tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-138033892024-03-05T22:33:42.289-08:00grep le miettetasty morsels of goodness on open platforms, developer relations and motherhood 2.0delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.comBlogger125125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-11641599778700429712012-01-02T10:29:00.000-08:002012-01-02T10:38:41.082-08:00East Coast vs West CoastThis anecdote from Mark Suster's <a href="http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2012/01/01/spend-2012-on-the-right-side-of-the-haimish-line/">Right side of the Haimish line</a> blog clearly lays out the social interaction differences between east coast and west coast.<br /><blockquote>"You know, I should have told the story that I learned in college. I went to UCSD and lived in Del Mar, one of the more affluent parts of the country but also full of college students.<br /><br />You could eat in a dive Mexican restaurant, sit next to a guy wearing ripped shorts & a Hawaiian shirt and drink beers together all night. He'd leave before somebody told you he was a millionaire and owned a huge mansion in Rancho Santa Fe.<br /><br />I'd contrast that with many people I know who went to Harvard Business School who find a way to weave the fact that they're HBS alum into the first 5 sentences after meeting people. Not to pick on HBS (a fine establishment where many of my friends went), but you do meet people who quickly have to establish their pecking order with you.<br /><br />I prefer the Del Mar attitude."</blockquote>Mark Suster is quickly becoming one of my favorite bloggers. If you don't read his blog, start in 2012. He speaks plainly, writes well and is a great observer and listener. This combination is not as common as you might thinkdelyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-55728024315827161652011-10-06T09:34:00.000-07:002011-10-06T09:48:06.028-07:00Consuming APIs securely: Stop disabling SSL protection with cURL<div>Great advice from <a href="http://twitter.com/brianfenton">Brian Fenton</a> for API developers consuming APIs using cURL and SSL -- and that API providers should consider thoughtfully the data sets that make sense to offer through SSL, highlighting the foursquare API as an example of doing it right. </div><div><br /></div><div>Simple, common sense advice for developers and providers, but not followed as often as you'd think.</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://www.brianfenton.us/2011/09/stop-disabling-ssl-protection-with-curl.html?spref=bl">The Wuss of Steel: Stop disabling SSL protection with cURL</a>: <div><br /></div><div>Several months ago when I was working on <a href="http://www.brianfenton.us/2011/05/email-notifications-for-foursquare.html" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(127, 127, 127); ">FoursquareNotifier</a>, I was made aware of a fairly significant issue with using <abbr title="Secure Socket Layer">SSL</abbr> through cURL. <abbr title="application programming interface">API</abbr> calls to <a href="http://www.foursquare.com/" title="Foursquare homepage" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(127, 127, 127); ">Foursquare</a> require SSL, which is perfectly fine and a good idea for many API-driven applications. However, all the common examples for how to make API calls to Foursquare (including the <a href="https://developer.foursquare.com/docs/libraries.html" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(127, 127, 127); ">PHP classes</a>recommended by Foursquare itself), included setting some innocent-looking, poorly-explained, and potentially dangerous settings. Namely,<code>curl_setopt(CURLOPT_SSL_VERIFYPEER, false)</code>. This tells cURL to stop caring who answers its request, as long as they use SSL, breaking one of the basic cryptography assumptions that SSL is supposed to provide.</div><div><br /></div><div>read the full post <a href="http://www.brianfenton.us/2011/09/stop-disabling-ssl-protection-with-curl.html">here</a></div>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-82741623757446586952011-08-09T06:09:00.000-07:002011-08-09T06:49:45.403-07:00API Metrics: Focus on Hidden Value, not Loud VoicesJust wrapped up my summer blog post series on API metrics, and my recommendations for measuring top 3 most commonly reported numbers:
<br /><ol><li><a href="http://blog.mashery.com/content/search-developer-metrics-total-number-developers" title="" target="_blank"><b>Total number of developers</b></a></li><li><b><a href="http://blog.mashery.com/content/search-developer-metrics-total-number-applications" title="" target="_blank"><b>Total number of applications</b></a></b></li><li><a href="http://blog.mashery.com/content/search-developer-metrics-total-api-call-volume-activity"><b>Total API call volume activity</b></a></li></ol>There are lots of other numbers I recommend measuring as well, but getting these basic three right -- and measuring them correctly -- can reveal a lot of value attributable to an API platform.
<br />
<br />The two major learnings I had in writing this series are:
<br />
<br />a) counting partner developers (biz dev partnerships, vendors, agencies, consultants) as "internal" developers because they are building an internal project for you (read: your iPad app) undervalues the reach and extension of your API. Internal development should be designated for core roadmap projects being built by employees of your company. If their paycheck doesn't show your company name on it, then they are an external developer that has been hired to work on an internal project. External developer value is a lot greater when you break it down into internal/partner/open segments instead external equating to third party developers exclusively. Many partner developers get exposed to your API initially through external-facing touchpoints (blog, twitter, discussion threads, hackdays, FAQ, Knowledgebase, events) and use it to evaluate the value potential of consuming your API using your basic open developer portal. If you think you have the answer to all your business challenges within the walls of your company, and don't want to fund or support an API platform for external developers, the value of your API will be much harder for you to justify.
<br />
<br />b) analyzing data grants you the perspective to prioritize your roadmap based on where value is being created, not just reacting to the loudest voices. Too often companies and organizations let a minority of customer opinions weigh proportionally higher than the value of their usage would otherwise indicate. Listening is always good, especially when they are fresh perspectives without a lot of value history built up yet, but incorporating implicit behavior patterns in addition to explicit feedback is too often overlooked. "Do as I say, not as I do" is a uniquely human condition that it is wise to recognize and compensate for with actual usage data.
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<br />Off on vacation!
<br />delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-34603932402606545142011-04-06T18:31:00.001-07:002011-04-06T18:51:20.730-07:00API Ecosystem: Quarrel, Kiss, then Makeup<div style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px; padding: 0pt; font-size: 0.8em; line-height: 1.6em;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/delynator/5544946772/" title="IMG_5451"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5256/5544946772_c1cdecf07b.jpg" alt="IMG_5451 by delynsimons" /></a><br /><span style="margin: 0pt;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Work 2.0 Hackday SF</span>, a photo from 3/20/2011 by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/delynator/">delynsimons </a><br /></span></div><a href="http://twitter.com/benkepes">Ben Kepes</a> recently wrote an interesting blog post on <a href="http://diversity.net.nz/the-flip-side-of-an-api-economy/2011/04/01/">The Flip Side of an API Economy</a> that inspired a great discussion about the relationship between API providers and API consumers.<br /><p>This tension between developers consuming APIs and building applications (and in many cases businesses) around open platforms predates the dotcom boom of 1995. Be it the latest examples of Twitter pulling back on new acceptable terms of use for their API in 2011 or Apple dictating 3.3.1 to developers in 2010, or even back to <a href="http://gigaom.com/2005/12/01/skype-20-eats-its-young/">Skype Developers Program “eating their young” in 2005</a>, or <a href="http://scripting.com/davenet/1994/10/29/platformischinesehousehold.html">Apple “being a lousy lover” to developers in 1994</a>, the key is to make sure no one party in the ecosystem — API developer or API provider or App consumer — is extracting all the value out of the ecosystem.<br /><br />If your company launches an open API platform, developers are a smart, opinionated, entrepreneurial new set of customers. They can provide product agility, innovation, velocity, and device/channel distribution.<br /><br />In exchange for this value from developers, API providers need to provide a generous Terms of Service, commercial opportunity, and services that are easy to get started with and a pleasure to use.<br /><br />Too many API providers only think of the API ecosystem merely as a means to extract value for their business. But developers are quick to move to new opportunities for value. With more than <a href="http://www.programmableweb.com/apis/directory">3000 APIs available on ProgrammableWeb</a>, developers have lots of options. It may be “<a href="http://gigaom.com/cloud/with-apis-its-caveat-structor-%E2%80%93-developer-beware/">developer beware</a>” today as <a href="http://twitter.com/sramji">Sam Ramji</a> so beautifully states, but history is long. Lousy lovers of developers in 1994 learn from their mistakes and win developer hearts and minds today. As long as the business model and market opportunity are healthy enough to provide value for the entire ecosystem, then API consumers and API providers will continue partnering in order to create value. Just as lovers inevitably quarrel, the successful long-term partnerships always find a way to kiss and make up.