today's round of super hardcore techyness...

if you instant message frequently and use quicksilver, you're going to love coda hale...

also, if you tweet, check out coda hale's twitter script. while it's smaller and doesn't keep the username and password in the script, it also doesn't offer growl support as Graham English's iQuickTwitter .

Technorati Tags: quicksilver, twitter

i sometimes work out of the same offices as greenpeace's internet organizer, but that should not stop you from watching this video!!!

when you're in a culture that is bombarded by mundane commercial advertisement, how does one set yourself above the fold? if you're an activist organization, getting people to understand is hard. getting people to care, damn near impossible... UNLESS you are given the freedom to explore any marketing angle - for more info on how to convince Kimberly-Clark not to use virgin old growth forests - check out kleercut and my favorite Greenpeace campaign, Green My Apple.

just because one organization is a better organizer than another does not mean we are terrorists.

Technorati Tags: gothamist, green my apple, greenpeace, kleercut

if you're looking for boiled down comments on the value of face to face conversations and how they support your constituency, check out this creating passionate users blog post. i've written before how online connections must meet physically, but in this post, kathy sierra lays out 10 universal components that are golden rules in building ANY constituency. fast companies' friends network is one the best examples of a physical medium using online tools to promote a disaggregate support network. heath row's journeys in 1999, 2000, and 2001 provide tangible experience supporting user networks. also, you should note that one of the best examples of diy face-to-face organizing is Four Eyed Monsters - check out henry jenkins' take on their impressive work.

1) Put together a "How To Start A Local User Group or Club" document. (noel's note - FastCompany.com has an interesting FAQ that should be a good start.) Include tips on things like finding a space, topic ideas, and getting speakers.

2) Offer free materials for the user groups User group meetings often start or end with prize drawings; give the user group leaders plenty of swag for the meetings. It'll make the leaders look good, etc.

3) Treat your user group leaders like royalty Sun puts JUG (Java User Group) leaders on a pedestal--helping them promote their groups, giving them special receptions at the annual JavaOne conference, etc.

4) Instead of a traditional user group, provide guidelines for a Study Group (noel's note - one really good example of this is the Drupal Dojo - a weekly user let training session.) Collect advice and lessons from other existing groups. Provide a list of suggested books to read, and 6-months' worth of topic plans.

5) Hold a very low-cost annual weekend conference. (noel's note - couchsurfing.com has historically set up "collectives" around the world to help maintain their website.) Make it ridiculously easy for people to get there. Find sponsors to help. Even better if you hold several mini-conferences a year, in different locations.

6) Encourage users to start a local BarCamp (or other *Camp). (noel's note - there are many examples of *camps - check out rootscamp or drupalcamp) Direct your users to the BarCamp Wiki where they can learn how to do it.

7) Utilize monthly meetings. There are many examples - Social Media Club's wiki, Drupal's Groups, NextNY.org's wiki, Frak Party, or Meetup.com. (original PSU's recommendation - Use Meetup.com as a resource!)

8) If you already have online user forums, enlist moderators to try to form an offline meetup. This is often one of the best places to start.

9) Hold special cocktail receptions/parties for user group leaders at industry conferences in your domain.

10) Advertise/promote your user group events on your main page! Remember, passionate users MUST connect with others who share that passion, so this is not a nice-to-have... it's an essential part of any product, service, or cause for which people are passionate.

Technorati Tags: couchsurfing, coworking, drupalcamp, economy 2.0, fast company, four eyed monsters

over the past month, i've heard a number of books mentioned, sadly there is only one that i haven't read. ;) honestly, it's one of those books that i should be pinched for not reading. Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy has been tossed around since last December's rootscamp, and after hearing it mentioned at SXSW and in Salzburg, I'm delighted to have an opportunity to hear author and activist Steve Duncombe!

my good friends at the Change You Want to See are turning this up a notch... forget your laptops and bring your notebooks, by the end of this session your world will change.

...Change You Want to See is thrilled to host author and activist Steve Duncombe for a presentation and discussion of his acclaimed manifesto Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy. Beyond talk, this is also an applied strategy session – irrigate the irrational, practice your “spectacular vernacular”, exercise your imagination as we craft a creative street action in support of the Coalition of Imakolee Workers' campaign against McDonald's.

Tuesday, March 27, at 7:30pm
The Change You Want to See Gallery, Convergence Stage and Coworking Facility
L to Bedford, G to Metropolitan, J/M/Z to Marcy
84 Havemeyer St, Brooklyn NY 11211

BYOB encouraged, as brainstorm and beer are like butter and bread.

Technorati Tags: coworking, not an alternative, steve duncombe

for those of you who are at SXSW interactive and Barcamp Austin 2, TODAY (saturday) at 3.30, we'll be meeting to talk about the coworking movement. please spread the word to your fellow attendants...

Saturday, 10 March @ 3.30 pm
Barcamp Austin 2
508 East Sixth Street, Austin, TX

Technorati Tags: barcamp, barcamp austin, coworking, SXSW, SXSW interactive

what happens when you give one man, who's extremely passionate about making things, a platform to vlog about crazy things people make?

...a space ballon named ahab...

yup, make master bre and a motley crew of friends have plans to send 20 megapixels into space! (that's a lot of megapixels!) using a google group and wiki they are long on their way to etching their names in internet folk lore! check out DXpedition, bre's flickr stream & Ahab's flickr group for continuing updates.

ps - photo is of a boxed up cannon sd400 with a broken lcd screen, two batteries and charger that i've donated to the cause!

Technorati Tags: ahab, bre pettis, DXpedition, flickr, space ballon

< Andrew Luter, a Denver based technology misfit, has laid out an all inclusive coworking ideal - the hive - not just a modern internet-cafe, not just a share office space, but a professional working environment embody in a sweet narrative and well laid out wiki. Should you be in Denver or if you are looking to start a coworking space, Andrew's has a good pulse on creating the contextual elements.

This article is cross-posted on blog.coworking.info, and mad-props to s.s. trudeau for the link.

Technorati Tags: andrew luter, coworking, the hive