JTC1/SC22 N4168

From:ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC22 
Programming languages, their environments and system software interfaces 

Secretariat:  U.S.A.  (ANSI) 

ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC22 N4168 

TITLE: Meeting Logistics for the 13-15 April 2007 Ballot Resolution Meeting
for ISO/IEC 26926 

DATE ASSIGNED: 
2006-12-19 

SOURCE: 
Meeting Host 

BACKWARD POINTER: 

DOCUMENT TYPE: 
Logistics

PROJECT NUMBER: 

STATUS: 
This document is circulated to SC 22 members for information. Please note
that official delegates list to this meeting are due to me no later than 13
March 2007.

ACTION IDENTIFIER: 
FYI 

DUE DATE: 
N/A 

DISTRIBUTION: 
text

CROSS REFERENCE: 

DISTRIBUTION FORM: 
open 

Address reply to: 
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC22 Secretariat 
Sally Seitz 
ANSI 
11 West 42nd Street 
New York, NY  10036 
Telephone:  (212) 642-4918 
Fax:             (212) 840-2298 
Email:  [email protected] 


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April 2007 Meeting

The Ballot Resolution meeting for ISO/IEC 26926 will take place at the
Paramount Oxford Hotel in Oxford, England, April 13-15, 2007. Hosts are
ACCU; the sponsors (so far) are Google and Adobe. The address is Godstow
Road, Oxford, OX2 8AL. The hotel's web site is here:

http://www.paramount-hotels.co.uk/oxford

It is located about two miles north of central Oxford, on the Wolvercote
Roundabout of the northern Ring Road around the city. You can input the post
code OX2 8AL into your favorite map site (e.g. maps.google.co.uk,
www.streetmap.co.uk, www.multimap.com) to see a map of the hotel's
neighborhood in Oxford. The city center is to the south down Woodstock Road.
There is a bus stop almost in front of the hotel, with service to the city
center about every 15 minutes. In addition to the hotel restaurant, there
are other eating places within walking distance, although unfortunately not
just around the corner. 

Among the amenities of the Oxford Hotel are a fitness center, which contains
the usual weight machines and treadmills, sauna and steamroom, a smallish
swimming pool (small by Texas standards, anyway), and TWO glass-backed
squash courts. Racquetball aficionados might like to try out the sport. 

Most important of all, there is a large bar and lobby area for those
important evening work sessions.

Also among said amenities is a large parking lot, unusual for Oxford. It is
NOT necessary to rent a car -- public transport or taxis are quite adequate
-- but if you do rent one, you will have a place to park it which doesn't
cost more than the daily rental charge. 

A good starting point for information about all Oxford public transport is
here:

http://web.comlab.ox.ac.uk/oxinfo/timetables/

The main London airports are Heathrow and Gatwick. If you are arriving
there, the easiest way to get to Oxford is by bus (80-100 minutes from
Heathrow, 120-150 minutes from Gatwick -- see
http://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/[heathrow|gatwick].html). With luck, the
roadworks in Oxford and attendant delays will be just bad memories by next
April. Other London airports are Luton, Stansted, and London City Airport.
Cheap flights, especially from European destinations, may be more available
to these airports. Luton and Stansted also have bus service to Oxford,
although the travel times are longer (~3 to 4 hours, including some layovers
en route) than those from the primary airports. From London City, take
cross-London rail and tube trains to Paddington Station. 

Railway enthusiasts (and masochists) may prefer to experience British train
travel instead of taking the bus directly from the airport to Oxford. The
(overpriced) Heathrow Express goes from Heathrow Airport to Paddington
Station, from whence frequent trains depart for Oxford (duration :55-1:35).
From Gatwick, you can take the train to Victoria Station in London
(:30-:40), then the Circle Line tube or taxi to Paddington, and then the
train to Oxford. (It has been announced that the non-stop Gatwick Express
service will be axed to provide more track capacity for commuter trains on
the same route. This may take effect before next April, but there should
still be several trains per hour to choose from.) Another option from
Gatwick is to take the train to Reading (1:15, on the once-an-hour service
which goes there directly), and then transfer to a train going to Oxford
(25-45 min). 

In fairness, British trains are not too bad, when they are actually running
more or less on schedule. Two major causes of delay -- "leaves on the line"
and "the wrong kind of snow" (I am not making this up) -- are unlikely to be
a problem in April. But "staffing difficulties" and "industrial action" are
always in season. Fine dining on board, alas, is a tradition that went out
with the Orient Express. You might want to pick up a takeaway baguette
sandwich at the station before leaving on your journey. And if travelling by
train, be prepared to hump your luggage up and down stairs at the stations.
Elevators (called "lifts" here) are rare, and helpful porters are another
tradition that went out with the Orient Express. 

Yet another travel option, if your city has the connection, is to fly into
Birmingham Airport, take the two-minute SkyRail to Birmingham International
Station (see http://www.birmingham-airport-guide.co.uk/transport.html) and
pick up the train from there to Oxford (:58). 

Whichever option you choose, you will be arriving in Oxford at or near the
central train station. Either take a cab from there directly to the Oxford
Hotel, or walk five minutes to the bus stop outside the Randolph Hotel and
take one of the city buses which go up Woodstock Road. There is a travel
information office in the train station which can provide directions. 

The rate we have negotiated with the Oxford Hotel is 115 UK pounds per night
for a single room plus breakfast and buffet lunch. That is expensive in US
dollars, but in line with other major Oxford hotels (Oxford is an expensive
tourist trap^W^W place to visit). However, a second person in the room,
including breakfast but not lunch, adds only 15 pounds more to the tab. If
you don't want to stay at the hotel, there are other alternatives within
walking distance -- the Holiday Inn where we met in 2003 is not far away,
and likewise the cheaper Travelodge which shares its parking lot. There are
also some small bed-and-breakfast places in the neighborhood. For lunch, you
can buy your own (buffet or a la carte) in the restaurant, grab a sandwich
from the snack bar in the lobby, or go out (a brisk walk is good for you). 


Hotel bookings can be made through our conference organizer, Archer-Yates
Associates Ltd, who can also provide pointers to alternative accommodation.
We expect a web page for such bookings, plus any later information about the
meeting arrangements, to be available Real Soon Now at
http://accu.org/index.php/wg21april2007.

Sally Seitz
Program Manager
American National Standards Institute
25 West 43rd Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10036
Tel: 212 642 4918
Fax: 212 840 2298
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