​​              SmashingConf NYC 2018                              Attendee Handbook
​​Dear attendees, with this handbook, we’re happy to provide you with one central place containing all the details, dates, locations, technical specs and formalities for your SmashingConf NYC. That’s the ultimate source of truth for everything you could potentially need. Feel free to make comments in this doc if you have any questions — and so all speakers will see them as well! We can’t wait to welcome you in New York! Boooo-yah! 
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​Welcome!

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​​A very warm welcome from bustling Manhattan! This year marks the fifth edition of SmashingConf New York. We’re thrilled to welcome you in this lovely city, and we’ll make sure that you feel truly… well, smashing, during your stay. That’s why we prepared some tips and hints for your stay. So, if you have some free time, you’ll know exactly how to spend it well.
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​How to use this document 

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  • ​​Feel free to skip parts of the document, the information provided is meant to help you have a smashing experience before, during and after the conference.
  • ​​Add comments and send us questions. We’ll respond in kind, where relevant.
  • ​​If we’ve missed stuff out, please let us know. 
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​Table of Contents 

  1. ​​TL;DR 
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​1. TL;DR 

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​​Conference Dates: 23rd-24th October, 2018  
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​​Workshop Dates: 22nd & 25th October, 2018
  • ​​Timing: 9:00am - 5:30pm 
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​​Pre-Conf Party: 22nd October, 2018
  • ​​Timing: Doors at 6:00pm - 8:30pm
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​​Smashing Party: 23rd October @ 8pm-11pm
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​Tickets
  • ​​No need to print your tickets! Just make sure you have a Government issued Photo ID and you’ll be set!
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​2. SmashingConf 2018: The Goal 

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​​The main reason why SmashingConf exists in the first place is because we believe in sharing, and we strive to bring people together. This explains the very practical side of Smashing Conferences. It’s a place where professionals like yourself share practical techniques, ideas, strategies, failures, lessons learned, and successes in an informal, intimate atmosphere.
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​​Keeping it Personal : No fancy suits, no halls with thousands of people —just practical quality content, delivered by experts working on real life projects, in an open-minded, welcoming environment. We take pride in our code of conduct, and we don’t tolerate any disrespect. Please be kind and considerate to each other.
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​3. You, Our Truly Wonderful Audience 

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​​We are expecting around 400 people in the audience — friendly, knowledgeable, professional designers and developers who want to learn and grow in what they do. We have people coming from all parts of the world, and it’s always a nice mix of male and female designers, front-end developers, UX experts, IA architects, marketing managers and even more. We know many of our attendees personally,  and it reflects the nature of the event. 
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​​Having so many talented and creative people in the same space provides a remarkable chance for new connections and collaborations. We really encourage you to explore our attendees ahead of the conference, via our Slack Channel. Throw in some infamous NY pizza, and this October, we are sure you’re in for a friendly, inspirational, and above all memorable experience with us!
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​4. Dates: What Happens When? 

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​​Please keep this key dates in mind before you plan your trip to New York City. 
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​​Pre-Conf Party: 22nd October, 2018
  • ​​Timing: Doors at 6:00pm - 8:30pm
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​​Conference Days: 23rd–24th October, 2018 
  • ​​Address: 340 West 50th Street, New York
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​​Smashing Party: 23rd October, 2018 @ 8pm–11pm
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​​Networking and Arcade Challenge: 24th October, 2018 @ 6pm
  • ​​Address: 148 W 24th St, New York
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​​Workshop Days: 22nd and 25th October, 2018 
  • ​​Address: 11 Times Square, 5th & 6th Floor
  • ​​ (Corner of 41st Street and 8th Ave, entrance on 8th Ave)
  • ​​  New York, NY, 10036
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​​Only Workshop Josh Clark on the 22nd & Vitaly Friedman workshop on the 25th. 
  • ​​Address: 270 West 43rd St. 
  • ​​(Corner of 43rd St. & 8th Ave, entrance on 43rd Street)
  • ​​New York, NY, 10036
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​5. Flights: How Do I Get There?

