I’m happy to announce that David Timothy Strauss, of Four Kitchens, will be speaking on the following topic at the Drinks and Drupal Party:
Quick and maintainable site-building for charities and non-profits using Drupal and CiviCRM
We’ve reserved our home base, Union Park Austin, for Wednesday, May 20. We’ll have drinks out front and presentations in back. We’ve been sending personal invites to Drupalistas throughout Texas. So, if you have any unanswered Drupal questions, this will be the place to find the answers.
-Lynn
Drinks and Drupal
Co-hosted by Four Kitchens and GeekAustin
Date: Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Time: 6:30pm - 10:30pm
Location: Union Park Austin
Street: 612 W Sixth St. Austin, Texas 78701
RSVP on Facebook
The Drupal Texas LinkedIn group:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1812268
The Austin Drupal Users facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=92094071680
Ever since we announced the Introduction to Drupal workshop as part of the GeekAustin Free Classes, we’ve been getting emails asking: “So what’s the big deal with Drupal?“, “Why should I use Drupal instead of Word Press“, “Isn’t Drupal really hard?“, and the occasion comment from some moron in Canada asking: “Why don’t you use Plone?”
Sounds like an excuse for a party? Yes!
We’ve reserved our home base, Union Park Austin, for Wednesday, May 20. We’ll have drinks out front and panels in back. Panels? Yep. We’ll be bringing in local experts to discuss and debate topics such as: “Why should I use Drupal instead of Wordpress?”, “Isn’t theming hard with Drupal?”, and “Why would the City of Austin use Plone instead of Drupal?”. Ok, well maybe not the last panel.
I’ve been sending personal invites to every Austin Drupal user I know, as well as quite a few throughout Texas. So, if you have any unanswered Drupal questions, drop by.
-Lynn
What’s the deal with Drupal? (an evening of Drinks and Drupal)
Date: Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Time: 6:30pm - 10:30pm
Location: Union Park Austin
Street: 612 W Sixth St. Austin, Texas 78701
RSVP on Facebook
The Drupal Texas LinkedIn group:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1812268
The Austin Drupal Users facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=92094071680
If you happen to be one of the very few unfamiliar with BarCampAustin,
you can read about it on Google, or read the recent article in Austin360.
This year’s BarCampAustin 4 will be held at the old Paradox night club.
Remember Paradox? Heh. Me too. Paradox is gone, and BarCamp has the space.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the space, it’s less than a block from SXSW.
It’s practically across the street. Whurley, chief instigator of BCA4, says this was
possible thanks to the support of the folks at SXSWi (Hugh Forrest, Brad Spies, and especially Samantha Staples).
Thanks to the generous sponsorship, BarCampAustin is still free. Sponsors include BMC Developer’s Network, Open Solaris, Four Kitchen Studios, Sanctuary Printshop, Waggener Edstrom, OuterNet, Chin Print, Wahoo’s Fish Tacos, Sweet Leaf Iced Tea, Microsoft, Appcelerator, Acquia, and All Web Leads. If you’d like your company added to the list of sponsors, send a note to whurley@ieee.org.
BarCampAustin 4
Saturday March 14, 2009 from 9:00am - 9:00pm
311 East 5th Street
Austin, Texas 78701
whurley (@whurley) has just thrown down another gauntlet, and with Giovanni Gallucci (@giovanni) and Dan Crumb (@dancrumb), has launched predevcamp 2009. The event will be held exactly one week after the U.S. release of the Palm Pre.
This weekend I asked for the scoop, and whurley replied: Computing is clearly going mobile, and he who owns the smart phone software market may own the next decade. Android, Symbian, and WebOS will be in a three-horse race for iPhone’s crown, The smart phone with the best operating system will win, and the company that controls the smart phone OS market is going to control the market, period.
To find out which horse whurley is betting on, read the full story at whurley.com.
-Lynn
GeekAustin meets The HeliOS Project. The story of an event:
About a year ago, Michelle asked me how she could obtain computers for the Burmese refugees she was helping (story and story). She didn’t have a lot of money to throw at it, and no ready sponsors, so the whole thing would have to be done on the cheap. Quite a few friends offered to donate computers. However, most of the machines ran older versions of Windows, and even though most of the machines probably wouldn’t have the CPU and RAM to run the current version, buying Windows licenses to update 50 computers was out of the question. Besides, if you’re going to give a free computer to a person, why not give them a free operating system as well — especially if they have no money.
