Have I mentioned that social networks are awesome. My favorite tip so far came from someone (I think it was @ForceDotMom) who mentioned that it would be a good idea to bring an umbrella. “What an idea!” I thought, having forgotten that it rains in places other than Wisconsin (now covered in snow). So I did, and that little tip made the difference from getting a little wet, and totally soaked. So thanks for that.

I strolled over to the Moscone center around 2. First stop: Moscone West. Things get a little blurry after that….it’s a bit overwhelming. I remember registration being quick and simple (no lines at all…thanks Salesforce for letting us register a day early). The displays were up and staff were there in full force (ha! get it? I made a pun there). Turns out I needed to head over to Moscone North to get my blogger registration materials. I did so and found another huge registration set-up. I picked up my sweet messenger bag and sat down to check my gadgets. A Salesforce.com staffer approached me to ask if I needed any help or directions. Very pleasant…and when I looked up, I realized she was demonstrating to a group of other staffers on how to assist attendees. Demo or not, EVERY staff person I saw had a smile. Even the guys standing on the street corner in the rain directing attendees to the correct spot.

Made it back over to Moscone West…and that’s when I broke my own challenge. I sat down and buried my head in gadgets again….Dreamforce Mobile, of course. I noticed that @Mattybme had checked in at the same place earlier and sent him a message to see if he was still there….heh…looked up and he was standing 10 feet from me…what a cool guy!

We took the liberty of heading upstairs to see the Cloudstock setup. One word: whoa! For a “free” conference, the setup is pretty swanky. To me, it said one thing: Salesforce.com wants you to know that Force.com is not just an add-on to the CRM solution…it’s a strong platform that’s dedicated to contributing to the Cloud ecosystem. After all, the cloud isn’t about just one company. And the color scheme says another thing: this isn’t Salesforce…this is Cloudstock.

Got to watch @ReidCarlberg and @QuintonWall in action as they busily readied everything for Cloudstock tomorrow. Can’t wait for that. Played with the live tweet stream following the #cloudstock hashtag and then headed out.

Sloshed back to my hotel to dry out and now I’m off to a “pre” tweetup to connect some more. Word has it there’s some cookies in my future.