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​​NYC is extremely well connected by air with flights from almost every corner of the world. Three large airports, and several small ones serve the region. Connections between airports using the bus/subway/PATH trains are the cheapest option, but will require many transfers. Set aside a minimum of 2 hours for travel time.
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​​New York City Airporter Bus provides services between JFK, La Guardia and Newark Airports for $24. Buses depart every 20-30min. A bus transfer is required to the Newark Airport Express Bus at the Port Authority Bus Terminal for Newark Airport to and from JFK and La Guardia Airports.
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​Getting Around

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​​We’ve made sure that our venues are all pretty close together, meaning that when you’re attending SmashingConf, getting around should just mean a few blocks stroll! 
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​​Subway - if you plan to use it often - you can get a weekly unlimited card. This costs $32 dollars a person and you can use the subway as much as you want for a week. The only thing, with this card you can’t share. The subway is $2.75 each way - so you can just put money on a card ($1 card cost), but depending on your plans, you may want to look into the weekly rates. 
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​​In Midtown Manhattan, when looking at streets :
​​When going Uptown – the numbers go UP (North)
​​When going Downtown – the numbers go DOWN (South)
​​When going East – the numbers go Down
​​When going West – the numbers go Up
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​​In fact, it’s going to be quite difficult to get lost — well, we sincerely hope so!
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​6. Accommodation: Where Do I Sleep? 

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​​With NYC attracting so many tourists each year, the options for accommodation are huge! Our Conference and Workshop venues are located in and around the Broadway /Hells Kitchen area, so if you’re looking for somewhere to stay, then a location in this area will save you time, distance and effort in the morning!
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​​From world famous hotels such as The Waldorf Astoria, to some amazing AirBnB rentals, we really are spoiled for choice in New York City. However,  we are thrilled to be partnering with Yotel New York once again. Located on 42nd street, just three blocks from the workshops, and eight blocks from conference, this tech friendly hotel, is the perfect place to relax in the evenings.
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​​We've secured a special nightly rate for our attendees of:
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​​$219 + tax (on October 21st)
​​$259 + tax (per night if on October 23rd, 24th and, 25th)
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​​YOTEL New York offers a comfortable, lively and tech-friendly atmosphere! Premium Queen Cabins come with the signature ‘SMARTBED’ featuring Serta mattresses, and free speedy WiFi everywhere. There are incredible views, a beautiful Terrace, and a great atmosphere!
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​​You can either make your reservations by going to this special link online or by calling the Pre-Arrival Team directly at (877) 909-6835 (toll-free) and mentioningthe Smashing Events Group or SMASH18.
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​​To secure the limited number at this rate, rooms be booked by October 1st. There is a limited number at this rate, so please don't delay! 
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​7. The Venue, Where Things Happen

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​​Located right in the heart of the bustling Theatre District, we'll be hosting SmashingConf NY at New World Stages. Expect comfortable seating, a beautiful quintessential New York atmosphere, and a very warm welcome.
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​​New World Stages: 340 West 50th Street, New York, NY 10019
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​Registration

​​Registration will open at 8:30am, so if you’d like to mingle with other attendees, please feel free to come early. If you can’t be there that early, don’t worry - someone will be on hand to register you all day, the desk will never close.
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​Eating and Drinking

​​We’ll be providing snacks throughout the day, as well as coffee and tea etc. We’re also setting you free for a nice long lunch break (as we think it’s important that you have time to recharge, and have some proper conversations over a shared meal with new friends!)  We'll post recommendations each day, as there are so many options in the area!
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​​This is a list of our favorites: 
​​Blockheads (1 min walk - GF, Veggie and Vegan Options) Great cheap Mexican options, located right on top of the venue at 50th!
​​Mother Burger (1 min walk) Great cheap burger options, located right on top of the venue at 49th!
​​Donna Bell’s Bake Shop (1 min walk) Amazing southern food, but options go fast!
​​Brickyard Gastropub (4 min walk - GF options) Classic Gastropub with a $10 lunch menu!
​​Just Salad (1 min walk - GF, Veggie and Vegan Options) A gourmet salad bar, with countless combinations!
​​Melt Shop (7 min - GF & Veggie options) Classic grilled cheese shop with a twist!
​​Pure Thai Cookhouse (3 min walk) Classic Thai food in large portions!
​​Bareburger (5 min walk - GF, Veggie and Vegan options) Gourmet burgers with up to 8 types of meat, vegan options, and classic fries and shakes!
​​Blossom Du Jour (7 min walk - All Vegan with GF options) Gourmet vegan food that is sure to entice even the meat eaters!)
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​The Talks

