Overall, the convention was a lot of fun. The whole family
had a good time.

I would like to give particular praise to the organizers of
the childrens' programming track. Instead of just "day care" or
"babysitting" they approached it like any other part of the
convention activities: "what are some things we can do that children will enjoy?"
At least some of the things they came up with could very well have been part of
the general con schedule.

I also think the con committee made a very good decision
when they chose to have 90-minute time slots for panels and events instead of
the more typical hour length. In a large hotel spread through two buildings,
with a confusing interior layout, the extra time meant that one could have a solid
hour of discussion, a question period afterward, and plenty of time to get to
the next event. The convention also had a very dedicated corps of volunteers
going from room to room to let panelists know when it was time to shut up and
get out. The result of all this was that things stayed on schedule all five
days.

Of course, the most interesting part of the convention was
the part I haven't really reported on: the after-hours parties. Reading about a
party that someone else went to is rather dull, so I deliberately neglected
that part. I do say that the London 2014 contingent had the best party room by
far. It was always hopping, and rivaled the mighty private publisher-sponsored
events. If the convention in London is anything like the swinging times on the
top floor of the Hyatt, 2014 is going to be a memorable WorldCon.

The biggest problem with the convention was one which the
organizers had absolutely no control over: the area of downtown Chicago
directly around the Hyatt is mostly business offices, which means that all the
associated shops and eateries shut down for the Labor Day weekend. I don't know
if there's a cure for that, since having WorldCon over Labor Day is a pretty
fixed tradition, and I would hate to see the convention abandon downtown for the
suburbs.

To sum up: a great convention. Thanks to the Con Committee and all the volunteers who made it happen!