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Lunch 2.0 at Eclipse Foundation: Mission Accomplished

Rick Turoczy on November 6, 2008

Yesterday afternoon, about 70 people came to the see the best kept secret in Portland Open Source, the Eclipse Foundation office.

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Turnout seemed a bit lighter than usual, probably due to the lovely Portland weather, but those who did swing by were treated to a casual networking session.

If you’ve attended a Lunch 2.0 in the past, you’ll know we typically do a very short introduction of the host and what they do. Not so this time.

Our hosts, Anne Jacko and Bjorn Freeman-Benson, just wanted to mill around and get to know people. As Bjorn says:

Our goal was to get over the “I didn’t know that Eclipse had an office in Portland” and we met out goal: people know that Eclipse is here in Portland and that we’re nice people and we’re here to help.

All-in-all, it was a successful lunch, and now you know where to find the Eclipse Foundation.

Lunch 2.0 continues to attract a diverse crowd of interesting Portlanders, which is exactly how we like it. Aaron took a bunch of photos, but hasn’t uploaded them to Flickr yet. Watch his Lunch 2.0 set if you’re interested. Update: They are posted now, excellent work as always by the unofficial Lunch 2.0 photographer.

Upcoming Portland Lunch 2.0s
It looks like we’ll be taking a break in December, which is just as well considering a) the weather and b) all the seasonal activity everyone no doubt has planned. We’re back at in January at the OTBC.

  • January 14 in the ‘burbs at the new OTBC offices in the Beaverton Round
  • February?
  • March?

Thanks to all the hosts and people who’ve made this a success. If you want details about hosting, let me know in comments or drop me a tweet. I’m @jkuramot.

And don’t forget that Seattle also has a Lunch 2.0 chapter, organized by Josh Maher. If you get up that way frequently, check them out and report back to me. Their next Lunch 2.0 is November 13 at RocketDog Communications from 4:30-6:00 PM. You can RSVP on Upcoming, natch.

And now for something completely different:

Some of you may know that there’s an Open Source (Bridge) conference brewing for next July to help us all get over the loss of OSCON.

Both Rick and I are assisting with the organization, and the whole crew of organizers will be in Beaverton today at the new OTBC digs in the Beaverton Round hosting a townhall meeting. The meeting starts at 11:30 and should go until about 1.

The townhall is your chance to hear what the conference is all about, meet the organizers and add your two cents. Oh, and if you like, sign up to help us. This conference will be volunteer-driven, start to finish, so we’ll need loads of help.

See you there?

Silicon Florist’s links arrangement for November 05

Rick Turoczy on November 6, 2008

Blogs change layoff dynamic at startups – Silicon Forest

Mike Rogoway writes “On the scale of tech layoffs in Oregon or anywhere else, Jive’s cuts don’t rate. No more than three-dozen people lost their jobs. Compare that to the 1,400 folks who got tossed out by Hynix (and, as far as I can tell, didn’t merit so much as a pixel of sympathy from the NYTimes or CNET.) Here’s my theory…”

AboutUs Hires Six New Staff, Including CFO – Jobwire

Via the ReadWriteWeb Jobwire “Wiki style website-directory AboutUs.org has just hired a new Chief Financial Officer, the company tells us. CFO Jack Williamson comes last from domain name auction house Snapnames, where AboutUs founding CEO Ray King worked previously. “

Social Network Spaghetti | Portland Web Innovators at Vidoop

Amber Case writes “Scott Kveton told us where he thinks we are with the state of current social networks. His charisma and ability to explain and parse complex ideas, systems, and trends was interesting and enjoyable to watch. I estimate around 30+ people showed up, and many interesting questions were raised from the audience.”

View all my bookmarks on Ma.gnolia

Silicon Florist’s links arrangement for November 04

Rick Turoczy on November 5, 2008

Refresh Portland: Experience Design: 
Changing Lives and Creating Evangelists (November 12)

Via Refresh Portland “Transformative experiences do not happen thru marketing, “purple cows” or aesthetic design. They are created by changing lives thru authentic and meaningful Experience Design.”

Looking forward to a “wiki-presidency”

Via the AboutUs blog “No matter who wins in the elections tomorrow, it’s becoming pretty clear that technology will be a priority for the next administration. As wiki and community-collaborated content enthusiasts, we’ve been impressed with the embracing of wiki and wiki-like values in the campaigns.”

Oregonian election front page

The Oregonian announces the new president.

In a Twitter Age, Even Bad News Like Layoffs Is on the Company Blog

Via The New York Times “Some companies that have skipped the layoff post have suffered. After Jive Software cut 20 percent of its staff, one of the terminated employees, Chris Kalani, called it an ‘all out massacre’ on his personal blog and said he had been forced to leave behind his things, including his wedding photo. Tech blogs immediately picked up the story.”