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​​Talks are 40 minutes long, and we factor in an extra 5 minutes at the end for a short Q&A session. As the talk runs, we encourage you to tweet your questions (using the hashtag #smashingconf.) Our MC will be collecting them, and will pick the most thought-provoking to pose to our speaker at the end of their session! We run two talks back to back, then have a break, so you shouldn’t get too exhausted, although there will be a lot to take in!
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​Filming

​​We’re very happy to confirm that the conference will be filmed, so as soon as the sessions are edited and uploaded, we’ll email you to let you know about access. The camera crew will be as discreet as possible, but please be mindful of them working and try not to make an unplanned cameo appearance in the opening keynote!
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​8. The Speakers, Who’s In The Line-Up!

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​​When we invite speakers, it’s always because we know that they have something to share that attendees could benefit from. We take pride in taking time to set up a diverse and non-generic line-up, ranging from very technical to design-focused to inspirational talks, by both experienced and not-so-experienced speakers. The key is the value speakers bring to the conference, be it personal experience, lessons learned from their projects, failures and mistakes made, and everything-in-between. We don’t have A speakers and B speakers: everybody is speaking on the main stage, and everybody is treated in exactly the same way (this goes for Mystery Speaker as well; they just don’t get to be announced in the line-up).
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​​Below are the speakers we’re happy to welcome to New York this year!

