Drink ‘n Think: Last week was the Semantic Web Austin Launch Party - the inaugural event in the GeekAustin Drink ‘n Think Series. Those of you who know me well know that I have been growing tired of anything that resembles the traditional tech happy hours. So it was a happy coincidence that John D’Oliviera and Juan Sequeda were in need of a proper send off at the same time I was looking for a partner to launch the Drink ‘n Think Series.
I couldn’t have asked for a better partner than Semantic Web Austin. Juan and John brought in a great group of presenters. Christopher St. John came down from Dallas to talk about Tessera, the Open Social API. Mike Kaply spoke about about Operator, Activities, and Microformats support in Firefox 3. Also speaking were Troy Williams, CEO of PeoplePad, and Robert Pettengill. Several folks, like John Eric Metcalf and Hayes Davis, had thoughtful write-ups of the event. Michelle Greer, armed with a flash she borrowed from Jay B. Sauceda, supplied some great photographic evidence at Flickr. As usual, half a dozen people whom I barely know blogged about the event as if they had something to do with organizing it.
Happy Hours: So why am I running away from the happy hour format? Even if I have a different co-host each time — to assure that there will always be new folks to meet — I know there are better ways to facilitate good conversation and valuable new connections. Morever, with Facebook, LinkedIn, and new social media tools popping up every week, anyone can put together a tech happy hour. There are multiple tech happy hours each week. Some of them — like Bryan Menell’s Austin Tech Happy Hour — are pretty good; but there are simply too many. I count four different Austin LinkedIn Happy Hours. Been there, done that.
Code Against Cancer: At the recent GA WordPress Fest (which was suspiciously close to a happy hour), David Neff and I were brainstorming about how we could enlist support of the Austin tech community in the fight against cancer. David is responsible for several several great web initiatives, like sharinghope.tv. I am excited to be working with him on this. Look for a formal announcement next week. See also CodeAgainstCancer on Facebook.
Kudos: Although I mentioned it previously, I want to think Michelle Greer for always photographing the GeekAustin events. If you have ever tried shooting in dark rooms (bars, etc), you’ll know that there is an art to this. Because she is in the process of starting her own company, she is being frugal and still borrowing a pro flash for each event. Instead of offering to buy her a drink at the next party, show some love and send a paypal contribution toward her flash at michelle@michellesblog.net.
Juan Sequeda (CV) and John De Oliveira of Semantic Web Austin just sent me the list of speakers for tonight’s Launch Party. Here are the speakers:
Christopher St. John
Mike Kaply
Troy Lane Williams
Robert Pettengill
As stated previously, this will be a departure from recent GeekAustin events. In addition to the drinks and conversation, the above speakers and members of Semantic Web Austin will be hosting presentations /sessions back in the BoomBoom Room. If you are interested in the semantic web, ontology, microformats, info architecture — or just want to toss back some drinks with folks who are — we look forward to seeing you.
Event: Semantic Web Austin Launch Party
Host: GeekAustin
Date: Tuesday, June 17, 6PM-10PM
Location: Union Park Austin ( 612 W. 6th St.)
Event listing on Facebook
Event listing on Upcoming
Juan just created the following:
SemanticWebAustin Facebook Group.
SemanticWebAustin LinkedIn Group
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I asked Paul Young, one of the organizers of ProductCamp Austin, to give us a wrap up of the event, and details on his future plans for ProductCamp Austin. I am sorry that I missed this. Based on everyone’s comments, I am certainly not going to miss the next one. |
Lynn Bender: Everyone has been raving about ProductCamp Austin. How many and what types of people were in attendence?
Paul Young: We had about 80-90 people come to ProductCamp Austin! The audience was very diverse, we had Product Managers, Product Marketing Managers, Usability PhD’s, Agile development experts, legal eagles, people entering product management from sales and development, and even a few programmers.
Bender: Can you give me some of the highlights?
Young: The PCA sessions were as diverse as the audience. John Milburn and I gave a session about Product Management in a startup, which was standing room only. Ben Phenix gave a session on usability that drew rave reviews on twitter and in the hallways. Joseph Lopez and Dustin Younse gave a presentation about the ACTlab at UT that won 2nd place for best session, and Charlie Ray led a raucous session about the political minefields of product management - he won “Best Overall Session!”
The participants were highly engaged in every part of PCA, starting in the morning with driving the schedule. We asked the participants to put post it notes under the sessions they most wanted to attend which were posted on the wall in the back of the main room. With little to no instruction, everyone got it, and in under 30 minutes we had a schedule for the day. The sessions were all highly interactive with great discussion and truth telling. The fact that anyone who got up at 8AM on a Saturday to come to ProductCamp really WANTED to be there made a big difference in the quality of the sessions and the event as a whole.
Bender: Based on the success of the first PCA, will you be planning another? What will you want to do differently in the second one?
Young: We will absolutely do another PCA. The consensus of the participants was that we could easily support a bi-annual model, so look for the next PCA in the Fall/Winter timeframe. Planning starts….right now! (Join the Google Group PCA-Planning to help: http://groups.google.com/group/pca-planning)
As for what we’d do differently, everyone agreed that the interactivity was what made PCA special. We’ll be more overt to the session leaders next time that they should expect and encourage discussion over slideware (myself included). Also, we barely had enough proposed sessions this time to run 3 simultaneous tracks, meaning that with the number of participants we had, the rooms were packed! We need more sessions next time, and I have a feeling that now that people have gone through the experience, that they will be more willing to pony up a session.
I was pulled aside many times during the day by people talking about what session they wanted to offer next time, and wanting to get involved in planning the next PCA. I believe that the turnout for this event showed that there is a strong appetite in the Austin and Texas Product Management and Marketing community for this type of interaction, because you just don’t get the chance to have these conversations very much with your peers during your day job. PCA Fall/Winter 2008 will be bigger, better, and badder in every way!
Bender: Where can people go to get more info on the recent ProductCampAustin and get on the invite list for the next one?
Young: The great news is that if you couldn’t make ProductCamp Austin, we have a lot of online resources to give you a taste of what you missed!
