I know that we don’t yet know how the 2020 Summit will turn out, but I’ll make some guesses:
- A lot of people like it for the lower cost, no travel, and lower stress
- A lot of people will still want the in-person option if it’s available next year (or whenever)
I know, not exactly giant leaps on those! But, what’s interesting is that the 2021 Summit could easily be a hybrid event, in-person and online. That means people who can’t travel for whatever reason as well as people who can’t get $3-4k approved for conference + travel can still attend. Now that might mean fewer people attend in-person, but I’m not sure that is bad. We’ve long been at the place where the size of the conference was severely limiting the cities we could pick from and were definitely stretching what we could in Seattle, so downsizing (or at least capping) the physical event might be a win as well. I suspect it would be a win for us and a win for PASS.
SQLAndy 
This is the first year that I’m attending PASS. I’ve wanted to go for a long time but there was no way I could get my company to part with the money for the in person event. This year I’m paying for it out of pocket and I only had to talk my company into giving me the week to attend. That was a much easier sell. I know the experience won’t be the same as what everyone has enjoyed previously but I’m very happy that I get to attend even if it is virtually.
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Tom, I’m glad you found a way to go, I’ll be interested to hear about your experience afterwards. I like that you found a compromise, but don’t give up on getting work to pay for it – it’s a fair ask.
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I like your idea of a hybrid event. The few times I’ve gone to PASS, all I remember is the exhaustion of walking from room to room and by the afternoon staring blankly at projection screens like a zombie from information overload. Can’t fix the information overload, that’s on me, but being virtual would also allow one to skip a session in-person and relax in their motel room for an hour to 90 minutes and prop their feet up for a while before charging out again.
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