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​Tuesday - October 23rd

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​​8:30
​​Doors Open
​​9:30
​​Welcome and Intro
​​9:50
​​TIL LAUNCH DO US PART
​​From one designer to a front-end developer: I’m so grateful for you. You take my pretty pictures and turn them into real-live websites and applications; you convert ideas and sketches into real things that people can use. And even despite that superpower, you rarely get the respect you deserve. It’s time for that to change. No longer will I throw my comps over the proverbial wall for you to blindly build. I’ll change my process for you. Let’s sketch together more to be more efficient and effective as a team. Let’s decide in the browser more. I’ll learn to write JSON for you. Let’s share stories about new, more modern ways of shipping products at higher quality in record time. This is gonna be great!
​​DAN MALL
​​10:40
​​BUILDING INCLUSIVE EXPERIENCES WITH CSS AND SVG
​​Just like their range of skills, the front-end developer's responsibilities may vary across teams, but one things remains the same: a front-end developer can either make or break a user's experience. We build the interface that users interact with, and how we do it has a direct impact on how the user feels when they do, and most importantly, whether or not they can use it properly.
​​CSS is one of the most powerful UI tools in our arsenal. In this talk, Sara will show a wide range of possibilities that CSS offers to improve the overall user experience of your UI. She’ll talk about theming and optimizing your UI for foreign and uncontrollable environments. We'll cover how we can use css variables in combination with the HSL color format to create performant live themes that are also maintainable and dev- and designer-friendly. We'll talk about some very simple things you can (and should) do in your CSS, markup, and using SVG, to optimize your product for Windows High Contrast Mode (WHCM) and other foreign environments, and what we can learn from the latter about making our UIs generally more inclusive.
​​We’ll be talking about a few fairly new CSS media queries as we go, and how we can make our interface respond to system user queries. You’ll learn how to take advantage of the full power of CSS Variables to offer your users a way to customize your product's interface to their needs. All this within the context of accessibility and UX best practices.
​​11:30
​​Morning Break
​​12:00
​​THE LONG TAIL OF PERFORMANCE
​​Successfully, and efficiently, delivering a site to visitors involves a lot of moving parts. The server has to spit something out, which gets passed over the network to the requesting device. The browser takes over from there, coordinating with the device to try and deliver the page as quickly as possible. When things go well, we barely notice and if we're not careful, neither do our metrics.
​​But there is a lot of unpredictability involved and if even one step is out of sync—if the device is overtasked, the network spotty, the browser old or unexpected—the performance can suffer dramatically. Welcome to the long-tail of performance, where the real world happens.
​​In this talk, we'll discuss what happens when the web bumps up against this less-than-ideal day to day reality. We'll zero in on these "long-tail" issues and explore how to ensure your sites perform well even when things go wrong. And as we address these issues, we'll end up making our sites more performant for everyone in the process.
​​12:50
​​NEW ADVENTURES IN FRONT-END
​​The beast is alive! How do you feel about ASCII-alike CSS Grid layout with polyfluid sizing and ch unit? Do you feel itchy when it comes to building responsive HTML email layouts? What about the brave new world of dynamic static site generators and JAM stack? Have you ever tried to work around nested CSS Custom Properties, untamed 3rd-party scripts, shady service workers, multi-dimensional variable fonts and painfully outdated pattern libraries? Well, let’s bring it on!
​​Beware: you will not be able to unlearn what you’ll learn in the session! Ah, one more thing, take the techniques with a grain of salt — we do not take responsibility for sleepless nights and nightmares caused by the content of this session.
​​13:40
​​Break Time
​​15:10
​​DESIGNING PROGRESSIVE WEB APPS
​​If you have a website — particularly one that generates revenue for your organization — you need a Progressive Web App. So where do you begin? How do you decide which features of a Progressive Web App make sense for your users? What tools can make the process easier (or harder)? In this practical session, Jason will guide you through the key design decisions you’ll need to make about your Progressive Web App and how those decisions impact the scope of your project. He'll also teach you how to avoid common pitfalls and help you take full advantage of Progressive Web App technology.
​​16:00
​​THE SHAPE OF THOUGHTS
​​When the heart meets the mind.
​​Beautiful ideas often end up compromised by a low budget, unrealistic deadlines, or technical issues. We designers pound against a wall of people telling us our solution is unrealistic and unachievable, so we eventually give in only to see the same solution appear months later from elsewhere, and we berate ourselves for our lack of persistence. Yes, great design should solve a problem. It should be tested, practical, affordable, and relevant to the people we are designing for. But there is another side of the design as well.
​​In this session, we’ll explore practical techniques and strategies to involve clients in the design process and make them fall in love with your ideas as well. Not through deceiving tricks or shady practices: through idea-driven and client-focused process that integrates client feedback into the design workflow.
​​16:50
​​Afternoon break
​​17:20
​​WHY WE BRAND, WHY WE BUY
​​Why We Brand, Why We Buy is an entertaining sociological, scientific and anthropological overview of why humans buy and brand things.
​​This is what the presentation will cover:
​​Why did MySpace become so popular and why are we riveted and/or addicted to our technological devices?
​​Why do some brands stand out from others? Is there some “magic” that makes us ogle over the latest product from Apple or crave a Starbucks or a pair of Nike sneakers?
​​Why We Brand, Why We Buy takes a deep dive into the influence branding has on our everyday lives, from branding ourselves and the world around us, to the role branding plays in the products we buy and the way we live.
​​The talk explores the following:
  • ​​What are the waves of modern branding over the last 100 years? Debbie will explore each one, focusing on the brands that defined each period and how culture was inspired or impacted
  • ​​How human evolution and population trends are linked with branding
  • ​​How psychology and behavioral rituals are linked with branding 
  • ​​How technology has changed the way we interact with each other and with brands, and what we are really addicted to
  • ​​What it takes for modern brands to stand out in a crowded marketplace
  • ​​How branding connects with our most hard-wired, basic instincts
​​The talk concludes with an over-arching hypothesis of why, as a species, we continue to make and mark things, in every aspect of our lives.
​​20:30
​​The Smashing Party!

