Laurie's Macworld Boston wrap-up: So what if I AM jaded?

I've been singled out in a few circles for being too hard on Macworld Boston. My gut tells me that some people just have no sense of humor. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I have become pretty jaded over the years, so maybe I'm being overly harsh. Then I think I'm not being too harsh at all, but maybe I'm just not taking the time to explain myself well.

On the off chance that it's the latter, I'm going to attempt to explain myself after the jump.

David Parmet likening this year's Macworld Boston to a MUG meeting from yesteryear is dead on. So why is it that when I say it here and here , I get Mike Sponseller hunting me down like a wild animal, and when everyone else says it (seriously, I'm far from the first or the loudest or the meanest), they get meal vouchers???  [disclaimer: I did actually get a lunch voucher today]. It really was quite funny... I am told he questioned my colleagues about my whereabouts yesterday afternoon because he read that I said not-so-nice things about the show.

Sure, I'm a NY'er so I'd prefer to have the show back in my backyard for the summer, but it's not the location that is making Macworld Boston less than smashing in the grand scheme. It's the fact that Macworld Boston is a small, regional conference now (and there is nothing wrong with that), but it's still charging big time, national rates for floor space. I spoke to many vendors who haven't missed a Macworld SF in ages and almost always made it to Macworld NY, from various parts of the country, but they couldn't justify that kind of expense for Boston because the foot traffic just isn't here. Macworld Boston is a great opportunity for some companies that aren't as well known to get a decent audience of Mac users who are actually interested in hearing their pitch and seeing their products in action. But I just don't see IDG making an attractive enough offer to enough of those companies. Then when you look at the lodging expenses it makes even less sense. Honestly, there's a better selection of less expensive hotel rooms in NYC than there is here in Boston. I skipped last year's Boston show because the thought of it was just too depressing. In retrospect, it seems I made the right decision. Changing venues this year was a smart move, at least.

I think for Macworld Boston to be really successful there needs to be more adapting to the fact that without Apple's presence, it's a different show. Start by calling it something else. Most people, for better or worse, continue to associate the Macworld Expo name with Apple first and the extended Apple family second. This should be a chance for that extended family to flourish, and for those that were here, they absolutely got a taste of that - but for those that skipped it, they lost out on what should have been tailor-made for them, but wasn't.

Some have cautioned me not to bite the hand that feeds me. No, they weren't just talking about taking the lunch vouchers for granted. I've been warned that if I keep talking trash about IDG that I might find myself without press credentials next January in San Francisco - when it really counts. As a matter of fact, Mike Sponseller said as much when he cornered me today. Is that really such a smart thing for him to do? Now, I don't go around calling myself a journalist, since I do this more for my own enjoyment than anything else, but I am out here, for the most part spelling the names right, and there are more than a handful of readers that continue to look right here for their daily doses of Apple and Mac-related news, reviews and commentary, for better or worse.

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