Minnov8

Showcasing Minnesota Technology Innovation

UnSummit Set To Return March 7

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unsummit logoUnSummit, the spontaneous tech marketing unconference spawned as an alternative to the sold-out MIMA Summit last October has set the date for their next event as Saturday, March 7, 2009 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The event will be held at the Minneapolis Central Library.

The agenda is still coming together based upon attendee input but the theme of “Hacking the Recession” sounds timely and a good way to frame social media marketing in these challenging economic times.

If you are unfamiliar with UnSummit, you can check out our coverage here and on our podcast or visit the UnSummit blog. A sign-up list for attendees is on the UnSummit wiki. Without the overlap with the MIMA Summit, it looks to be a much larger event this time. Hope to see you there…

Next MinneDemo Scheduled

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ben-lukeThis just in as an email from Luke Francl, one of the co-organizers (along with Ben Edwards) of MinneDemo:

Happy New Year! We at Minne* hope 2009 finds you well.

Save the date! The next MinneDemo has been scheduled for Friday, February 6 (Registration is not yet open). (This is our first Friday MinneDemo!).

It will be at Intermedia Arts again. You may have heard that Intermedia Arts is having financial difficulties due to the economic meltdown. Renting their space again will help them become sustainable.

We are still looking for presenters. Working on something cool? We want to hear from you.

We also want a volunteer with A/V experience to help us simulcast the demos in the main room and record them for distribution on the Internet. Please contact me if you are interested.

Thanks,

Luke Francl & Ben Edwards

 

Sierra Bravo Brings Back Its ‘Website Challenge’ Community Service Project

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It won’t be long before area web developers are losing more sleep helping nonprofits. Rapidly growing Bloomington-based web development firm Sierra Bravo has announced the second coming of its very successful Overnight Website Challenge — 24 hours of pure nerd energy applied to creating or spiffing up the web sites of some deserving Minnesota nonprofits.  The event is the firm’s signature event to give back to the community. For 100 volunteer web developers and 10 lucky Minnesota nonprofits, the 24-hour clock will count down on the weekend of February 28-March 1, 2009.

“Sierra Bravo is committed to this event as long as there are nonprofits whose websites could be better, powered by nerds,” said Luke Bucklin, Sierra Bravo’s president and one of its founders. In the inaugural Overnight Website Challenge in March 2008, volunteer web pros from Sierra Bravo and the broader Twin Cities web development community donated more than 2,000 hours to nonprofits — providing a real-world market value of donated time worth nearly $250,000, according to the firm’s calculations. …  [Read More…]

MinneDemo Showcases MN Innovation

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Ben Edwards & Luke Francl, Minnedemo hosts and organizers

Nearly 300 people attended MinneDemo last Wednesday held in Uptown’s Intermedia Arts which was the best venue in the series of “unconference” demo showcases. Ten Minnesota tech companies presented their products in 7 minute demos to a packed auditorium coordinated by MinneDemo co-founder Luke Francl.  After a brief introduction by Luke and MinneDemo co-organizer Ben Edwards, the demos began without the use of Powerpoint or any other presentation software.

The event got off to a fast start with Reactor, the first product from Rochester-based Hardcore Computer. An imposing beast of a computer at over 125 pounds, this is billed as the first personal supercomputer. Aside from being a wicked fast machine tuned for gaming, the first thing you notice is that the entire motherboard is encased in oil to cool the processor and other components. This fluid is highlighted with a blue light that makes a stunning first impression. After the demos were complete we were able to see Reactor put through it’s paces with a racing game which was most impressive. But it was clear from speaking with executives at the event that they have plans to target other processor intensive applications outside the gaming world such as architecture, video rendering and government applications….  [Read More…]

Visi: Vision 2008 a Success!

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Last Thursday, I was delighted to find myself at Visi‘s Vision 2008 conference. Billed as, “The conference will provide IT managers and business executives the opportunity to hear from technology leaders on the topic of “Technology Innovations That Drive Business”,” it met those objectives and more. 

No question it’s always an imperative for leaders to connect up at a venue that’s all about ideas, new ways of thinking about the I.T. status quo, and to consider ways to shift and accelerate those areas where I.T. provides increasingly mission-critical value to the business.