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​Wednesday - October 24th

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​​08:30
​​Doors Open
​​09:40
​​AND SO THE MYSTERY BEGINS...
​​Have you figured out yet who was the Mystery Speaker this time? ;-)
​​10:30
​​SERVERLESS FUNCTIONS AND VUE.JS
​​Despite the name, Serverless does not mean you’re not using a server, rather, the promise of Serverless is to no longer have to babysit a server. Scaling is done for you, you’re billed only for what you use. In this session, we’ll cover some key use cases for these functions within a Vue.js application: we’ll accept payments with stripe, we’ll gather geolocation data from Google Maps, and more! We’ll make it all work with Vue and Nuxt seamlessly, simplifying how to leverage this paradigm to be a workhorse for your application.
​​11:20
​​Morning Break
​​11:50
​​HOW I BECAME A MAKER
​​Join designer Michael Flarup, for a journey through his career. An entertaining personal story, sharing everything from old work, odd jobs, great failures and the many lessons learned along the way. Learn how to make shit up, make a lot and even make better things. But above all, learn why you need to do what you think is fun and how to, despite all odds, find your way.
​​12:40
​​FONTASTIC WEB PERFORMANCE
​​Web fonts are awesome. They make your sans-serifs slabby, your headers special and your website look gorgeous. But fonts are a resource, and downloading resources always comes as a cost — if you don’t load web fonts efficiently, what you get instead are phantom underlines, blank pages, and user rage. Let’s talk about ways to avoid this, and what new platform features are here to help us deliver pretty (but also!) fast experiences to everyone.
​​13:30
​​Lunch Break
​​15:00
​​HOW TO WIN OVER COLLEAGUES AND ENCOURAGE USER CENTRIC THINKING
​​Working in-house can be a thankless task. Your expertise is often overlooked. The value of user centric thinking is under appreciated and you have little control over strategy. But it doesn’t need to be that way.
​​User Experience Consultant Paul Boag has worked with over hundreds of in-house teams. Over that time he has seen some teams prosper, while others struggle. He has seen techniques that have empowered teams and built a user centric culture. But he has also observed mistakes that ultimately undermine the user experience.
​​In this practical presentation Paul shares these observations. He outlines tips and techniques that will raise the profile of the user. Approaches to win over colleagues and make your teams life easier.
​​PAUL BOAG
​​15:50
​​DESIGN IN THE ERA OF THE ALGORITHM
​​The design and presentation of data is just as important as the underlying algorithm, and designers have an urgent role to play in crafting the emerging generation of AI interfaces.
​​Designer Josh Clark explores a rich trove of examples—at once entertaining and sobering—to unearth design principles for creating responsible machine-learning applications.
​​Learn to use AI as design material in your everyday work. Adapt to the machines’ weird, unexpected, or flat-out-wrong conclusions. And above all, scrub data for bias to create the respectful and inclusive world we all want to live in.
​​16:40
​​Closing Remarks
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​9. Workshops: Are You Attending One? 

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​​On Monday, October 22nd and Thursday, October 25th, we'll be hosting our workshops at Westin Times Square. All workshops will kick off at 9:30am and wrap up around 5:30pm. 
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​Workshops include:

  • ​​Snacks and drinks throughout the whole day
  • ​​Tea and coffee in the morning
  • ​​Lunch
  • ​​Paper and pen/pencil
  • ​​Unique learning experiences in an intimate environment
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​Schedule for Monday, October 22nd

​​Josh Clark on Design for What’s Next
​​Sarah Drasner on Intro to Vue.js
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  • ​​9:00 – Doors open, Registration
  • ​​9:30 – Introduction & Kick-off
  • ​​11:00 – Coffee Break
  • ​​13:00 – Lunch
  • ​​14:00 – Afternoon Session
  • ​​15:30 – Coffee Break
  • ​​17:00 – The End
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​Schedule for Thursday, October 25th

​​Tim Kadlec on Building Performant Websites
​​Vitaly Friedman on Smart Responsive UX Design Patterns
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  • ​​9:00 – Doors open, Registration
  • ​​9:30 – Introduction & Kick-off
  • ​​11:00 – Coffee Break
  • ​​13:00 – Lunch
  • ​​14:00 – Afternoon Session
  • ​​15:30 – Coffee Break
  • ​​17:00 – The End
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​10. It’s All About Networking 

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​Lightning Talks: The Smashing Pre-Conference Party!