As a solution, I decided that we would hold a massive Linux install fest. I’d take advantage of the GeekAustin network, take donations for computers, take over a club for the day, get a room full of my Linux loving buddies, and install Linux on all the machines. No doubt we’d get enough machines for the refugees, and anything left over, we’d donate to folks who needed computers. Michelle came up with a catchy name for the event — Linux Against Poverty.
Although we mentioned it to a few friends, both Michelle and I were already committed to other projects. Frankly, there were also a lot of operational details that would have to be worked out. This would be a little more complicated than a GeekAustin party. The project was put on the back burner.
| Enter The HeliOS Project |  |
A few months back, I heard the kerfuffle about the AISD school teacher who chastised a student for passing out Linux CDs (Omar’s coverage). The CDs had come from a local fellow and Linux advocate — Ken Starks. While discussing the story with him, I learned that Ken founded and leads an organization, The HeliOS Project, which takes old computers, installs Linux on them, and donates them to disadvantaged children in Central Texas. In 2007, they built and placed 228 computers, and in 2008, bumped that number up over 325. Ken also told me that, unfortunately, for every one computer they place, they have requests for three. (Omar’s coverage)
This got me thinking about the install fest again. Austin has an abundance of Linux advocates who’d take a day of to install Linux on a stack of machines, and every company I visit seems to have a stack of older Dells, decommissioned and waiting to be hauled off. With a lot of folks pitching in, we could help Ken and the HeliOS Project get these machines to the kids who can use them.
Linux Against Poverty is on!
The event is Saturday, August 1st, so you won’t have to take the day off. The event will be held at GeekAustin favorite downtown hangout, Union Park. Because the event is on a Sunday afternoon, there will be plenty of places to park; and because Union Park is absolutely huge, HeliOS can set up a regular assembly line.
Because they been setting up machines for several years now, and have it down to an art, The HeliOS Project will be managing the operational details of the install fest. Because we have the big Austin tech phonebook and megaphone, GeekAustin will be helping to get the word out and coordinating sponsors.
Every company and individual that donates computers, and every person who helps with the install fest, will get a mention on the Linux Against Poverty site as well as on GeekAustin. Better yet, you get the good feeling of knowing that you’ve helped your fellow Austinites in a big way.
This is one where everyone wins.
Linux Against Poverty
1PM, Saturday, August 1, 2009
Location and Further details forthcoming.
For sponsorship opportunities and press info:
Lynn Bender (linearb@gmail.com)
For computer donations and volunteer opportunities at Linux Against Poverty:
Ken Stark, The HeliOS Project (helios@fixedbylinux.com)
For a while, I was afraid that I wouldn’t make my own party. Cedar Fever had pretty much knocked me out, but after a few benedryl and an afternoon nap, I was ready to go.
A few hours before the party, crack photographer to the Austin tech scene, Eugene Hsu (@heuge) contacted me to let me know that he was a victim of allergies as well — and wouldn’t be making the party. This threw me into a bit of a panic. Although Michael Cummings (@michaelcummings) would be shooting headshots in the Boom Boom Room, we had made no arrangements to have someone shoot the party; and if no one shoots the party, it’s like it never happened — right?
Whurley (@whurley) went back to his car to get a camera, and no sooner than he got back, Imelda Bettinger (@imelda) (co-host of PhotoCamp Houston) showed up sporting a camera with a lens the size of my head. Imelda took some great shots of the party. You can view her photos on facebook or flickr). Pretty soon after, Lani Rosales showed up with a camera (her photos), then Kelly Saccomanno (her photos), then the room was full of cameras. Wee!
When I saw the initial RSVPs for the party, it looked like a who’s who of Austin’s twitterati. Since my co-host, Tom Serres of Piryx, got tickets to the big inaugural ball in DC, we decided to hold an Austin-DC tweetup — a party within a party. Tom, who had mentioned the party several times during his interview with CNN, would be co-hosting from the ball in DC, and Omar Gallaga (@omarg)would co-host from Austin. We’d set up TweetDeck on the roof, so we could all communicate via hashtags (#enaug09). Tom and I originally wanted to have a qikcast along with the tweetcast, but didn’t get everything configured in time. In fact, nothing went according to plan. Fortunately, Ricardo Guerrero (ggroovin) came through, at the last minute, with a TweetDeck-configured laptop and projector — and we were good to go!.
