Heading Home from Xiotech MUG
I’m sitting at the commuter terminal at the San Diego airport waiting for my flight to LA and then back home. I’ve been out here for the Xiotech National MUG (Magnitude Users’ Group) meeting. This is the first national meeting I’ve attended, although I was involved in the CAB (customer advisory board) meetings as well as the regional MUG events. The two and half days here have been great. A lot of technical content, opportunities to network with fellow Magnitude owners, and one-on-one contacts with the folks from Xiotech, from the CEO on down (or on up since they’re org charts at Xiotech have the customer at the top and the CEO at the bottom).
There aren’t many pieces of hardware that I would say that I love, but with the Magnitude, both our original Classic and the 3D 1000 we traded it in for, I can honestly say I love them. If you’re looking at storage systems, you’re doing yourself a huge disservice if you do not consider Xiotech. Great product, great pricing, and great people.
Other than the dinner event last night, I never left the hotel complex. The one time I did get to go somewhere, however, it was a real treat. Everyone at the MUG was transported by bus to Gillespie Field in El Cajon for an evening at the Allen Airways Flying Museum. A private museum owned by Bill Allen, this is an amazing place. For the story of this unique place, check out this article from the San Diego Arts Guide. Vintage aircraft and artifacts including propellers, posters, toys, etc., are everywhere in this hangar complex. The museum is a private collection open by invitation only. The CEO of Xiotech, is a friend of Bill Allen’s and lives in this complex at the airport, so we had an inside connection.
On a side note, I’m trying out a Sprint Connection Card on this trip, and I’ve been really impressed. I’ve been able to get ~1 Mbps downloads on the Sprint network both at the hotel and here at the airport. Sure beats paying $9.95 or more per day to use hotel and airport networks.
Well, we board in ~15 minutes, so I better sign off and pack up the laptop.