<br /></p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-25371676522822238472010-10-19T11:53:00.000-07:002010-10-22T11:57:08.188-07:00Don't Be a Lemming: You Can be Open and Integrated<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.radicalrationalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sminigo1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 330px; height: 282px;" src="http://www.radicalrationalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sminigo1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>"In reality, we think the open versus closed argument is just a smokescreen to try and hide the real issue, which is, “What’s best for the customer – fragmented versus integrated?”<br /><br />- Steve Jobs, Apple Q4 2010 Earnings Call<br /><br />"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."<br /><br />- Inigo Montaya<br /><br />First, to appease the many fanboys, colleagues, and friends that may take issue with this post, I have the utmost respect for Apple as a company that walks its talk when it comes to real innovation. According to its fiscal Q4 2010 earnings report that came out yesterday, crossing the $20B revenue threshold for the first time ever, over 60% of its revenue today is coming in from products<span style="font-weight: bold;"> that didn't even exist 3 years ago</span>. To quote <a href="http://www.asymco.com/2010/10/19/60-percent-of-apples-sales-are-from-products-that-did-not-exist-three-years-ago/">Asymco</a>, the source of this chart below, remember Apple before the iPod? This is an impressive record of product development and innovation leadership. They've also listened to developers and backed off of their <a href="https://37signals.com/svn/posts/2273-five-rational-arguments-against-apples-331-policy">3.1.1 TOS mistake</a> after evaluating for five months, and created the <a href="http://delynsimons.blogspot.com/2010/06/help-your-developers-make-money.html">iAds opportunity</a> for developer app monetization. Well done.<br /><br /><div class="entry-content"><span id="more-2141"></span> <p><a href="http://www.asymco.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Screen-shot-2010-10-18-at-10-18-11.07.34-PM.png"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2146" title="Screen shot 2010-10-18 at 10-18-11.07.34 PM" src="http://www.asymco.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Screen-shot-2010-10-18-at-10-18-11.07.34-PM.png" alt="" height="436" width="637" /></a></p> <p>But just because you have a product genius for a leader, trying to reframe the open vs closed debate into a fragmentation vs integration debate is "disingenuous," to use Jobs' own words. First, I agree with Eric Nolin's post as he chronicles the <a href="http://defragcon.com/Blog/?p=617">overuse of "open"</a> to the point where the buzz threatens to "openwash" everything. Second, by painting Microsoft Windows and Plays for Sure music strategy as proof that "Open doesn't Win," Jobs himself just might be at the <a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/kevinmarks/status/27785636892">pinnacle of personal disingenuity</a>, as pointed out by Kevin Marks. Open. This word does not mean what he thinks it means.<br /></p><p>Being open does not make a bad product strategy better. But I reject the false choice that good product strategy needs to be either open or integrated. Parts of the Android, Chrome, #newtwitter, and Facebook OpenGraph strategies show that you can have a balance of both. You will never get a 100% overlap between open and integrated, but you can -- and should -- have elements of both on your product and platform strategies. Too closed or too fragmented doesn't work.<br /></p><p>So, if you are truly a fan of Apple, call Steve Jobs on his framing of the open vs closed debate. Don't be a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemmings_%28advertisement%29">lemming</a>. Any who follow his logic of Open cannot also be Integrated unquestioningly are blindly following a benevolent dictatorship of product vision where you are being offered the integrated experience of those who know better.<br /></p> </div><br /><object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PYP1Tjgt1Ao?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PYP1Tjgt1Ao?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="385" width="480"></embed></object>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-37506921521489276742010-06-28T13:10:00.000-07:002010-06-29T09:07:21.897-07:00Help your developers make money<span style="font-style: italic;">(Reprint from my <a href="http://blog.mashery.com/">Mashery blog</a> post) </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span>Coders who work with APIs often have a strong entrepreneurial streak. Many have tried out just about every monetization model out there for app development. One-time paid subscription. <span>Affiliate. </span>"All-you-can-eat" monthly paid subscription. Advertising. Free-mium. Custom development fees. Just in the last two months, I've spotted some new trends in monetizing app development thanks to the help of a couple of smart guys, Steve and Neil. Both have great insights around how platform providers who offer APIs can focus on creating value for developers who build great apps.<br /><br /><img class="alignnone" title="WWDC Live Keynote Coverage, gdgt.com" src="http://blog.mashery.com/_media/apple-wwdc10_676.jpg" alt="WWDC 2010 Keynote" width="608" height="298" /><br /><em><strong>Photo credit: WWDC Live Keynote Coverage, <a href="http://www.gdgt.com/" target="_blank">gdgt.com</a></strong></em><br /><blockquote style="text-align: left;">1)<strong> Steve the Platform Provider:</strong> As <a href="http://live.gdgt.com/2010/06/07/live-wwdc-2010-keynote-coverage/#11-22-02-am">shared at WWDC</a> earlier this month, “Why are we doing iAds? For one simple reason: to help developers earn money so they can continue to create free and low-cost apps for users.” Steve recognizes that the deflationary nature of App Stores for mobile application developers has even the largest platform providers looking for alternative revenue models for app builders. The downward pressures on paid-app fees have <a href="http://www.economist.com/node/16381330?story_id=16381330">interesting parallels with the music industry</a>, where downloads are loss leaders for a variety of upsell and marketing opportunities. As confirmed in The Economist, in each case some make it big, but most never become hits. And apart from evergreens, such as games, utilities and programs to use Facebook and Twitter, even the most successful mobile apps often quickly fade into obscurity.<br /><br />With emerging ad platforms like<a href="http://advertising.apple.com/"> iAds</a>, <a href="http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/weve-officially-acquired-admob.html">AdMob</a>, and <a href="http://adage.com/digiconf10/article?article_id=143237">Promoted Tweets</a> on the rise, it is clear that platform providers understand that more developers building great apps for customers need a clear path forward for making money. More attention will be given by app developers on how to use advertising (over subscription fees) to monetize their app development. This will have big consequences for the landscape of app development looking forward.<br /><br />2) <strong>Neil the Coder:</strong> <a href="http://www.mansilla.com/">Neil Mansilla</a>, a successful Web application developer, gave his own point of view at our unconference API Panel Discussion at <a href="http://www.web2expo.com/webexsf2010">Web 2.0 Expo</a> in San Francisco last month. Neil shared with our audience that that platform providers offering him marketing opportunities to potential users of his app have turned out to be more valuable than structural differences in revenue share or access fees. When an <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/apps-for-ipad/">Apple</a> or <a href="http://www.facebook.com/apps/directory.php">Facebook</a> or <a href="http://applications.ebay.com/">eBay</a> or <a href="http://sites.force.com/appexchange/home">Salesforce.com</a> select an app to showcase for their customers, the resulting awareness and downloads/registrations are at a scale developers generally never could have afforded on their own.</blockquote>So, Steve signaled that advertising is positioned to play an increasingly important role for app monetization for developers, implicitly acknowledging the downward pricing pressures on paid apps. While Neil gave me a lesson in the value of app marketing to app developers, sharing that in many cases the most valuable offer that platform providers can extend to developers is actively promoting the best quality apps to their customer base.<br /><br />Savvy app developers out there are quickly going to get a lot more comfortable with the role that marketing and advertising has in the overall value of their app development projects. Savvy Web and mobile platform providers with APIs should pay close attention.delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-26728824800378167722010-04-30T16:44:00.000-07:002010-06-04T10:46:59.318-07:00f8: a wakeup call for the open web<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4059/4546475998_b8cc425d8c_d.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 500px; height: 333px;" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4059/4546475998_b8cc425d8c_d.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/f8">f8</a>, Facebook's developer event was Weds, April 21st at the Design Center. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Zuckerberg">Mark Zuckerberg</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bret_Taylor">Bret Taylor</a>, Director of Platform Product led off the opening keynote with 3 main announcements:<p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://developers.facebook.com/showcase/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Open Graph</span></a> – combining the graphs of other companies with the Facebook Social Graph<br /></p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2010/05/11/facebook-social-plugins/"><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Social Plug-ins</span></a><!