I was really excited and thankful to be able to attend An Event Apart 2011 in San Francisco last week. I follow A List Apart and own all books in the A Book Apart series — call me a fanboy, but I respect and appreciate the knowledge that the people involved bring to our industry.

On day one, I took a short walk to the gorgeous Palace Hotel where the conference took place. I walked up to registration, looked to my left, and there was none other than Jeffrey Zeldman. He was the first to speak, followed by a long list of web wizards and design gurus. I came in with high expectations and left very satisfied. Every presenter had a different topic and some would build on what others had said.

An Event Apart was very inspiring and extremely informative. I came in with a strong working knowledge and left with a brain completely full of new ideas. Learning about web technologies, when to use web apps vs native apps, developing and designing for mobile, going from an idea to an interface, and better practices, have greatly improved my skill set. Fresh ideas and new approaches are always helpful in my work, and naturally benefit the whole Velocity team.

There were tons of great people that I met throughout the event. There was a very diverse range of attendees — from people working for huge international corporations, to startups, to tiny design studios. I can’t thank Jeffrey Zeldman and Eric Meyer enough for putting a conference of this caliber together. I look forward to attending another Event Apart soon.

-Lee Froese