* First check out the official PCA wiki page: http://barcamp.org/ProductCampAustin
* Also look at the sessions page, which we are updating over the next few days with the presentation and session notes: http://barcamp.org/ProductCampAustinSessions
* Look at pictures from PCA: http://www.flickr.com/groups/pcaustin/pool/
To get on the list for the next ProductCamp Austin, join the Google Group ProductCampAustin at http://groups.google.com/group/productcampaustin
Bender: Anything else you would like me to pass onto the GeekAustin readers?
Young: There was a great quote during the Startup Product Management session I facilitated, that (paraphrased), “Startups on the West Coast are hipster-based, but startups in Austin are geek-based.” That summed up the day for me - it was a great mashup of corporate, startup, geek, academic, and marketing personalities, which really made it fun. I’d like to invite everyone to join the group, and we’ll see you at the next ProductCamp!
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Every time I have lunch with Caroline Valentine, I end up with enough information for several GeekAustin stories. This week, Caroline was gracious enough to respond to questions commonly asked among my older friends in the IT sector. |
Lynn Bender: Hardly a week passes that I don’t read a report about how tech employers are looking to keep older IT workers on the payroll longer and how older IT workers are in high demand. However, at every GeekAustin party, I meet several older folks who have been unable to find an opportunity for an extended period; but I also meet folks in their 50s and 60s who seem to be doing quite well for themselves. I have however noticed that those doing well normally fall into two categories: management or consulting. Is this because I’m only seeing the more social types who go to events?
Caroline Valentine: I would suspect it is not so much that “just the more social types attend”, but that those in management and consulting need to attend events to connect with possible employees and for new gigs. So, there is more of a motivation to attend.
Bender: What if someone is not the consultant type? How can someone manage their career so that they will continue to be marketable and desirable?
Valentine: Make sure that your skills are marketable and desirable. So what does that mean? This does not mean necessarily that you need to run out and learn the newest language or tool regardless if you like to work with it. Just do your research and be aware of how valuable and current your skills are, how in demand they are, how much competition do you have for jobs, and what industries and businesses are possible employers. Then decide if you need to learn new skills. Additionally, just like every other department within a company, IT workers need to understand the company’s business, market, customers, and stability of industry.
Bender: For older IT workers who prefer to be part of a company, is there any size or type of company they should be looking for? What type of environment?
Valentine: Companies of all sizes want to hire the best for as least as possible – some prefer experienced over junior level employees and some do not. In my experience, size does not seem to be the determining factor on the age of the employees. As for the environment, it all depends on senior management; the company culture really begins with them and filters down. Look for a company that values employees – all employees.
Bender: It’s quite common for older IT workers to end up working for someone half their age. What sorts of problems commonly arise? Any tips or advice you can offer?
Valentine: The main problem that can arise is a common one in any employment situation, whether or not there is an age difference. Its communication!!! The ability to communicate effectively is an issue for many people.
There are many studies and reports on the differences between generations – and how to deal with issues. The following link contains some good tools for dealing with the specific issue of younger manager, older employee. http://www.womenforhire.com/advice/generational_diversity/workplace_generations
Bender: How can older IT workers overcome the common perception that they don’t have the energy or commitment of younger workers?
Valentine: I am not seeing that perception so much anymore in the many clients we represent nor am I hearing that at HR conferences and meetings. The days of working employees hard with lots of overtime in exchange for stock options and the carrot of big money are pretty much gone. Younger employees are not willing to work those hours anymore either. Actually, the perception tends to be the opposite – managers tend to think younger workers are more lazy and interested in personal hobbies, friends and time off. Of course, each person should be viewed as an individual. Mass generalizations are never the way to view people. At Valentine & Associates, we work together with management and employees to address these incorrect perceptions and generalizations based on age, gender, race, religion, etc. If the generalizations are leading to hiring decisions, it is discrimination and it is wrong.
Bender: Quite a few of my older friends in tech have gone to finish their bachelors because they believe that their 20 years + experience doesn’t compete with a four year degree once the resume hits the HR office. Is that an accurate perception?
Valentine: It all depends on the specific hiring manager’s requirements and the supply of interested candidates. Greater supply equals more stringent screening. The desired skills or credentials become required the greater the supply of candidates.
Bender: There is sometimes the perception that an older IT worker will want a significantly higher salary. How widespread is this perception? What is the best way to deal with it?
Valentine: Very wide spread - experience commanding a greater salary has been the common practice for generations! The best way to deal with it is to communicate your salary requirements up front.
Bender: Any additional advice?
Valentine: Enjoy what you do. Otherwise, what is the point? If you are not enjoying it, change it. Be a lifelong learner, the more you know, the more you can control your career choices and seek out the opportunities that will bring you enjoyment.
Caroline Valentine is president of Valentine and Associates. She can be reached at www.valentineandassociates.com
* Omar Gallaga (twitter), from the Statesman, appeared as a correspondent for NPR’s story on the new 3G iPhone. Since his coverage of the Sarah Lacy trainwreck at SXSW, I’m happy to see that Omar is getting more national visibility.
* Bryan, Onramp, and Brandon are all hosting Tech events on Thursday. Weee!. If you want to hang out downtown with the Austin Ventures crowd, go to Bryan’s Austin High Tech Happy Hour. If you want to meet a bunch of kids with crazy ideas, go to Brandon’s Tech Night at Monkeywrench.
* Silona is postponing her codeathon until November, and moving it from Portland to Austin - to correspond with the Supercomputing Conference.
* Erica O’Grady and the Caroline Collective folks have scheduled their SuperHero Camp for October in Houston. Can someone please come up with a suffix other than camp? We’re wearing it out.
* Troy Lane Williams, of PeoplePad, will be speaking at Geek Austin’s Semantic Web Austin Launch Party next Tuesday at Union Park.
-Lynn
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It’s near impossible to be involved in Austin’s tech community and not hear Steven Doc List’s name come up. At any given time, he seems to be engaged in half a dozen projects — most recently the Agile Open Space Austin and the Green Technology Alliance. I was extremely happy that he was able to make time to answer my questions. Rather than try to summarize everything he’s involved in, I’ll refer you to Doc’s Linked In profile, and his websites: www.AnotherThought.com, www.StevenList.com, and Austin.ClassesInTown.com |
Lynn Bender: It seems that Open Space Technology has been around for more than a decade. However, I’ve only heard it mentioned in the last few years — most frequently during conversations among Agile advocates. Can you tell me a bit about OST and how it was implemented at Agile Open Space Austin?
