Monthly Archive for January, 2009

These Are The Talks - Ignite Portland 5

Published by Josh Bancroft on January 30, 2009. 2 Comments

86 of you were gracious enough to share your burning ideas with us - things that you thought would be great on stage at Ignite Portland 5. You were right. The ideas were great. But, as always, we have to narrow the field down. This time, we chose 17 talks (for a total of 18, including our traditional “What Is Ignite?” talk.

Speakers were notified earlier this week, and the suspense was palpable as people started celebrating (or being bummed out :-( ) on Twitter. Now, we reveal the whole lineup. These are the talks that you’ll see on stage at Ignite Portland 5:

Congratulations to everyone who was selected - we can’t wait to see you light it up on stage at the Bagdad! And a HUGE thanks to EVERYONE who submitted an idea, whether you were selected or not. We received a record 86 idea submissions this time, and it’s bittersweet to see all of those ideas, knowing that only so many of them can make it on stage. If you weren’t picked, don’t be discouraged, or think that we don’t like you! Competition was fierce, but we’d love it if you resubmit your idea for Ignite Portland 6 when the time comes. Be creative, hack the format, make a video and link it to your submission, and show off why YOU would make a great Ignite speaker. We’d love to have you.

Next up, free tickets for IP5 will be made available on Feb. 5 at 10AM, and they’ll go fast, so mark your calendars, get your tickets (or come hang out with the cool people in the GA line - you should still be able to get in), and we’ll see you on Feb. 19 at the Bagdad! :-)

86 IP5 Talk Ideas Submitted. Those Chosen Notified Soon.

Published by Josh Bancroft on January 27, 2009. 1 Comment

We received a record 86 talk idea submissions for Ignite Portland 5 (we usually get around 50). There was a definitely “bathtub curve” to when they came in - lots were submitted right after Ignite Portland 4, when lots of people surely thought “I should do a talk about *subject*.” Then there was a lull, and, as usual, a nice big rush of submissions right before the deadline. You Portlanders sure are a bunch of procrastinators. ;-)

But you’re wicked smart, too, and it was harder than ever to sift and sort through all of the terrific ideas that we received to choose the ones that would make it on stage for Ignite Portland 5. It was hard work, but we think we have a terrific lineup. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who submitted an idea - you truly are the heart of how this whole Ignite thing works.

Everyone who submitted an idea should be notified via email soon (within a day or so) about whether your talk was chosen or not. We’ll post the talk lineup here on Friday 1/30. We’re going with 18 total talks this time, to squeeze a few more in (there were 14 talks at IP4).

If your talk idea wasn’t selected, understand it was because we were bombarded with SO many great ideas, and we only have room for so many. If we could warp the fabric of space time, and see all of the talks, that would be awesome. Maybe someone will submit an idea for how to make that happen for IP6. :-)

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to submit an idea. I know the suspense is killing you. Hang in there a little longer!

IP5 Talk Idea Clock Goes Tick Tock

Published by Josh Bancroft on January 21, 2009. 3 Comments

Did you know that the deadline to submit a talk idea for Ignite Portland 5 is only about 3 days away? After 11:59 PM PST on Saturday January 24, it’ll be too late. That burning idea in your head wants to be free! It wants to be shared on stage at IP5 with 500 of your closest friends! Head over to the “Submit a Talk” page and set that burning idea free.

And did you know that you can leave private comments on the proposals that others have submitted? The comments will only be seen by the event organizers, so if you see a talk that you’re just DYING to see, make your voice heard. Just click on the submission name, and find the comment form at the bottom.

The talks that get chosen will be posted here for all to see on Friday, January 30. I can’t wait to see what the lineup will be this time!

Get Ready - Tickets to Ignite Portland 5 Become Available Feb. 5 at 10AM

Published by Josh Bancroft on January 20, 2009. 0 Comments

Last time we released tickets, for Ignite Portland 4, they were all claimed very, very quickly. As in, 550 tickets in 3.5 hours. We had no idea they would be available for such a short period of time, and some people missed out if they weren’t glued to Twitter/their feed reader when the word went out, and tickets became available.

So, to hopefully make the process a little more accessible to everyone, we’re pre-announcing when we’re going to make the free tickets to Ignite Portland 5 available - 10AM PST on Thursday, February 5, 2009. When the time comes, details will be posted here at http://www.igniteportland.com. Make sure you’re subscribed to the feed, and follow @igniteportland on Twitter.

Mark your calendars, set a reminder on your iPhone, or do whatever you feel like you need to do to get a ticket if you’re interested. We’re also going to try a few tweaks to the process to make it easier to get on a “waitlist”, if there are no tickets available when you come. Details on how that will work will be posted later. And remember, Ignite Portland 5 will happen on Thursday, February 19, at the Bagdad theater. Doors open for ticketholders at 5:15PM. General Admission starts at 6:00 PM. And the talks kick off at 7:00 PM. Plan accordingly. There’s a restaurant and bar food available at the Bagdad, and lots of other places to dine nearby on Hawthorne, so why not come down early and have dinner?

Tickets to Ignite Portland will always be free. So why have them in the first place? To try to keep lines small, and reduce your anxiety about getting in. If you have a ticket, and you arrive at the Bagdad Theater before the time appointed for General Admission, you can stroll right in, and you’ve got a seat. Didn’t manage to get a ticket? You can come down and wait in the General Admission line. We always reserve some seats for GA, and last time, no one was turned away. So think of a ticket as your way to avoid waiting in the GA line.

