DEMA '97

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DEMA

What a toy store....

It was like being in the biggest toy store in the world, and yet so much more beyond that.

I am talking about DEMA 97, held this year in Orlando, FL, and just concluding 1/12/97.

Row upon row of booths, as far as the eye could see, in the spatial Conference Center, all dedicated to diving, divers, and diving related activities. There was no subject of diving that did not have some sort of representation at the conference.

There were of course the booths of equipment, the manufacturers themselves, showing the latest in their tech and sport diving goodies, and the throngs of people there to dream about the new gear, order the gear for their stores, or to get new ideas for development within their own line.

Of note was the fact that many of the manufacturers were focusing on new items simultaneously, such as winged BC's.

There were the licensing agencies, that were there to show off their unique services, including our own NAUI, which had two monitors showcasing the developments within the dive education software, and the online site. Now mind you, these were no ordinary monitors, but about 40" monitors, which showcased the presentation nicely.

There were the resorts, travel, and dive operations, showing photos of far away places and underwater life unique to their areas, from all around the globe.

All of the popular dive magazines were there, and a good grouping of specialized ones also.

And there were many unique areas, showing showgoers everything from their eardrums and ear canals, to the latest in defoggers.

I look forwards to hearing about what the attendance finally peaked out at, and definitely am making plans already to attend DEMA98, this time in Anaheim, CA.

See you there.

Well, DEMA 98 was an even bigger toy store....

DEMA 99 I missed......

DEMA 2000 was great, and even more of an experience with Boy Genius Productions

DEMA 2001 will be just as big..... Back to the Big Easy.....