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March 16, 2004

What the Heck Is Social Networking?

Jonathan Abrams is founder and CEO of Friendster, one of the leading online social network services. With more than 4 million members, the company attracted $13 million in VC money last year.

In his well-attended SXSW Interactive keynote, Abrams shared some stories about how to build a successful online company in the aftermath of the dot-com bust. What follows is a partial transcript of his talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 3:50 PM | 17 Comments

The Tropicalization of Digitization and Global Red-Light Districts

Bruce Sterling is an internationally acclaimed author who lives in Austin, Texas. Having produced a steady stream of enlightening essays and ground-breaking science fiction since 1976, Sterling's most recent book is Tomorrow Now.

In his SXSW Interactive presentation, Sterling riffed through a wide range of topics, including politics, globalization and offshoring, technology and security, and the potential of NGOs. What follows is a partial transcript of his talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 1:39 PM | 1 Comments

The Future of Wireless Devices

Andy Mathis is senior business development manager for Motorola's iDEN Subscriber Group. Corey Carbonara is a professor of telecommunication in communication studies at Baylor University, as well as director of the school's Digital Communication Technologies Project. Michael Korpi is a professor of communication studies at Baylor. Peter Rojas edits the blog Engadget and works as a contributing editor for Cargo. Steve Stroh edits the newsletter Focus on Broadband Wireless Internet Access.
David Mackie works with Motion Computing.

At their SXSW Interactive panel, the group started out by discussing the future of wireless devices, but much of the conversation touched on network access and the challenge of getting cellular carriers to work together. What follows is a partial transcript of the panel discussion.

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Posted by Heath Row at 11:54 AM | 2 Comments

March 15, 2004

Ridiculously Easy Group Forming

Tantek Celik is a software development lead at Microsoft Corp. Joi Ito founded Neoteny, a venture capital firm focused on personal communication technologies. Pete Kaminski iniated the Social Software Alliance and serves as CTO for SocialText. Sam Ruby is a 21-year veteran of IBM and works as an open-source software consultant. And Adam Weinroth founded Easyjournal.

The SXSW Interactive panelists explored how to quickly form groups and teams using social software tools. The panel also discussed what happens when team members are allowed to quickly and easily contribute content to various projects. What follows is a partial discussion of the panel.

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Posted by Heath Row at 6:48 PM | 1 Comment

The Aesthetics of Social Networks

Danah Boyd is an information management PhD student at the University of California, where she researches how people negotiate their presentation of self in online communities and other social contexts. Jon Lebkowsky serves as CEO of the Web technology consultancy Polycot. Honoria Starbuck works as education director for Polycot. And Molly Steenson teaches interaction design at Institute Ivrea in Italy.

At SXSW Interactive, the panelists explored the explosion of Net-based social networks and the opportunities for group forming, analysis, and intent connections. What follows is a partial transcript of their discussion.

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Posted by Heath Row at 5:12 PM | 1 Comment

Mobile Communication, Pervasive Computing, and Collective Action

Howard Rheingold was one of the creators HotWired, as well as editor of The Whole Earth Review and editor-in-chief of The Millennium Whole Earth Catalog. More recently, Rheingold wrote the book Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution.

After an introduction by Jon Lebkowsky, Rheingold's SXSW Interactive keynote touched on the topics of the new commonwealth created by the Net and cellphones, how people are leveraging those technologies, and some of his concerns about the future. What follows is a partial transcript of his talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 3:48 PM | 2 Comments

Blogging Next

Danah Boyd is an information management PhD student at the University of California, where she researches how people negotiate their presentation of self in online communities and other social contexts. Anil Dash works as VP of business development for Six Apart, the company behind Moveable Type. And Justin Hall serves as a fellow at the Stanford Center for Internet and Society.

Considering the success of blogging to date, the SXSW Interactive panel debated some of the potential trends and paths the medium could take. While slightly focusing on industry insiders and personal blogging, the conversation might make a useful corollary read to Jena McGregor's April Fast Company feature on business blogs. What follows is a partial transcript of the panel discussion.

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Posted by Heath Row at 1:25 PM | 1 Comment

Urban Tribes and Social Dark Matter

Ethan Watters wrote the book Urban Tribes: A Generation Redefines Friendship, Family, and Commitment.

His SXSW Interactive addressed how our self-chosen communities are nodes in large, complex networks of such groups. What follows is a partial transcript of is session.

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Posted by Heath Row at 11:40 AM | 1 Comment

March 14, 2004

Putting People Back into the Process

Joe Trippi is former campaign manager for Howard Dean. He is generally credited with conceptualizing the decentralized Internet-based structure that helped the governor of Vermont build early momentum in the bid for the Democratic Presidential nomination.

In his SXSW Interactive session, following an introduction by Zack Exley, Trippi talked about what went right in Dean's campaign -- and, to a lesser extent, what went wrong. What follows is a partial transcript of his remarks.