Steven “Doc” List: I’ve had the same experience. Harrison Owen first codified the concepts in 1989, followed by the book “Open Space Technology: A User’s Guide“. So how is it that you and I have not heard of it prior to the last few years? My belief is that it’s because it has been building toward a tipping point. It is so totally counter to the way that Western business has run meetings and events, that it makes organizers and managers nervous. Truly. We live in a command and control culture, where the manager/leader/organizer expects to decide who and what and where and when. Schedules, project plans, organization, staff, materials…
Consider the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge), which is the codified approach to command and control. Get all the details, write them down, estimate them, schedule them, compare reality to the plan, stick to the plan. How different could Open Space Technology be?
So let me get back to answering your questions and addressing your observations.
Why have you heard about OST mostly amongst Agile advocates? Because both are intrinsically self-organizing, self-managing, iterative, and anti-command-and-control. Agilists embrace it because it mirrors their approach to what they do, and how they think, in many ways.
What is OST? It is a very simple methodology for holding meetings/events that puts the power into the hands of the participants, based on their passion and responsibility. The simple version is this: arrive, create the agenda, convene sessions, discuss issues, write some notes. The facilitator explains how it will work and guides the participants through creating the agenda. After that, the event is mostly in the hands of the participants.
At the Agile Austin Open Space, we met on Friday evening to create the agenda. The majority of the participants had never been to an Open Space before, so it was interesting to watch the acceleration. First, a few folks who had been to Open Spaces before offered topics. Then a few of the bolder “newbies” started to step up. For a while, it looked as though we would have lots of empty space in the agenda (six rooms, six time slots, for a total of thirty-six possible sessions). And then the tide started rolling in. We easily filled the agenda, with a couple of extra topics thrown in.
Once the topics were on the wall, the participants began to negotiate mergers (”these two topics seem pretty close”), changes to schedule (”I have a conflict at this time - can we switch slots?”), and anything else that needed handling. I, as the facilitator, mostly stood back and let them go at it. There was one moment when someone looked to me to tell them what to do. Scott Bellware said “we don’t need Doc - let’s just get this done.” And they did.
On Saturday, we began with Daily News - announcements, logistical details, and an opportunity for anyone to negotiate a change to the agenda. And then people went to whichever sessions they wanted. Conveners could organize their sessions any way they wanted, or not at all. One popular mechanism is the Fishbowl.
Saturday ended with a short meeting, announcements about what would be happening on Sunday, and a few minutes for anyone to share or ask questions.
Sunday began with Daily News again, this time outside in the parking lot. Attendance was a bit slow at first, but it got rolling. Not surprisingly, some of the sessions both on Saturday and Sunday “didn’t make” - no one showed up. So the conveners went to other sessions. This is one of those self-organizing things that express either the importance of the topic, or the conflict between interesting topics. And no one gets their feelings hurt.
Sunday ended with the Closing Circle, in which a Talking Stick is passed around and each person gets a minute or so to share. I find this to be one of the most rewarding parts of the process, as each person expresses appreciation, surprise (”it really works!”), insights, and more. I love the Closing Circle.
We created proceedings of the event by using the wiki that Eric Anderson had set up for the event, and having conveners go in to create a page for their session. It’s still up at http://openspace.agileaustin.org - click on the Agenda and Proceedings link. Other than reminding them, I didn’t have to do anything, and now there’s a persistent record.
Bender: So what are the key aspects or guiding principles of OST?
Doc: Harrison Owen says that the ideas came from African and American Indian tribal ceremony (circles, talking sticks, respect, passion), and the fact that he saw the most valuable discussions at events he attended over the years happen at the coffee breaks. In many ways, OST is about loosely organized coffee breaks!
There are four principles:
- Whoever comes is the right people
- Whatever occurs is the only thing that could have
- Whenever it starts is the right time
- When it’s over, it’s over
I like to add a corollary to the fourth principle:
- When it’s NOT over, it’s not over - if a conversation isn’t done, there’s nothing stopping you from continuing that conversation.
There’s the One Law - the Law of Two Feet: if you find that you are not learning or contributing the way you’d like, where you are, use your two feet and go somewhere else. Join another session. Sit in the hall. Have a conversation with someone at the coffee bar.
And one guiding thought: Be Prepared to Be Surprised.
At every Open Space I’ve facilitated, I’ve heard the same comment in various ways: I had no idea what to expect, and I got a LOT more out of this than I could ever have expected.
Bender: Open Space Meetings sound very close to another recent meeting format: BarCamp. Both provide methods for the meeting to “self-organize”. Both appear to be participant driven. What distinguishes the two?
Doc: BarCamp actually borrows from OST. As folks around technical and other communities have become exposed to parts of Open Space, they have embraced and adopted them.
The difference - as I’m aware of them - is that BarCamp is oriented towards possibly unrelated sessions within a broad topic, and the sessions are frequently hands-on learning sessions. Open Spaces are more oriented towards addressing problems and challenges.
While OST can be used for anything, it shines when there are strong emotions and opinions, problems to solve, and a group of people who bring passion and a sense of responsibility. It has been used to address geographical community issues (zoning, resources, libraries, and so on), corporate bodies (board meetings, company strategy, departmental issues), social/technical community issues (ALT.NET, Microsoft MVP), and so on.
Bender: What sort of problems arise when organizing an Open Space Conference? Is it more difficult to attract big names? Is it even important to attract big names?
Doc: The problems are pretty much the same as with any other event: getting volunteers to actually do stuff, getting the word out, and arranging resources.
As to attracting big names, the questions are two: Why would I care? and What’s the problem?
