I attended the Reston Studio too, and thought Mike and Dave earned every
penny. The material was thorough, very current (more so than even
Dave’s recent book), and very well presented. They impressed me with
being both highly professional and totally down-to-earth at the same
time. Mike’s wife is also there, keeping the guys focused, keeping the
venue organized, and just generally making sure the whole thing ran like
a Swiss watch. Good people, and the chance to be in the same room with
them, much less pick their brains, won’t happen very often (unless
you’re pals with them as Erik is). It’s a chunk of change for sure, but
you gotta look at it from a perspective of it’s value, rather than it’s
cost. It’s like having months of learning shoved into your skull in a
mere 24 hours. What’s that worth? Will it impress an employer? My
employer asked how it went, but that’s about all. But we’re not a Ruby
shop (yet, several developers here are looking at it now). You do these
things for yourself first.
Cheers,
Curtis Olson