This being an inaugural party, Mayor Pro Tem Brewster McCracken stopped in to say hello and wish us well.
As I said in the past. This is not a partisan affair. All you folks who used Twitter, Meetup, Facebook, Myspace, and similar tools to mobilize and communicate with your fellow voters, and to help educate your candidates, this party is for you.
Here’s the news. We open the doors at 6:00PM for drinks and conversation, but have a variety of stuff — and a few surprises — going on throughout the night. This is going to be like three parties in one. You can RSVP here.
The GeekAustin Inaugural Tweetup - with Omar Gallaga and Tom Serres
Twitter played a big part in this campaign. So for all of Austin’s twitterati, we’ll be having a party within a party — or rather, a party on top of a party — up on the newly-enclosed roof at UP. The GeekAustin Inaugural Tweetup will be co-hosted from DC, by Tom Serres (tomserres) of Piryx, and from Austin, by Omar Gallaga (omarg). In the last year, with his coverage of SXSWi and his segment All Tech Considered, Omar has become a great ambassador for Austin’s tech/media community. These guys were my first choice, and I’m happy that they both accepted. Although not necessary, there is a separate RSVP page for the Tweetup.
Get Shot in the BoomBoom Room! - with Dubnautica and Michael Cummings
Speaking at SXSW and don’t have a good picture to send?. Start 2009 with a new headshot — courtesy of Piryx. Crack event/portrait photographer Michael Cummings, of The Creative Space, will be offering free head-shots in the BoomBoom Room. Normally, you would pay for a sitting with Michael, but your friends at Piryx are picking up the tab. To help set the mood, GeekAustin fave Dubnautica will be laying down the soundtrack. If you see Naveed, tell him thanks and buy him a drink.
Le Ren and Panjoma - 8:30PM in the main room
If La Femme Nikita were a love story, Le Ren would be the soundtrack. DETROIT-born and built on love in 1996, sophisticated shoegazers Le Ren were formed when Nardo rocked the 4-track with tones that filled the sky with stars. Le Ren is on a mission! Find out what it is. Nardo tells me that Le Ren will be going on at 8:30PM. This is going to be a rare performance, so if you come early, plan on staying around to check them out.
Following Le Ren, will be Panjoma (myspace), who will fill the room with delightful beats and crunches. You can read about Panjoma in the Austinist — or you can come to the party and check them out. Psst - it’s ok to dance.
Geekaustin 2009 E-nauguration Party
co-hosted by Piryx and the Austin Electronic Music Grid.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 6:00pm - ??
Location: Union Park Austin - 612 W. 6th St.
Valet parking will be available.
RSVP at Facebook
In the BoomBoom room, GeekAustin fave Dubnautica will be laying down a soundtrack for the evening:
| Later on in the evening, we’ll be joined by Happy Panjoma: |
| and we’ll cap off the evening with Le Ren. Pace yourself on the drinks, and hang around to see them! |
| Le Ren - I Love You Everyday |
I hope you can join us!
Geekaustin 2009 E-nauguration Party
co-hosted by Piryx and the Austin Electronic Music Grid.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 6:00pm - ??
Location: Union Park Austin - 612 W. 6th St.
Valet parking will be available.
RSVP at Facebook
With all the uncertainty surrounding the upcoming year, many folks are updating their resumes. Why not get a new head-shot as well? Even if you are not in job seeking mode, you can use it for your LinkedIn profile.
To help you out, crack event/portrait photographer Michael Cummings, of The Creative Space, will be offering free head-shots during the GeekAustin E-nauguration Party. Normally, you would pay for a sitting with Michael. However, E-nauguration Party co-host, Piryx, will be picking up the tab. All you need to do is show up and smile for the camera.
Free Head-Shots by Michael Cummings, courtesy of Piryx
at the Geekaustin 2009 E-nauguration Party
co-hosted by Piryx and the Austin Electronic Music Grid.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 6:00pm - ??