In the Open Spaces I’ve facilitated, we’ve had participation from and sponsorship from the likes of Microsoft, ThoughtWorks, Version One, Rally, and Adecco. Attendees have included Scott Guthrie (Microsoft), Scott Hanselman (Microsoft), Martin Fowler (ThoughtWorks), Ayenda Rahien (from Israel), Ian Culling (CTO of Version One), and other “names” in the Agile and .NET communities. The list is much longer - these are just a few well known names that come to mind. So clearly we’re not having trouble attracting “big names”.
But why would I care? The participants get out of it what they put into it. They participate in conversations, they share and learn, and they create their own experience. So while it’s sometimes cool to have folks like those I mentioned, it’s not essential to the success and value of an event.
Where there is resistance to participating or sponsoring, that resistance may come from the fact that there are some who are confused or put off by the idea of OST. They don’t get how it will work. They’re used to presenting and organizing, in a traditional sense, and being in control of their own time and space. In OST, the participants are in control.
Still, there’s a lot of flexibility. At least year’s inaugural ALT.NET Open Space, here in Austin in October, Scott Guthrie offered to present the new Microsoft MVC framework. Note that it’s “offered” - it was not predetermined before the event - he offered when the agenda was being created. Most of the participants opted to have just one session at that time so they could all be there and not miss out on anything good. And even though Scott’s session was mostly presentation, it was much more interactive and free-wheeling than it would have been at a “traditional” event.
Getting back to your question, though, the biggest problem is overcoming resistance and ignorance about OST and how/whether it works. By crafting the invitation with care, this can be addressed. Michael Herman, a well known practitioner, has an excellent PDF on crafting the invitation and all of the logistics leading up to the event (http://www.michaelherman.com/openspacetechnology/publications/downloads/inviting_guide.pdf).
Fortunately, the tipping point is in sight, as more and more people are becoming aware of OST and how exciting it is.
Bender: So why would an organization, particularly a corporate organization, choose to use OST to run an event?
Because it works. It’s been done literally thousands of times and has produced remarkable results. There are lots of examples, and finding information about Open Space Technology is easy.
In some ways, it’s akin to the choice between waterfall and agile.
Waterfall has proven itself to fail over and over again. Agile is proving itself to succeed.
The same is true of “traditional” versus OST. OST works. The participants are engaged, and bring passion and a sense of responsibility (yes, those are key concepts).
If you want your organization to succeed, whether it’s over the long haul with a clear strategy, or addressing a specific problem/challenge/issue, doesn’t it make sense that the results are likely to be more effective if the members/employees/participants have an emotional stake in the process and results?
Bender: The best BarCamps I have been to have been in the 100-200 person range. Are there scalability issues that are unique to the OST format?
Doc: I freely admit that I don’t know. The largest event I’ve facilitated so far has been about 150 people, and it worked beautifully.
The largest that I’ve heard about was facilitated by Harrison Owen and Michael Pannwitz (of Germany, creator of the Open Space World Map - http://www.openspaceworldmap.org/). It was an event in Germany with a bit over 2,000 psychiatrists! They put up two circus tents in a field, connected by a tunnel. They held the opening circle with everyone sitting on pads on the floor in several (like five or more) concentric circles. There were around 240 separate topics discussed. One of the most interesting things was that both Harrison and Michael conducted openings simultaneously, one in English and one in German. Not translations of each other’s words, but simultaneous openings as they walked around the circle on opposite sides. Amazing! I’ve seen photos and read the write-up.
So I really don’t know whether there are scalability issues.
I know that I’m not ready to try it with more than 200 - 300 people.
Yet.
Bender: Any plans yet for follow up Agile Austin Open Space?
Doc: You’d have to ask the folks at Agile Austin. I think that, given the results they saw, it’s likely that this will become a regular event. The participants were excited, and want to continue the discussions that began here. And it’s worth noting that not all of the attendees were from Austin - we had folks from as close as San Antonio and College Station, and as far away as Virginia and Maryland and Atlanta.
There will certainly be at least one more Open Space in Austin this year, organized by Scott Bellware. Scott was the primary organizer of the ALT.NET Open Space last year, and is responsible for me becoming an Open Space facilitator.
I believe that ADNUG is also considering holding an Open Space in Austin, but maybe not until next year.
Outside of Austin, I know of another ALT.NET event being planned for Calgary in August, and Microsoft has invited me to facilitate another Open Space for them in the Fall in Redmond.
One event that I’m hoping to attend is the World Open Space on Open Space in July in San Francisco. Practitioners from around the world will be gathering to discuss OST in an Open Space. How cool will THAT be?
So it’s rolling and gaining momentum. I expect we’ll continue to see more Open Space events as more people become aware of it and familiar with it. I do my little bit whenever I can. In fact, when folks invite me to connect on LinkedIn, I send them a nice thank you email with a link to the Open Space page on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Space_Technology). Guerilla marketing at its finest, eh?
Bender: Any last remarks?
Doc: Yeah.
I love Open Space.
This will be a departure from recent GeekAustin events. In addition to the drinks and conversation, members of Semantic Web Austin will be hosting presentations /sessions back in the BoomBoom Room. If you are interested in the semantic web, ontology, microformats, info architecture — or just want to toss back some drinks with folks who are — we look forward to seeing you.
Juan Sequeda (CV) and John De Oliveira of Semantic Web Austin, are currently assembling the program for the event. We’ll be posting details on speakers as we receive them.
Event: Semantic Web Austin Launch Party
Host: GeekAustin
Date: Tuesday, June 17, 6PM-10PM
Location: Union Park Austin ( 612 W. 6th St.)
Event listing on Facebook
Event listing on Upcoming
Juan just created the following:
SemanticWebAustin Facebook Group.
SemanticWebAustin LinkedIn Group
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I believe I first heard about Austin Jelly last November. Since then, it’s grown to become the main topic in the local Friday twittersphere. There has been a lot of press recently about Jelly as a national phenomena, and although Austin was one of the first Jelly cities, there hasn’t been much coverage on how it emerged locally. I asked Dusty Reagan, the chief instigator behind Jelly in Austin, to give me a bit of the history and background. |
Lynn Bender: In the mid 90s mojosdailygrind had ethernet jacks in the walls. It was the first wired coffee house in town. Because I found myself spending more and more time in front of a computer, and didn’t want to sit at home, I spent a great deal of time at mojos. I wasn’t the only one. The place was full of laptops — at the time, this was something unique. I’d see more or less the same geeks every night. Many became good friends, several I hired, and a few others I helped to find a new gig. This seems commonplace now though. On any day, go to Medici, Epoch, Café Caffeine, and you’ll see a room full of laptops. Hang out more than a few times, and you see that each has a community of sorts. What is it that distinguishes Jelly from the ad-hoc communities of tech workers that form in many of the coffee houses in town?