--[endif]--> – 100,000 sites have already adopted, making other sites on the Web instantly social and spookily prescient</p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://developers.facebook.com/docs/api"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Graph API</span></a> – an elegant re-architecting of an existing API to take the burden/method proliferation off of developers, and major adopter of <a href="http://developers.facebook.com/docs/authentication/">OAuth 2.0 open standard</a> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">My take on the opening keynote, Graph API session, Open Tech session and closing keynotes with links for more information if interested:</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Facebook’s overall positioning is they are ready to take on Google. This is a Big Deal. Feels like a watershed moment in the realpolitik relationships that make up the Web</p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Old Web is about referring hyperlinks model; the new Web where “the default is Social” is about connections, putting people at the center of the Web.</p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Open Graph = 75 content partners to connect Facebook’s social graph with the graphs from other verticals, such as Yelp (small business & restaurants graph), IMDB (movie graph), CNN (news graph), ESPN (sports graph), integrating and making their sites instantly social, and pointing people off of Facebook.com’s news feed to external sites for the first time</p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Graph API (“all you need is a Web browser and cURL, don’t have to wade through 2000 lines of PHP code”) will replace the old, complicated, method-proliferating API </p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->No more 24-hour cache policy limit, to make use of Real-time Updates, a callback url so developers don't have to poll constantly to catch user updates for their apps and Facebook platform doesn’t get slammed with unnecessary API calls</p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://developers.facebook.com/docs/api/realtime">Graph API Real-time Updates</a> will use a push alert, <a href="http://wiki.webhooks.org/">WebHook concept</a>, but did not adopt the open standard PubSubHubBub proposed by Google </p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Facebook has been on the defensive from <a href="http://radar.oreilly.com/2010/04/why-f8-was-good-for-the-open-w.html">open standards leaders</a> who are not sure that <a href="http://arstechnica.com/web/news/2010/04/graphing-the-new-face-of-facebooks-improved-api.ars">Facebook's version of open</a> meets the <a href="http://www.scripting.com/2010/04/26.html">developer definition of Open</a>: </p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Could end up being a huge step forward for the <a href="http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/facebook_open_graph_the_definitive_guide_for_publishers_users_and_competitorsp3.php">Semantic Web vision</a>, a la Microformats: </p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Facebook Connect API (100 Million users) eventually <a href="http://mashable.com/2010/04/21/facebook-kills-facebook-connect/">going away</a>, but will continue to be supported for now </p> <p class="MsoListParagraph" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style=";font-family:";font-size:7pt;" > </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Google is the new “evil empire” to be feared, <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2010/04/21/microsoft-facebook-docs-com/">running into the arms of Microsoft</a>, who is less of a perceived threat: </p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-85861803490367014302010-03-29T10:48:00.000-07:002010-04-05T14:11:58.905-07:00SxSWi 2010: the art of balancing social with substance<img alt="Circus Mashimus lounge @ SxSWi 2010" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4429389359_e9c3fd7236_d.jpg" style="margin: 5px; float: right;" />I attended my first <a href="http://www.sxsw.com/interactive">SxSWi</a> this month with the great folks at Team <a href="http://www.mashery.com/">Mashery</a>, showing off API demos and prototypes from <a href="http://circusmashimus.com/">Circus Mashimus lounge</a> sponsors <a href="http://remix.bestbuy.com/">Best Buy Remix</a>, <a href="http://developer.cafepress.com/">CafePress</a>, <a href="http://developer.hallmark.com/">Hallmark</a>, <a href="http://www.giiv.com/">Giiv</a> as well as Geek Sideshow participants <a href="http://developer.netflix.com/">Netflix</a>, <a href="http://developer.nytimes.com/">The New York Times</a>, and <a href="http://developer.billboard.com/">Billboard</a>.<br /><br />Having attended numerous tech events & hack days, I felt both the <a href="http://twitter.com/#search?q=sxswi">kudos and growing pains</a> that attendees have described as SxSWi seeks the events balance between of <span style="font-weight: bold;">social</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">substance</span>. At any tech event, you a) need both and b) can't overload one at the expense of the other.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">SxSWi 2010 was:</span><br /><ul><li>a great networking event where I met and reconnected with loads of Web and mobile application developers and designers who work with APIs.</li><li>a fun venue where the Austin event staff (both union AND volunteer) actually smiled and were proactively helpful (take that, Javitz and Moscone).<br /></li><li>too long (5 days? really??)</li><li>a forum where online trends, particularly around location-based and social networking, gained momentum and solidified into generally agreed upon directions for 2010<br /></li></ul>From TIME Magazine's <a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/completelist/0,29569,1973759,00.html">Ten Tech Trends for 2010</a> out last week, “South By Southwest Interactive is nerd paradise — Austin's annual tech smash has minted its share of Internet darlings. (Foursquare in 2009; Twitter in 2007.) While this year's conference didn't have a clear breakout star, it did offer insight to the trends and ideas that will be shaping the Web in 2010.”<p class="MsoNormal"></p><p></p> <ol start="1" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973802,00.html">Location, Location, Location</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973799,00.html">Building Platforms, Not Websites</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973798,00.html">Social Gaming</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973797,00.html">Augmented Reality</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973772,00.html">Living in the Cloud </a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973771,00.html">Birth of the Backchannel</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973765,00.html">Frictionless Payments</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973764,00.html">Social Objects</a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973763,00.html">iPad </a><o:p></o:p></span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1973759_1973760_1973761,00.html">A Richer Web</a></span></li></ol><span style="font-weight: bold;">SxSWi 2010 was not:</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqkR8H1c2pOp6yINKym_EniPt-TAVyKA2L3F74N9c7LyySkMo2UjXqqhhrkhyiXRho5YozkJD4IF-J-ALNXStrEsp3ErDE_JY3SFa-5iP8SpCTakTGJ9NZISg89PlNfLmRo1n/s1600/Circus+Mashimus+Lounge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqkR8H1c2pOp6yINKym_EniPt-TAVyKA2L3F74N9c7LyySkMo2UjXqqhhrkhyiXRho5YozkJD4IF-J-ALNXStrEsp3ErDE_JY3SFa-5iP8SpCTakTGJ9NZISg89PlNfLmRo1n/s200/Circus+Mashimus+Lounge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454548956802972274" border="0" /></a>a "tech" event, by which I mean the majority of attendees code at the event. If the relatively-balanced gender ratio on its own didn't give it away immediately, let me be more explicit. This is not the event where engineers gather in programming language BOFs, sessions have code in the preso decks, and multitudes of coders hunker down in hallways huddled with their laptops around power outlets.<ul><li>full of meaty content. I personally went 1 for 5 in terms of good sessions (good presenter + informative content). Even after last year's Zuckerberg keynote fiasco, the Evan Williams keynote has the dubious distinction of out-sucking the previous year's keynote. Bad sessions + bad keynotes = bad substance. I think O'Reilly events, on balance, do the best job of producing tech events that scale (over 2,000 attendees) and also provide good substance and social opportunities.</li></ul><ul><li>terrible. Some bloggers have already let fly their usual "<a href="http://jolieodell.wordpress.com/2010/03/16/why-sxsw-sucks/">cooler than you</a>" pronouncements that SxSWi about <a href="http://blogs.sfweekly.com/shookdown/2010/03/sxswi_is_dead.php">social castes</a> now that it has gotten so big. (Interesting that both bloggers recently left their gigs at <a href="http://www.readwriteweb.com/">ReadWriteWeb</a> and <a href="http://valleywag.gawker.com/">Valleywag</a>.) Snark makes for good SEO and reality TV, but both are too one-sided in their analysis.<br /></li></ul>Being an event where the year's upcoming tech trends are called out in a great town like Austin is great for social. I do hope SxSWi ups their game in 2011 by hiring a great content manager to deliver on the substance.<br /><br />The SxSW music festival has done a good job for the last twenty years at being the must attend event for its industry, where <a href="http://www.austinstartup.com/2010/03/what-sxswi-attendees-can-learn-from-sxsw-music/">business gets done</a>. Perhaps musicians are less distracted by the spring break atmosphere of groupies, fanboys, beer, and the perils of popularity than their geek brethren, having been sufficiently inured long ago? I'm rooting for SxSWi, and hope they fine the right social/substance balance.