[Updated Announcement - October 27, 1992]
dFx International Digest and cDc - Cult Of The Dead Cow proudly present :
The Third Annual
X M A S C O N
AKA
H 0 H 0 C O N
"WE KAN'T BE ST0PPED!"
Who: All Hackers, Journalists, Security Personnel, Federal Agents,
Lawyers, Authors and Other Interested Parties.
Where: Allen Park Inn
2121 Allen Parkway
Houston, Texas 77019
U.S.A.
Tel: (800) 231-6310
Hou: (713) 521-9321
Fax: (713) 521-9321, Ext. 350
When: Friday December 18 through Sunday December 20, 1992
HoJo's Says NoNo To HoHo
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HAY!^@!*%!$1#&! We beat our own record! This year, thanks to one
certain person's complete stupidity and ignorance, we managed to get
kicked out of our first chosen hotel four months in advance. Needless
to say, this caused some serious confusion for those who called to
make reservations and were told the conference had been canceled.
Well ... it hasn't been. The story is long, but if you wish to read
exactly what happened, check out CuD 4.45.
The conference dates are still the same, but the hotel has changed
since what was originally reported in the first update, which made
it's way throughout Usenet and numerous other places, including CuD
4.40. If you haven't heard about the new location, please make a note
of the information listed above.
What Exactly Is HoHoCon?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HoHoCon is something you have to experience to truly understand. It is
the largest annual gathering of those in, related to, or wishing to
know more about the computer underground (or those just looking for
another excuse to party). Attendees generally include some of the most
notable members of the "hacking/telecom" community, journalists,
authors, security professionals, lawyers, and a host of others. Last
year's speakers ranged from Bruce Sterling to Chris Goggans and Scot
Chasin of Comsec/LoD. The conference is also one of the very few that
is completely open to the public and we encourage anyone who is
interested to attend.
Or, as Jim Thomas put it in CuD 4.45:
"For the past few years, a conference called "XmasCon" (or HoHoCon)
has been held in Texas in December. As reported previously (CuD
#4.40), it will be held again this year from 18-21 December. For those
unfamiliar with it, XmasCon is a national meeting of curious computer
aficionados, journalists, scholars, computer professionals, and
others, who meet for three days and do what people do at other
conferences: Discuss common interests and relax."
Hotel Information
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Allen Park Inn is located along Buffalo Bayou and is approximately
three minutes away from downtown Houston. The HoHoCon group room rates
are $49.00 plus tax (15%) per night, your choice of either single or
double. As usual, when making reservations you will need to tell the
hotel you are with the HoHoCon Conference to receive the group rate.
Unlike our previously chosen joke of a hotel, the Allen Park Inn is
not situated next to an airport and this may cause a small
inconvenience for those of you who will be flying to the conference.
The hotel is centrally located so you can fly in to either
Intercontinental or Hobby airport but we are recommending Hobby as it
is 15 miles closer and much easier to get to from the hotel. Here's
where it may get a little confusing:
If you arrive at Hobby, you will need to take the Downtown Hyatt
Airport Shuttle to the Hyatt, which departs every 30 minutes and will
cost you $6.00. When you get to the Hyatt, get out of the shuttle with
your luggage (for those who may not of figured that out yet) and use
any of the nearby payphones to call the Allen Park Inn (521-9321) and
tell them you need a ride. It's just like calling Mom when you need a
ride home from glee club! The hotel shuttle will be around shortly to
pick you up and take you to the aforementioned elite meeting place,
and that ride is free. If all this is too much for you, you can always
take a cab directly to the hotel which will run you about $20.
If you arrive at Intercontinental, you will need to board the Airport
Express bus and take it to the Downtown Hyatt ($9). Once there, just
follow the same instructions listed above.
We are in the process of trying to get the hotel to provide constant
airport transportation during the conference, but they've yet to give
us a definite answer. It is quite possible that we will have our own
shuttle to bus people between the airports and hotel, so if you'd
prefer a faster and more direct method of transportation, it would be
helpful to mail and let us know what time you'll be arriving and at
what airport. This will give us a chance to coordinate things more
efficiently.
Check-in is 3:00 p.m. and check-out is 12:00 noon. Earlier check-in is
available if there are unoccupied rooms ready. Free local calls are
provided, so bring dem 'puterz. I don't know if cable is free also, so
those who wish to rekindle the memories of yesteryear may want to
bring their screwdrivers. The hotel has both 24 hour room service, and
a 24 hour restaurant, The Nashville Room. Call it a wacky coincidence,
but the hotel bar is called the ATI room and like most of Houston's
similar establishments, closes at 2 a.m. Good thing Tony still works
at Spec's ...
