[Stealx]

As someone who as exhibited at TechEd before, it's a poorly run event contracted out to the lowest bidder... just like he said.

It's the Microsoft way, their events are a reflection of how Microsoft truly is.

[bruceb]

I worked for a company that had a contract with Microsoft and I must say our travel and accommodation was handled well and they didn't cheap out. One piece of anecdotal evidence to throw out there.

[rubinelli]

In my experience, it all depends on who's picking up the tab. I assume you were hired as a consultant for a project. In that case, their client was paying, so there wasn't a reason to be cheap.

(And, of course, Microsoft is a huge organization; even if some policies are standardized, the way they are implemented can still vary wildly.)