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Photo attribution: </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://laughingsquid.com/" rel="nofollow">Scott Beale / Laughing Squid</a>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-9088543281336363932010-03-09T12:07:00.000-08:002010-03-09T12:16:37.071-08:00"let's hear it for new dorks""The new swag is irony."<br /><br />Entrepreneur State of Mind. Go Grasshopper! It is at once both Jay-Z cool and Valley ego-deprecating. Hilarious.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/exmwSxv7XJI&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/exmwSxv7XJI&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-24780964696088504312010-02-08T10:15:00.000-08:002010-02-09T12:19:10.602-08:00send them valentines: love & your API developer community<img alt="developer relations is a mating game" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/32/100633212_8c9fe5516b_d.jpg" style="margin: 5px; float: right;" />If you don't know what love has to do with API developers or your platform, take a gander at this <a href="http://www.scripting.com/davenet/1994/10/29/platformischinesehousehold.html">classic Dave Winer developer rant</a> from October 1994 on companies (Apple, Microsoft, HP, etc.) with platforms trying to woo developers.<br /><br />(Acknowledgement: Dating metaphors in general are fraught with potential PC-violations. I get it. The message is still worth it.)<br /><br />This <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Winer">DaveNet</a> rant is a developer classic from 15 years ago -- the anger of a type uniquely inspired by unrequited love still comes through loud and clear today. "It's great when the platform you're developing for is taking good care of you, and it's equally lousy when the platform treats you like an antibody -- something to be defined, then isolated and defeated. Yuck." ...<br /><br />"Developer relations is a mating game. The platform vendors are the guys. Developers are the girls. Send flowers. You always score big. Like wives and girlfriends, developers just want to be cared for. It's the little things that count. That's a big secret. You sent flowers last week? So what! You gotta send them every week, rain or shine. " ...<br /><br />"Many thanks to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Kawasaki">Guy Kawasaki</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Campbell_%28business_executive%29">Bill Campbell</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Louis_Gass%C3%A9e">Jean-Louis Gassee</a>, who understood very well that a good developer is worth a hundred promiscuous girlfriends. In those days my mailbox overflowed with floral arrangements. And I cooked some great meals!"<br /><br />So... one more time: Be an attentive lover to your valued API developers. They notice the little things when they are appreciated, and when you are <a href="http://www.hesjustnotthatintoyoumovie.com/">just not that into them</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">photo attribution: flickr</span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ideaconstructor/100633212/">/ideaconstructor</a>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-89088056399404854282010-01-12T09:20:00.000-08:002010-02-08T13:35:39.409-08:00Shopping API as canary in Yahoo!'s coal mineFalling under the category of "is it still news if it is no news to anyone?", there has been quite a bit of buzz around yesterday's shocking, simply shocking announcement that <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2010/01/11/yahoo-shopping-api-deadpool/">Yahoo! is shuttering its Shopping <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">API</span></a> and transitioning Yahoo! Shopping to outsourced shopping syndication service <a href="http://www.pricegrabber.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">PriceGrabber</span></a> by March 2010.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What Yahoo! did right</span>: They gave <a href="http://developer.yahoo.net/blog/archives/2010/01/yahoo_shopping_api_announcement.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">API</span> developers 60 days notice</a> of the upcoming Shopping Web Services closure, and let them know up front that a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">PriceGrabber</span> <a href="http://www.pricegrabber.com/about.php/about=corporate/sub_opt=10">shopping syndication service</a>, and not an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">API</span>, would be handling the feeds from now on.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">What Yahoo! could have done better</span>: handle some of the initial legwork for <a href="http://developer.yahoo.com/shopping/">developers currently using the Y! Shopping <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">API</span></a> to smoothly transition to the new <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">PriceGrabber</span> shopping syndication services. If you can't make the migration backwards-compatible to make the transition seamless for developers, then auto-create new <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">PriceGrabber</span> accounts for developers who have built applications using the Y! Shopping <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">API</span> to help migrate to Yahoo!’s new method, then supplement with easy-to-use documentation for any "last mile" customizations developers need to handle themselves. Yahoo! has done this type of "make the transition easy on your existing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">userbase</span>" migration with the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">egroups</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">flickr</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">acquisitions</span> in the past.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dotben/109818893/" title="Mash up or Shut up by dotBen, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/41/109818893_78aa9c6707_d.jpg" alt="Mash up or Shut up" /></a><br /><br />More than straight news, this is a potent example of a company where their compelling platform strategy cannot save them from a flailing business strategy. Yahoo! has made numerous successful and enviable overtures to developers, with internal and public <a href="http://www.hackday.org/">hack days</a>, the <a href="http://developer.yahoo.net/blog/archives/2008/04/introducing_the_1.html">Y! Open Strategy</a> of 2008, and useful data in the form of <a href="http://developer.yahoo.com/">useful developer Web services and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">APIs</span></a>.<br /><br />Ben <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Metcalfe</span> (subject of photo above and whom I apparently met at the public <a href="http://delynsimons.blogspot.com/2006/10/developer-community-event-yahoo-hack.html">Yahoo! Hack Day</a> on the Yahoo! campus in Fall 2006) has a <a href="http://benmetcalfe.com/blog/2010/01/a-cautionary-tale-on-yahoos-potential-api-legacies/">great write-up</a> on the Y! announcement from a developer <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">POV</span>. While I don't predict a spreading <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">deadpool</span> of public <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">APIs</span> as Ben does, Yahoo! as a company definitely will feel the chilling effects of developers being more hesitant to build on Y! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">APIs</span> like <a href="http://delicious.com/help/tools">delicious</a>, <a href="http://developer.yahoo.com/flickr/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">flickr</span></a>, <a href="http://developer.yahoo.com/yql/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">YQL</span></a> and <a href="http://developer.yahoo.com/search/boss/">BOSS</a>. I thought this section of Ben's write-up quoted below is spot on, straight out of the implicit agreement between platform providers and platform participants from John's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">Hagel</span> & <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">Seely</span> Brown's <a href="http://www.johnseelybrown.com/shapingstrategy.pdf">Shaping Platform Strategy</a> theory published in Harvard Business Review:<br /><p></p><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">"<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">API</span> Vendors need to consider their long-term strategy of what they are propositioning. That big “we’re so open it hurts” fanfare is going to cost you down the road if you can’t maintain it. In many ways, removing an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">API</span> is worse then not offering it all.</blockquote><blockquote style="font-style: italic;"> <p><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">API</span> consumers need to consider carefully the viability of the services they are using, especially if they are leveraging them for commercial use or as an intrinsic part of their value proposition. Look for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">freemium</span> models that indicate viability, or build agile adapters that can be quickly swapped out to a different vendor at short notice (assuming there is one)."</p></blockquote><p></p>Yahoo! is the latest example that a company's platform strategy can only ever be as compelling and healthy as the business <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">strategy</span> it supports. Closing down the Y! Shopping <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">API</span> is less a comment on the state of public <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">APIs</span> generally or on the commitment of Yahoo! to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">API</span> developers, and more of a signal about the overall health of the Yahoo! business. Y! is making tough business choices right now -- I don't think it is a surprise to anyone that Y! Shopping is being outsourced to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">PriceGrabber</span>, so it makes sense that the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">API</span> would also transition to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_33">PriceGrabber</span>. What is unfortunate is that Yahoo! chose an outsourced shopping syndication solution that does not support an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_35">API</span>, and that Yahoo! did not make the transition to their new outsourced solution more seamless for developers. Respect the ecosystem.