KansasFest « back to albumKansasFest 2011 Everyone looks to see where Carrington has gone. Photo courtesy Loren Damewood.New this year were signs to point the way.Can you tell me how to get — how to get to KansasFest?So easy, even Canadians can do it.Somehow, Jeff found his way here two years running.Where else could a car so laden with classic tech be headed but KFest?Not quite as sporty red as last year — but it's what's inside that counts.Shorts, shorts, everywhere.The leaning tower of shorts.We're gonna be lookin' fiiiine.It's the MAD fold-in of t-shirts.Why is this man looking so smug?A day later, the sign's gotten a bit soggy.When Canadians outnumber Americans — be afraid.It was best to get this shot of Carrington BEFORE the slab of beef was put in front of the slab of beef.How nice to be a non-vegetarian and have choices at the steakhouse.Sheppy enraptures the crowd with his reenactment of obscure baseball signs.New faces, hungry faces, happy faces!I'm not sure which gesture offends me as much as it confuses me.Who is this bearded man??And just like that, Carrington has eaten James.Welcome back, Dean!It was weeks before I could bring myself to wash that cheek.It didn't take long for KFest to invoke Geoff's migraine.NOM NOM NOMWith that t-shirt, Steve is eating for two!Loren tags yet another server before releasing her back into the wild.He can build an A2MP3 card — but can he find his room key?The newcomers establish their reputations as hustlers.Carp cleaning?! Where do I sign up??Well... this is new.The ASPCA protested this excessive branding.Rich Dreher, salesman extraordinaire.There's a Browncoat in every crowd.After years of demands, an exasperated Rich Dreher finally builds a CFFA3000 on the spot.The annual burning of the flesh.Bob Bishop eats? ... You mean he's NOT a god?!Are these the fiends who ate our veggie burgers?Geoff is more of a BYOS guy.You do him proud, sir.Apple cookies!Andy, never satisfied with his own burger, hungrily eyes Mark's...Scott Miller's wife is AWESOME.Don't ask, don't tell.Unbeknownest to many, Martin fit into that wooden box — a modern-day mechanical Turk.Krüe demanded everyone's attention — until I politely informed him that he was not, in fact, the keynote speaker.Fortunately, I was trying to take a photo of the lectern, not the speaker, so this is actually a fantastic shot.Hold on!An ancient form of data storage.The resemblance is uncanny!When his SIMPLE students don't do their homework, Bob throws the book at them.The future that Bob wrote.Does this make him... Tupac?Computing still inspires Bob with mischief and creativity.FOCUS! FOCUS!He's packin' up, but he ain't goin' home!Excuse me, sir, but... that bag... may I bite it?Choose wisely — for one publication bestows ever-lasting life... and the other shall take it away.Bob Bishop Forever!Peter is agog to learn who his roommate will be. "No, please — not him... ANYONE but HIM!"How many geeks does it take to fire up a Brain Board?You're at KFest. How hard can it be?You are likely to be eaten by a grue.Three generations of Apple technology play well together.The iPhone finds its place.5-7-5OMG CARRINGTONI don't even try to put together a door sign, knowing Andy will put forth more than enough effort for both of us.Ken & Carrington rip open the debut issue of Microzine.Carrington flashes the computer.Am I on stilts? The proportions seem way out of whack.Must... have... iCade...Sheppy knows what's most important at KFest.April Fool's — it's real!It's no Funspot, but it'll do.Love that Apple rainbow.Is this an iCade I see before me?Rob summons his inner strength to tolerate the extreme geekiness of KFest.Higher, higher and higher!You take what you can get.Moments later, Rob was using the iPad upside-down in an effort to cure his hiccups.A metaphoto of Metageoff.Do not look directly at the shorts!Sheppy plays a mean air trombone.Pizza for the masses.KFesters aren't picky when it comes to pizza.I'm reminded of the scene in "History of the World" when Mel Brooks is trying to talk like a Roman senator...Let the man eat, for Pete's sake!Matt's a bit in awe of the celebrity sharing his couch. Who was there first?Okay, maybe they ARE picky — the only leftover pizza is vegetarian!Now that's more like it.Geoff provides a blow-by-blow in IRC. (Not really, but he should've. Text FTW!)Scott in repose.Scott busts out the anbo-jitsu.And he's down for the count!For the first time ever, Corcoran's second floor is opened to our geekiness.Can Peter snip the right wire before the card explodes?!?Scholarly Greg is scholarly.Kneel before Zod!Geoff merrily wreaks his revenge on the bag that wounded him so.Ian flew in from the wings to grab the bag before anyone knew what was happening.There's a sniper on the roof!Dan attempts the rare Bull Charge maneuver.A battle of wills.O HAIThe first entry for the "Men of KansasFest" wall calendar.That looks like it's going to hurt.Crouching Martin, Hidden DragonHe fies through the air with the greatest of ease!The trident maneuver.Carringtoncam.Sometimes, it's not good to be the king.The difference between these two gents? Martin knows he's special.Steve gets off his duff and presents IN PERSON, for once.Prepare to be sucked in.So real, you can almost touch it.You don't need to be a genius to recognize the genius of this faux Apple Store.Steve can't tear his eyes away from the majesty of his own creation.Beware anyone who looks scarier than a KFester.The