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Month: June 2011

Peeking in on a Portland User Group: Portland JavaScript Admirers

Rick Turoczy on June 7, 2011

When I first started Silicon Florist, I was hoping to shine some light on startups and events that might not be getting the attention they so richly deserved. I don’t know that I’ve succeeded. But I feel like I’ve at least made a dent.

Now, I’d like to make the same attempt with another under-served and under-recognized population: Portland’s rich and varied user group scene. I mean, there’s a ton of great stuff happening in our user groups. But—unless you’re at every single user group meeting—you can’t really get a feel for just how awesome it is. Read More

Meet the Startup: Stealing a moment with Ken Westin of GadgetTrak

Rick Turoczy on June 7, 2011

When it comes to Ken Westin and GadgetTrak, it’s a very “waiting for the market to catch up with your idea” story. And waiting. And waiting. And waiting.

But slowly but surely, if you can hang on long enough—and the market emerges—you can hit a home run. And GadgetTrak is well positioned to do just that. Read More

Want your startup at lunch with Robert Scoble and Ashton Kutcher?

Rick Turoczy on June 6, 2011

So Robert Scoble and Ashton Kutcher are going to lunch. Want to go? Well, you can’t. But maybe your startup can get an invite.

You see, Scoble is looking for some of the best and brightest startups to put in front of Ashton. And if you respond to his Quora question, yours may be among the startups he chooses to discuss. Read More

Jive talkin’: Tony Zingale, CEO of Jive Software, sits down with CNBC

Rick Turoczy on June 3, 2011

I’ll be honest. I can’t have a conversation about startups in Portland without a mention of Jive Software. And come down where you will on the religious argument of the location of their headquarters (I could give you my opinion, but that’s another post for another time), they’re still a very big player here in the Portland scene. In fact, any number of people helping lead the startup scene around here have been through Jive—and there’s still a huge pool of talent sitting there on a day-to-day basis. Read More

Pitch over a (free) pitcher: Portland Seed Fund hosts last minute pitch sessions with TiE Oregon and Beer and Blog Portland

Rick Turoczy on June 2, 2011

So you’ve been flirting with the idea of applying to the Portland Seed Fund. You know, to get some much needed cash and guidance for your startup idea. To get it off the ground. And to, hopefully, take the initial step toward finding more cash from customers and investors.

But, I hear you. It’s intimidating. And you’re not quite sure you’ve got your pitch dialed in. Read More

The Startup Saloon and other stories of PHP Fog from Lucas Carlson

Rick Turoczy on June 2, 2011

[Editor: Another day, another guest post. Matt Riopelle from Corvallis-ish Fixel was recently in town to attend a Continuous Web Portland Meetup featuring Lucas Carlson of PHP Fog. Matt was kind enough to capture some of his observations and insights to share with Silicon Florist readers like you. I know right? Great way to start a Thursday.] Read More

Turn up the bass: The birth, life, and exit of the BassMasta

Rick Turoczy on June 1, 2011

[Editor: Another guest post from Dale Davidson of TrekDek. This time out, Dale took some time to sit down with Dan Christopher to talk about the experience of creating, maintaining, and eventually selling of his Web startup, BassMasta, from Portland. Eight years later, Dan has a successful exit under his belt—and a wealth of experience on the world of starting up and cashing out.

And so, without further ado, the story of BassMasta.] Read More

Top 10 Silicon Florist posts for May 2011: PDC, tech events, and stock options

Rick Turoczy on June 1, 2011

Time keeps on cruising by. Lots of interesting stuff happening in town. Companies getting funded. Companies getting acquired. People making the news. Events starting to pick up. It’s summer in Portland.

But which stories got the most attention? Let’s take a look at the top 10 Silicon Florist posts for May 2011 as ranked by Web and RSS traffic. Read More

Oh it’s on. Beaverton startup Act-On lands $10 million in funding for cloud-based marketing automation

Rick Turoczy on June 1, 2011

It’s always nice to wake up to another nail in the “it’s hard to find funding in Portland” coffin. And this time, not only is it funding for a cloud-based company in the Portland area, it’s funding for a company that sits outside the Old Town/Pearl region of town that has been a recent magnet for capital. Way outside. Like Beaverton.

Act-On software has secured $10 million in C round funding, led by Trinity Ventures. Why does Trinity sound familiar? Oh, because Trinity also just sunk some cash into ShopIgniter. Read More

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