I remember reading all the hype surrounding Microsoft’s release of Expressions Studio and the release of Silverlight, and even made a post about it, alluding to the inevitable crash course with Adobe that Microsoft had put itself on. Although made very casually at the end of the post, the most important point of the article was probably: it would seem the most important aspect of the release is a platform to push Silverlight.

Since then, I have read a few different points on the release; the most telling is probably from TechCrunch on Why Silverlight Is Important. In the article, Michael Arrington states:

For those of us watching the demos at the Mix conference the immediate importance of it was apparent - Silverlight will be the platform of choice for developers who build rich Internet applications. It makes Flash/Flex look like an absolute toy. After the keynote, the main topic of conversation in the hallways centered on just how effectively Microsoft carried out its execution of Adobe.

Quite a statement about the software giant. Using Silverlight, Microsoft has now released a new search engine.

With the release of tafiti, Microsoft has done two things. First, it will probably experience a spike in its search traffic. Although it is difficult to say whether or not anyone will adopt the service exclusively, this has to be a calculated move. If you think otherwise, then you have to ask why Microsoft continues to experiment with search engines, like Ms. Dewey, or put out search-based games. Undoubtedly, some users will stick to these wow search engines, and the data is probably important, too.

More importantly, tafiti provides an absolutely stunning view of the power of Silverlight. If there was anyone who doubted what was possible on the web, this is the evolution of the web. Rich, interactive, and no waiting for pages to load. Simply amazing.

Another year of Barcamp, another year of learning, networking, and appreciation of the Vancouver Tech scene. Huge thanks to the organizers (that I will happily plug, yet again):

Kris Krug, Roland Tanglao, Robert Scales, Zak Greant, James Sherrett, Ianiv Schweber, Megan Cole, Jordan Behan

The Friday night mixer was a great time for all! The tab was finished by 7:30, the temperature reached the 30’s for most of the night, and there was even an emergency logging into a server to change some settings! The usual suspects were well represented, but several fresh faces were out to embrace the event.

Formal articles to follow, but definitely check out the following links:

Handi Mobility

juiceboxcommunications

Lip Gloss & Laptops

MyRealPlace

Something Simpler

Agentic

As an avid CFOX listener and supporter of good ol’ Matt Stone and Trey Parker, creators of Team America: World Police, I will forever connect Matt Damon with the marionette from the movie that says nothing more than the name in a whiny voice, Matt Damon. One of the sideshows of this year’s Barcamp Vancouver is Ianiv Schweber’s contest to win an HD-DVD. Ignoring the obvious question, why HD and not Blueray, I have to ask if anyone can portray the actor as anything but the marionette. I think we should probably just create a video of every attendee doing their best impression of the marionette Matt Damon - it can be part of the registration process! An idea for next time, perhaps. For the more serious, consider signing up for PhotoCamp. If you haven’t seen any of Kris Krug’s work, I’m sure it will be both interesting and informative.

I got forwarded this video to me, and it is definitely funny and illustrates how Paint has failed to evolve at all. The program remains unchanged from the original versions that we all are probably familiar with from the 90’s.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CLymBE1718

To be fair, I did follow-up that video by checking out a couple different ones that show how powerful the program actually is when someone knows what they are doing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CLymBE1718

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uk2sPl_Z7ZU

As requested, here is information about BarCamp Vancouver 2007 (passed on from the organizers)!

Here’s our quick note with some details about Barcamp Vancouver 2007
- http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver2007

Below you’ll find information on
* registry and attendance
* t-shirts
* list of topics for sessions
* schedule of Barcamp events
* spreading the love

===

Registry and Attendance
http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver2007Attendees

We’re oversubscribed (yay!), which means that some people who want to come won’t be able to come (boo!).

So please, if you’re in the first 120, check your dates and availability. Are you sure you’re coming? We want to minimize the wiki squatting.

If you’re not sure you’re coming, please strike out your name and post the name of the top person left on the waiting list in your former place. If you’re on the waiting list, are you sure you’re available to come? If not, please cross out your name. If you’re still keen on coming, check back on the list to see if you’ve been added to the first 120. We don’t mean to be too anal about this. We just want to make sure that all the people that want to be there and can be there do get to be there. And to do that, please help us get the word out to all Barcampers. Blog this message if you can. Forward it on to friends who are interested so people are in the know.

We’ve gone through the list of signed-up attendees. Everyone who left an email address has been sent this message. But that’s only 53 of about 160 people and email is a fickle mistress. We’re missing out on getting in touch with some folks and we need your help to get the word out. So blog the hell out of this and we’ll (hopefully) reach everyone.

===

T-Shirts

We have printed 120 Barcamp Vancouver 2007 t-shirts to cover our collective nekkidness. They’re fuschia (!) and they’ll be available at the door on a first-come, first-served basis. We’re taking a suggested donation of $20 for each t-shirt, to finance our lavish unconference lifestyle. Any monies left over will be rolled into financing next year’s proceedings.

===

List of Topics for Sessions
http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver2007

One of the suggestions from past Barcamps has been to post a list of potential topics for sessions before the unconference. That way, people can do their homework and get a hint of the sessions available. So that’s a great idea. Now let’s put it into action.

On the Barcamp Vancouver 2007 main page we have a heading called Topics. So far, we have 2 sessions listed. The page is a wiki. Anyone who wants to add a session, please go to it.

From past unconferences, we’ve seen that topics for sessions that get listed beforehand have a much higher chance of getting selected and getting great participation, which is, after all, the point. So if you want to lead a session, or even just see a session on a particular topic, please post the topic. We’ll do some active wiki gardening to lend some order to the list of topics, but anything is fair game. Go. To. It.

===

Schedule of Barcamp Events

Friday, August 17: food and drink at the Alibi Room
* appetizers all evening
* open bar starting at 6:30 pm (until our credit runs out!)
* we’re in the private area downstairs
* TheAlibiRoom, 157 Alexander Street @ Main (map on website)
* sleepover at Workspace, 21 Water Street, Suite 400

Saturday, August 18: conference day all day
* start at 8:30 AM with day organization
* pastries and coffees available
* pizza lunch to be delivered at ~noon
* Workspace, Suite 400 - 21 Water Street (map on website)
* end at 5:30 PM
* your own reconnaisance

===

Spreading the Love

Lots of folks have worked hard to make Barcamp Vancouver 2007 happen. Sponsors have ponied up cash. Busy people have volunteered. People with work to do have reinvested their attention to see things get done. So if you have a chance, thank a volunteer or a sponsor or one of the folks at Workspace (our venue!) for making the event happen.

Last of all, thanks to all of your for all the enthusiasm, energy and passion. And for reading this far.

Barcamp lives in the relationships between all of us. All of us make it happen. So come to the unconference ready to rock and help us all kick some ass.

===

Any questions?

Check the website for answers:
http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver2007

Ask an organizer:
* KrisKrug - http://www.kriskrug.com/
* RolandTanglao - http://www.rolandtanglao.com/
* RobertScales - http://www.robertscales.com/
* ZakGreant - http://www.zak.greant.com/
* JamesSherrett - www.adhack.com
* IanivSchweber - http://www.blogaholics.ca/
* MeganCole - http://www.megancole.org/
* JordanBehan - http://www.telltenfriends.com/
* AaronGladders - http://www.2paths.com/

See you at the conference!