Dusty Reagan: I believe what distinguishes Jelly from ad-hoc coffee shop working communities is Jelly attendees are deliberately gathering and seeking a social outlet. The ad-hoc coffee shop communities you’re describing typically grow organically over an extended period of time. Jelly is kind of a community-building catalyst / ice breaker. When you come to Jelly you’re encouraged to introduce yourself to other workers. I’ve found that in the typical coffee shop working culture people generally work in silos. Jelly is an excuse to break out of your silo.
I should also mention that Jelly can be held at someone’s home, apartment, or office. It’s really all about making connections.
Bender: What was it that motivated you to launch Jelly in Austin? When did you launch it?
Reagan: I learned about coworking in general back in September 2007 after reading this article on Independents Hall on FreelanceSwitch.com. The concept of “coworking” hit such a strong chord with me that I wanted to see it happen in Austin immediately. I figured the best way to make coworking happen right away was to start Jelly meet-ups. I took one month to promote and generate buzz around our first meet-up. Then we met for the first time at Genuine Joe’s on Nov 2nd.
My motivation around Jelly and coworking comes from my deep-seated belief that work as we know it is evolving and it’s up to us to help change it for the better. Jelly fits in with my vision of how people should work. I’m passionate about sharing that vision.
Bender: There are a lot of great independent coffee houses in town. What factors led you to choose Café Caffeine? What sort of things does a venue need to make it suitable for a Jelly?
Reagan: Café Caffeine is a great place for Jelly because they have Wi-Fi, plenty of outlets, an open space, good food, great coffee, and they let us rearrange the furniture. But the number one reason Café Caffeine is great for Jelly is Ruth Glendinning, co-owner of Café Caffeine. She really understands and embraces Jelly and casual coworking. If you’re looking to host a Jelly meet-up at a coffee shop, get the support of the owner and/or manager. It has made a huge difference for us. Thanks Ruth! And thanks to Maggie Duval for introducing Austin Jelly to Café Caffeine and Ruth!
Bender: With Jelly, Michael Agustin’s Indie Austin group, 501 club, and the Austin Social Media Club all meeting simultaneously at Café Caffeine, are you encountering space issues?
Reagan: To date we haven’t encountered space issues at Café Caffeine, though we’re certainly starting to push the limit.
I’m extremely excited about the cross-pollination of Austin organizations because I think it strengthens our city-wide community. It turns people on to organizations that they may not have known about and widens our social circles. I think Jelly is a great community melting pot because the concept of Jelly is so universal: people gathering to work on separate things together. That concept is appealing to a lot of groups and individuals and makes for a neutral meeting ground to collaborate and mix it up.
I’m looking forward to our future space problems. I think the solution will simply be to expand Jelly to additional venues and/or increase meeting frequency.
Bender: I heard there are plans for a Jelly North Austin. Tell me about that.
Reagan: You bet there are! Jelly used to alternate between Genuine Joe’s (North Austin) and Café Caffeine (South Austin) on alternating Thursdays and Fridays. I did this to try and accommodate the largest possible number of Austinites. Unfortunately it turned out that the irregularity of the meet-ups really hurt attendance. I’ve learned that consistency is the key to gaining momentum in the Jelly community. We now hold Jelly every single Friday at Café Caffeine without fail. Now that the South Austin Jelly meet-up time and location has become established, I think we’re ready to start something consistent up North.
Jelly meet-ups can be hosted by anyone, anytime, anywhere. I encourage folks to host their own Jelly meet-ups if they get the urge. I consider these regularly scheduled meet-ups as a kind of “corner stone” of the community, but I’d love to see some ad-hoc Jelly meet-ups spring up. We’ve even had a few already hosted by Stephen Gutknecht at Uncle Billy’s Brewpub.
Bender: For folks who have never been to Jelly, how would you describe the experience?
When you work at Jelly, it’s like you’re working with a bunch of friends. Expect to do some socializing and meet some people outside of your professional circle. Lots of people come to cowork at Jelly, not just geeks. We’ve had lawyers, professors, librarians, real estate agents, artists, and numerous other non-geek professions represented. It’s really casual; some people only come for a few hours, some people prefer to keep to themselves, other people want to meet everyone there.
Occasionally other Austin organizations will meet at Jelly. If you’d like to participate in their meetings, just pull up a chair. If you’d rather not, pop in your earphones.
Bender: Any future plans for Jelly that you can share with us?
Reagan: There are some interesting things brewing on a global landscape. Nothing I can really speak of yet, but I don’t mind teasing. Watch www.workatjelly.com or chat me up at the next Jelly.
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Originally, we were planning to have a WordPress 2.5 release party. Rumor was that there was a complicated problem that might take another month to solve. Rumor also was that Andy Skelton was working on it. To everyone’s surprise, 2.5 was released at WordCamp Dallas. So instead of a release party, we’re having a WordPress Fest. |
Our co-hosts for this party will be Refresh Austin and the Austin WordPress Meetup Group. I credit the folks at Refresh Austin with helping me make the change to, and learn how to take advantage of, WordPress. Paul Menard, leader of the Austin WordPress Meetup Group, was the one who converted the GeekAustin slashcode template to WP. Whether you are considering making the move to WordPress, want to meet some local WordPress gurus, or just want to toss back a few drinks with the Refresh and GeekAustin folks at Union Park, you’re invited.
A note about the venue: There is plenty of room at Union Park. You won’t be standing in line to get in. The drinks at Union Park are generous and reasonably priced. They have a food menu so you can come straight from the office, and although parking is not difficult to find on W. 6th, valet parking will be available.
