Had I been a first-time attendee, I would've felt like a
high-school freshman being told who all the "cool seniors"
were.
Frankly, it was awkward and off-putting.
Yep, I've been in this industry since.. '94 or so, and the absolute number
one reason that I do not participate in NANOG is that even going back as
far as I can remember it's been a good-old-boy's club.
Yes, there are some very smart people that speak up, but I see time and
time again the cliques and good-old-boys club mentality inherent in NANOG.
And because of this, the thinking and mindset of NANOG in general will (in
my opinion) never change.
As you mention there is definitely a 'cool kids' or Ivory tower mentality.
And I'm not sure that it really *can* be fixed and more welcoming of newer
members without risking alienating the old guard. So for the most part I
tease out the nuggets of wisdom I can, and ignore most of the mindless
arguments that we have been over time and time again about.
Ken