The "best" thing at TechEd (a little late...)
The “best” thing at TechEd 2004 San Diego was undoubtedly the cabanas. It was like an extended “Ask The Experts”, except that - confusingly - the sessions were actually caled “Meet The Technologist”. The a/v support was abysmal, which lead to some creative solutions:
This image shows Rocky Lhotka and Ted Neward "debating" during a GAPP team session at the Architecture cabana. About 30 people were clustered around them so tightly that there wasn't room for a 3rd person in the center. Rocky and Ted - both with strong presentation voices - were continually turning around at the center to address people on the outlying edges. Attendee David Romig summed it up well: "an interesting mix of technology & theatre".