Tuesday, August 11, 2009

How To Read A Gen Con Schedule

UPDATE: I was importing the CSV file into Open Office without first setting up the date colums with the right format. Geesh! Can they make it any more difficult?

Maybe it's because I'm a Gen Con noob, but the schedule you get from the Gen Con web site (a CSV file you download) is very confusing. In particular, the start time for events seems off. Below is a typical event from the schedule.
Game Code: RPG0904098
Gaming Group/Company: Paizo Publishing, LLC
Title: Paizo Publishing, LLC
Description:
When simultaneous kidnappings of Pathfinder and Aspis Consortium agents rock Cassomir's imperial shipyards, the Society orders you to join forces with hated Aspis agents to solve the mystery. Can you work together with the enemies of the Society to uncover the source of the kidnappings, or will you perish in the shipyards of Cassomir? (Tier 1-7 by Joshua J. Frost) Pt 1 of 2.

Event Type: RPG - Role Playing Game
Game System: Pathfinder Roleplaying Game
Rules Edition: 3.5 OGL
Maximum Number of Players: 144
Event Cost: 6
Start Time: 08/14/09 01:00 AM
Duration (hours): 4
End Time: 08/14/09 05:00 AM
Age Required: Teen (13+)
Experience Required: Some (you’ve played once or twice)
Are Materials Provided?: No
GM Names: Joshua J. Frost
Web Site for More Info: www.paizo.com/pathfindersociety
Email Address for More Info: josh@paizo.com
Is this a tournament?: No
Location: ICC
Room: 101-103
Table:
Special Category: Premier Event
Tickets Available: 39
Last Modified: 06/26/09 11:47 PM
I seriously doubt this game runs from 1:00 AM to 5:00 AM. But it could, I guess. The convention center is open 24/7 I understand. The thing is, though, there are no events on the sheet that have a starting time later than 12:59 PM, so obviously someone was just typing in 4:00 without bothering to put in AM or PM. Fine for the most part, because if you assume the above game isn't running at 1:00 AM you can translate, but what about those games listed as 7:00 AM or 8:00 AM. I'm sure some things start at 8:00 AM, yeah? So is there nothing that starts at 8:00 PM?

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