I last attended CFUnited in 2003 when it was called CFUN-03 and it was a far smaller, less professional conference. At the time, there were around 300-350 attendees and the conference was just passing the point in which it felt like a small, developer-organized affair. This year, it has grown to approximately 900 people and feels very much like a corporate conference.

The historic Grand Ballroom of The Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan again looks fantastic and Adobe's Dave Mendels (pictured) is keynoting which is certain to be a huge hit with the audience because he'll incorporate live demos etc.

Wow, what a conference! If you couldn't get to MAX this year, you missed out on a great conference. MAX was held in Anaheim, CA, at the Anaheim convention center. It was four days packed with classes, and the grand finale was a fun-filled night at Disneyland/California Adventure.

This year MAX 2005 was great. I landed in Anaheim on Sunday, registered and then went to the welcome reception where I chatted with other developers and met with vendors. On Monday I headed into the conference with my session schedule all planned out, ready to absorb all I could about ColdFusion, its newest features, its future, more OO, and maybe some Dreamweaver tips.

The crowded auditorium was abuzz with anticipation. The snatches of conversation from around you were meaningless jargon to those not in the know. A hush fell over the crowd as the moment they were waiting for arrived - Ben Forta walking on stage. Okay, he's not rock star, but the closest thing to it in the ColdFusion community.