Flock#2024
- Website
- flocktofedora.org
- Dates
- 2024-08-07 - 2023-08-10 (Wednesday - Saturday)
- Location
- Hyatt Regency Rochester
125 E Main St
Rochester, NY 14604
United States - Hotel booking code
- G-REDH
- Tickets
- Eventbrite
About the city
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Population is approximately 211,328, making it New York's fourth most populous city after New York City, Buffalo, and Yonkers. It was home to Frederick Douglas and Susan B. Anthony during the bulk of their careers as abolitionist and suffragette leaders.
Rochester is home to two world-class museums, The Strong National Museum of Play and The George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. Rochester is an easy day trip away from numerous vineyards, Niagara Falls, and Letchworth Park, "The Grand Canyon of the East."
Rochester is now an international center of established businesses and an active entrepreneurial start-up scene. Business industries include education, medical, optics & imaging, engineering, agriculture, green tech, food & beverage, and manufacturing. Forbes magazine ranked Rochester as the nation’s 14th most innovative city due to our high concentration of tech and science jobs as well as patents per capita.
The region is known for many acclaimed universities, and several of them (notably the University of Rochester and Rochester Institute of Technology) are nationally renowned for their research programs. RIT is the home of the first Academic Minor in Free and Open Source Software and Free Culture and has hosted and/or participated in over 50 hackathons in five years. Red Hat, Inc. and Fedora historically supported RIT's FOSS efforts over the years. Rochester is home to active chapters of Python User Group, Linux User Group, Hacks/Hackers, has a number of hacker/maker spaces including Interloc Rochester, the Rochester Makerspace, and The RIT Construct.
Transport
Rochester is best navigated by car or cab. Cabs can be called or hailed from the street, or using a rideshare service (e.g. Uber and Lyft). Most places are no more than a 15-20 minute ride away. The Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA) buses throughout the day. Traffic is generally light compared to most cities and it takes less than 20 minutes to get to any location throughout Rochester.
Airports
The airport is the Greater Rochester International Airport (ROC), which is roughly 10 minutes from the airport by car, cab, or hotel shuttle.
Some travelers elect to fly in to Buffalo, Syracuse, or Toronto and rent a car, ride an Amtrak train, or take a shuttle to Rochester. Ground travel time by car to Rochester from these cities is an hour, an hour and a half, and three and a half hours respectively.
Rochester is also a 4-7 hour drive from Toronto, Detroit, Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, and DC.
Sunday, August 11th Niagara Falls trip
The day trip on Sunday, August 11th is an optional, paid add-on ($60) to your Flock 2024 ticket. This is a new activity offered as part of the conference experience. Rochester is not far from one of the famous natural wonders of the American northeast: Niagara Falls. This is a great opportunity to spend time together with fellow community members in a more casual setting before returning home. Space is limited and registration closes on Saturday, July 20th.
Register for the day trip by navigating to the Flock 2024 Eventbrite page, go to Get tickets, and choose the add-on option together with your general registration.
Already registered, but want to add the Niagara Falls trip to your ticket? Do NOT choose an attendee registration option if you already registered for the event, or else you will be registered twice. Only choose the add-on option for the Sunday day trip in Eventbrite.
Where will we go?
We will take a day trip to visit Niagara Falls, New York. Coach buses will arrive to the Hyatt Regency Rochester on Sunday morning and take our cohort the 90-100 minutes away to Niagara Falls. On arrival to Niagara Falls, you can explore the area together with fellow Fedora contributors or take some time to enjoy the town yourself. In the late afternoon, the coach buses will depart Niagara Falls and return to the Hyatt Regency Rochester hotel.
Exact times are not yet available, but attendees on the day trip can plan to have Sunday dinner in Rochester.
What is included?
The $60 ticket price includes a roundtrip seat on the coach bus to Niagara Falls. You are responsible for your expenses in Niagara Falls.
How do I register?
Register for the day trip by navigating to the Flock 2024 Eventbrite page, go to Get tickets, and choose the add-on option together with your general registration.
Sightseeing
This section is for those who stay longer in Rochester, and would like to do some sightseeing.
See also Rochester Recommendations for local recommendations such as helpful shopping locations and suitable (and delicious!) dining options.
The Strong National Museum of Play
The Strong houses the world’s largest and most comprehensive collection of toys, dolls, games, and video games and includes eGameRevolution, the first permanent exhibit on the history and impact of video games in the US. The exhibit includes a working arcade space with additional cabinets and pinball machines on the exhibit floor.
The Thursday night conference social will be hosted here, with unlimited tokens for use in the arcade space.
George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film
George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the world’s oldest film archives, opened to the public in 1949 as an independent, non-profit museum. It combines the world’s leading collections of photography and film with the stately pleasures of the landmark Colonial Revival mansion and gardens that George Eastman called home from 1905 to 1932. The Museum is a National Historic Landmark. Mr. Eastman, the founder of Eastman Kodak Company, is heralded as the father of modern photography and motion picture film.
MAGIC Center at RIT
The RIT MAGIC Center is a university-wide research center with a multi-disciplinary entrepreneurial approach to digital media research and production. With a focus on Media, Arts, Games, Interaction, and Creativity, MAGIC blurs the lines between art and technology. It is also the historic home of the FOSS community at RIT.
Other attractions
Rochester offers a wealth of pre- and post-event opportunities. Come early or stay later to enjoy the nearby Finger Lakes Wineries, take a day trip to Niagara Falls, experience a boat ride on the Erie Canal, or see the 96-foot waterfall located in downtown Rochester!
Feedback & comments
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