The conference started off with a keynote by Geek Squad founder (and and guy who seems like someone highly reluctant to fit into a corporate suit) Robert Stephens. Without a wireless connection available (either Wifi or 3G), I put my laptop back in my bag and just listened to him. Fortunately, a more highly disciplined journalist was in front of me, Graeme Thickins, and I saw him with (gasp!) a pen and paper feverishly taking notes so I’ll refer you over to Graeme’s post.  He really captured the essence of Robert’s talk and it’s worth a read. Suffice to say, Stephens had many great insights for any startup, entrepreneur, or corporate leader…especially in this time of trouble where cutting-to-the-chase and offering up pure and true value and doing so in an attractive and fun way is more important than ever before.

(UPDATE 11/17/08: Visi’s Gary Elfert has posted Robert’s keynote in six parts (due to YouTube size limitations, I presume. You’ll enjoy it).

Attending several of the sessions (e.g., Closed Loop CRM; Innovative and Proven Online Tools to Drive New Business) while also visiting all of the booths and taking a tour of the data center upstairs, the value I received far outweighed any costs in fees, parking and time investment. Like always, it was the people I interacted with that made it such a strong and worthwhile event and I met nearly a dozen people with whom I’ll connect with in the future.

Since I first visited with Visi’s CTO, Jason Baker, back in September and wrote this post, I’ve periodically thought about the company and the people, the challenges they face in a time where computing is increasingly shifting to the cloud and competition is accelerating (especially with unlikely entrants like Amazon Web Services), and I learned something at this event that I wasn’t expecting.

…  [Read More…]

E3: Energy, Economic & Environmental Conference

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Though this is a bit off-topic for Minnov8’s mission around innovation in internet and web technology, energy specifically is so intertwined with what we do — and this conference looks so fascinating — that it seemed like something you might be interested in. As they say on the E3 conference site, “If you’ve ever wondered about the potential for algae to cure our oil addiction, the future of solar power or the role the media plays in environmental awareness—join us at E3 2008!”

As this year’s keynote speakers, Manitoba Premier Gary Doer and Terje Gjengedal, vice president of Statkraft in Oslo, Norway, will set a world-class tone. The conference will also feature compelling research posters and breakout sessions along five different tracks:

Renewable and Sustainable Fuels and Products: Catch the buzz on algae to biofuels, catalysis and bioproducts; featuring experts from the Energy & Environmental Research Center, Ever Cat Fuels, Iowa State University, Stoel Rives, Fish and Richardson, and more.

Renewable and Sustainable Electricity: Learn the latest in wind expansion, solar energy and nanotechnology; featuring experts from Xcel Energy, Windustry, Cymbet Corporation and more.

The Nexus of Energy, the Environment and the Economy: Get the facts on fuel standards, green marketing and the state’s renewable energy portfolio; featuring experts from the Great Plains Institute, GE Capital Solutions, the Minnesota Legislature, Fresh Energy and more.

Conservation and Energy Efficiency: Expand your knowledge of sustainable cities and next-gen energy systems; featuring experts from Volvo, 3M, Faegre and Benson, Xcel Energy, the Electric Power Research Institute and more.

Special Topics: Explore the issues surrounding technology commercialization, research investment and environmental news reporting; featuring experts from Cargill Ventures, Fredrikson & Byron, WCCO (Don Shelby), Minnesota Public Radio and more.

At $80 for those of us in business, this is an inexpensive conference and is sure to spark ideas on, perhaps, applications that could streamline some of these areas? I’ll wager you’d come away with at least one idea on something that needs fixing and you’d be just the person to do it. More about registering can be found here.

10 Startups to Present at MinneDemo

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An estimated 300 Twin Cities tech-heads will gather for an evening of networking and to watch demos of ten of Minnesota’s hottest technology products on November 12, 2008.

MinneDemo brings together entrepreneurs, investors, software developers, designers, and other techies for a night of short demos and long conversations. Founded in 2006, this is the fifth MinneDemo event. It will be held at Intermedia Arts, 2822 Lyndale Ave. S. in south Minneapolis (map). Pre-networking begins at 6:30 pm, and the demos start at 7:00.