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Posted by Heath Row at 5:24 PM | 1 Comment

Democracy in Action

As campaigns director for MoveOn, Eli Pariser oversees a million-plus address email list comprising progressive activists. Zack Exley serves as MoveOn's organizing director, a position that allows him to combine his background in grassroots organizing with a long-time hobby and occasional career in technology.

Founded in 1998 as a response to the founders' growing anger with the President Clinton impeachment proceedings, MoveOn has grown into a far-reaching political machine capable of mobilizing thousands of volunteers and raising millions of dollars, in effect resurrecting grassroots politics. In their SXSW Interactive keynote, which included a good-humored but totally serious introduction by Molly Ivins, Pariser and Exley addressed how MoveOn got started, how members mobilize, and what people can do to help reclaim politics. What follows is a partial transcript of their session.

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Posted by Heath Row at 3:50 PM | Add Comment

Google, Innovation, and the Web

Marissa Mayer works as director of consumer Web products at Google and has spearheaded almost every user-interface change to the Google Web site for the past four years. She also teaches computer programming at Stanford.

In her session at SXSW Interactive, Mayer shed some light on Google's flexible, dynamic, and fairly unstructured product development process. She shared how the company fosters employee-involvement in product definition, the role of creativity, and the resulting products and services. What follows is a partial transcript of her talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 1:11 PM | Add Comment

The Substance of Style

Virginia Postrel is the author of The Substance of Style and The Future and Its Enemies. She also writes the "Economic Scene" column for the New York Times and maintains the Dynamist blog.

In her presentation at SXSW Interactive, Postrel discussed the importance of aesthetics, how design comes into play, the role of expertise, and why people respond the way they do to aesthetically pleasing people, places, and things. What follows is a partial transcript of her talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 11:55 AM | 0 Comments

March 13, 2004

Can You Build a Company from Free Code?

Hank Jones is a 23-year software and technology lawyer who's written widely about open source since 1999. Chip Rosenthal is an independent open-source software development consultant. Don Shafer, co-founder of the Athens Group, an Austin-based consulting firm, is a senior member of the IEEE. Steven Vandegrift is managing director of Techxas Ventures, a VC firm.

The panel began to explore whether initiating a free or open software project makes sense for a business based on its customer base, revenue, and business development strategy. But in the end, the panelists merely made the case for using open source software -- or becoming an open-source developer.

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Posted by Heath Row at 6:52 PM | 3 Comments

Craig's List and Online Community

Craig Newmark launched Craig's List in 1995 to better help people connect through events around San Francisco. The site has since grown into a national community.

While the service primarily helps people with everyday challenges -- finding a place to live, a job, a date, and buying and selling stuff -- Newmark's session focused on what organizers have learned about online community and its ramifications for business. What follows is a partial transcript of Newmark's talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 5:20 PM | 9 Comments

Achieving a State of Trans

Brenda Laurel is chair of the graduate media design program at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. Co-founder of Purple Moon, a girl-centric, girl-empowerment media company, Laurel also recently edited the MIT Press anthology Design Research: Methods and Perspectives. She also authored the wonderful Mediaworks pamphlet Utopian Entrepreneur, which is a relatively quick and crucial read.

Sandy Stone, founding director of the Advanced Communication Technologies Laboratory and the convergent media program of the department of radio-TV-film at the University of Texas at Austin, introduced Laurel, commenting that they first met over Farraday's grave in the 1960s and proclaiming that Laurel "rides a magic surfboard over every new thing that comes along." Dating themselves slightly -- but not really -- with references to Atari, Activision, and Interval Research (now Comcast, believe it or not), and "watermelon seeds," the two provided a chummy, chatty introduction to SXSW Interactive's opening remarks. What follows is a partial transcript of Laurel's talk.

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Posted by Heath Row at 4:02 PM | Add Comment

The History and Lessons of the Cellular Industry

With 24 years of experience in telecommunications and wireless, Liz Maxfield currently works with CFX, a firm providing engineering, construction, and surveying services. Kevin McKeand is president of TexLink Communications, which provides bundled voice and date services in central Texas. Jeffrey Nelson works in corporate communications for Verizon Wireless. And Mark Desautels serves as vice president of wireless Internet development for the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association.

The panelists at SXSW Interactive discussed several aspects of the history of the cellular industry -- and a few lessons they've learned over the years. Among the questions explored: Were the innovations that allowed roaming relevant to the advancement of licensed and unlicensed wireless communication? What follows is a partial transcript of the panel discussion.

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Posted by Heath Row at 1:28 PM | 0 Comments

The Open Spectrum Revolution

Kevin Werbach is an independent technology analyst that advises companies and writes about emerging technologies in communications, media, and software. The former editor of Release 1.0, he also previously serves as Counsel for New Technology Policy at the FCC.

In his talk at South by Southwest Interactive, Werbach addressed the potential offered by open spectrum wireless communication, indicating its promise to foster innovation, revitalize the technology industry, and lower barriers to connectivity and collaboration. What follows is a partial transcript of his presentation.

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Posted by Heath Row at 11:51 AM | Add Comment