This time around, the hotel is placing the conference guests in the
rooms surrounding the courtyard/pool area. We are once again
encouraging people to make their reservations as soon as possible for
two reasons -- first, we were told that if you wait too long and the
courtyard rooms are all taken, there is a chance that you'll be
situated at the complete opposite end of the hotel, which isn't so bad
if you don't mind walking all that way back and forth outside in
December. Secondly, there is no other hotel exactly next door to this
one (the closest is about five minutes away or so), so if for some odd
reason all the rooms get rented, you'll get to do some nifty traveling
every night.
Directions
~~~~~~~~~~
For those of you who will be driving to the conference, the following
is a list of directions on how to get to the hotel from most of
Houston's major freeways that bring traffic in from out of town:
I-45 North or South: Exit Allen Parkway on the inside (left side) of
the freeway. Take the Studemont/Montrose exit off Allen Parkway, then
make a u-turn at the bridge and head back towards downtown. The hotel
will be on the right hand side.
290: Take 290 to 610 South, then take I-10 East towards downtown. Exit
Studemont. Right on Studemont, left on Allen Parkway. The hotel will
be on the right hand side.
I-10 West: Exit Studemont. Right on Studemont, left on Allen Parkway.
The hotel will be on the right hand side.
I-10 East: Take I-10 East to I-45 South and follow the same directions
from I-45 listed above.
I-59 North or South: Take I-59 to I-45 North and follow the same
directions from I-45 listed above.
Call the hotel if these aren't complete enough or if you need
additional information.
Conference Details
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HoHoCon will last three days, with the actual conference being held on
Saturday, December 19 in the Hermitage Room, starting at 11:00 a.m.
and continuing until 5 p.m. or earlier depending on the number of
speakers.
We are still in the planning stages at the moment, primarily due to
time lost in finding a new hotel and getting contracts signed. We have
a number of speakers confirmed (yes, Goggans will be speaking again)
and will try to finalize the list and include it in the next update.
We are definitely still looking for people to speak and welcome
diverse topics (except for "The wonders and joys of ANSI, and how it
changed my life"). If you're interested in rattling away, please
contact us as soon as possible and let us know who you are, who you
represent (if anyone), the topic you wish to speak on, a rough
estimate of how long you will need, and whether or not you will be
needing any audio-visual aids.
We would like to have people bring interesting items and videos again
this year. If you have anything you think people would enjoy having
the chance to see, please let us know ahead of time, and tell us if
you will need any help getting it to the conference. If all else
fails, just bring it to the con and give it to us when you arrive. We
will also include a list of items and videos that will be present in a
future update.
If anyone requires any additional information, needs to ask any
questions, wants to RSVP, or would like to be added to the mailing
list to receive the HoHoCon updates, you may mail us at:
dfx@nuchat.sccsi.com
drunkfux@freeside.com
drunkfux@ashpool.freeside.com
359@7354 (WWIV Net)
or via sluggo mail at:
Freeside Data Network
Attn: HoHoCon/dFx
11504 Hughes Road
Suite 124
Houston, Texas
77089
We also have a VMB which includes all the conference information and
is probably the fastest way to get updated reports. The number is:
713-866-4884
You may also download any of the conference announcements and related
materials by calling 713-492-2783 and using the username "unix", which
is unpassworded. The files will be in the "hohocon" directory. Type
"biscuit" if you wish to gain an account on the system. You can find
us there too.
Conference information and updates will most likely also be found in
most computer underground related publications, including CuD,
Informatik, NIA, Mondo 2000, 2600, Phrack, World View, etc. We
completely encourage people to use, reprint, and distribute any
information in this file.
Stupid Ending Statement To Make Us Look Good
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HoHoCon '92 will be a priceless learning experience for professionals
(yeah, right) and gives journalists a chance to gather information and
ideas direct from the source. It is also one of the very few times
when all the members of the computer underground can come together for
a realistic purpose. We urge people not to miss out on an event of
this caliber, which doesn't happen very often. If you've ever wanted
to meet some of the most famous people from the hacking community,
this may be your one and only chance. Don't wait to read about it in
all the magazines and then wish you had been there, make your plans to
attend now! Be a part of what we hope to be our largest and greatest
conference ever.
Remember, to make your reservations, call (800) 231-6310 and tell them
you're with HoHoCon.
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