Mediacamp March Madness

Technology,Twitter,Web 28 March 2010 | 4 Comments

Attended Mediacamp Nottingham 2 and here is the long list of stuff that I took away from the event.

List of the active Twitterer’s although pretty much everyone at the event had a Twitter account. This would not have been the case at last year event. Also read the timeline for #mcn2.

Interesting discussion on last 10 years and next 10 years in media by Glenn Le Santo. News is the least unique of all media. The Times is about to put its content behind a paywall. Reinventing social active. All content is now about interaction. There was a large focus on monetization which I tend to make me switch off. There is rarely talk of how to increase quality of content, targetting content, syndication, editing or a hundred other topics around why content is king. It always comes back to monetization, which I agree is important for content producers but we’re always talking around the subject and not doing anything about it. When was the last time you visited a blog/site/platform that was experimenting with paid content?

Time lapse photography of Nick Walker’s journey to Nottingham. http://post.ly/Vpeb (via @walkerama)

Talk about building community by the Creative Nottingham team was really interesting. Lack of funding for creative industries in the area has meant that people just get on with it. Its a great site that is expanding rapidly and importantly has lots of support from its community. Interesting comment that “Website is least important part of what we do”  as they also use Posterous, Facebook, RSS and Twitter. You need to use their resources more!

@iainsimons gave a very passionate talk about Gamecity. I’ve never made it to any of their events and his talk made me realise what I’ve missed out on. This year I will attend! He also introduced their idea of a Festival API. Great idea. Slightly off the wall but it makes so much sense. I think its that API is such a common term now that it makes sense in uses outside of technology. Can an API refer to a paper process, why not? The examples given where to inform the jacket potato vendor of the process he needs to follow to run his stand. I assume this would include application, payment, compliance with regulations, timetable for the event etc. This same API could then be used be used by any other festival who is also planning to sell jacket potatoes. A bizarre but excellent way to reduce bureaucracy. Is the videogames industry really going to change the way we handle paperwork?

Missed @philcampbell‘s talk about Posterous and didn’t even get chance to see the new streaming studio.

Lovely sandwiches and cake from @hungrypumpkin in the Lace Market

Very intersting talk about social media and the Olympics by Jennifer Jones. The Olympics is finally opening up to social media. Has authorised press and unathourised press centers. The Olympics is the biggest media event in the world bar none. Impact on host cities is massive. London in year 5 of 14 years of Olympic pain. How are the communities affected.

Purposely controversial session “The web site is dead” chaired by Glenn proved that it is and it isn’t. Static web pages are dead by their very nature. Social interaction on pages makes them very much alive. Someone commented that everything in their house is what other people have liked in reviews. Nothing is bought without recommendation. Is this is last gasp of consumerism. Need to communicate with others has returned? We don’t need brands. Better to have all that invested in communications. The logo does not help customer service.

Alexia gave a great intro on personal branding. What are your strengths? Decide what you don’t want and then start going in the opposite direction. People do business with people – do this apply to a website? Attract the things that align to you. Lots to think about.

The event rounded off with a great session from Ben Walker. A very intimate session with a true internet superstar. Listen in then buy online.

Posts from people who wrote stuff quicker than I did:

Think Visibility 2010

Technology,Web 16 March 2010 | 1 Comment

Quick list of links from Think Visibility in March 2010:

Al Carlton of Coolest Gadgets legend gave a great presentation on Outsourcing and Automation. He mentioned auto switching affiliate links to be relevant to the country being viewed in. This Amazon Affiliate Link Localizer plugin for WordPress looks to do the job nicely for multiple regions. Although its not working on this link: The 4-hour Work Week: Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich.

Live blogging on the day was done by David Towers.

This link building poster was mentioned by Paddy Moogan.

Now to put some of this into practice.

Kiva Progress

Causes,Web 18 February 2010 | 0 Comments

Loan repayments are coming in regularly as part of the 0% credit for Kiva in Peru idea. There are still 20 loans outstanding which are all on track to pay back within the next 6 months.

If you’ve not tried Kiva yet, its a great way to donate money to those who need it.

Twestival 2010

Causes,Twitter,Web 17 February 2010 | 0 Comments

Nottingham Twestival

Nottingham Twestival

Twestival 2010 is on the horizon and once again I will be heading up the organisation of the Nottingham event. The last two events have been great with over £500 raised for worthwhile causes. At this event we’ll be concentrating on requesting corporate sponsorship.

I’ll be looking for a team of keen volunteers to help choose a venue, select entertainment for the night and spread the word!
Follow @nottstwestival on Twitter and join the Facebook group.

Performance Testing Services

Software Testing,Technology,Web 16 February 2010 | 0 Comments

Over the past couple of months the following services have been trialled:

  • Google Page Speed – analysis of web page performance and guidance on improvements – runs from within Firebug
  • Yahoo YSlow – analysis of web page performance and guidance on improvements – runs from within Firebug
  • Quixapp – bookmarklet allow easy access to Pingdom
  • WebPageTest – analysis of web page performance which provides alternative download locations and video playback
  • SpriteMe – tool to merge all graphics from a page into a single file to improve page performance
  • Performance Advent Calendar – links to articles on improving web site performance

That Was 2009

Personal 1 January 2010 | 0 Comments

2009 turned out to be pretty remarkable year that charted a path unexpected 12 months ago.

Being involved with Twestival by arranging the Nottingham Twestival in February was the trigger for much of the rest of the year. The event was a modest success and introduced me to people who would become friends over the coming months. Meeting a great crowd of creative and techies at Nottingham Twestival led me to setting up a regular event, Web 2.0 Surgery. The event was  a great excuse for a meetup and this also coincided with a other events starting up and gaining popularity in Nottingham in 2009.

Our 3 week trip to Peru was an amazing experience which took us to Machu Picchu and everywhere in between. This was also a key reason for using Kiva to issue loans in Peru.

September brought Twestival Local which raised money for The National Autistic Society and there is another event planned for March 2010.

There was a great turn out for the last Web 2.0 Surgery of 2009 and with co-operation with the eBusinessChampions initiative it looks to be even better in 2010.

Happy 2010 to all!