The details:
WordPress Fest - Hosted by GeekAustin and Refresh Austin
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Union Park, 612 W Sixth St. (map)
For those of you who use them, we have event pages on Facebook and Upcoming.
To get on the email list for future GeekAustin events, send an email to linearb@gmail.com.
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I first found out about Bryan Menell’s Austin High Tech Happy Hour when he and I both scheduled an event on the same day. Ooops. A few months later, I discovered AustinStartup.com (get the RSS feed), and found that Bryan is responsible for that as well. Recently, Bryan gave me a sneak peak at a new site he was working on — the Austin Emerging 100. Bryan has clearly been a very busy guy.
Before reading this post, go check out the Austin Emerging 100. If you’re looking for work with a startup, this should be the first place to check. |
Lynn Bender: Bryan, The Austin Emerging 100 is going to be a tremendous resource for all of us. It looks like a considerable amount of work went into it. How many folks were involved in the development of the site? Did you have any corporate sponsorship?
Bryan Menell: The website will be a great resource for the many people who ask me every week about what technology companies are hiring, who they are, and what they are up to. It started as a spreadsheet that Bryan Jones (CEO of Moximity) put together, and we collaborated to grow the list. At various points I asked for input from friends who are angel investors, PR professionals, and other members of the tech community. At first I thought it would be difficult to even come up with 100 companies, and then it became even more difficult to limit it to just 100. There haven’t been any sponsors of the project, but I would certainly welcome some!
(You can read Bryan’s own post on the Austin Emerging 100 here).
Bender: You also manage AustinStartup.com and the Austin High Tech Happy Hour. Did you originally envision this suite of sites, or did you create each as you discovered a need? Do you have any future plans that you can share?
Menell: Each one kind of came up independently, and each has it’s own support system. AustinStartup was intended to promote and expose all the cool technology stuff going on in Austin, and the happy hour was my wife’s idea. At the first happy hour over a year ago there just weren’t many social events for technology folks. I wish I could say there was a grand plan behind it all, but it all just sort of happened. My future plans include taking a break from dreaming up little side projects. Although I think it would be really neat to create something like TechCrunch’s CrunchBase just for Austin technology companies. Anybody want to collaborate on that project?
Bender: You are on the Board of Advisors of Texchange. Could you tell me something about the organization?
Menell: Texchange is a great organization for C-level executives in Austin technology companies, and for entrepreneurs. The quality of the networking is amazing, and the content in the monthly programs is top notch. In June Geoffrey Moore (who wrote Crossing the Chasm) is speaking, and that will cap off a tremendous year for Texchange. I encourage anyone who is interested to attend as a guest of mine to try it out.
Bender: Hardly a day goes by that someone doesn’t say: “Austin could be another Silicon Valley. if only we could…..”.
Yet, every day I see folks turn down opportunities to move to the Valley because they love Austin. How are we doing? What are we doing right, and what are we missing?
Menell: I lived in the valley for a few years, and it’s been 12 in Austin now. We don’t want to be like the valley because Austin is so much better. One of the things we do lack is a great support system that helps entrepreneurs get from idea stage to an investable stage. One of the ways we could do that is to pull entrepreneurs who have seen liquidity back into the startup community. I think we need higher levels of venture investment in more diverse areas like mobile, B2C, social media, and cleantech. Today we’re more diverse than ever before, but we could definitely use more.
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Over the last few weeks, there has been an increasing amount of talk about the upcoming ProductCamp Austin. I asked Paul Young, one of the organizers, if he could give us the background on the event. |
Lynn Bender: You’re a local guy. Where did you get the idea to host a ProductCamp Austin. Have you previously attended one in another city? Have you attended a BarCamp?
Paul Young: I’ve been in Austin for 10 years, and had several opportunities to move out to the Valley, but always turned them down because we love Austin. One aspect of the Bay Area that I’ve always had a jealous eye towards is that their critical mass of technical and marketing people really lends itself to organization of great events.
Aside from the various BarCamps, the first ProductCamp (called P-Camp) was held in the Valley back in March. I looked at what they did and thought “we need that in Austin.” I sent out some feelers to people I’ve met through my Product Management blog (Product Beautiful) and away we went.
I’ve never done a BarCamp before, so this is a new experience for me as an organizer as well. We’ve set some ambitious goals for sessions and attendance, and I know this is going to be a great event because whenever you put smart, capable people together in a room, good stuff happens.
Bender: GeekAustin recently interviewed Jason Cohen of SmartBear (interview). Jason mentioned that he was using Agile practices in his marketing programs. I notice that many of the people involved with, and blogging about, ProductCamp Austin have a knowledge of Agile, Design Patterns, and similar tools. Even the word Pragmatic hints at the classic text The Pragmatic Programmer by Andrew Hunt and Dave Thomas. What’s going on? Are the marketing folks getting hip to engineering methodologies or are the engineers taking over the marketing dept?
Young: Both! “Big M” Marketing, which includes Product Management, is very interested in solutions to the customer’s problems and not just ordering t-shirts and making their YouTube video “go viral.” Agile has some great aspects about turning code in fast iterations and not over documenting, but the beauty of Agile is that it injects a greater understanding of the customer and her problems into the company. There are a lot of reasons why Agile is catching fire, and whichever one you like, they all get back to “how can we solve a problem that’s real?”
Interestingly, most Marketing teams still perform their positioning in a very waterfall-like manner: go in a room, position, output documents…redevelop a year later when the Sales team says that the message isn’t working. Can we position a product like we develop in Agile? Develop, test, refine continuously? Sounds like a great session for ProductCamp!
Bender: What kinds of sessions do you expect ProductCamp to cover?
Young: ProductCamp will have sessions covering all aspects of the product management and development lifecycle. John Milburn from Pragmatic Marketing will lead a session about technology assessment and where to put your development dollars. Bjorn Aannestad has signed up to facilitate a discussion about different methods we use to do feature prioritization. I’ll be leading a roundtable about working with offshore manufacturing and development. Proposed sessions include how Product Managers can work effectively in an Agile shop, career planning and transitioning into and out of Product Management, and dealing with GUIs in requirements.
