I live in the Orlando area? Is this a big complicated thing, or do I poll and ask everyone to meet me at so and so on such and such a date?
The successful Dopefests…how did you guys organize them?
Ummm…that first sentence isn’t supposed to be a question. I really do know where I live.
Organized? Dopefests? Surely you jest!!! 
OK, seriously, they usually start with the instigator (or organizer, if you prefer) suggesting a get-together. If I was to make such a proposal (if Jacksonville had a big enough Doper population) I’d make it fairly specific:
[ul]Hey, gang, wanna get together on [date] or [date] for a [event] or [event] at [location]?
[/ul]Naturally, you can’t possibly please everyone, but the more specific you are, the more likely you’ll be to get feedback. Just saying “Wanna get together?” will be as effective as “Let’s do lunch sometime.” In my unprofessional opinion, of course…
And while I’m a few hours from Orlando, if I have no conflicts for whenever you plan something, I would love to attend. I missed the last Florida get-together due to real life interference.
I’d suggest starting a thread titled: “Orlando Dopefest, anyone?” or something like that. Do have some idea of the time you want to have it, either a specific date or something like, “some weekend in October,” just as long as there’s some idea of when it’ll be. Also, have some suggestions for things you all could do.
Then, hopefully, people who are interested will chime in, and you can try to work out the specific time/place/events as a group.
Or, if you’ve got a specific thing you want to do, just say that (“I was thinking of having Dopers get together on Sept. 28th for a Monkeys reunion concert.”).
It will probably be some time in mid-November…if anyone in Central Florida (or the whole Southeast US, if you’re up for a road trip) wants to start thinking about it.
I will post more in the next coming weeks. Thanks!
(Besides alcohol, what else is required for a DopeFest? For instance, do I need to investigate group discount tickets for Universal Studios, or will strolling downtown Orlando suffice?)
Do what I did, take a look at some of the “Anyone Want A _______ Dopefest” threads and go from there.
As a semi-unofficial Dopefest organizer for the New York City area, I have some thoughts.
The way to organize a dopefest is sumply to declare one. If you know some other dopers in the area, it may be good to talk to them beforehand, but it’s not really necessary.
My biggest pet peeve about some Dopefest threads is when they don’t mention when and where the dopefest will be in the title.
For larger Dopefests that are planned well in advance, you can have a preliminary thread asking people for ideas and specific dates, and then a second thread specifying the exact date. For instance I would start a “Mid-November Orlando Dopefest, anyone?” in the next few weeks, to gague preliminary interest and gain ideas.
Later, when things are more fleshed out, you can post another thread with the exact date in the title which gives the details.
As for what to do, I think most Dopefests are simply gatherings at a restaurant/bar. It’s usually pretty casual, and people generally have fun hanging out. If you are looking to make it a weekend, having a restaurant/bar or other attraction to meet at on both Friday and Saturday night, plus an event during the day is nice. If you can get enough interest, arranging for group tickets to Universal or some other Orlando attraction would be fun, though some people will only want go to some of the planned events. Allowing flexibility is essential.
Good luck.
Billdo usually just walks down Broadway, trailing a dead rat on a string, and we all fall in behind him like a troop of alley cats.
In case other Dopers also are pondering this question, we’ve also had delightful (smaller) Dopefests at people’s homes. Persephone and Xploder have each held BBQs at their houses, and I have had a potluck at mine. This works well for those of us who aren’t in exciting tourist destinations. You don’t need to plan entertainment (Dopers find each other entertaining enough), but games or movies are a possibility.
No, Ike, that’s just how I organize a party. If it’s a DopeFest, I get Jerry the Tech God to send me a board hamster that’s, um, outlived its usefulness and trail it on a string. That gets the Dopers following.
One thing I’ve learned in getting our gatherings here going is that you need to appoint yourself as the organizing committee. I’ve peeked in on a few threads for other Dopefests that fizzled because nobody did this.
Ask for ideas, get a little feedback on dates that’ll work, keep bumping the thread and then declare the time and the place. Don’t wait for someone else to do it (this also means you get to choose 
). Then bump the thread right on up to 'fest day.
Have fun!
Yep organization. Pick a public place like a restaurant, one of those casual ones that dont mind your staying around for hours. Then start a topic a couple months before…who knows what Florida is going to be like in November now?
My advice would be: in the original post, have some specific ideas and ask people to vote. With an amorphous group communicating via the internet, organizing a get-together is like herding cats. I would start with something like:
Dopefest in City X - who’s in?
Either Saturday 17 August 2002, Saturday 31 August 2002, Saturday 14 September 2002.
We could meet either at Restaurant X, Bar Y or coffeehouse Z. Or else check out the exhibit at Museum W.