Being on the staff side at ALA's Midwinter Meeting (I have been learning that it's not a "conference" - it's a working "meeting") wore me out. ALA policy is to give employees that attend Midwinter and Annual two days off if they worked the Saturday and Sunday during which it took place. These days off must be used within two weeks and are called "collapse" days. Now I know why.

It's not just that you have to go to a lot more meetings when you're staff (and I mean *a lot*) and that they tend to start early and go late. And it's not just that they're spread out so you're always on the go. These same things hold true for members who serve on committees and hold offices (especially folks like presidents, presidents-elect, etc.). It's more that you're nuts leading up to the conference, preparing for all of those meetings, and then you're on call pretty much all the time while there. You can't just blow off a session or meeting the way you sometimes can when you're a member.

Personally, one of the main reasons I was so worn out after this last Midwinter was that I seriously underestimated the effect playing DDR for four days straight would have on me in addition to all of my other staffly duties. It's my own fault, but we were having so much fun and engaging in such interesting discussions about gaming with all kinds of librarians. And certainly this was the first time an ALA booth was accused by vendors of being too loud and too popular! Check out the smiles and laughter:

You can also check out rock stars Beth and Steve - Webmaster...or Guitar Hero?

Once folks saw how much fun and effort Dance Dance Revolution is, one of the most frequently-asked questions became "how do I set this up at home for myself?" The truth is that the answer is the same for a library looking to make an inexpensive investment to get started with gaming, so I thought I would kill two birds with one stone and list the components here. You can do the whole thing for just over $200, assuming you have a television at home or a projector at the library (or vice versa). Here's what you need:

• A Playstation 2, which you can get new for about $130. I got a "slim" one that takes up less room, but you can get an old style one for under $100. You can also watch for a deal or try to get a better price on a used system on eBay.
• A DDR game, which will run you up to $35, maybe a little less on eBay. The newest DDR game costs more (at the moment, that would be "DDR Supernova" on the Playstation), but you can get older ones cheaper. There are several titles now, so you should be able to find one fairly easily. DDR Extreme is a good one, especially for libraries, as the way in which it weights scores lets inexperienced players beat expert ones. This is the game we played most at Midwinter.
• You can buy cheap dance pads, and there are bundles of the game with pads, but I suggest you get the next step up, as the cheap ones won't last you long. In addition, they have no traction on the bottom, so you slide around a lot. Instead, I recommend the 1-inch think, foam insert pads, and I think you want two so you can dance against someone if the opportunity arises, especially if you have kids at home. I've gotten these types of pads off eBay in the past, two for $80 with shipping and handling (although it looks like the price has dropped a little on these already). An example: 2 x PS2 HARD FOAM IGNITION 8.0 DDR DELUXE DANCE PAD NEW.

That's really about it. Now you just need a TV or projector to plug the Playstation into and you're in business, at home or at your library. Overall, if you watch for deals, buy used equipment, or monitor eBay auctions, you can do this for under $200. DDR is a great form of exercise, and it's fun to boot. It's great for all ages, and in any setting you often get adults dancing against kids.

Bonus video: Gail McGovern is one of the people that asked about a DDR setup for home, and she immediately went out and bought equipment after seeing our setup at Midwinter. She also posted on YouTube video of her and me dancing at the American Libraries/TechSource booth. Thanks, Gail!