KFest logo designer gives a session on Logo — how ironic.First-time KFester dives right into the thick of things.David didn't create Castle Wolfenstein — no, he went one better.So complex, an Apple II can do it.Bob insists that David isn't tall enough to ride this ride.Jason tries to make a Commodore 64 user explode with his mind. Unfortunately, it worked only once.Jason prepares to host the panel I assembled. How'd that happen, anyway?The great American pastime of foosball.Starting with the basics, Geoff points out a floppy drive (remember those?).The rare bottlenosed Canadian.This is some sort of before-and-after photo — but I don't know of what.I didn't sleep for weeks.Tony, is this really the place for that?Rich, unaccustomed to the rigors of KFest, sneaks in a quick nap.Imagine the behemoth these four hardware developers could create, if only they pooled their talents and resources!Where a crowbar previously failed, a screwdriver may succeed....Andy engages in a game of HBCC.If only life were so easy to navigate.Ladies, meet the iPad.I often confuse these two.Here come the donuts!Free heart attacks! Come and get'em!Pick your sweet, sweet poison.Bob is suspicous — but not for long.Now you see them... soon you won't.Mike thinks, "I'll just take this box..."You may think Carl is the star of this photo — but I nominate Stavros.Having survived his first heart attack, Martin goes back for a second.Tony knows the only good donut is a dead one.Somewhere in the background, an HBCC gamer dies.Having run out of donuts, Ivan proceeds to eat his own hand.Milk: does a body good... thus justifying the other gross indulgences.Beauty is in the eye of the donut-holder.The DMZ breaks down as politics are engaged.Mystery hand, logical hunger.Is anything more satisfying?It just ALMOST fit in one bite.Who is the King of Kong?You break it, you buy it.Oh, god... I can hear their insipid song now...I spy — MelissaI hope Steve performs surgery better than he plays Lode Runner.Who ya gonna call?Flip flip flippity flip.There is a hunger to this man — one that can be fed only with periodicals.You have only one hour to beat the game! What happens when the clock turns over?... ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!Ivan prays at the Church of Apple.A bit more color-coordinated than last year, sadly.I confusedly the whole thing.Ack! A non-Apple II OS! Quick, kill it!KFest: LOLspeak spoken here.Supergeoff to the rescue!I... do I want to know what that's a picture of?No single door can contain Wikipedia!Haikubot went and got itself strung up, yessir.It'll be dancin' on nuthin' 'fore the week's out.In the land of the blind, the Apple III is king. Or something.Why, yes, I DO have Prince Albert in a can.Sounds painful.Nothing but the best audio equipment for A2Unplugged! Photo courtesy Andy Molloy.Some of us clean up better than others.Extra salads — for me??The class of 2010 reunion.... The kiddie table?Geoff counts off how many desserts he plans on eating.Apple, Star Wars, and Mickey Mouse — Sheppy is a walking billboard.It was berry good.Next stop: commencement speaker.A shaft of holy light blesses this commemoration.My 8-bit hero!Sheppy didn't know he should dress for this occasion. I'm not sure he would've.Sheppy launches his exciting new career as a hand model.Pew pew pew!36 hours left to go, the natives are getting restless.I honestly don't know what — or who — this is, or why it was taken.I long for the day Peter is not in the sandal minority.Hawaii is everywhere!Krispy Kreme, round deux!Chillin' like a villain.The annual tournament commences. The loser must room with the winner next year.His hands moved so fast, they were a blur! (... That's what she said?)Dain gives a tour of Silicon Valley ("SiVa" among archaeologists).Martin describes how to correct a dislocated shoulder."History? Geek, please!"Sheppy demonstrates some of the annoying advertisements HTML5 will make possible.Juiced.GS! Get yer Juiced.GS!Gasp! An actual Apple III!... oh, wait, we're at KFest. No big deal.Classic gaming has never looked better. NEVER.Melissa wins the award for the exhibit that required the least electricity.A stranger among us!Dan picks a HackFest prize.Exhibitors exhibiting exhibits exhibit exhibits.Steve is doomed to fail Scott Miller's Lode Runner Championship Edition competition.Use the Bell & Howell, Luke!Lode Runner ... III?Ivan conducts field research for his pending Juiced.GS coverage of KFest.They see me hangin', they hatin'Oh, balls.I still didn't give him a discount.My Two Geeks.Touch-typing? After all these years? Oh, Steve.There goes the rental security deposit. WORTH ITMelissa! That's not very knife.I do have a knack for catching people at their worst, no?Water, for now... Later? APPLE JUICEThe iPad: don't leave KFest without it.Martin and Andy: I haven't seen the last of them!I'm suspicious of Geoff and Melissa conspiring over there in the corner.KFest hard. Sleep harder."Shh! Everybody, let's go back to Rockhurst and replace Tony's Apples with C64s."Moments later, Geoff fell asleep, face in torte.Beloved tiramisu.Two of my favorite things about the Apple II community.How many chicks can I pick up in that car? Correct answer: DOES IT MATTERMy next entry in the "Men of KFest" calendar.Evil lurked here in years past... the evil of NO WI-FIA farewell breakfast at Eggtc.A pillar also rises.WHAT'S THAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER YOUR SHORTS