Museums and the Web 2011 (MW2011): Joining Instructions

As a delegate to MW2011,  you'll be joining about 600 of your colleagues, – from 23 countries –  in Philadelphia. To make things easier for you, here are a few logistical reminders.

Museums and the Web 2011 Schedule

Tues. April 5: Pre-Conference Tours [separate registration]

Wed. April 6: Pre-Conference Workshops [separate registration]

Thurs-Fri. April 7-9: Conference [all sessions + receptions included with full registration]

Location

All MW sessions take place at the:

Loews Philadelphia Hotel
1200 Market Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107
USA

+1 (215) 627-1200

Registration

The MW2011 Registration Desk is on the 2nd floor of the Loews Philadelphia Hotel.

Hours are:

Wednesday April 6: 8:00 am - 5:30 pm
* you must register before going to the reception Wednesday night *

Thursday April 7: 7:30 am - 6:00 pm

Friday April 8: 8:00 am - 6:00 pm

Saturday April 9: 8:00 am - 3:00 pm

Packing + Dress

It is early spring in Philadelphia, which means the weather could be quite variable. Average daily temperatures for the week are expected to range from 40-60 F (5-15 C) with a good chance of seeing some rain, and lots of flowers.

Museums and the Web is a very informal meeting. Chances of finding someone in a jacket and tie, to say nothing of a suit, are remote. Our social events are equally informal and fun. So dress for comfort and style!

Arrival

The Philadelphia International Airport is about a 25 minutes drive from downtown. You may take a taxi, train or a shuttle bus to reach the hotel.

• The SEPTA Airport High Speed Rail Line runs about every 30 minutes and stops less than a block from the hotel (Market East station) for $7.00 one-way (wheelchair accessible).
• Taxi fixed fare $28.50 for 3-4 passengers

Food

Continental breakfasts will be served each day, and coffee/juice and snacks at breaks. Lunch is on your own except for the Wednesday workshop day [for workshop registrants] and Friday in the Exhibit Hall where lunch salads or pasta dishes will be prepared to order. The Birds-of-a-Feather breakfast on Saturday will also include eggs and bacon/sausage.

Evening Receptions

* note that tickets are required*

Welcome Reception

Wednesday April 6
6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Franklin Institute

Tickets are required; please register at the Loews ** by 6:00 pm ** and before going to the museum. The Franklin Institute is within walking distance (about 1 mile) from the hotel, but there are also shuttle buses running from the 12th st. valet entrance of the hotel every 5 minutes from 5:45 on. Buses will return from the Franklin Institute continuously until 7:45. The Welcome Reception goes to 7:30pm and is only designed to hold you over until dinner.

Exhibitors' Reception

Thursday April 7
5:30 - 8:00 pm
Loews Philadelphia Hotel - Millennium Ballroom

Tickets are required. Menu features an appetizer course of artisanal cheeses and local artisanal beers, a range of antipastos and roasted vegetable salads with carved Steamship round of beef, followed by Viennese desserts and coffees.

Conference Reception

Friday April 8
7:00 - 10:00 pm
University of the Arts

Tickets are required. As well as art, multi-media and music, there will be plenty of food for those passing up dinner on the town and great appetizers for those deciding to take in Philadelphia's restaurants and nightlife.

Program

You will receive the full conference program, and the print Selected Papers volume, when you register. 

However if you wish to read up before-hand, all of the papers are online at the conference site, linked the speaker's list:  http://conference.archimuse.com/mw2011/speakers

The sessions are all described in detail, or you can download the final program: http://conference.archimuse.com/files/mw2011-finalprogram-web.pdf [3.26 MB]

Online

There will be wireless Internet access throughout the conference area during MW2011. For those not traveling with their own laptops, there will be some general-use computers in the Jefferson Boardroom on the 3rd floor.

There's also an online community at http://conference.archimuse.com

Engage

There are *plenty of opportunities* to interact with others at MW2011.

• Pitch an un-conference session on Thursday afternoon. Got something on your mind that isn't on the program? Suggest an issue for discussion!
• Suggest topics to discuss at the  Birds-of-a-Feather sessions on Saturday.
• Get active in the life of the online community, post a comment, or start a discussion
• Vote for your People Choice for Best of the Web 2011
• Blog throughout the meeting on your site or on http://conference.archimuse.com - use the tag mw2011 to get aggregated
• Post your pictures to the MW2011 Flickr Group.
• Tweet about it, using our #mw2011 tag!
• See lots of other places MW is online.

We look forward to seeing you in Philadelphia, soon.

Safe travels!

jennifer and David