If you’re selected as a speaker, or if you choose to be a sponsor, you’ll be guaranteed a ticket, so if you REALLY really want to make sure you get in, submit a great talk idea (you have until Jan. 24!), or contact us about being a sponsor.

Every time we do this, we try to make it smoother than the last time. A ton of effort goes on behind the scenes on the part of Igal Koshevoy and his crew of happy coders for our proposal and ticketing systems, and we owe them a huge thanks for helping us manage an event of this magnitude. And we’re very grateful for your enthusiasm and patience, as a community. None of this would happen without you.

So, stay tuned, we’ll announce the speaker lineup next week on Jan. 30, tickets become available the week after that on Feb. 5, and then, on the 19th, we party! :-)

Ignite Portland 5 talk submissions due January 24. Be creative and get yours in!

Published by Josh Bancroft on January 12, 2009. 3 Comments

The time is rapidly approaching. We’re going to close talk idea submissions for Ignite Portland 5 at 11:59PM on Saturday, January 24. That means you still have almost two weeks to think of an idea for an Ignite talk, and get it to us. Got a burning idea you want to share in 5 minutes (20 slides for 15 seconds each)? Let us know!

We’ve had lots of people tell us they wanted to see more of something or other at the next Ignite. More “techy” talks. More creative talks. More “how to” talks. More bacon talks. The thing is, the content of each and every Ignite Portland is determined by you, the community of people who submit your talk ideas. So if you want to see more technical talks, submit a technical talk idea. You see where I’m going with this…

I’ve also had people ask me how to really “wow” the selection team, and increase their chances of being picked to present. Besides PayPal (I kid!), my best advice to you is BE CREATIVE! The idea submission form is just a few text fields, but there’s nothing stopping you from shooting an audition video and linking to it, or doing something else clever to impress us. Hack the format. Show off your skills and ideas. I can’t promise it will affect your chances, but what have you got to lose!

If you’re looking for inspiration for a talk idea, have a gander at the videos from past Ignite Portland events, or look at some of the idea submissions we’ve already received for Ignite Portland 5. And if you’ve submitted a talk idea in the past that didn’t make it, please, resubmit - with so many great ideas, we can’t choose all of the great ones. Maybe Five is your lucky number.

And if the idea of getting up on stage in person gives you the shakes, maybe you’d rather submit a “15 seconds of Flame” video? Brand new for IP5, we’ll be showing off community submitted videos during the breaks. So if you’re a video person rather than a “get up on stage in front of 500 people” person, we’ve got you covered.

Each Ignite has raised the bar in terms of the greatness of the talks. We expect number 5 to be no less than stellar. But we need your burning ideas. Don’t wait too long!

Update: a couple people have asked, and I forgot to include it in the original post, but we’ll be announcing the talk lineup for Ignite Portland 5 on Friday January 30. Stay tuned to the site and the feed!

Ignite Portland wants to give you ‘15 Seconds of Flame’!

Published by Todd Kenefsky on January 12, 2009. 5 Comments Tags: , , .

Do you have something to share with Portland? Can you share it in 15 seconds? If so, here’s your chance to get your 15 Seconds of Flame! Send us a video of yourself sharing your “Flame”, and if it’s selected we’ll show it during Ignite Portland 5 on February 19th.

The format is kinda like the talks, but shorter and with video:

What can I share? Anything! Share an idea, a skill, a poem, or something you’re passionate about. Silly or serious- it’s up to you. Tell us your plan to save the world or why you love living in Portland, do shadow puppets, sing a really short song, bust a dance move or show Portland that you really can tie a cherry stem with your tongue. Be creative and be interesting.

What format? Video. (see below for technical details)

What can’t I share? Nothing gross or “spammy” (promotional). We also tend to shy away from politics, religion and high pitched squealy noises.

Will submitting a Flame help or hinder the chances of my talk being selected? It will have no effect.

Will I go up on stage to share my “15 Seconds of Flame”? Nope. We’ll just show what you send us.

Can it be a little longer than 15 seconds? No. Just like the slides in the Ignite talks, after 15 seconds the train keeps a-rollin’ on. Videos longer than 15 seconds may be edited down or rejected altogether.

If I send my Flame, will you show it for sure? We’ll select some of the best to play at Ignite. No guarantees.

If my Flame is selected will I be notified? Will I get guaranteed tickets to the event? Will my friends think I’m cool? Will I be paid? No, no, yes and no.

When are submissions due? By February 6th, 2009 @ 11:59pm.

How do I submit my video? To make your submission you’ll need to upload it somewhere and email a link to IgnitePDX@gmail.com. If you’re not sure how, we suggest using http://blip.tv . It’s free and allows us to download the original file (keep in mind video sharing sites like Blip can take hours or days to post your video- make sure to upload far enough in advance that you don’t miss the deadline). Make sure to tag it “Legion of Tech”, “Ignite Portland” and “15 Seconds of Flame”

Technical Stuff:

We can handle most common video formats (AVI, .MPEG, .MOV etc). We ask that you give us the highest quality you can and in full dimension so it looks good (We’ll be projecting on a huge theater screen). If you’re not a video expert don’t worry about the format specs, just send us something that will look good. But here is our suggested format if you have the option:

Quicktime H.264
Full Dimensions - 720×480 NTSC SD or 1280×720 HD or 1920×1080 HD
30 (29.97) FPS
Use a High VBR.

Only send content for which you have appropriate rights and permissions. We reserve the right to post your video for others to view and share under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Questions? Leave a comment or email IgnitePDX@gmail.com