> plus I dont think leasing a room is an option, because of the costs involved and people would not want to pay to attend a meet.
we paid about $15 to attend last time for the venue costs + pizza and no one seemed to mind.
Keep in mind, people get a change to 'try before they buy' some really high-end setups, so it's well worth the $15

(we had about 20 people if not more at the Melb meet). That's in the sense that you don't have to buy the gear to then lose the 10-50% on re-selling it used

. In that sense, $15-20 is fantastic value.
I wouldn't get hung up on the 'venue for free' thing. It's more important for it to be accessible and have parking/be relatively close to the city

/ have tables and power points ...
Edited by svyr - 5/4/11 at 1:45am