I'm visiting my test center this Wednesday (UPDATED) Forum

[YankeeFan2]

Find the exact room. Find the exact seat where you will most likely be sitting. Record the ambient temperature at the same time of day that your test will be administered. Check the weather report - are there going to be any major discrepancies in the weather preceding your test? If so, plan accordingly. Take your practice tests with the temperature within 1-2 degrees of what you previously recorded in the testing facility. Walk around the campus - any construction occurring nearby? If so, simulate that potential distraction for your next PT. Are there any steps, or perhaps a slight incline leading to the testing center? Be sure to note whether or not this will elevate your heartrate beyond normal.

Or pop a Xanax!

This really made me laugh!

Well done.

+1

[Jeffort]

...maybe I'm the extreme case?

I took the test last October (canceled), so I know exactly where I'm gonna be at and what it's like to take LSAT there.
Also, it is in my UG college and I probably spent at least a quarter of my college life in that building.

However, for the February test, I've been practicing in that exact room every Saturday to make sure I feel comfortable.

I don't think over-comforting yourself is stupid. I think it's actually better than knowing vaguely or nothing about the test center.

Over-comforting yourself is a bad idea because actual test day conditions will be out of your control and stressful in an environment with a bunch of stressed out people, several mundane tedious procedures you have to go through, and proctors watching you.

Getting used to the room when nobody else is there does not simulate test day conditions.

The purpose of visiting your test center ahead of time is to make sure you know how to get there so you don't get lost on the road test-day morning, know where to park, and know where the building you check-in is at. That's it.

Any behavior beyond simply figuring out directions qualifies as being obsessive/neurotic and automatically deducts 5 or more points from your test-day score since you're likely to be the type that will panic on test-day and screw up somehow. Heck, test day security procedures are almost if not more strict than DHS and airport procedures to board a plane and fly somewhere.

Timed practice tests leading up to test-day should be taken in harsh conditions, not comfortable ones since things will not be feeling very comfortable on test day, no matter how great of a desk you have or if you've become acquainted with the room.

[afnaidel]

Over-comforting yourself is a bad idea because actual test day conditions will be out of your control and stressful in an environment with a bunch of stressed out people, several mundane tedious procedures you have to go through, and proctors watching you.

Getting used to the room when nobody else is there does not simulate test day conditions.

The purpose of visiting your test center ahead of time is to make sure you know how to get there so you don't get lost on the road test-day morning, know where to park, and know where the building you check-in is at. That's it.
Any obsessive behavior beyond the simple directions stuff qualifies as being neurotic and automatically deducts 5 or more points from your test-day score.

Timed practice tests leading up to test-day should be taken in harsh conditions, not comfortable ones since things will not be feeling very comfortable on test day, no matter how great of a desk you have or if you've become acquainted with the room.

I see it as being ready for that kind of unpredictable situation. What would be worse? Just dealing with a bunch of unpredictable people? Or dealing with a bunch of unpredictable people in addition to not knowing what the static or regular condition of the room is?

I do PT in the actual room because I can learn things like how bothersome the rain would be (I live in the Northwest and the sound of rain can be really disruptive), how much traffic sound I would hear, etc.
Also, I've never said that practicing by myself in the room is a simulation of actual test day conditions.

For days other than Saturday, I do PTs in library with a bunch of annoying people typing on keyboard or eating chips really loud.
What I'm saying is that it is better to be overprepared than underprepared.