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Month: August 2009

Gary Vaynerchuk planning to swing back by Portland on the Crush It! book tour

Rick Turoczy on August 31, 2009

[HTML1]Usually, I’m pretty last minute about letting you know when relevant authors are in town. I was pretty tardy with the news on dooce speaking in Portland. And I didn’t do much better with a heads up on Sarah Lacy’s user generated book tour stop.

But this time, I feel like I’m actually going to give you fair warning: Gary Vaynerchuk—affectionately known as @garyvee—will be stopping by Powell’s Downtown as part of the junket for his new book, Crush It! But not until October 19—so you’ve got plenty of time to prep. Read More

WordCamp Portland: WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg to field questions

Rick Turoczy on August 31, 2009

I don’t need to tell you (but I will anyway): Portland loves open source. But do you know what we love even more than that? Open source founders.

We proudly proclaim Portland the home of the creator of Linux, Linus Torvalds—and of course his four impersonators come late September. And having Rasmus Lerdorf, the founder of PHP, here in town for Open Source Bridge was quite a coup.

And now, we have another open source founder to add to the list. Thanks to WordCamp Portland, WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg will be visiting Portland in September. Read More

Fake Linus Torvalds: It’s like Fake Steve Jobs only open

Rick Turoczy on August 28, 2009

This may come as a shock to you but any number of people—even completely mediocre bloggers—wind up with people impersonating them on blogs, Twitter, and the like. No. I’m serious. I mean, that’s why Twitter did that whole “verified” thing.

And the bar by which all imitators are measured? Fake Steve Jobs.

Well, leave it to Portland’s newest open source event—LinuxCon—to take the idea of online impersonation and make it more—well—open. Would you expect anything less? Now, four Linux community leaders will be vying for the title of Fake Linus Torvalds. Read More

memePDX: Portland tech news for those short on time and/or attention

Rick Turoczy on August 27, 2009

Anyone who has spent any time around Silicon Florist realizes that I tend to be a little longwinded. And that’s putting it lightly. Brevity? Not my strong suit. And for many, reading through my lengthy posts isn’t the preferred way of getting their tech news.

So, I’ve been thinking about ways to get you more of the news you want with less effort on your part. And a different form of media seemed to be the best way to do it. So I begged started talking to the Strange Love Live folks and after a series of tantrums and crying fits on my part discussions, they finally agreed to help.

The result? memePDX. Read More

Portland Ten Lunch 2.0 Features Livepitches and Late Lunch

Rick Turoczy on August 27, 2009

Yesterday, Portland Ten, Stoel Rives, FundingUniverse, and NedSpace sponsored the first Lunch 2.0 to feature another event, livepitching.

Turns out, there was another unintentional first. No lunch, or rather late lunch.

I’ll take the blame here for not realizing in advance our hosts had ordered the pizza to arrive after the livepitching, rather than at noon. Unfortunately, several people left hungry, and I know you can’t all take a full two hours away from work for lunch.

Read More

OEN Venture Northwest: You’ve got one week left to apply

Rick Turoczy on August 26, 2009

For many entrepreneurs, convincing a venture capital group to fund their business is a dream come true. Not only do they gain capital, but they also get some validation that—contrary to what their families have been telling them—they may not be crazy.

But making those connections—even before the funding comes into the picture—can be difficult. Very difficult. That’s why there are any number of events that work to play matchmaker between startups and people looking to fund startups. And one of the most respected events for making those connections around here? That would be OEN Venture Northwest. And if you act fast, you could be one of the companies being introduced to those investors. Read More

Startup curious? Startupday 2009 could help awaken your inner entrepreneur

Rick Turoczy on August 25, 2009

[HTML2]To many, the lure of entrepreneurial pursuits is overwhelming. They’re driven to start stuff. And as such, they can’t help but startup everything from side projects to full-fledged companies. They’re crazy that way.

But what if you’ve got a great idea and nowhere to start? What if you’re not quite sure how to dip you toe in the water? What if you’re not even sure you’d have what it takes to be an entrepreneur?

Well, there’s a new event—put on by the fine folks at Seattle 2.0—this September that may be able to help you make that decision: introducing Startupday 2009. Read More

Widemile emerges from the cocoon as Webtrends Optimize

Rick Turoczy on August 25, 2009

Wow. That was fast. It was only a few weeks ago that Portland-based Webtrends announced the acquisition of Seattle-based Widemile. And now Webtrends has released the Widemile multivariate testing functionality as Webtrends Optimize.

Multivari-whoosa-whatsis? Don’t worry. It’s not as hard as it sounds. In fact, Webtrends has focused on making it as simple and straightforward as possible. Heck, it sounds like even I could use it. Read More

Azplode: Missile Command aficionados rejoice, your iPhone app is here

Rick Turoczy on August 25, 2009

If you grew up in the 80s or spent any time at Ground Kontrol, you’ve been there. You’re sitting there on Missile Command, blood blister on the side of your hand from catching it in the trackball, one missile launch area remaining, one missile, and a ton of inbound targets quickly descending on your last bastion of defense. And yet, you’re overcome by an almost Zen-like state of calm. Knowing full well that one well-placed missile could create a chain reaction of explosions that will carry you through to the next level.

That’s feeling right there? That’s Azplode, the latest game from Portland-based iPhone developer Calvin Rien. Hopefully, without the blood blisters. Read More

Silicon Forest Technology and Financial Forum kicks off tomorrow

Rick Turoczy on August 24, 2009

It’s rare, in these parts, to have events that combine traditional high tech, startup tech pursuits, and venture capital concerns all in one fell swoop. But that’s exactly the focus of TechAmerica’s Silicon Forest Technology & Financial Forum.

And lo and behold, the time for that event is nigh. So if that sort of line-up sounds interesting to you, you’re going to want to get registered for he Silicon Forest Forum this Tuesday and Wednesday out at the Intel Jones Farm campus in Hillsboro. Read More

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