Bender: How many folks do you expect at the event? I’ve noticed that a few barcamps have attracted upwards of 1000 people. Do you think that there is a limit to how big a barcamp type event can scale before it ceases to be an un-conference and turns into a traditional conference?
Young: Because ProductCamp is focused on more specific topics than BarCamp, I doubt we will see 1000 people. We’ll probably have less than 100; our goal is to have a high quality group who are dealing with the pressing problems in the product development process every day. The sessions are going to be interesting and thought provoking, and participants should come ready to be challenged - and challenge one another. Product Management is still poorly understood in technology companies, so it is up to us to help define what is a critical role that will shape the software and products we use in the future.
As far as keeping the spirit of the event, I strongly believe that no one wants to come out to hear a bunch of talking heads droning about process and continuous improvement. The un- in un-conference means that the rule of 2-feet applies: if you don’t feel like you’re getting value in a session - find another! ProductCamp is participation driven, and the day will go where the participants take it.
Bender: Is this a free event? I see that Pragmatic Marketing is one of the sponsors. Who are the other sponsors? Are you still seeking additional sponsors? Do you need additional volunteers?
Young: This is a 100% free event and everyone is welcome! The only cost is participation.
ProductCamp is sponsored by Pragmatic Marketing, Austin Ventures, St. Edwards University Professional Education Center, The Association of International Product Marketing and Management, and NetStreams - and we are seeking more (email pt.young@gmail.com).
We will never have enough volunteers! If you are interested in ProductCamp, first go sign up as a participant. Then list yourself on the wiki under “Volunteers” and we’ll find a job for you! Finally, if you feel like you have something to share about Product Management or Marketing, or the way products and software are being developed, sign up to lead a session as a speaker.
Bender: When and where will ProductCamp be held?
Young: ProductCamp will be held Saturday June 14th, 2008, 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM at St. Edwards University’s Professional Education Center on 9420 Research Blvd., near Mopac and 183. To sign up, and learn more, go to the official site for ProductCamp Austin.
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I first met Jim “Decibel” Nasby at Nuclear Tacos. Jim was one of the early members of distributed.net. He was also the one who introduced Whurley and I to each other (”You guys need to trade phonebooks.”) Jim was an early adopter of, and is considered a top expert in, Postgres. Following his announcement of a Austin Postgres User Group, I interviewed him on the state of Postgres and the job outlook for Postgres pros. The Austin Postgres User Group will be meeting Tuesday, May 6th, at Sun Microsystems. More details here. |
Lynn Bender: A few years back, I searched Dice/Monster and found only three job postings in all of Texas which contained the keyword Postgres or PostreSQL. what is the job market for Postgres experts in Austin nowdays?
Jim Nasby: I see two distinct markets for people with knowledge in Postgres; there are companies that (generally) past the startup stage, have money to spend, and want someone that has a substantial amount of Postgres and database expertise. There are very few people in the world that have that skill set, so demand is very high relative to supply. This is a market that experts in other databases should pay attention to.
The other market is companies that are using Postgres, but don’t think they need an expert. This is where you will find people who don’t do database work for a living, but have experience with Postgres. In cases like this, having Postgres on your resume will give you a decided edge over a similar candidate that doesn’t have Postgres experience.
Something else that I’ve noticed is that a lot of Postgres jobs don’t get listed through channels like Dice or Monster. A lot more of this hiring seems to be via word-of-mouth. So I don’t think low numbers on Dice or Monster are very representative. One data point that I can throw out is that until recently I’ve averaged one serious inquiry from a recruiter per month. This has fallen off in the last 6 months or so, possible due to my reduced involvement with the community.
Bender: Almost every database has a certification program — Oracle, DB2, SQL Server, and even MySQL. Is there any equivalent yet for Postgres. What are some of the ways prospective Postgres DBAs can distinguish themselves?
Nasby: There are many benefits that come from being involved in the Postgres community, and distinguishing yourself as an expert is just one of them. So let me address all of them in one answer.
First, simply reading the mailing lists is a great way to learn about Postgres, as well as good database practices. pgsql-general, pgsql-novice and pgsql-sql are good places to start. Even better than just lurking is participating. Asking questions about things you’re not clear on, as well as answering questions from others when you can.
Second, reading pgsql-hackers is a good way to learn about how the database actually works on a nuts-and-bolts level. This is an important step up… understanding how the database functions takes you to a much higher level than just being able to write queries; you can start understanding how database design must consider how the database actually functions.
Finally, there is the level of actively participating in the development of Postgres. This doesn’t have to be in the form of code, either. There is plenty of room for help with things like documentation and advocacy. You can also contribute at a technical level even if you’re not writing code.
Bender: For someone just starting out with, aside from a knowledge of SQL, what are most critical skills for a Postgres DBA to have? and what is the best way to obtain them?
Nasby: I’m glad that you mentioned “knowledge of SQL”. SQL is nothing more than a language, and a very simple one at that. I think this is a point that many people fail to grasp. Working with databases is very different than working with procedural code; it requires a different mindset. I constantly see SQL that was clearly written by someone who was thinking in terms of “first I do this, then I do this, then I do this”; they were thinking procedurally. Databases aren’t procedural engines, they’re set manipulation engines. In order to actually be proficient with databases you have to think in terms of sets of *data*, not sets of *operations*.
Also, I want to point out that there are 3 different areas of database expertise: administration, development, and architecture. A database administrator (DBA) is generally concerned with keeping production databases up and running. They are similar to systems administrators. Database developers are concerned with writing code that interacts with the database; queries, stored procedures, as well as portions of client-side code. Database architects work with the structure of data in the database, as well as higher-level considerations. Things like table design, materialized views, designing replication environments. Of course, it’s very common for people to wear many of these three hats.
The key to success with a particular database is understanding how it differs from other databases. For Postgres, this means understanding what MVCC is and how Postgres implements it. When you understand that, you’ll understand how critically important vacuuming is. It also means you don’t have to worry very much about lock contention issues, something that can be a huge pain in other databases. It’s also important to understand what most of the different configuration parameters do (there are a few that can generally be ignored). Understanding that means understanding some of how the engine actually works. There’s some good references for this information available.
