More about Google, SXSW and Homegrown
Here is a photo from Google’s SXSW Bash and here is a note from Austin Techie Friend:
If you agree that Austin would be a great city for Google to build a high-speed data network go to https://www.biggigaustin.org/ for an opportunity for you to tell them. Click on the “nominate Austin” link in the lower left corner.
Click here to see what ideas have been posted.
Donna
We have things to learn from Austin — even if they “suck.” Homegrown is a great thing. Let’s put our brains to work here instead of our emotions.
SXSW was/is a great event. It is sad to see it become a milk run for major labels to snatch up indie bands like hollywood preys on small film makers at the Sundance Film Festival. I prefer the vibe at the Austin City Limits festival because it was more about the music and less about marketing, selling and buying.
As a participant of Scott’s 30th B-day party and most of the subsequent Homegrowns, Duluth has something special and I truly believe the event should be about local music and not growing to be too big. It is a party, not a commercial event and should retain a fun atmosphere.
Austin is one a the few cool things in Texas and I love their civic motto: “keep Austin weird, buy local.”
Now if I could only get 50 lbs of crayfish and some Shiner bock up here.
Agreed Austin is cool, and I suggest it’s a great model for what Duluth could become and, I suggest, a place that our city fathers should seek partnership (bookends of I-35). Inside dirt on an Austin bid for the fiber is that Google is looking for a place where they can change the landscape. Austin already has cyber culture coming out it’s ears.
On the Homegrown side, I’ve advocated for a “conference” part of Homegrown for many years — A daytime boothy, breakouty, geeky, schwa-filled conference with lanyards and elite parties and meaningful panel discussions. I know I should organize it and not just bitch about it not happening but I can only have too many irons in the fire at once and that would be suuuper extra right now for me. So … hells yeah … Duluth, the air conditioned and wetter Austin. I’m all for it! (Can I get a job at a game company … oh, ok … I’ll make my own!)
Keep Duluth Weird.
No, Get Duluth Wired!
Weird and Wired both, Guys!
Duluth, Weird, Wet and Wired!
Duluth: Wet, Wired and Ahhhhhggggg!!!
I love the idea of a schwa-filled conference.
(Damnit, it left out the part where I made electricity noises.)
[ Zzzzzzzzzzttttttttt!!! ]
Here are Duluth’s ideas:
1: The mayor jumps in the lake when it’s cold.
Oh Danny…
Getting scooped up by a major label when your a band would totally suck.
Perhaps if we had really fast broadband, our emerging local podcasting industry might be able to distribute its wares in HD or something.
Was in Austin last week for business. Massive hipster and Californicator overload, man.
Swan, where have you been in Texas besides Austin? How do you know it is one of the, “few cool things,” in that state?
hold your horses there, Bob. most of these folks ain’t spent too much time hanging around the southern end of I-35.
can’t fault them for it, and swan ain’t one to get your boxers in a bunch over. he’s a right tough buzzard you don’t want to be messin with.
Bob, Swan attended graduate school in Texas for three or four years during the Bush administration; he knows of which he speaks.
“Californicator”? You’re seriously going with that word?
Barrett took the words right out of my mouth — “Californiacator?” What in the hell do you mean by that? You got something against my homeland?
If the question is who can out fornicate whom – there is just one answer: Enron.
Additional info: Houston this year elected an openly out lesbian as mayor. Duluth could not even manage to elect a city councilor – due mostly to the relentless dykophobia of ex-city councilors and our daily paper.
Didn’t the Red Hot Chili Peppers sue Showtime over use of the word “Californacation”?
I feel a similar vibe in Austin and Minneapolis. Modern, sprawling, prosperous river cities; with a good dose of art and culture.
I think our natural Texas rival might be… Galveston? OK, not many cities aspire to be the next Galveston. However, consider: historic port town, touristy, industrial, quirky, climatically vulnerable. Jean Lafitte vs Daniel Greysolon. Texas natives, feel free to correct me.
Duluth reminds me of a smaller Seattle, if anything. But then I’ve only been to Dallas and Houston, so don’t really know Texas.
Duluth is a lot like seattle, only seattle is a lot larger, faces the opposite direction and smells funny.