Location: Union Park Austin - 612 W. 6th St.
Valet parking will be available.
RSVP at Facebook
For the first time, we’ll have a president who has used a blackberry, a laptop, and is personally conversant in new technology. This is significant. The tools that we, the geeks, have been creating — to help facilitate communication and consensus — are making their way into government. Indeed, MIT’s Technology Review argues that it was the Obama campaign’s use of technology that helped seal the campaign. Following the election, the appearance of change.gov suggests that the incoming administration intends to use social networks not only to secure and retain the office, but also to facilitate the process of governing. Can there be any turning back now?
To celebrate this change, GeekAustin is hosting an E-nauguration Party.
This is not a partisan affair. All you folks who used Twitter, Meetup, Facebook, Myspace, and similar tools to mobilize and communicate with your fellow voters, and to help educate your candidates, this party is for you.
Our co-host for the E-nauguration Party will be hometown startup, Piryx. When I read their corporate philosophy and manifesto, I thought: “These guys would be the perfect co-hosts”. Fortunately, they agreed.
We’ll be announcing more details in the days to come, but for now,
here is the date to put on your calendar.
Geekaustin 2009 E-nauguration Party
co-hosted by Piryx and the Austin Electronic Music Grid.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 6:00pm - ??
Location: Union Park Austin - 612 W. 6th St.
Valet parking will be available.
RSVP at Facebook
 |
When I found out that Product Camp Austin Winter 09 was on the calendar, I immediately sent a note to the organizer, Paul Young, asking for the details. Take the day off for this event. This is going to be a good one. |
Lynn Bender: The first Product Camp Austin was a huge success. You had a good crowd, and folks came away raving about how useful the event was. Given the word of mouth, I expect that you are going to have a bigger crowd for Product Camp Austin Winter 09. Will the venue be larger? Do you anticipate having to cap attendance?
Paul Young: We had a great time with the first ProductCamp. Over 130 people signed up and about 90 came back in June. We do expect a larger crowd for ProductCamp Winter, and are planning on about 150 people from Austin’s marketing and product management community showing up! We were able to work with the University of Texas and get a great venue at the College of Communications, in the TV production studios - we’ll have plenty of room for everyone and don’t expect to have to cap participation.
Lynn: What things did you learn the first event that you will implement or change for PCA 2?
Paul: We learned a lot about the logistics of running a barcamp-like event for marketing people. 99% of the people that came to ProductCamp the first time had never had an experience like we provided, so it was new and fresh for everyone - that meant we made up a lot of what we did on-the-fly. Now we know where we need help in planning, volunteering, marketing, and so on. Thankfully, this time I had a very strong team step up to help with the planning and execution.
The first PCA was spread by word-of-mouth and a few blogs. After seeing how much our ProductCampers used social networking, this time we are heavily promoting on Facebook, Twitter, via our great sponsors, as well as word-of-mouth.
The biggest lesson learned was what worked and what didn’t work for our participants. Because ProductCamp attracts smart, driven people in marketing and product management, there was a strong apetite for discussion and debate over slideware and presentations. So this time we are going to skew the sessions more strongly in favor of encouraging that kind of interaction. Since ProductCamp is completely participant driven, this is a great way for people to step up and be part of the PCA process - and we’ve seen a lot of validation, as of today there are about 80 people registered for PCA Winter with very little marketing.
Lynn: While the session topics at the first Product Camp Austin covered the spectrum of product management, they remained pretty much within the domain of product management. Even the sessions on usability and public relations were PM centric. Did you have to exercise any executive authority to reign the topics in?
Paul: Early on, I made the decision not to influence the sessions offered or chosen. Part of this was pragmatic - we needed sessions - and part of this was dogmatic - the spirit of ProductCamp is bottoms-up, not top-down driven. Product managers also made up the majority of the participants at the first PCA, so they offered sessions relevant to their peers. One suprise was that ProductCamp attracted such a diverse crowd outside of product management - we had marketers, operations, developers, lawyers, consultants, startup generalists, and so on.