<br /><p><em>photo attribution: <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_36">flickr</span>/</em><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dotben/109818893/"><em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_37">dotben</span></em></a><em></em></p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-5081673682827312892010-01-04T10:17:00.000-08:002010-01-04T13:30:25.462-08:002010 prediction: cloud to benefit from less haze and hypeThe warning signs have been around since about 2008. My own truly worrying signal that the <a href="http://www.google.com/trends?q=cloud+computing">increasing buzz around cloud</a> has officially kicked up too much dust came when, flipping through my beloved Economist recently (how <span style="font-style: italic;">will</span> my new <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Economist/dp/B0027VSU9S/">Kindle</a> ever give me that crisp, snappy-paged satisfaction?), I read through The Economist Cloud Briefing: "<a href="http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14637206">Clash of the Clouds</a>: The launch of Windows 7 marks the end of an era in computing—and the beginning of an epic battle between <span style="font-style: italic;">Microsoft, Google, Apple and others</span>."<br /><br /><span>Attribution: Illustration by Ian Whadcock, <a href="http://www.economist.com/">Economist.com</a></span><img src="http://media.economist.com/images/20091017/D4209BB1.jpg" alt=" " title="" width="500" height="268" /><br /><br />Let's get this straight. The Economist -- as close to a journalistic beacon of integrity and excellence as exists, IMHO -- "and othered" Amazon to include Apple in its Top 3 battling it out for cloud dominance. DRM-imbued, closed loop, opaque Apple. Then, led its list of Top 3 cloud titans with Microsoft, who arguably is just getting started with cloud efforts, and is not yet apace with Google or Amazon. Or Salesforce.com for that matter. Isn't this the business equivilant of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/10/world/10nobel.html">awarding Obama the Nobel Peace Prize</a>, signalling sky-high expectations of players, most of whom haven't delivered much of anything yet?<br /><br />You'll need to <a href="http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14637206">read the article</a> to get a sense of the restricted way the author seems to define cloud computing solely as a mainframe-to-PC-to-cloud evolution, completely missing the context of <span>cloud as a platform that is leveraged by other parties to create customer-facing applications (nicely echoed by <a href="http://www.economist.com/comment/402769#comment-402769">vzach</a></span> and <a href="http://www.economist.com/comment/404247#comment-404247">AOtto</a> -- benefits of the Web edition include the exposing of kindred reaction. :-)) Dion Hinchcliffe of ZDnet makes more accurate, compelling points that the clash of the clouds will be a <a href="http://blogs.zdnet.com/Hinchcliffe/?p=1060">"winner-takes-all" battle</a> similar to previous platform battles, where immature battlefield rules of engagement, standards and definitions are still being solidified.<br /><div class="content-image-full" style="width: 500px;"><span></span><br /></div>On top of leading and well-respected business publications clouding our understanding, additional murkiness came in the form of a pre-holiday duststorm around the <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/12/18/rackspace-down">December 18th Rackspace "cloud failure"</a> that brought down major sites for the better part of an hour (again) when Rackspace failover plans seemingly did not include data center and peering redundancy for AT&T when their backbone failed ("FailT&T is the Ford Pinto of the internet" via <a class="url" href="http://twitter.com/shamptonian" rel="external nofollow" modo="false">@shamptonian</a>.) Isn't redundancy a key prerequisite for something to be considered cloud, therefore making this not a cloud failure, but a hosting redundancy failure? (read: is it OK for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_private_server">virtual private server hosting</a> to be re-branded as ‘cloud’ hosting when it is not in fact cloud-based via <a class="url" href="http://twitter.com/john_mason_" rel="external nofollow" modo="false">@john_mason_?) </a><br /><br />My wish in 2010 if for cloud standards to grow up a bit, and for cloud as a platform to become less "developer-beware". May the best titan win, may they be as open as possible but not more open, and may cloud not suffer the fate of becoming the most overhyped, least delivered upon term of 2010.delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-83772224617020978872009-12-07T10:18:00.000-08:002009-12-07T16:58:23.944-08:00getting san francisco to love you back<p>Great article in the <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2009/12/07/moneytales120709.DTL">SF Chronicle</a> today that pretty much sums up how I'm feeling being in the midst of our riduculous <a href="http://thesfkfiles.blogspot.com/">SF kindergarten hunt</a>, realizing the vast sums we spend on property tax don't trickle down and make any impact on the local schools. Our children's future is based on a broken pyramid scheme. Thank you, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Jarvis">Howard Jarvis</a>.<br /></p><p>"When I mention this escape fantasy to other urban-dwelling friends, it often turns out they're harboring a similar desire. And their yearning is usually tinged with melancholy, in the way that you might talk about leaving a significant other -- not because you don't love them, but because they're <a href="http://www.hesjustnotthatintoyoumovie.com/" target="_blank">just not that into you."</a> </p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-47144840055023033472009-11-11T15:34:00.000-08:002009-11-12T15:47:44.467-08:00change is the constant5 years, 3 months. The approximate age of my firstborn child. November 2009 marks the official end of an era in my household, and the beginning of a new one. A month of bidding farewell to our beloved nanny who became a member of our family, as well as <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/">my awesome work team</a> who have become my friends over the last five years -- plus, the first week of my youngest starting preschool (gulp!) After over five years with <a href="http://www.ebay.com/">eBay</a> (capped off with a few rounds of leaving drinks @Lazslo's in the Mission), I've joined a new platform service provider start-up in San Francisco. <a href="http://www.mashery.com/">Mashery</a> powers APIs for e-commerce, business services and media companies, and I am looking forward to meeting with many of them at the <a href="http://www.mashery.com/company/events.html">Business of APIs Conference</a> in New York next week.<br /><br />This week so far has been about meeting with members of the Mashery team (less than 30), settling into my new space at Maiden Lane and Kearny, and acclimating to my shorter commute (my new favorite benefit so far). I've already bumped into 2 people I know on Muni in just 2 days of commuting -- you sure don't get to connect like that in a car! Start-up life is also different. IT Support, changing the water cooler bottle, and clearing out the fragrant fridge are now team-building opportunities.<br /><br />To coincide with my season of change, I've decided to experiment with busting out of <a href="http://twitter.com/delynator">stealth twitter mode</a>, and dip my toe into the public stream since my first attempt in 2007. Resolving the tension between what I want optimized for natural search and dealing with twitter request spam is elusive, but I'm always open to experimenting. Change -- let's give it a try!delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-19400962440122010222009-03-23T21:27:00.000-07:002009-03-23T21:40:09.211-07:00Back from Microblogging, Web 2.0 Expo reg codes<p><a href="http://www.web2expo.com/webexsf2009/public/content/landing?_discount=websf09ecm1"><img alt="eBay is speaking @ Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco 2009" src="http://assets.en.oreilly.com/1/event/22/webexsf2009_speaker-banner_120x240.gif" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px; float: left;" title="eBay is speaking @ Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco 2009" border="0" height="240" width="120" /></a>140 characters at a time is just so much more <a href="http://twitter.com/delynator">my speed</a> these days. But sometimes a girl just has to bust out from these confines and post on her long neglected blog.<br /></p><p>What is the occasion? I'm looking for friends to join me at the eBay booth at <a href="http://www.web2expo.com/webexsf2009/public/content/landing?_discount=websf09ecm1">Web 2.0 Expo SF 2009</a>, March 31- April 3 in San Francisco at Moscone Center West. eBay is speaking, keynoting, sponsoring and looking forward to checking in with some of our developers at the event, like <a href="http://www.terapeak.com/">Terapeak</a>, <a href="http://www.hostedsupport.com/">HostedSupport</a>, <a href="http://www.ahtext.com/">ahTEXT</a>, and <a href="http://www.cloudconversion.com">Cloud Conversion</a>. I've been under a social rock for the last 8 weeks planning our presence, and I could use a friendly face or 2!<br /></p>If you are attending Web 2.0 Expo, don't miss our <a href="http://www.web2expo.com/webexsf2009/public/schedule/detail/8830">keynote</a> by eBay Marketplaces CTO and SVP of Platform, Mark Carges on <strong>Wednesday, April 1 @ the afternoon keynote.</strong><br /><p>Another don't miss talk is being given by Farhang Kassaei, Lead Platform Architect at eBay and David Glazer, Director of Engineering at Google, who will be giving a talk on <a href="http://www.web2expo.com/webexsf2009/public/schedule/detail/8677">building commerce applications</a> based on the <a href="http://code.google.com/apis/gadgets/docs/spec.html">gadgets specification</a> as defined within Open Social. Their talk will be on <strong>Wednesday, April 1 @ 1:30pm.