Didn’t Get a Ticket? You Can Still Come to Ignite Portland 4 at Ignite Portland

Via the Ignite Portland blog “This morning, we announced that 550 free tickets for Ignite Portland 4 were available. Less than 3.5 hours later, they were all spoken for. That’s amazingly fast! To give you an idea, it took 2 months for 400 people to reserve a spot at Ignite Portland 1. For IP2, 400 spots went in 2 days. Ignite Portland 3 moved 400 tickets in under 22 hours. This time, 550 tickets disappeared in under 3.5 hours. Wow. You’d think people are excited to come, or something.”

Yes We Did – Waxy.org

(Click to see the image)

OEN Webinar – Getting Social 101: Quick and easy ways to get your social media bearings

Join Rick Turoczy as he shares some quick tips on how to start participating in social media, getting your bearings, and understanding how you can become a valued member of communities that match your startup’s goals.

Yes we did.

Chris O’Rourke writes “We all did, every single American, all of us. From the depths of Southern Georgia to Northernmost Alaska, from Allentown, PA to Santa Clara, CA. Americans rose up and voted their hearts, their dreams and their minds.”

View all my bookmarks on Ma.gnolia

Is that Strands in your pocket or are you…? Oh it’s Strands

Rick Turoczy on November 4, 2008

StrandsToday, Corvallis-based Strands—the lifestreaming service that’s friendlier than FriendFeed—got even more friendly for Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users.

[HTML2]How? Much in the same way they took the time to clean up their Web-based UI, the Strands folks announced that they have put their design ingenuity into optimizing the Strands mobile site for the popular Apple products.

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And it’s looking really good. What’s more, it’s much easier to deal with than loading the old Web UI.

But don’t just take my word for it. There are much more reputable types chiming in on the release (and I’m not just saying that because I appear in their screenshots).

Louis Gray finds the interface making definite strides forward:

Back in August, when I first discussed the lifestreaming site’s beta offering, I found myself fairly critical of its user interface, saying it minimized some of the best features, including the actual feeds from your friends’ activity. In the last few months, thanks to feedback from its growing user base, the team has doubled down efforts to simplify the UI, and they managed to do well enough that the site works well, even in my 3.5″ wide iPhone.

And Duncan Riley agreed:

Lifestreaming service Strands continues to impress with its rapid growth in features, with a new mobile interface being launched targeted at iPhone users.

I remain a fan of Strands and their, um, strides. And I can’t hardly wait for the next big leap forward, when their recommender technology enters the picture. That, my friends, is when we’ll see the true power of this platform.

What’s that? You’ve somehow missed out on trying Strands? Have no fear, gentle reader. Simply leave a comment below with a valid email address, and I’ll make sure that you get in to try it out.

I can’t help you with the iPhone, though.

Lunch 2.0 at the Eclipse Foundation is Wednesday

Rick Turoczy on November 3, 2008

Did you know the Eclipse Foundation has an office here in Portland?

They most certainly do, but you might not know this because only four people sit in that office. This Wednesday, the 5th, they’re opening their doors for a Lunch 2.0, and never fear, even though they have a small office, the building they inhabit has graciously agreed to allow us to mix and mingle in a larger area.

This will be more cocktail-party style than the lunchroom-style lunch we had last month at the Art Institute.

If you want to swing by and meet Anne, Bjorn and the good people at Eclipse, make sure you RSVP on Upcoming, so they can plan the catering accordingly.

Incidentally, their building is conveniently located on the MAX at the Oak Street stop. So, take the MAX and avoid the parking worries and the long walks in the rain. Hope to see you there.

Upcoming Portland Lunch 2.0s

  • December? Nothing planned now, want to host one?
  • January 14 in the ‘burbs at the new OTBC offices in the Beaverton Round
  • February?
  • March?

Thanks to all the hosts and people who’ve made this a success. If you want details about hosting, let me know in comments or drop me a tweet. I’m @jkuramot.

Vidoop has to let some folks go

Rick Turoczy on November 3, 2008

I really hate to do this, but again, I feel obligated to say something.

As unfortunate as it is to report, newly transplanted Vidoop has had to cut back some of its staff.

No word on how many or whom. [UPDATE] The Portland Business Journal, which featured Vidoop in a cover story last week, reports that nine employees were let go. “The employees who were laid off Monday morning all moved to Portland from Oklahoma, and all are shareholders.”

CEO Joel Norvell states:

Portland’s gracious and enthusiastic welcome to Vidoop has been terrific for all of us at the company. Here less than two months later, the economic reality facing companies everywhere seemed remote, given our momentum and the exciting projects we are working on. But today, we had to face that reality, and tell several members of the Vidoop family goodbye.

I have to commend Vidoop for the public admission. They continue to remain a class act. I’m sorry to see them having to go through this. But they will survive.

At this point, I’m more concerned about the folks who have been let go. Vidoop is doing what they can, but additional help, I’m sure, will be welcome.

If you’re a recruiter, there is some very, very good talent on the market as a result of this. I encourage you to act quickly.

