(These articles both appeared in DemoNews issue 124, June 18 1996)

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 :: "NAID '96, A Newbie's Opinions"
 :: Kilowack / MIRACLE
 :: klaks@bu.edu

 _____Introduction

 My first (and hopefully not last!) NAID encounter was, how would you say,
 fascinating?  The quality and quantity of demos was staggering, and I think
 this time, we've upped the ante on the Euros.  The top three could easily have
 taken on anything that Europe's put out.  Anyway, enough about that.

 NAID'96 was very well planned, kudos to the organizers.  With so many events,
 activities and competitions, I don't think any of us got more than 6 hours of
 sleep over the entire weekend.  There are a few peeves though.  Here's the
 list:

 _____Los Angeles Smog

 Right, I know it's Montreal, but there was enough smoke exhaled at NAID for
 the tobacco companies to consider supporting us!  Hey!  A new sponsor!  But
 seriously, for some of us who are a wee bit susceptible, a smoke free NAID
 would be a good idea.  Correction.  Make that an INCREDIBLY good idea.

 _____Food

 For those of you who took some time to eat, food in the main hall was rare
 and in small quantities.  Yeah yeah, there's Harvey's Grease Pot outside and
 the Quebec imitation of Dunkin Donuts (Commander Ici!) but for some of us who
 were busy coding or drawing, having at least a decent supply of food in the
 main hall would have been nice.  Maybe a freezer stacked with cheap pizzas
 and a microwave would do the trick.

 _____Deadlines

 A final foreword on the actual deadlines of the compos would be nice.
 Especially the intro compo. 12:00 AM friday night?!  Many of us didn't get
 there until 2AM!  Well, actually, that was just our group.  Still, the 12AM
 deadline on opening day is a little stiff.  Maybe postponing that to 9:00AM
 on saturday would go a bit easier on many of us.  Or perhaps a concise and
 definite deadline mailed out to the competitors before NAID.

 _____Showers

 Did anyone shower?  Around Sunday, I noticed a funny odor in the air. Could
 be my imagination.  Personally, I got up at 6 AM (actually, I was up till 6
 AM!) to make sure I sanitized myself.  Someone should have posted a schedule
 of the shower times, especially since some people in the room were getting
 rather mal-odorous.  It's not that they didn't want to shower, just that
 every time they went, the shower's were closed!  By the way, the showers were
 very nice, just that infrared thingy took forever to activate.

 _____Organizers

 Congrats to the organizers for an incredibly good time.  Only problem is that
 you're leaving!  Well, I guess everyone's got to take their own path
 eventually.

 _____Conclusion

 Well, that about sums it up.  One thing for sure, reading and watching a
 group's demo is one thing.  Actually meeting them in person is a completely
 different experience.  We should have some more of these NAID things.

 To the organizers, there's just one final request before you go.  Write an
 article on how you organized and got sponsors for NAID.  Many of us were
 quite influenced and would like to try to organize something similar (or at
 least a small party).  Maybe a FAQ would do.

 Viva la NAID!!!!

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 :: "Top 10 Reasons Perisoft Should Have Won the NAID '96 Gfx Compo"
 :: Rimbo / Lucid
 :: rimbo@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu

 From the home office in Austin, Texas...

 10. Because the lady could have said "PooSoft" with more enthusiasm
       [phoenix]
  9. So he could whack Snowman with his purple stick. [stein]
  8. Because then we won't have to hear Mosaic say, "except Peri...he
       blows" [rimbo]
  7. So he'd stop whining about the music compo [necros]
  6. Wouldn't yell out "Capacala R00LZ!!!!!" [phoenix]
  5. Because his Ma brought him to NAID last year [diablo]
  4. Yet another scene trivia question answered with "PeriSoft" [necros]
  3. Because the better he does in art, the fewer 64-channel IT's he'll do
       [necros]
  2. Hip, early 80's hairstyle [fred]

 ...and the #1 reason PeriSoft shoulda won the gfx compo:

  1. He won't threaten to sue if he doesn't. [rimbo]