A lot of interesting panels were completely full today, which made for a somewhat disappointing experience. Still, we did the best we could:

• Attended an EFF panel on “Telecommuting: Ins & Outs”. I was actually able to contribute my thoughts in this discussion because I telecommute once or twice a week. One of the recommendations was to utilize an Instant Messaging system within the company network, such as Jabber or Office Communicator, and I think that’s an excellent idea.
• Attended a panel on “Getting a Job in the Gaming Industry”. The President of Epic Games, Mike Capps, hosted the panel. I didn’t realize that Epic Games is actually headquartered in Cary, North Carolina. For those who didn’t attend, the summary of the panel is this: It doesn’t matter how much you like video games; you need a four year degree from a good Engineering or Computer Science school and solid background in math, physics, graphics, and algorithms.
• The developers of Age of Canon made an appearance in this MMO panel from Funcom. Of particular interest was their discussion on the differences between European MMOs and US MMOs.
• “Q&A in Cryptic” featured a demo of Champions Online, an MMO featuring full customization.
• Finished the day with Dean Haglund performing improv comedy. This year, he improvised a show of the X-Files. You might remember Dean Haglund as one the Lone Gunmen, Langley, from the X-Files

This is our fifth year of DragonCon, and Adam and I began the event by watching the annual parade. Registration was once again a breeze due to registering online well in advance. This year brought with it some interesting panels, including an entirely new Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) track.

• In “Meet the Stars of Harry Potter”, which should have really been named “Meet Just One Star of Harry Potter”, Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom in the movies made an appearance and talked about his experiences as an actor. No spoilers, but Matt does have a World of Warcraft character.
• Michael Rosenbaum played Lex Luthor, and in “Living in Smallville” talked about where he’s going after Smallville. This was one of the most entertaining panels as far as guest stars go this year, irrespective of whether or not you’re a fan of the show.
• We diverged from our normal routine and attended a panel in Hanover called “Monster in an Hour”, where a few budding artists attempt to draw a monster improv style in, not unexpectedly, under an hour.
• We made minimal effort in attending the Firefly panel, but had no luck getting in. Instead, Adam and I hopped over to the Evil Geniuses panel. I’d always been curious about it but never had the opportunity until now. It turns out that, yes, it really is about a bunch of mad scientists plotting to take over the world. Good luck.
• The day was concluded with “Hacking 101″. Randal Schwartz, author of Learning Perl, made an appearance here. Nothing too spectacular, but it was a good way to wind down the day.

I will be in Spanish Fort, Alabama on business for a project with Everwood from August 6 through August 17. I didn’t post my whereabouts in advance because I made a surprise visit to my parents, who live nearby in Mobile.