Could you make the hackathon free for established developers? Or maybe a discounted pass for it? I am concerned the bar for entry is too high and bitcoin is losing potential allies by pricing them out of the market.

I'm in the same hotel for another gathering (Nebula awards) and was pretty excited when I bumped into a fellow in the elevator who mentioned the bitcoin convention was going on in this building. I wanted to go check it out and see what was happening in the world of bitcoins with actual people instead of just online and maybe give me a reason to pull mine out of cold storage and re-engage with the community. My wife was also chatted up and invited over to the conference when it was clear she's learned enough from my ramblings to know what she is talking about with them. This morning I went over and checked out the programming and was even more excited about the hackathon. I'm a developer by trade who specializes in mobile payment systems with millions of retail dollars flowing through code I have written on the iPhone everyday. I am also an entrepreneur at heart and really do enjoy hackathons. I was also excited to see the trade show area but when I asked about abbreviated tickets, was told there was no way I could participate without paying the $350 entrance fee for a singe day. This is unfortnate for me because I only have a few hours before I have to go put on a tux and participate in a monkey show. It isn't going to be worth $350 to me to check out the companies here and/or try and find a project I'd be wiling to put some programming time into.

I'm a little disappointed that I can't participate at a level lower than $350 for a few hours and wonder how many other people in this tech heavy city are giving this con a pass because the entry bar is too high for an afternoon. I still have a couple hours to kill, so I think I'll go spend $20 and cruise the comic book convention (don't judge me, I am nerd through and through). It'll probably be a lot less interesting but the costumes should be a whole lot better. I do hope to participate in one of these in the future and enjoyed watching the tv interview of the big instant dude out front.

Also, if anyone wants to rent out their badge for an hour, let me know a price. I'll be around until tomorrow morning.