Novell BrainShare

BrainShare

Company type	Conference
Industry	Information technology
Founded	1985
Headquarters	Salt Lake City , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Parent	Novell

Novell BrainShare was a specialized computer conference organized by Novell from 1985 through 2014. The event took place annually, usually in March, in Salt Lake City, Utah, and spanned nearly an entire week. Initially hosted at various hotels, the conference relocated to the University of Utah campus during the 1990s before settling at the Salt Palace Convention Center starting in 1997. Novell used keynote presentations to communicate its industry outlook and align its product strategy. The conference included technical breakout sessions where Novell engineers engaged directly with customers and partners. At its height, attendance fluctuated between 5,000 and 7,000 participants.

Aims

The primary goal of BrainShare was to convey Novell’s strategic vision while educating users and partners about its networking products and technologies. It also functioned as a launch platform for new innovations or acquisitions such as UnixWare and AppWare. A prominent instance was the 1989 debut of NetWare 386, which garnered considerable enthusiasm. As competition from Microsoft Windows NT intensified in the mid-1990s, BrainShare highlighted efforts aimed at reversing Novell’s declining market position.

History

The first BrainShare event took place in 1985. Early gatherings, including the 1986 conference at a Sheraton Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City, drew approximately 150 attendees and were initially called NetWare Affiliates conferences. Throughout the late 1980s, these three-day meetings introduced new Novell technologies under titles like NetWare Affiliates Developers Conference. The term "BrainShare" was officially adopted in 1992.

By 1991, attendance had increased to around 1,200. Consequently, during much of the 1990s, BrainShare was scheduled during the University of Utah’s spring break, utilizing venues such as the Huntsman Center arena for large sessions and other campus facilities for smaller meetings. Participants typically lodged in hotels throughout Salt Lake City with shuttle transportation to the university.

Starting in 1997, BrainShare transitioned downtown to the newly inaugurated Salt Palace Convention Center, adopting a more traditional trade show style. The timing of the conference varied; for example, it was held in April instead of March in 2003.

Once established, attendance stabilized between 5,000 and 7,000 each year. Attendees represented a diverse international audience from as many as 60 countries.

Structure

BrainShare generally spanned nearly a full week, running from Sunday through Friday. Each day commenced with one or more keynote addresses delivered by Novell executives such as CEO and chief scientist Drew Major. Occasionally, prominent industry personalities like Marc Andreessen contributed insights on technology trends and economic factors. These keynotes set overarching themes for the conference including "pervasive computing" (1995), "Smart Global Network" (1996), and "Rock the Net" (1997). Ambitious objectives were articulated—for instance, in 1996 there was a target of "one billion devices interconnected by NetWare by 2000." Some keynote speeches incorporated humor related to industry culture.

Following these addresses, attendees participated in over 200 technical breakout sessions, which provided detailed seminars on Novell network development and deployment. These sessions often allowed participants to give direct input to product developers. Presentation materials were distributed both as printed handouts and subsequently online, serving as important references for NetWare administrators.

Professional networking was a central feature. A Novell vice president described BrainShare as a "mind-meld" experience for exchanging vision and technology. Attendees received promotional items sometimes themed around foam "brains," reflecting the event’s technical emphasis despite marketing presence. Many participants demonstrated strong enthusiasm for Novell products; one commentator referred to BrainShare as an "annual weeklong lovefest."

The conference attracted a broad mix of professionals including software architects, developers, system administrators, IT managers, hardware vendors, integrators, consultants, customers, resellers, and service providers. For many attendees, participating was considered a key professional highlight each year.

Novell’s partners were consistently involved. At BrainShare '93, companies such as Microsoft, HP, IBM, WordPerfect, Kodak, Object Design, Lotus Software, and HyperDesk were present. Some partners also competed with Novell commercially, illustrating founder Ray Noorda's "coopetition" approach. Partners were classified by sponsorship tiers including Platinum Sponsor status.

State-of-the-art networking infrastructure was provided by Novell for attendees. Demonstration areas like the BrainShare Solutions Lab offered hands-on experiences with the company’s latest products and innovations.

Evening social events frequently occurred in downtown Salt Lake City, enhanced by views of the nearby Wasatch Range. Noteworthy concerts at official functions featured acts such as Huey Lewis and the News in 2003 and Collective Soul in 2008.

BrainShare also generated significant economic impact locally; for instance, the 1995 conference brought an estimated $4.2 million in revenue to Salt Lake City.

Final years

Toward the end of 2008, after more than two decades, Novell decided to cancel BrainShare 2009, attributing the decision to tightened travel budgets caused by the global economic downturn of 2008–2009. In September 2009, Novell announced that BrainShare would make a comeback in March 2010 in Salt Lake City; however, attendance significantly declined to approximately 2,000 participants.

In November 2010, Novell consented to acquisition by the software conglomerate The Attachmate Group. Following this acquisition, BrainShare transitioned to an 18-month interval between events. The 2011 BrainShare took place in October and showcased offerings from Novell, NetIQ, and SUSE. No conference was held in 2012, but BrainShare resumed in February 2013.

In September 2014, Micro Focus, a company specializing in mainframe software, announced its plan to acquire Attachmate Group, which included Novell. BrainShare 2014 occurred in November prior to the finalization of the acquisition, with attendance dropping further to around 1,200. Critics observed that the Salt Palace venue was oversized for the diminished audience and that the event duration was shorter than during its peak years. Executives from Micro Focus expressed positive expectations regarding the acquisition’s benefits and suggested potential continuation of BrainShare events.

Nevertheless, no subsequent BrainShare conferences have been organized since then. Feedback on Micro Focus forums reveals dissatisfaction about the event’s cessation, with numerous attendees and speakers expressing regret over losing a significant industry forum.

BrainShare UK

During the 1990s, Salford Computing Services at the University of Salford secured a long-term licensing agreement to supply Novell (primarily NetWare) site licenses to universities and higher education institutions across the UK. This program achieved considerable success and was supported by an annual technical conference initially named the Novell UK Academic Conference, which was later rebranded as BrainShare UK.