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​​On Monday night (October 22nd), we’ll be teaming up with our dear friends at Microsoft & Shopify at the roof terrace of the Microsoft Technology Center. The event will offer the chance for everybody to get together before the conference starts, to share a few beers, then take the stage and give a few micro-talks. If you’d like to speak, email Mariona (mac@smashingconf.com) to tell her what you’re working on, a great lesson you learned from a certain client experience, your favorite front end tips, or just some great life hacks that are supercharging your workflow. The number of seats is limited, so please don’t forget to bring your Government Issue Photo ID! 
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​​Pre-Conf Party: 22nd October, 2018
  • ​​Timing: Doors at 6:00pm - 8:30pm
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​​Doors @ 6:00pm
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​The Smashing Party 

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​​Ah, the legendary SmashingConf parties! On Tuesday, October 23rd, we’ll be hosting the SmashingConf Party at a location to be announced! Obviously, it’s a great opportunity for attendees to make new connections and ask speakers all those questions that they always wanted to ask! It will also be a great opportunity to relax, talk and talk about good ol’ web (or not!), in beautiful and creative surroundings. 
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​​Location: New World Stages 
​​Drinks: 2 Hours of Open Bar - 1 Hour of Cash Bar
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​​Starting @ 8pm
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​Networking and Arcade Challenge!

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​​Following the last talk on Wednesday, October 24th, come downtown with us to Barcade, the Original Arcade Bar, for some old-school competition with your new friends. Located at 148 W 24th St, New York  (Google Maps), take a nice stroll or jump on the C or E train to 23rd Street Station. Then join us for a drink, a game of Pac Man, Ninja Turtles, or just a great conversation! We're excited for this great way to network with our Smashing attendees!
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​Location:
​​Barcade
​​148 W 24th St, New York
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​​Starting @ 6pm
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​11. About New York City: Sightseeing 

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​​“There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless.” The words of Simone Beauvoir still ring true today. It’s hard to think of another city as iconic and instantly recognizable across the world. That skyline, those streets; they’re all waiting to be explored and every corner is packed with new surprises, which, of course, makes it the perfect home for the fifth edition of SmashingConf event! 
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​​NYC is perhaps the most quintessential of American cities; a bustling grid of intersecting streets, art deco skyscrapers, eccentric street theatre, incredible food and some beautiful parks. Famous for its amazingly mixed and varied population, with each district having its own feel and traditions, a walk through NYC can feel like a walk through several different cities, or even countries.
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​​Looking for a few tips to save some time and money? The Empire State Building is amazing, and while the view from the top is famous, why not go to the Top of the Rock, (Rockafeller Center) and see the Empire State Building closeup, save some money, and skip the lines? Interested in seeing the Statue of Liberty? There’s only one ferry line that goes to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, and you must book ahead of time to guarantee a spot! But, the Staten Island Ferry is free, and is the next closest view you can get of the iconic Lady Liberty! 
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​​Other points of interest include the beautiful, Central Park, (be sure to look at a map - the walking loop is nearly 7 miles long!), Grand Central Terminal (avoid going during rush hour in order to take in the beautify without the hustle), and Times Square, which is just a couple of minutes walk from our venues.
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​​When it comes to the food, New York City is a city like no other! Love Mexican food? Dos Caminos is an authentic tequila bar with 5 locations around town. If you’re a fan of sports and cajun food, be sure to check out Bourbon Street Bar and Grill, with a huge menu, tons of big screens, and $5 Hurricanes! Want an amazing burger? The classic 5 Napkin Burger is arguably the best you will find in NYC. Or, if you have a sweet tooth, be sure to visit Smackery’s cookies, with regular and GF options that are worth the $2.50 price tag, or check out Magnolia Bakery and Billy’s Bakery (usually one GF option) for the best cupcakes in Manhattan or Juniors Cheesecake for the original classic NY Cheesecake! Finally - that famous NY Pizza? There are literally thousands of articles debating the fact, but we’d recommend kesté Pizza and Wine, with locations in the West Village and Wall Street (plus, amazing gluten-free, veggie, and vegan pizza as well!).
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​​At SmashingConf we aim to provide a welcoming environment that is memorable for all the right reasons. Our event has inclusivity at its very heart, and this centers around treating everybody with respect and tolerance. Be considerate. Be kind. Be smashing to each other. Please treat each other as you would expect and wish to be treated. 
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​​We’re very proud of the environment that we’ve created at all previous SmashingConfs – our events have a solid track record, and reputation for being welcoming and friendly. If you do have a problem or see that someone else is having a problem, please contact a member of conference staff, or contact Amanda at (+44) 7463 411 939 who will meet you right away and handle the issue immediately.
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​​Disrespect of any kind will not be tolerated at SmashingConf. This includes offensive verbal or written comments related to gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, ethnicity, political, religious and philosophical views, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, unwelcome sexual attention and pretty much everything else.
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​​Yep, you probably knew it already, but we care about providing equal treatment and equal opportunities to everybody involved: be it attendees, guests, volunteers, speakers, sponsors or organizers. That’s what makes Smashing Conferences truly smashing.
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​13. Accessibility Statement