</strong></p><p>If you haven't registered for Web 2.0 Expo yet, register with <strong>websf09ecm1</strong> if you want to register for a FREE Expo Hall pass, a $100 value. Or if you are looking to register for a full conference pass that will get you in to see all of the sessions and talks at Web 2.0 Expo, register with <strong>websf09spr35</strong> to get 35% off of your registration.<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></p><p>If you know me, you know I can't resist buying a new pair of sweet kicks to get into the spirit of being a booth monkey. So first one to accurately predict or relate (whichever comes first) which color sneakers I wore to all 3 days of the event, first round is on me.<br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span></p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-77507621541168170082008-10-16T15:56:00.000-07:002009-11-12T16:20:58.143-08:00Conversational Marketing in a Web 2-dot-over World<p><a href="http://flickr.com/photos/briansolis/1410388248/"><img style="margin: 5px;" alt="CM Summit logo" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1012/1410388248_e68ac3b5e5_o_d.png" align="right" border="0" /></a>I spent the last 2 days at the <a href="http://www.federatedmedia.net/events/cmsummit">Conversational Marketing Summit 2008 San Francisco</a> at the beautiful Golden Gate Club in the Presidio. Federated Media put on a great event in a spectacular setting.<br /></p>Heard from a great line-up of speakers, including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Williams_%28blogger%29">Evan Williams</a> of Twitter, <a href="http://digg.com/about/jay">Jay Adelson </a>of Digg, <a href="http://scott.heiferman.com/">Scott Heiferman</a> from Meetup, <a href="http://twitter.com/JALICHANDRA">Richard Jalichandra</a> of Technorati, <a href="http://battellemedia.com/">John Batelle</a> and more. The crowd was mostly marketing and ad agency folks looking for more information about experiential and conversational marketing and how to measure it.<br /><br />Three keynotes/panels stood out for me: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Face-to-Face: Merging Events and Digital panel</span> on Day 1, which went into the convergence of online and offline marketing, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Evan Williams keynote conversation</span> with Batelle, as well as <strong>The Next Wave of Social Media panel</strong> on Day 2. <a href="http://chasnote.com/">Chas Edwards</a> was a a great panelist as usual -- i loved the moderator's intro of the panel as the "godfathers of conversational marketing." striking!<br /><br />Great event and content, but the crowd was pretty distracting to me (me not being the target audience and all) -- all potential advertisers and agencies looking to justify their spend on social media mixed with the figureheads of the companies looking to take their dollars diluted from learning anything new about social media. Making money can go from entrepreneurial to crass in a flash, and I witnessed several cross overs. Capitalism ain't always pretty, but it sure is entertaining.delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-66467739583925984482008-09-24T21:59:00.000-07:002008-09-25T09:22:42.064-07:00Web 2.0 Expo New York: I heart New York<p><a href="http://flickr.com/photos/brandytsang/2872048625/"><img style="MARGIN: 5px" alt="eBay booth at Web 2.0 Expo New York" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3206/2872048625_fa0da7cc96_m_d.jpg" align="right" border="0" /></a>Let me start off this much delayed post by coming clean. It had been since September 1998 since I had last been in New York City. A full decade. Tragic really. And it was for Fall Internet World 1998. Back during the ramp up of the first bubble when I was still doing biz dev for TechWeb/CMPnet. Yikes.<br /></p><p>This time, my trip was because of another trade show, <a href="http://en.oreilly.com/webexny2008/public/content/home">Web 2.0 Expo New York</a> last week, where I put together the booth showing off the eBay and PayPal platforms to web developers and designers. The fact that I flew in on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_stock_market_crash_of_September_2008">Black Monday 2008</a> did not do anything to quell my fears that another web bubble might be bursting soon. Ironically, due to a number of post-bubble mergers, TechWeb is now the name of the business unit who puts on the show with O'Reilly (United Business Media bought an Events company and gave it the name of the old tech portal site I used to work for, when it was CMP Media -- separately bought out by United Business Media). Do you see all the paths converging and crashing in on each other now?<br /></p>But I digress. At our booth, attendees learned and got demos about <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/">eBay Developers Program</a>, <a href="https://cms.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/?cmd=_render-content&content_ID=developer/certification_overview">PayPal certifications</a>, <a href="http://www.vuvox.com/">VUVOX</a>, <a href="http://desktop.ebay.com/">eBay Desktop</a>, <a href="http://en-gb.www.mozilla.com/en-GB/add-ons/ebay/">Firefox Companion for eBay</a> and more. But the best part of the week was definitely getting to know some more of the developers building applications with the eBay and PayPal API platforms, such as <a href="http://www.glaxstar.com/">Glaxstar</a>, <a href="http://www.effectiveui.com/">EffectiveUI</a>, <a href="http://www.jdttech.com/">JDT Technologies</a>, <a href="http://www.aduci.com/">Aduci</a> and <a href="https://www.payloadz.com/">Payloadz</a>, who added their perspective and testimonials about their experience with the eBay development and PayPal certification process.<br /><br /><a href="http://rolfskyberg.wordpress.com/">Rolf Skyberg</a> packed his session on <a href="http://rolfskyberg.wordpress.com/2008/09/22/platform-wars-a-brief-history/">Platform Wars: A Brief History</a> on Wednesday, and we also got to catch up with developers like <a href="http://www.watchcount.com/">WatchCount.com</a> (aka helios825 on the <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/community/forums">Developer Forums</a>), <a href="http://www.widgetbucks.com/">WidgetBucks/Mpire</a> and <a href="http://www.guruofsales.com/">Guru of Sales</a>, who stopped by our booth as well. You can also check out <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2008/09/web_20_define_d.html">InformationWeek</a> and <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2008/09/18/ebays-max-mancini-on-its-experiments-in-mobile-and-social-networking-services/">VentureBeat</a> for what our fearless leader, Max Mancini, had to say from the show floor.<br /><br /><p><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3226/2886398274_5350f0b207_d.jpg" /> </p><p>Of course, since it IS New York, I had after hours fun, too, including dinner at <a href="http://www.ottopizzeria.com/">Otto Pizzeria Enoteca</a> (Mario Batali's restaurant), <a href="http://www.danielnyc.com/dbbistro/">DB Moderne Bistro</a> (Daniel Balaud's restaurant), as well as an invitation to partake in house seats for <a href="http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1727758,00.html">South Pacific</a>, currently the most sought after tickets on Broadway (apparently -- I'll have to take my friend's word for it). I even enjoyed a few cocktails at trendy Manhattan clubs and bars - something I don't even get to do in San Francisco anymore.<br /></p><p>This trip, even though it was hard to leave my 10-month old behind for the first time, made me swear not to wait another ten years before I return. I heart New York.<br /></p><p>Photo Credits to Delyn Simons and <a title="Link to Lanz Tsang's photostream" href="http://flickr.com/photos/brandytsang/"><strong>Lanz Tsang</strong></a></p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-27289131885158041192008-06-28T15:29:00.001-07:002008-06-28T15:37:46.197-07:00euro 2008: the beautiful semi-final game<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/last_overture/2611915213/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3134/2611915213_0dea187ab2_d.jpg" alt="" style="border: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0);" /></a><br /><span style="margin-top: 0px;font-size:0;" ><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/last_overture/2611915213/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Philipp</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Lahm</span> with the last goal put Germany in the final</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/last_overture/">đ<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ồng</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">chí</span> Fresh</a></span></div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">san</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">francisco</span> is a great town to gather with fellow soccer <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">aficionados</span> and watch some good football go down.<br /><br />the euro cup 2008 has been some of the most exciting soccer <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">i've</span> witnessed -- with 3 of the 4 favorites going down in the quarterfinals. i know that purists will tell me that the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">spain</span> v <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">italy</span> quarterfinal was a mesmerizing display of tactical defense. but to me, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">italy</span> just looked like a bunch of thugs fouling in the penalty box taking advantage of the referee's reluctance to call fouls in that zone. and don't even get me started on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">luca</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">toni</span>, the most overrated striker/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">primadonna</span> in the tournament.