And I know I speak for the Portland startup community when I say if there is anything we can do to help, please let us know. Please feel free to contact me at siliconflorist@gmail.com, via Twitter, or by commenting below.

Silicon Florist’s links arrangement for October 31

Rick Turoczy on October 31, 2008

Open Source Bridge: Our First Presentation

Via the Open Source Bridge blog “The Open Source Bridge team gave their first presentation to a large group at CubeSpace on October 30, 2008. Enthusiasm far exceeded my expectations, and I came away feeling confident that we’re going to make Open Source Bridge a reality together.”

Thrive – PDX at Kells Irish Restaurant & Pub (Tuesday November 11, 2008) – Upcoming

We want to open dialogue between all members of the tech community – corporate & indie, young & old, geek & nerd – to help figure out how we build a community that will survive & thrive during this economic downturn.

Standalone Applications with CouchDB – Daytime Running Lights

Chris Anderson writes “Over the last few days I’ve polished up my notion that CouchDB can be a perfectly viable application host, all on its own, without any 3rd tier between database and client. That is, CouchDB is capable of serving standalone applications. These standalone CouchDB applications can be deployed to any working CouchDB node and used from any browser.”

Get Naked

Via Needmore Designs “We just wrapped up production on our submission for Do Something for a Cause, a calendar fundraiser featuring Portland media/tech folks baring their flesh to bring community awareness and raise funds for local charities and educational groups. This year’s recipients include p:ear and girls inc, among others. I know they are still looking for a couple more participants and sponsors, so please do let them know if you’d be interested in helping out!”

Keeping a Large Scale Open Source Conference in Portland

Amber Case writes “We have everything in Portland. We have Linus, we have biking, we have Open Source, and we have an amazing Portland Tech community. Up until recently, we also had O’Reilly’s OSCON.”

View all my bookmarks on Ma.gnolia

Have a Happy Halloween at Beer… err Bat & Blog

Rick Turoczy on October 31, 2008

Bat and BlogEvery week around this time, a group of Portland blogging and tech types gather at the Green Dragon to end the week on a good note with Beer and Blog.

This week, it just so happens that Beer and Blog falls on Halloween which has it—like a victim of an unfortunate zombie bite—transforming into the ghoulishly clever “Bat and Blog.”

But wait, there’s more:

Now, if you are like me (meaning, not into intricate costumes that involve actual planning) you may find yourself dressing up as yourself again this year (meaning, sans costume). All that thinking ahead for costume ideas really bums me out, so I usually skip the whole thing.

This year, however, I came up with an easy-to-create Halloween getup of the non-lame variety that lets you participate in the celebrated tradition of being someone else for a day. The best part is that this costume idea is of someone we all admire, whom men and women alike want to emulate. Someone smart, popular, good looking and super-dooper nice, who supports and promotes the Portland tech scene with unwavering love. A bona fide tour de force.

Who are they describing? You’ll just have to head over to the blog and see.

Suffice it to say, I’m buying. But you’ll have to show up to find out if that’s a trick or a treat.

An evening of Color, Final Cut Studio Color, that is

Rick Turoczy on October 31, 2008

[Editor’s note: Thanks to Rebecca Gerendasy for this guest post. Looks like a very cool event!]

If you’ve been struggling with or wondering about the amazingly cool software, Final Cut Studio Color—Apple’s new professional color grading application—this is the meeting for you!

Jack Chavez is going to be here in town to give us a tour. Jack is a Creative Director and Producer at Intel Corporation where he has worked in-house for eight years. He was an early adopter of the software program that came to be known as Apple Color and has mostly recovered from the trauma of trying to finish high visibility videos with flaky beta software. Jack believes the future looks bright for Color.

And we’re excited to have Jack here to share some of his expertise and enthusiasm at the next Portland Final Cut Pro User Group.

If you create any type of media—be it for the web, mobile, or more traditional outlet—this meeting might hold the spark you are looking for to help your images stand out. Color is a professional color grading application. Once costing mid-5 digit range as a stand alone, it now comes packaged with Final Cut Studio 2. Once again, the tools are within our grasp, but how to use them and use them well. Whether you have Color in your arsenal of video applications or not, this will be a meeting worth coming to just to get a taste of the possibilities.

Date: Wednesday, November 5th
Meeting Time: 6:00 – 8:30p
Location: PCC/Cascade Campus MAHB, Room 104
Cost: Free to members & students w/ID. $5 for non-members
For more info: http://www.pdxfcpug.com/meetings.html

Portland Final Cut Pro User Group is an ongoing educational meeting the first Wednesday of the month at PCC/Cascade Campus. The meetings are geared toward learning about different aspects of editing, filmmaking, and also to give another opportunity to network with others in the film community. Our membership ranges from beginners to veteran professionals. For more information, or to be added to the monthly eNewsletter, drop us a note at: info@pdxfcpug.com

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