I have heard that one new product to be shown for the first time at GENTECH will be the Family History Library’s 1881 Canadian Census CD-ROM disks. These reportedly are in late beta test right now. The disks apparently will not be available for sale at the conference although the expected ship date isn’t too far away.

For anyone thinking of making last-minute plans to attend the conference in Boston, I can report that all but one of the conference hotels are sold out of the lower-priced conference rate rooms. The one exception is the Hilton Back Bay. As I write these words, the Hilton still has a few rooms available at the conference rate of $119 a night. This hotel is across Dalton Street from the convention center. Unlike the other participating hotels, you do have to go outside to get from the hotel to the GENTECH conference. However, Dalton Street is very narrow, and you won’t be exposed to the elements for more than 20 or 30 seconds. Conference Chairperson Sandy Hewlett also reports that Hilton’s restaurant, called Boodles, is an excellent choice; she recommends the scallops. To reserve your room now, call the Hilton Back Bay at 617-236-1100 and ask for the GENTECH rate.

One of the advantages of holding a conference at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston is the convenience of hotels and restaurants. Two of the three conference hotels and a large number of restaurants and shopping malls are connected to the conference center by indoor walkways. The third hotel, as mentioned, is across the street and a very narrow street at that. Several other hotels are less than a five-minute walk away. There certainly will be no need for shuttle buses at GENTECH2002!

If you already have reservations at the Sheraton Boston Hotel, note that the hotel offers high-speed Internet access from selected Club Level rooms. If you would like a room with fast Internet access, you should call them now to reserve a room. There may be a surcharge for Club Level rooms; I suspect those deluxe rooms are not available at the discounted conference rate.

I normally join a number of newsletter readers at a "Dutch Treat" dinner on Saturday evening after the conference closes. This year will be no exception; I already have tables booked at a local restaurant. The restaurant is a five-minute indoor walk from the convention center; you can leave your jackets in your hotel room. If you would like to join this usually raucous group of genealogists for Saturday dinner, please see me at the conference so that I can add your name to the list. We do have a limited number of seats available, so I’d suggest that you get your name on the list early at the conference. Even better, send me an e-mail now: richard@eastman.net

I’ll see you at GENTECH2002!

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