I believe that at PCA Winter we will get a more diverse set of sessions catering to a wider audience. ProductCamp is committed to its core of marketing and product management, but we welcome anyone, and anyone is welcome to offer a session. However it is always up to the participants to choose which sessions they attend. For PCA Winter, Colleen Heubaum from Winnow Consulting has stepped up as our “Sessions Leader.” She is focused on recruiting sessions and making them successful. She also has some great ideas we gathered from last time for some new kinds of sessions beyond the presentation/discussion and roundtable formats we used in June.
Lynn:The success of this first event shows that there is a huge demand for product management knowledge. Other than events like these, where can individuals go to specifically learn about product management? Are there degree programs? What did folks do before product camp Austin?
Paul: Product Management is still relatively new as a discipline for most companies. Technology and Biotech have adopted PM the most quickly, and there are vendors who support growing PM and Product Marketing (PMM). One of the oldest is a ProductCamp sponsor, Pragmatic Marketing. They offer an extensive training program for product managers, and have a certification program as well. Austin is also home to the Austin PMM forum, a user group for product management and marketing that helps ProductCamp with publicity and participants. Finally, people who are interested in product management have lots of blog options to read, and several are based in Austin, such as Scott Sehlhorst’s Tyner Blain, Roger Cauvin, and my own Product Beautiful.
Lynn:: Barcamp was loosely based on foocamp, which was a designed to be a small somewhat intimate event.. How closely do you follow the original barcamp model? It seems like many *camp type events are actually a hybrid of a barcamp and a traditional conference? Do you think that there is an upper attendance limit beyond which the barcamp model doesn’t scale?
Paul: The great thing about *camps is that they are very flexible. If you ask 10 people to describe them you’ll probably get 10 different answers. Rather than focus on trying to replicate the exact or “right” experience from barcamp, we’ve tried to create a unique event in ProductCamp that works for our participants. We borrowed heavily from barcamp’s central ideas such as “allow the event to self-organize,” “impose as little structure as possible,” “no ‘attendees’ only ‘participants,’” “discussion and debate = good,” and so on. Some things worked well, other areas we are improving for this round.
I’m honestly not sure what an original barcamper or foocamper would have to say about ProductCamp - they might be horrified that their concept had been adopted/co-opted by the darkside a.k.a. marketing. Or maybe they would think it was cool - either way, 100% of the ProductCampers from the first event said that they got value and would come again in our post-camp survey, so I’m very happy with the direction we’ve chosen.
There may be an upper limit on participants, but we’re nowhere near hitting it in my opinion. Other barcamps have had hundreds or thousands of participants and we’re nowhere near those kinds of numbers. The key will be retaining the spirit of the event, and that means small sessions with good debate, smart people, and relevant topics.
Lynn:: What kind of sponsorship opportunities will you have for PCA2?
Paul: We have several sponsorship options available for ProductCamp. This was one key lesson learned from the first event, we’ve split our levels of sponsorship available to create options at all levels.
When you think about an event with the quality and credibility of ProductCamp, it’s pretty astounding that we’re going to host 150+ people for a day, feed them, give them some goodies, amazing networking, super-relevant topics and discussion, at an event that is free to them - all for less than $10K total. Our sponsors love ProductCamp because everyone who comes does so because they really want to be there. No one participates to check a box or burn up budget - everyone is engaged and excited.
ProductCamp Winter has six sponsors already, and more are welcome. Potential sponsors can contact our budget and sponsorship lead, Bertrand Hazard for more info.
Lynn: What else do GeekAustin readers to know about PCA2?
Paul:: Yes.
* Anyone can register for ProductCamp - and anyone can offer a session.
* ProductCamp isn’t just for Austinites - last time we had participants from San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas as well!
* All the talking points about ProductCamp being an opportunity to teach, learn, and network are true, but the #1 thing I want people to know about PCA is that it is fun. People don’t get out of bed at 8 AM on a Saturday for an optional event that they aren’t excited about. That excitement is infectious and when you come you will be a ProductCamp convert too :)
* I have a story up detailing the ProductCamp experience.
