Portland User Experience Group

March 14, 2008 - Next week the PDXRIA group will be hosting an event where Mike Culver from Amazon will be in town talking about what's possible with the Amazon Web Services stack. Details can be found below and at http://pdxria.com/asug/index.cfm?event=page.meetings.

WHAT: March PDXRIA Meeting
WHERE: PCC Sylvania, Library Room 112
WHEN: March 20, 2008
5:30 - 6:00 Networking and Setup
6:00 - 8:00 Presentation

TOPIC: What's possible in a post Web 2.0 world? with Mike Culver
Innovation continues at a mind-bending pace, and this presentation will showcase some thought-provoking new ideas built on Web Services. You will also learn how others, empowered by technology advances—known as "Web Scale Computing"—created businesses that weren't practical until recently. The session will include a demo in which you'll learn how to set up a virtual server in the Cloud.

Amazon spent over a decade developing a world-class technology and content platform that powers Amazon web sites for millions of customers every day. Most people think "Amazon.com" when they hear the word; however developers and entrepreneurs are excited to learn that there is a separate technology arm of the company, known as Amazon Web Services or AWS. Using AWS, software developers can build applications leveraging the same robust, scalable, and reliable technology that powers Amazon's retail business. AWS has now launched ten services with open API's for developers to build applications, with the result that almost 330,000 developers have registered on Amazon's developer site to create applications based on these services.

Speaker Bio
Mike Culver joined the Developer Relations Group of Amazon Web Services in 2006, and brings with him fifteen years of technology leadership experience, including at companies such as Microsoft. In addition he has a strong background running an IT organization, with over a decade of experience in the Electrical Wholesale Distribution industry. And as a Web Services Evangelist at Amazon, he helps developers take advantage of disruptive technologies that are going to change the way we think about computer applications, and the way that businesses compete.

February 24, 2008 - Mark your calendars for April 10th - 12th because that's when Jason Mauer, Tim Heuer, Mithun Dhar, and other Microsoft Developer Evangelists are scheduled to be bringing The Code Trip to Portland.

They'll be podcasting, video blogging, creating applications on the fly, streaming from the bus, hibachi-night Wednesdays (heh, the 9th is a Wednesday), and other great ideas. Their mission is to talk about some of the great stuff Microsoft has coming out and demonstrate the technologies, but they also know we want to be heard. They're interested in hearing our stories and this will be a great opportunity to get some hands-on advice.

They'll be building a couple of applications along the way before they get to Portland, and are excited to show them off to our community. They'll also be bringing the latest from MIX08, Windows Live, Windows Mobile, Silverlight, etc.!

Be sure to subscribe to their main feed for updates. Also, expect to see live updates on the Twitter feed as they tour through the different cities. The current route/schedule is posted online, so if you're not in Portland, check it out and see when they'll be visiting in your area.

February 22, 2008 - Erik Mork has just launched a new Podcast called Sparkling Client which focuses on Silverlight and other RIA Technology. The site for the podcast can be found at http://www.sparklingclient.com/. The first two episodes are already up, with much more promising content sure to be released in the immediate future. Be sure to check this out and subscribe to their feed.

Erik is a very active member of the .Net community here in Portland. He has presented at PADNUG, PDXUX.Net, the Portland and Boise Code Camps, and Innotech. You can reach him at http://www.silverbaylabs.org/.

January 25, 2008 - Robert Half Technology has just signed on as a Platinum Sponsor and graciously offered to host our meetings at their auditorium in the KOIN Center. The group will begin meeting at this new location starting in May. The March meeting will still be held at the Corillian Cafe (Map).

Robert Half Technology is a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis. They specialize in initiatives ranging from web development and systems integration to network security and technical support.