1. What do you suggest I do in advance to prepare myself better?
MAKE A WEBSITE! GO NOW. An Electronic Arts Art Director I spoke with last year dismissed anyone without a website as not being "serious". So get one up now! Even if it's a crap one, have one. You will build on it later, even after the conference, and if you become a conference junkie like me, you'll build on it each time before a conference. Just have a short blurb about what you do, and some examples of your best work. Don't feel bad if you only have a few to show either, it's better to show 2-3 of your best than a whole bunch of crap.
BUSINESS CARDS. Spend time designing business cards, and get them printed. Even if you don't have the time/money to get them done, you can actually get business cards made for free, you just need to pay for shipping. The freshman on my game dev team got 250 and only had to pay shipping, and 250 is more than enough to last you through the conference. (vistaprint.com)
BUSINESS CARD BOOK. One of the best things my Dad did for me is give me his old business card book that he used to carry around to conferences, and a personal business card holder. In you business car holder, you'll keep enough business card to last you until you can run back to your locker to grab a refill. When you get a business card, give them one of yours, and tuck their's in the back of the holder. That way you have a safe place to keep them. Be sure to write on the back of their card what you talked about and specific details about them and how you met.
At then end of the day, take all of your business cards and put them in your book. You should take this time to review info you wrote on the back of the card, and maybe add some more information about them. This will help you write follow up emails after the conference, which are crucial for retaining these contacts after the conference is done. Keep your book at the hotel, and your holder on your person. If you have the former on you during the day, you might misplace it (happened to me one at GDC, thankfully I traced back my steps in time to find it). With the latter, it is extremely handy to keep your cards neat and crinkly free and right at hand.
RESEARCH THE CONFERENCE. Look at the schedule, find out which events your REALLY want to attend. During the conference, you won't have time to see everything so you need to maximize your time. Other SV's are pretty good about swapping shifts, but the earlier you do it the better. If you know exactly what you want to see BEFORE the conference starts, you have a leg up when it comes to swapping shifts.
Also research parties, if you are able. This really help me at GDC. I got me and my friends invites into parties BEFORE we even go there. Look up forums like CGsociety, or online place where industry professions go online to chat, they tend to have some of the latest party information. Also keep an eye out for facebook groups that focus on party conferences. The Fellowship of the GDC parties group was a god send for me, and my main source of party information. There previously wasn't a specific group for SIGGRAPH, so you know what? I made one, League of Siggraph parties. If you've been to a conference a few times, chances are you can make one of these groups yourself as well (Props to Oded Sharon, mastermind behind the fellowship). If you don't have time to do party research, don't worry, just keep your ear to the ground and ask around at the expo floor, and you can find parties.
SLEEP! Get plenty of rest before the conference. I am the type who like to run around like crazy before and sleep on the plane before the trip. DO NOT DO THIS. While a personal leisure trip can handle you being exhausted the first day, from the first moment of SV orientation you want to experience EVERYTHING. So sleep.
FIND A LOCKER. Having a locker at the conference is AWESOME. As SV's at SIGGRAPH you have access to lockers in the SV lounge. I brought a lock that had a changeable combination, and my roommates and I shared it. At least one of my roommates would have an early shift, so we had a locker every day. If you aren't one of the lucky few to be an SV, try calling ahead to the conference to ask about what storage they have available.
2. Are there other rookies at my level that attend?
Yes. There will also be people who haven't TOUCHED maya yet. People come from all different backgrounds. Some may be game designers, others programmers, and then there are the animators and computer graphics artists. You probably know more about something than somebody else there. Plus plenty of rookies attend, and it's better to get to the conference as early in your career as possible, the experience just makes you grow in your craft so much. They even have special session JUST for beginners. The main thing you need to attend is a love for Computer graphics and everything around it. You'll fit in just fine.
Most importantly, just enjoy the conference, every minute of it. It's a great experience that will make you appreciate the field your entering into even more.
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