We’re set for the October PDX Web Innovators meeting. Same place, same time, details at Upcoming.org. If you’re in the Portland area and interested in the web (developer, designer, entrepreneur, whatever), come talk about your projects and interests with your fellow web geeks.
Wednesday, October 4, 2006
7:00 PM
Equator Coffee Cafe
510 SE Morrison
Portland, Oregon
Keep up to date with the PDX Web Innovators via the Google Group.
We all got a good laugh (at least I got a good laugh) out of Richard MacManus’s job board announcement, but reality is stranger than fiction sometimes, as they still just keep coming. So, I thought I’d take a moment to recap. It’s been a while since I’ve actually looked for work, but if I ever need to again, I’m honestly glad there are so many resources available now. Down with Monster.com and HotJobs!
Football is in the air again and that means I can root for the Ducks again instead of congratulating the beavers. Like most Duck fans, I was a bit delirious on Saturday after the big win over Oklahoma. Honestly, I had pretty much given up hope after Dixon’s second interception. I mean, how are you supposed to win the game if your offense can’t stay on the field for more than a play or two? But, I kept watching, because who knows, right? Well, the unthinkable happened and the Ducks scored 14 points and blocked an OU field goal in the last 1:22 of the game.
APIs were the topic at our Septemeber Web Innovators meeting and Adam has some notes. On the topic of what companies get out of having an API, if it’s good enough, people will write books about it. We’ve seen it with the Google Hacks and Amazon Hacks books and now the trend continues with a line of Flickr books. I’d argue that this is a good sign that your service has arrived, helps to increase mindshare and gets more people using your service, which ultimately will increase the bottom line. But, again the key here is it has to be from a service that’s compelling enough. So, producing an API to your new web service is probably not important to get in the intial set of features. But, if your service starts to gain traction, you better be considering it.
I don’t talk a whole lot about my day job here. Some of my readers may know for whom I work, and some even work there with me (hi guys), and I don’t plan to say much beyond this post. It’s a good company, and I enjoy the work, the people and the other important part of working.
Today, I was taken completely aback because the company began implementing a major internet filtering policy, and I mean major. I’m still investigating the full scope, but here’s a taste:
I wish I’d gotten to this sooner, but better late than never. Tonight is the night for the September PDX Web Innovators meeting. Check out the details at Upcoming.org. Would you look at that, we have a TOPIC!! Thanks to Adam for suggesting it. So, all you Portland web people come on out if you can and give your $.02 or just meet some fellow web geeks.
To keep up to date with the group, use our ultra-modern web 2.0 discussion software over at Google Groups:
I think a healthy dose of cynicism is a good thing and I’ve really enjoyed Dare’s blog over the years. In fact RSS Bandit was my first reader and really got me into the whole blog thing. I stopped using it when I realized it was too big of a pain keeping client readers updated and syndicated and switched to BlogLines. Anyway, I about choked on my lunch today when I saw his comment about Web 2.0 sites being unoriginal in their use of AJAX, Tagging, APIs, etc. This coming from from someone who works for a company (and even team I think?) that this week released Windows Live QNA, which is perhaps the most unoriginal app I have seen in a long time (hello, yahoo called and what’s their app back), and is perhaps one of the most unoriginal companies ever (ok, they invented AJAX, I’ll give them some credit).
Along the same lines as the UserPlane founders, turns out Chris DeWolfe, one of the founders of the vaunted MySpace, grew up in Portland (via John Cook), before ultimately migrating south to make it big.
I Discovered MovieTally today (via eHub). It’s a real basic, neat little app that let’s you keep track of movies you watch and ones you want to see. I was thinking of something like this just last week as movies are a common/easy discussion starter around the water cooler and I always seem to forget what I’ve seen recently. By keeping an inventory, it will be much easier to remind myself.
Now, I’m not a Netflix user, so I imagine there’s something like this built-in to it? I know Blockbuster online had this, but who uses them (other than for the free trial anyway). And, of course there’s also IMDB which has some ability to make lists of movies.
Just a couple months after Oregon State’s run through the college world series, another team from Oregon is making a run. This time it’s Murray Hill (Beaverton) shooting for the little league world championship, having now reached the US final. I actually lived in the area when I first moved to Portland after college and still work just down the road, so it’s a very close connection.
I think it’s awesome they’re doing so well. But, there needs to be some sense talked into those coaches, letting a 13 year old throw 115 pitches or whatever it was in Monday’s game. Yeah, Jace Frye is a great pitcher, it would just be shame to see his arm finished before he even gets to high school. I can understand this being a once in a lifetime opportunity, and doing what you gotta do to win, but a line needs to be drawn somewhere.