It’s been sometime since I’ve rolled out an edition of the popular "5 Things on Friday" series and so with the turn of the calendar to a new year why not revive the series once again… enter 5Things on Friday #1 (2014). This week I share details of a couple of cool and geeky events, an awesome newsy map from esri, a handy dandy book from a favorite author of mine, and a hop, new resource for GeoGeeks… enjoy!
#1. MapCamp + GeoDev MeetUp
Hackathons were Hot in 2013 and 2014 is starting off with a very cool hackathon on Jan 10 – enter MapCamp Portland. About the event… MapCamp will bring a two-day hackathon and pre-party networking event to ISITE Design that rewards teams and individuals that make the best use of Portland city data. Food, drinks and entertainment will be provided and there’s also some scheduled lightning talks for those attending that have something very cool to share with others. MapCamp runs Jan 10-12 in Portland, OR at iSite Design HQ and best of all Registration is Free.
Note for those Geeks that can’t get enough from a 3 day hackfest the Esri EDN gang has planned Geodev Meetup the night before, Thurs Jan 9 at the Portland City Grill – see http://www.meetup.com/DevMeetUpOregon/events/156158562/
#2. OSCon 2014
Open Source nuts take note, OSCon (the Open Source Convention) will take place this summer, July 2024 in Portland, Oregon. The OSCON call for participation is now open so if you are passionate and knowledgeable about open source software, hardware, culture, or best practices, you are invited to submit a proposal to speak – note, there’s expected to be some 400+ speakers at this year’s event! Organized by O’reilly, OSCon is THE event for anyone interested in throwing their hat into the open source ring! See more http://www.oscon.com/oscon2014
#3. APE The Book
Ever thought about writing an E-Book? Well, here’s some help for you to get you started in the right direction! Guy Kawasaki has a fabulous, free resource (until Jan 30) that just might be the inspiration you need to finally get started – enter APE The Book "APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur-How to Publish a Book". Simply jump to this special location (thanks to Guy for the link and free code), simply follow the instruction and then download the book to your mobile device or E reader. About the book… APE is 300 pages of step-by-step, tactical advice and practical inspiration. If you want a hype-filled, get-rich-quick book, you should look elsewhere. On the other hand, if you want a comprehensive and realistic guide to self-publishing, APE is the answer. Enjoy! And thanks Guy… check him out on Twitter @GuyKawasaki although I’m sure you already follow him!
#4. Esri NewsMap
The ultimate news map! This fabulous Esri Storymap lets you read 86 different English language newspapers around the globe. You’ve seen the cool and informative Esri news maps no doubt. Well, this one is really fun, clever, and quite informative. Browse and wander around the map to discover major newspapers. Hover over a red city icon and click to reveal a nciely formatted browser window appear displaying the city newspaper for you to enjoy. There’s dozaens of papers available from Honolulu, to Anchorage and New York and many places in between – great stuff Esri! Oh, and you aren’t limited to the USA as you can enjoy and read papers all around Europe, South America and all around the Globe. Check out the news map HERE
#5. GeoHipster.com
Here’s something new and kinda cool from Atanas Enchev (@Atanas), a community resource built around the concept of the Geohipster. The term has been tossed around quite a bit over the past couple of years, mostly in jest, however, to many the Geohipster is indeed a reality and popping up all over the place. To others though the idea of a class of GeoGeeks know as the Hipsters is a bit foolish… hey, whatever your opinion is that’s just fine! The resource doesn’t serve to hype or deter the concept, rather, it offers up a community forum where topics of interest can be discussed and tossed around. The first thing released on the site was a public opnion poll that asked teh question "What is a GeoHipster?" – More than 300 responses were received in a short time and they are still coming in, helping to provide a little clearer definition of what a geohipster is or may be! Most recently a post shared a number of responses from GeoGeeks (including yours truly) that tuoched on some predictions for 2014.
Check it out at http://geohipster.com/
Want more 5 Things? Check out the archive HERE