Posts tagged with 'barcamp'
Posted on 19th October 2009. Tagged as event, barcamp, testled
I attended Barcamp Blackpool this weekend, it was great. There was a really wide diversity of speakers and sessions (I attended sessions on sign language, writing Android apps and geocaching, among others).
This was the first time I'd been to a Barcamp, and I liked the format. Hayley, who doesn't attend geek events often at all, said that while the content of the talks was generally technical, the fact everyone spoke with passion meant that all the talks were entertaining, even if you didn't understand the entirely of what was being said. Having sat through a really entertaining hour of looking at circuit diagrams to control a church organ with a BBC micro, I totally agree.
I was also very pleased with the reaction to the rock and lollipops which Testled provided. Looking round the room and seeing everyone with bright blue mouths has convinced me that the business card is dead; branded confectionary is much more effective. Testled's sponsorship in general has been a positive for us (this was the first time we're done any event sponsorship), I certainly found it easier to approach potential customers with a little more legitimacy than before. I think we're going to micro-sponsor Barcamp Manchester as a result, so if anyone is anxious for more blue lollies, you won't have long to wait.
I won't repeat what has already been said about the great sponsored bar, the magician (who I think might now be performing at our wedding), and the food, but I will repeat the thanks to Gemma for organising such an awesome day. See you all next year (or maybe at Barcamp London this weekend).
Posted on 25th October 2009. Tagged as event, barcamp, testled
I've just finished at Barcamp London. It was worth going, but very busy, probably a little too busy. There were so many rooms that I had to choose between two good talks in each session, which was great for the event, but not so easy for me.
The standout sessions were the elevator pitching practise, which was a lot of fun once the room warmed up a little, and it's definately an idea which I'm going to steal for Barcamp Manchester. Less fun, but nevertheless interesting was the session on the new Paypal APIs. We've been considering moving Testled's payment provider to Amazon's Flexible Payments Service, but it looks like in a few weeks we'll be able fulfil all of our requirements (mainly on-site micropayments) without changing provider.
Also, a quick note to those attending Barcamp Manchester, Testled are again sponsoring a small part of the event, so we'll be bringing yet more of our popular blue lollipops. I bet you all can't wait.
Posted on 5th July 2010. Tagged as event, barcamp
I rather enjoyed Barcamp Blackpool this weekend. I've been to a lot of conferences and Barcamps this year, but I did particularly enjoy a Barcamp on my home soil.
I made an effort this weekend to spend less time in talks, and more time talking to people, and I think it paid off. Along with giving my (now rather tired) session on pitching, I had some very rewarding one-to-ones with a some very smart people - so if I cornered you and wouldn't stop talking, take it as a compliment!
I did, however spend time in some talks. @timhastings talk on TagWalk was very interesting, though I would have enjoyed more detail on the code running the site, but then I always like to skip ahead.
@walterja, whose talks have become the highlight of the last few Barcamp events I've attended, presented a predictably fascinating look at sociometry, which I've had some experience with before, though with a very different intention. I think this talk brought together the most diverse members of the audience, it was great to see so many teachers in the audience.
The evening was a lot of fun, and talking to people I was pleased with how many were talking about their own projects, startups and ideas for what is next; very invigorating.
Most blog posts end with thanks for the sponsors, which I would like to echo, but I think someone needs to call out the excellent work of @ruby_gem, who seems to have the ability to pull together these events, run them flawlessly and make it look incredibly easy. You are an asset to us all. Thank very much for your work.
Oh, and I won the PadRacer tournament ;-)