There are also things that aren’t Postgres-specific. for DBAs, it’s good to understand how the different backup and recovery mechanisms work. For developers and architects, understanding how to think in terms of sets is critical. Understanding of how the engine works is also useful for developers and DBAs; it’s pretty critical for architects. Replication is something that DBAs and architects should also know.
Bender: Senior level folks and decision makers often ask me “Why is Postgres better? Why should I switch from MySQL?” What would you tell these folks?
Nasby: With Postgres, data integrity is the number one driving factor behind everything. Right behind that is stability. Performance is 3rd. MySQL tends to do things “the easy way”. The trade-off here is that Postgres can be seen as being “hard” compared to MySQL, and there is a bit of truth to that. MySQL can be a bit easier at the very beginning. But once you get into a larger environment, those initial differences become meaningless, but data quality issues are huge.
People like to point to MySQL’s customer list and get a warm fuzzy that since so many other well-known companies use MySQL it must be good enough for us. What they fail to understand is that MySQL is a commercial company with a commercial product, and that list is marketing material. The list for Postgres isn’t as big and impressive because the community focuses effort on the database itself and not as much on marketing.
So, if you’re starting from scratch, I think there’s a very strong case to be made for Postgres. If you have existing code it becomes a bit trickier, because there is the cost of actually migrating. What I can say is what I’ve seen time and time again, and that’s people who finally bit the bullet and migrated and are much happier, or people who are still on MySQL and hating it, but perceive the pain to be just below the pain of migrating. I’ve yet to find someone who’s regretted migrating to Postgres.
Bender: MySQL seems to have a wide variety of storage engines available. Each seem to be suited to a particular type of task. Is there an equivalent to this in Postgres?
Nasby: I think multiple storage engines is MySQL’s Achilles heel. It sounds great in theory… give people the flexibility to use the right storage engine for the job. But the reality is that the storage technologies are too different to work well in one product. For example, there are serious caveats with transactions in InnoDB because of MyISAM. And you find pieces of MySQL technology that only work with one storage engine.
I think a far better approach is to look at what *database* engine is best suited for a given task, or if a database engine is even the right answer. There are options built on Postgres, like Greenplum’s MPP that scale well into many terabytes for data warehouse applications.
Having said that, there are efforts in the Postgres community to add options that will make it’s storage format useful in a broader range of cases. One example is being able to mark a partition as read-only. That allows for covering index scans. It also potentially allows for stripping out a lot of per-row overhead. There are also different indexing methods being worked on.
Bender: I realize that the Austin Postgres user group has not had it’s first meeting yet, but can you share a bit of your vision for what you would like to see? Programs? Speakers?
Nasby: My personal goal for the user group is to promote Postgres and to provide a resource for people in Austin / central Texas that are using Postgres. Ultimately, I think it’s those users who will determine what the user group looks like.
The Austin Postgres User Group will be meeting Tuesday, May 6th, at Sun Microsystems. More details here.
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Many of my friends consider Caroline Valentine, of Valentine And Associates, the first person to call when they have high-level HR/staffing needs. The last few times we’ve had lunch, I wished I had a recorder with me. Following a recent conversation about insurance, I wrote some of my questions down, and Caroline responded. |
Lynn Bender: Last time we met, you had mentioned several strategies which startups can use to reduce their per employee health insurance premiums. Could you elaborate?
Caroline Valentine: The most common strategy is to provide a plan or plans with higher $ deductibles and copays. For this to work and not result in a mutiny of the current employees on increased out of pocket expenses or higher salary offers to prospective employees to compensate, it must be accompanied by some form of pre-tax savings account – either an FSA (Flexible Savings Account) or HSA (Healthcare Savings Account). There is a third type, HRA, which is not commonly used, so I wont elaborate on it.
The difference is pretty simple. An FSA allows for pre-tax deductions to be used within the calendar for any healthcare related expenses. The catch of course is within the calendar year – it’s a use it or lose it plan. An HSA allows for pre-tax deductions to be used anytime needed. The employer and employee can both make contributions to the account. It grows over time and eventually can be transferred to a mutual money account (from simple savings) and then can operate as a retirement fund, participants are forced to pull money out after a certain age – but not just for healthcare related expenses- check out the links below for additional details on how both plans work -
http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flexible_spending_account
If your company doesn’t already offer one, ask about it – the plans save $ for companies as well so your HR or accounting departments should be happy to hear you are interested.
Bender: Many of my friends work as independent contractors. Some are employed through a headhunter/recruiting firm, and have their insurance included through the firm. However, some firms provide no such coverage. Do you see any trends?
Valentine: As we all know, insurance costs are continuing to escalate upwards. For most firms, the solution is higher deductibles and co-pays, which I discussed in the answer to the previous question. As it becomes more difficult, we might see fewer firms willing to deal with the headache. On the other hand, if more consultants and contractors request (or even demand) access to benefits as a condition, the firms might reconsider. The size of the firm, types of clients and the firm’s financial stability are also factors to consider.
Bender: For IT pros who must seek coverage on their own, what do you suggest? I know that BCBS was offering individual plans, but for individuals over 45, the cost becomes prohibitive. Is it always better to find a group plan?
Valentine: Most of the major/national healthcare providers do offer individual plans – BCBS, Humana, United Healthcare, Assurant, Cigna, and Atena. Additionally, there are local and regional providers including Scott & White. It is important to research all of the available plans in your area and get a quote if you can. The process of determining rates is not an exact science and can varying greatly from provider to provider. It is not always better to find a group plan, but most of the time it is. Many organizations are providing members with access to healthcare plans – IEEE being one of them. There are many more – first step is identifying organizations focused on independent consultants as a core membership and it being a group you are interested in joining.
Bender: The idea of coworking has been getting a lot a press recently. For those starting or participating in a co-working venture, are there any special considerations?
Valentine: Coworking is different from simply renting space in a “business office suite” type of environment with a desk, door, receptionist, and conference room. The underlying intent of co-working is to create and foster community and communication – my advice would be to know that is a guiding principle, know yourself and how much community and communication you are seeking, and know what you want to give to and get from the arrangement.