Lynn: Paul, thanks for the time. I’ll be there, but hope to run into you sooner.
 |
For the last few months, during my morning walk, I have been watching Blu emerge at the foot of the 360 Towers. Blu finally opened last weekend. Blu is a beautiful space. In the morning, it is a cafe. In the evenings, it is a lounge. Blu is located at 360 Nueces (corner of 3rd and Nueces). |
This Saturday, GeekAustin be hosting an open house at Blu from 9AM-Noon. Daniel will be on hand, and if Michelle gets back from Paris, we’ll drag her jet-lagged body in as well. If you’re in the neighborhood, please join us for coffee/espresso, or if you’ve been up all night, a Grand Marnier. The bar will be open too. You can rsvp on Facebook.
For more details on blu, visit www.bluaustin.com or the blu Facebook group.
 |
whurley, Chief Architect of Open Source Strategy, BMC Software, Inc. discusses The Collaborator’s Paradox followed by an interview with Gary Beach, Publisher Emeritus of CIO Magazine 3:30 PM, October 16th at Innotech Austin. Registration required. Use WHURLEY88 code for free admission. |
I’ve been waiting nearly a year now to hear whurley speak about this.
Collaboration is easy, right?
Wikinomics. Crowdsourcing. Groundswells, Innovation Networks. Around the world more and more visionary leaders are bestowing the benefits of working hand in hand with customers, partners, and even competitors. You can’t start a conversation about technology without ‘open source’, ‘community’, or ‘user driven innovation’ quickly becoming the focal point. Customers are back and in unprecedented numbers, they are using previously unavailable technology to dramatically change the technology landscape. Many are taking a ‘just open it and they will come’ approach to what is arguably the greatest shift in business since the dawn of the industrial age. However, the truth is that collaboration is hard.
In this presentation and interview with Gary Beach, Publisher Emeritus of CIO Magazine, whurley explores the challenges of opening your business to collaborate with the world — the realities of collaboration, the metrics with which to measure success, and the factors that inevitably doom almost every collaborative project.
For the last year or so, as whurley advised me on various projects, I’ve been exposed to various melodies and motifs of the Collaborator’s Paradox. I am eager to hear the complete work. Please join me at Innotech Austin for The Collaborator’s Paradox. If you use the following code: WHURLEY88, you can attend Innotech, and this session, for free. You can register for InnoTech here.
This is our big GeekAustin bash of the year, and because I honestly love you, there is no cover. The event is free.
To help amp up the celebration, we have invited our friends at Refresh Austin and the Austin Electronic Music Grid to co-host. RefreshAustin represents some of the sharpest web and design pros in town, and the Grid represents some of the most interesting electronic music artists in town. I am pretty excited about getting them together in the same room. The Geeks meet the Grid.
The event begins at 6PM with drinks and conversation downstairs. At 7PM, Dubnautica performs in the Boom Boom Room Refresh Lounge. Beginning at 8PM, there will be performances by Austin Electronic Music Grid artists including: Gobi, Carbon Theory, Happy Panjoma, and Rage Ranger.
Union Park is a big club. We’ll have some rooms set up for performance, and some rooms set up for conversation. Union Park also has an excellent menu, so there is no need to head home before the party.
GeekAustin 8th Anniversary Party
Tuesday, September 30, 6PM - 11PM
Union Park, 612 W Sixth St (Next to Katz’s)
Please RSVP at Facebook
(this helps us determine how many bartenders have on hand)
Hope to see you there! - Lynn
While selecting musical artists for the upcoming anniversary party, we noticed that many of the artists we were considering had something in common — they are members of the Austin Electronic Music Grid. So, rather than contact all the artists individually, I sent a note to Mary Abshier at the Grid, and asked if she would like to host a Grid showcase as part of the GeekAustin Anniversary Party. She said: Yes!
Tentatively, starting at 7PM, we’ll have laptop musicians performing in the BoomBoom Room Refresh Lounge. Then beginning at 8PM we’ll have Grid artists performing in the main room and on the roof — most likely until midnight. We are currently making arrangements with the artists, and hope to publish the acts and schedule within the next week.
I encourage you to check out the artists on the Grid. Some of my current favorites are Canartic, Carbon Theory, Dubnautica, My Dark Side, Death is not a Joyride. That’s only the beginning though. Check out the full list of Austin Electronic Music Grid Artists.
Remember, the GeekAustin Anniversary Party is free. Hope to see you there!