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​​SmashingConf is committed to providing an inclusive, accessible, and safe space for all attendees.
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​​The conference will be held at New World Stages,  a beautiful, wheelchair accessible, converted movie theater. The workshops will be held at Microsoft Technology Center and Westin Times Square (only Josh Clark and Vitaly Friedman on the 25th). 
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​What To Expect
  • ​​Dietary requirement-compliant, healthy, nutritious food will be served throughout the day.
  • ​​Snacks (fruits) and drinks (coffee, tea, water) will be available at all times.
  • ​​Wi-Fi (pw: icecream) and power outlets will be available.
  • ​​For the conference, the lobby areas are flat, with a lift available. The theater is on a small rake, but we have wheelchair and companion seats available. We are happy to reserve seats for those with mobility restrictions.
  • ​​Anyone with mobility, hearing or vision concerns can reserve seats.
  • ​​Our bathrooms are multi-stall and handicap accessible.
  • ​​Service dogs are welcome.
  • ​​The party will be after the 1st conference day, at the conference venue, and we will be providing alcoholic beverages as well as soft drinks. 
  • ​​A Code of Conduct team is available throughout the entire event and parties to address any incidents, microaggressions or ableisms.
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​​If you have any additional questions or if you need assistance - please contact Amanda at (+44) 7463 411 939 / amanda@smashingconf.com 
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​14. The Smashing Crew 

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​​Running a conference is quite an undertaking, and there are always people who remain behind the scenes. Here’s a quick overview of the team running the conference.
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​​Markus Seyfferth mostly makes sure that Smashing isn't out of money. He also coordinates articles, books and events (and also makes sure all of our crazy projects run on schedule). Email: markus.seyfferth@smashingmagazine.com.
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​​Amanda Annandale is our resident AV nerd. The England–based American comes from a background in NYC theater and production. When not producing events or stage managing theater, you can find her, a new book in hand, with a huge mug of coffee. There's never enough coffee or pandas for this one! Email: amanda@smashingconf.com. 
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​​Ricardo Gimenes is our wonderful, talented illustrator from Brazil who'll be setting up the alarm clocks properly to make final adjustments for illustrations just on time.
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​​Marc Thiele runs Beyond Tellerrand and loves to connect people. He once founded this show with Vitaly in 2012 and is part of the team, taking photos of you, often without you noticing. So you better be careful, when making faces. Email: marc@beyondtellerrand.com 
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​​Charis Rooda a front-end developer and conference junkie recently joined SmashingConf to help make sure the conference websites are up-to-date, manages the social channels, and she's probably the last one you see at the Smashing parties. If she's not doing that, she's probably building websites, eating dumplings or staring at Hong Kong's skyscrapers. Email: charis@smashingconf.com.
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​​Jan Constantin is a legend. He's been working for Smashing for many years, taking care of various tasks, and always getting things done thoroughly. He has worked all kinds of odd jobs while also finishing his degree in Embedded Systems Engineering. He is super talented and has mastered the many many assorted details he's been in charge of at SmashingConf. Email: jan@smashingconf.com.
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​​Mariona A. Ciller loves science, the open web, open source hardware, and software. Based in sunny Barcelona, she takes care of our dear sponsors and helps run Smashing events all over the world! When not on the road with the good old Smashing crew, she designs creative technology workshops for kids and youth in an old chocolate factory she calls home! Email: mac@smashingconf.com.
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​​Vitaly Friedman loves making people around him nervous. As editor–in–chief of Smashing Magazine, he reads almost every single article that goes live, and on the side loves solving complex UX, front–end and performance problems in large companies.  ;–) Email: vitaly@smashingconf.com.
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​​Aaaaand that’s a wrap! Please let us know if something is missing, or not quite clear, and we’d love to clarify things or arrange something for you, or help you out in any way. We can’t wait to welcome you in New York, and we hope you’ll have a truly fantastic time! Meow and see you soon! ;-)
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