out with my cell phone, the kind with the suitcase box attached to some headphones and a curly-q cord and tin foil – I had to call home to see if Neil Armstrong had landed on the moon yet.
THANK YOU so much!
There was no way I could go to BlogHer, but reading your notes has been so helpful.
Thanks for sharing this with us!!! It is truly appreciated!
Oh what I wouldn’t give for a slim laptop and a blackberry…I hear ya. (course I hear that now I need an Iphone and not a blackberry? I can’t keep up)
Thank you for this info! I’m printing it out right now.