<br /><br />to me, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">germany</span> v turkey semi-final game was the best match of soccer <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">i've</span> ever witnessed. keep in mind that i watched this game 1) at home, 2) hours delayed on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">TiVo</span> (not live), 3) I had already heard the outcome of the match, and 4) there were 3 blackouts that caused the international TV feed to go down and caused all the stations covering this game around the world to miss 2 of the 5 exciting goals.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">germany</span> going in were the heavy favorites; turkey, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">cinderella</span> team that had come from behind 3 times in the tournament, had nearly all of their key players out due to yellow card accumulation or injury.<br /><br />but turkey played their hearts out, like they had nothing to lose. the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">turks</span> tied it up with a beautiful goal at 86 minutes (4 minutes left in regulation) and the crowds went nuts. then, the experienced <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">germans</span> answered back with a give & go up the left side with a defensive fullback who took it and drilled it "like a $40 million dollar striker" into the back of the net. at 89 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">minutes</span>. with less than 30 seconds in regulation left to go (not accounting for injury time). by a defensive player who hadn't scored a goal since a qualifying match in 2006. sure, the team with the experience and poise under pressure won out, but the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">turks</span> deserve a ton of credit for going on the attack with a bunch of upstarts who collectively had 20% of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">the</span> international major game experience of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">germans</span>. they played audaciously, with heart.<br /><br />sure the right team won. but turkey made them fight for it up until the very end. this game would turn anyone into a soccer fan for life. there's a reason the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">brazilians</span> call this "the beautiful game", and it was reinforced to me on my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">TiVo</span> on Wednesday night, @ home with my 2 sleeping kids, cheering silently and jumping up and down in my living room with a smile as big as <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">philipp</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">lahm's</span> here.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">ps</span>. does anyone else think that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">schweinstieger</span> looks like the bad guy in rocky 4? he gives me the willies.delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-25255949254137641312008-06-19T04:51:00.000-07:002008-06-19T05:04:10.237-07:00highlights from ebay devcon in chicago<p>Boy I'm pooped. Ever since I returned from maternity leave back in March, I've been working non-stop on a little developer event we call the <a href="http://www.ebay.com/devcon">eBay Developers Conference</a> in Chicago, from June 16-18. If you are friends or family who haven't heard from me in 3 months, here's why. :)<br /><br />On Monday, the major buzz for the show and the blogosphere was around <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/echo">Project Echo</a> and the opening keynote demo showcasing the ability for developers to embed their <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/">applications built on the eBay platform</a> where hundreds of thousands of sellers manage their businesses on eBay.com. On Tuesday, Mike Shaver, Chief Evangelist for <a href="http://www.mozilla.com/">Mozilla</a> spoke to developers on the same day that Firefox 3.0 browser launched, celebrating Download Day 2008 right here at eBay DevCon and giving a shoutout to the <a href="http://en-gb.www.mozilla.com/en-GB/add-ons/ebay/">Firefox Companion for eBay</a>. woot woot!<a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2590531272_03ddb95cbe_d.jpg"><img alt="Mike Shaver, Chief Evangelist for Mozilla" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2590531272_03ddb95cbe_d.jpg" style="margin: 5px;" align="right" border="0" /></a> </p>eBay also honored ten members of our developer community, who are building applications on the eBay platform for achievements in improving user experience and customer service, increasing platform engagement and extending eBay in exciting new directions:<br /><p>eBay Star Developer Award winners:</p><p>• DSR Rockstar: <a href="http://www.zfirm.com/products/shiprush.shtml">ShipRush</a> by <a href="http://www.zfirm.com/">Z-Firm</a> (USA)<br />• Most Innovative Application: <a href="http://www.scendix.com/jaast/">Jaast for Wii</a> by <a href="http://www.scendix.com/">Scendix Software</a> (Germany)<br />• Early Adopter: <a href="http://www.iribbit.com/">iRibbit</a> by <a href="http://www.aduci.com/">Aduci</a> (USA)<br />• Service to the Developer Community: Joe Fox (elzorro) of <a href="http://thisisbd.com/">BD Network</a> (UK)<br />• Best Design: <a href="http://www.kyozou.com/widgets.asp">Kyozou Widget</a> by <a href="http://www.kyozou.com/">Kyozou</a> (Canada)</p><p>Runners-up:</p><p>• DSR Rockstar: <a href="http://www.hostedsupport.com/index.cfm?fuse=products.ezsupportebay">ezSupport for eBay</a> by <a href="http://www.hostedsupport.com/">HostedSupport</a> (USA)<br />• Most Innovative Application: Mobile Alerts for Sellers by <a href="http://ahtxt.com/">ahTXT</a> (USA)<br />• Early Adopter: <a href="http://www.iwascoding.com/GarageBuy/">GarageBuy</a> by <a href="http://www.iwascoding.com/">iwascoding</a> (Germany)<br />• Service to the Developer Community: Anthony Sukow of <a href="http://www.terapeak.com/">Terapeak</a> (Canada)<br />• Best Design: Video advertisements for eBay listings by <a href="http://www.vzaar.com/">Vzaar</a> (UK)</p><p>For those of you keeping count, we've got winners represented across 4 countries from our global e-commerce platform. Congratulations to our 2008 winners!!</p><p>For full coverage of all the news out of eBay Developers Conference 2008, you can check out the <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/community/blog">eBay Developer blog</a>. </p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-78119219333434970372008-06-19T04:48:00.000-07:002008-06-19T04:58:23.087-07:00developers got social at ebay devcon<p><a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3112/2584481939_c9ff729abe_d.jpg"><img alt="Rajiv Dutta, President of eBay Marketplaces" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3112/2584481939_c9ff729abe_d.jpg" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px;" border="0" /></a></p>We all know that sometimes the best part of conferences is what happens outside of the sessions. Developers got social this year at <a href="http://www.ebay.com/devcon">eBay Developers Conference</a> on our <a href="http://twitter.com/ebaydevcon08">eBay DevCon Twitter</a>. Chicago is a fun town and so was looking into the thought cloud surrounding all of the ideas and conversations happening in the hallways of our DevCon event. <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=ebay+developers+conference+2008&as_drrb=q&as_qdr=w">Blogging</a>, <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/ebaydevcon08/">photo sharing</a> and adding friends from our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=16717676162">Facebook event</a> were also popular ways to spend time in our Developer Lounge.<p>Of course there were also offline ways to network as well, including our <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/community/blog/article/?category=Blog.Developer&name=http%3a%2f%2febaydeveloper.typepad.com%2fdev%2f2008%2f06%2fthere-is-such-a.html">Beer Bash</a> and <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/community/blog/article/?category=Blog.Developer&name=http%3a%2f%2febaydeveloper.typepad.com%2fdev%2f2008%2f06%2fthe-paypal-team.html">PayPal Party</a> at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. Online or in person, the eBay developer community is a social bunch.</p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-1975022178517806732008-06-16T00:24:00.001-07:002008-06-19T04:59:11.804-07:00eBay devcon 2008 in chicago<div style="float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px;"><a title="photo sharing" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisam/2581855949/"><img style="border: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0);" alt="" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3153/2581855949_c987501888_m.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="margin-top: 0px;font-size:0;" ><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisam/2581855949/">Reflecting thing- Chicago art.</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/wisam/">rinklefree</a></span></div><p>I'm here in Chicago for the eBay Developers Conference. I challenge you to name a better city for kick ass public art. Check out my favorite below, called Cloud Gate.<br /><br />See you all for the keynote tomorrow @ 9:30AM, McCormick Place West!</p><p>Make sure all of you blogging and taking photos are tagging them ebaydevcon and ebaydevcon08, and follow the devcon twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/ebaydevcon08">ebaydevcon08</a> to jump in on the microblogging.</p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-9144992393242118222008-04-23T15:14:00.000-07:002008-04-26T06:46:06.705-07:00web 2.0 expo: design your API to support ...good design<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/167/467582048_058c13d83e_d.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/167/467582048_058c13d83e_d.