The format of MinneDemo is similar to national conferences like DEMO. The rules are simple: seven minutes for each demo, only real/working software allowed, and NO POWERPOINT! However, MinneDemo is free, both for presenters and attendees. All costs for the event are paid for with sponsorship by local technology and services companies.

At November’s MinneDemo, the following companies will demo their products:

…  [Read More…]

David Meerman Scott to Speak at ‘Social Media Breakfast’ in Twin Cities October 31

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I’m really happy to report that I successfully convinced one of my famous-author friends to speak to our next Social Media Breakfast here in the Twin Cities. We call it “SMBMSP” for short, and this is our eighth monthly event.  David Meerman Scott, a very well-traveled and popular speaker, is the author of the top-selling book, The New Rules for Marketing and PR.  He told me back in August that he’d be coming to MInneapolis for a seminar on October 30, so I asked him if he would consider staying over another night if we could schedule one of our breakfast meetings on the 31st.  He was gracious enough to say yes, so we got some sponsors, and now we have it all scheduled.

It will be held at Deluxe Corp’s headquarters in Shoreview, MN, thanks to my friend Steve Nielsen, whose company, PartnerUp.com, was recently acquired by Deluxe. The meeting is scheduled for 8:00 to 10:30 am on Friday, October 31. Attendance is free, open to anyone interested in social media, and the first 100 attendees will receive a free copy of David’s book. (By the way, David blogs here.) To register, go to our group’s social network site at smbmsp.ning.com, click on the “Events” tab, then click on “SMB-Twin Cities 8,” and then look for the “Order Now” button. Or, just go directly to our RSVP page. The Minnov8 gang looks forward to seeing you there!  Oh — and costumes are optional…  🙂

Science Museum Could Be Minnesota’s Tech Secret

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The Science Museum of Minnesota held another of its Web Seminars on Tuesday, October 7th.  For many, the SMM has become a valuable resource as they seek to get up to speed, learn a new skill, or discover “what all the fuss is about” in the computer world. To others it could very well be a secret.

The SMM houses a Computer Education program that never fails to impress me. I first discovered them about two years ago when I made the decision to merge my traditional media experience with the “new” media world. They offer an incredible array of classes that cover everything from an introduction to computers (Absolutely Terrified of Computers) to network management, HTML, PHP, and a whole host of software training. I’ve found these classes to be concise and very hands on. All taught by incredibly well prepared…and patient…educators at a very reasonable rate.

Throughout the year they host seminars that take on various topics related to web development and design. The topic for this gathering: Refresh Your Pages. Presentations included Maintaining Your Website, PDF Accessibility For All, Benefits of Business Blogging, and Flash at its Finest. These free presentations were made by both SMM staff and guests and, as noted in the photo, attracted a full room of participants. I was particularly interested in the accessibility information as I often find myself short-cutting the process.

I’m always excited to see who shows up at these events. I always know a few faces from the world of tech, marketing, and project management but I also meet plenty of full and part-time designers there to pick up a tip or two. The best part; there are always new faces, people I don’t see at the many tech related gatherings I attend, who are just entering the online world. The guest presenters are also people I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting at other conferences. Getting to know all of them is always very heartening, because more people teaching and more people learning means more people participating online. And that means more opportunities for Minnesota innovation to proliferate.

Richard Stallman at UofMN

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Controversial free software advocate Richard Stallman, founder of the Free Software Foundation and the GNU project, will speak at the University of Minnesota at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 21 in Rm. 175, Willey Hall, 225 19th Ave. S., Minneapolis. The event is free and open to the public.

Stallman pioneered the concept of “copyleft,” the practice of using copyright law to remove restrictions on distributing copies and modified versions of a work for others and requiring that the same freedoms be preserved in modified versions. Stallman is the main author of the most widely used free software license, the GNU General Public License. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and CEO Steve Ballmer have publicly criticized the GNU General Public License and some software companies have likened it to a virus that will “destroy the software industry.”

In Stallman’s talk, “The Free Software Movement and the GNU/Linux Operating System,” he will discuss the Free Software Movement, which campaigns for the freedom of computer users to cooperate and control their own computing activities. 

Stallman’s lecture is sponsored by the University of Minnesota’s Software Engineering Center. For more information, visit this page.