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Managed to break out of my 7 weeks back at work, either working-or-sleeping rut and check in at <a href="http://www.technorati.com/search/web2.0expo">Web 2.0 Expo</a> on Wednesday. Besides setting up meetings with some of my industry <a href="http://chasnote.com/">peeps</a> who i've been <a href="http://www.mashery.com/blog">missing</a> and haven't seen the post-baby, post-blonde me, I was able to squeeze in a quick round of the Exhibit Hall and an afternoon session from Michael Migurski of <a href="http://stamen.com/">Stamen Design</a> and Alex Payne from <a href="http://www.twitter.com/">Twitter</a> on "Design Your API: Learnings from Twitter and Stamen." Their session was basically aimed at how companies providing platforms to developers can enable good design with accessible languages such as Flash, JSON, PHP, etc. that enable good looking tools.<br /><br />I've been a big fan of Stamen Design data visualizations in the past - was totally wowed a couple of years ago at the <a href="http://delynsimons.blogspot.com/2006/06/digg-v3-party.html">Digg v3 party</a> by their <a href="http://labs.digg.com/">Digg Labs</a> visualizations for looking at popular stories in a simple, informative way. They also designed the <a href="http://apidoc.digg.com/">Digg API</a> that accepts accepts simple REST requests and offers several <a class="WikiLink" id="p-1a9a3791edacf5a86fe15c763f6dbadda39d7c60" href="http://apidoc.digg.com/ResponseTypes">response types</a>: XML, JSON, Javascript, and serialized PHP.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/59/173085725_019097a164_d.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/59/173085725_019097a164_d.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Most of their API tips are geared the broadest use case of simple GET calls -- not so applicable to big, complex transactional API platforms, such as <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/products/trading/">eBay Trading Web services</a>. But their presentation has takeaways for anyone involved with platforms - <span style="font-weight: bold;">make it easier for third party developers to make their applications look good</span>.<br /><br />To appeal to the broadest swath of Web app developers and avoid having to invest in a lot of technical support resources, they recommend to avoid SOAP and XML -- "too much overhead".<br /><br />Two examples Mike used in his preso were: <a href="http://oakland.crimespotting.org/">Oakland Crimespotting</a> (I know some friends who could get addicted to this) and how they made data more accessible to users, and <a href="http://labs.digg.com/">Digg Labs</a> and how they made data more accessible to developers via API.<br /><ul><li>make your API easy for flash, PHP, JSON, JavaScript and Actionscript developers to use<br /></li><li>should just work in a browser</li><li>Key registration is a hassle to be avoided: (avoid the overhead if possible) </li><li>do all of your dates as Unix timestamps</li><li>stick to these core formats: XML, JSON (combo of python and JavaScript in practice, AJAX-friendly, avoid XML parsing issues<br /></li><li>serialized PHP, JavaScript callbacks</li><li>Cross-domain XML standard makes things easier for Flash developers</li><li>REST - just web-jargon for Moving Things (GET) instead of Doing Stuff.</li><li>Python: Unit tests are the single best way to coordinate design and development. Expect your database to change.</li><li>Developer Support - delegate so that you can scale your developer community. Give developers who provide support to others additional support in-kind<br /></li></ul>Mike also talked about the emerging standard of <a href="http://oauth.net/">OAuth</a> - delegated authentication to make it possible to let people in provisionally and API call rate limiting, but revoke when necessary. Sounds an awful lot like a pared down version of the <a href="http://developer.ebay.com/DevZone/XML/docs/WebHelp/AuthAndAuth-.html">Authentication & Authorization</a> standard that eBay developers have been using since 2004.<br /><br />My bandwidth being what it is at the moment, I was not able to make it back to the event for more session, but after talking to several folks during the "hallway track", it sounded like the quality of most sessions was much better than <a href="http://delynsimons.blogspot.com/2007/04/web-20-expo-how-did-it-play-for-peoria.html">last year</a>. I'll definitely be coming back next year in better form, non-sleep deprived form, when I can make the most of the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/x180/2439468100/">after hour activities</a> again.<br /><br />Photos accredited to <a href="http://laughingsquid.com/">Scott Beale/Laughing Squid</a> and <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gervasio/">ana/g.</a>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-37213650677145133782008-03-12T11:29:00.000-07:002008-03-19T21:25:01.514-07:00give your inner dork a warm fuzzyAttention all Gen Y'ers -- Back in the day, before there were any video games more sophisticated than Ms. Pac-Man or Asteroid or Donkey Kong, you had to use multi-sided dice and your imagination to play fantasy games.<br /><br />I won't wax poetic about how much <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/opinion/09rogers.html?ex=1362718800&en=13a6290890cf8960&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink">Gary Gygax's passing yesterday</a> impacted me personally. I can recall playing <a href="http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_and_dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a> only a handful of times in the 4th grade, being an annoying sister, allowed in my brother's room only because my parents made him, holed up on rainy afternoons, trying to convince him and his gathered friends that Charisma should always trump Strength and Dexterity. That should tell you right there it was never really my thing. Turns out, however, that most of the XY-people I tend to admire, respect and choose to surround myself with in my personal and professional life have D&D and Red Slurpee-thons in common. I have inherent dorkness in my character, so I am drawn to other kindred latchkey kids who had to entertain themselves with creativeness and flair and artificial red coloring in their beverages.<br /><br />So, for all of you important people in my life, I present you with this D&D flow chart by Sam Potts from Wired/NY Times obituary of Gary Gygax. It is hilarious and insightful and an obvious labor of love for a time before Gen X'ers were hopelessly jaded and not embarrased to express genuine excitement for something. Embrace your inner dork.<br /><br /><img src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/03/09/opinion/09opart.large.gif" />delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-59775314729383428692008-02-11T04:43:00.000-08:002008-02-08T17:35:30.331-08:00working parents tip #4: keeping your sense of humorworking parents need to maintain their sense of humor so they will root for each other, stay sane and not kill each other or the kids. here are some of my favorites.<br /><br />books:<a href="http://product.half.ebay.com/Babys-First-Tattoo_W0QQprZ1983263QQtgZinfo"> Baby's First Tattoo</a> memory book and <a href="http://product.half.ebay.com/Baby-Mix-Me-a-Drink_W0QQtgZinfoQQprZ48419428">Baby, Mix me a Drink</a> be of use guide<br /><br />clothing & gifts: <a href="http://www.wrybaby.com/">Wry Baby</a>: i'm partial to the <a href="http://www.wrybaby.com/detail.aspx?ID=64">Wheel of Responsibility</a> - " Have Fun! Stay Un-Divorced!"<br /><br />music: <a href="http://www.rockabyebabymusic.com/web/page.asp?pgs=products">Rockabye Baby!</a>: lullaby renditions of Metallica, Coldplay, Radiohead and more.<br /><br />youtube overture of motherhood phrases you never thought you'd say, but do:<br /><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RxT5NwQUtVM&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RxT5NwQUtVM&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13803389.post-75641587336113684852008-02-08T15:23:00.000-08:002008-02-08T16:41:32.331-08:00working parents tip #3: surviving without sleep<p>when you're trying to work productively without sleep, it is a crusher. your child often tries to make up for the time you're gone by saving their alert time for when they see you -- at night. exhausting doesn't cover it. welcome to being a working parent.<br /></p><p>but the end game for sleep, as my friend, alix, mother of a 6 and a 3 year-old, recently reminded me is not to get your kids to sleep through the night. that's right. even though that used to be one of the mid-century hallmarks of being a good mother (along with getting your child eating solids and out of diapers as soon as possible). sleeping through the night in the long-term is a <span style="font-weight: bold;">parenting myth</span>, a phantom ghost from your life before kids. medically-speaking, sleeping through the night is 5 hours at a stretch (my former twenty-something self always gets a kick out of that), and various things like illness, teething, developmental milestones will KEEP waking them up well after infancy and well into grammar school. you may get cocky at the beginning when you get a couple of weeks or even months of sleep for 8, 9, 10 hours. don't get used to it.<br /></p><p>the end game as a working parent is to eventually get your kids to 1) fall asleep and stay asleep by themselves, and 2) have sleep be an enjoyable, relaxing state they look forward to, not dread or fear or eventually require ambien to attain enough of later in life. for working parents, the best advice shared with me revolves around a <span style="font-weight: bold;">short, 20-30 minute bedtime routine</span> that provides bonding time, but doesn't revolve around elaborate, lavender-infused bathing and massage rituals that you won't be able to maintain. a bedtime story, pajamas, share your favorite part of the day, then kiss goodnight is simple, nuturing, and reassuring - and blissfully manageable when you're getting almost no sleep yourself. that and a half-caf drip with milk no later than 10AM gets me through most weekdays. what about you?<br /></p>delyn simonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02338024819620143426noreply@blogger.com0