May 13th, 7:00 p.m.
Buffalo Billiards, 6th and Brazos
We had a couple of challenges getting a topic together this month, so our May meeting is going to be an informal happy hour. Come by Buffalo Billiards and half-priced appetizers and drink specials with your fellow Refreshers. We’ll keep to the downstairs bar, since we’ll have no presentation.View the event on Upcoming.org
Tags: happy hour, informal, meeting
April 8th, 7:00 p.m.
Buffalo Billiards, 6th and Brazos
Draw a True Picture Of Usability by Combining Various Data Sources
Annette Priest will discuss the different types of information and metrics that can be used to gain insight into the usability of your Web site so you can determine what works and what needs to be improved.
Group Discussion: SXSW Interactive
For those unable to attend South by Southwest Interactive, here’s a chance to hear what was good. For those who were there, here’s a chance to hear about panels you may have missed.
Anyone who went to SXSW is encouraged to jump into this one! The format is straightforward, each person will answer:
1. What were your three favorite panels and why?
2. What is one thing that you took from SXSW and implemented?
3. What would you like to see change prior to next year?
We outgrew the back room at Texpresso, and really wanted a central location, and we’ve found it. Located on 6th and Brazos, Buffalo Billiards has a large upstairs room with a stage, a projector, and a screen. The staff have been extraordinarily welcoming — they’re giving us a huge discount and are accommodating a custom WiFi setup for us.
Tuesdays also happen to have happy hour all day, half-priced appetizers, and $1 off select drafts, well drinks, and house wine. Show up early and grab some food and drink, and then head upstairs to the meeting. Afterwards, you can continue the conversation over a game of pool, darts, or shuffleboard.
Street parking downtown is free after 5:30, and there are two $5 parking garages within a one-block walking distance — one on 7th between Brazos and San Jacinto, and one on Brazos just north of 7th.
That’s it for this week, folks!
Tags: coworking, design, geek austin, happy hour, meeting, ruby on rails, SXSW, sxswi
We have an info-packed meeting on February 12, chock-full of design and development goodness. Grant Hutchins will cover the use of Grids for design, showing you the ins and outs of their usage and how they can help you on your next project. David Humphreys will present an Introduction to Ruby on Rails, the popular programming framework.
This will be a great meeting for folks interested in all aspects of the Web, and as always, the conversations will likely continue after the meeting at the closest spot with beer and food.
Update: David has posted the slides of his Rails presentation.
Tags: design, event, grids, meeting, ruby on rails, web design
Our January meeting is going to be different than our norm. As many of us will be playing post-holiday catch-up, and likely be a bit overwhelmed, we’re teaming up with Geek Austin to co-host a happy hour. The day is the same, Tuesday, January 8th, but the location is different. We’ll be gathering at J Black’s Feel Good Lounge, to meet and converse with other local tech folks.
Details: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/389567/
I was able to hit the last Geek Austin happy hour for a short while and met some great people. This is a great opportunity to meet cool people, widen your network should you be looking for a new role, or hire someone for a job.
We will return to our normal format come February, so if you have suggestions for a topic that you’d like to hear, please drop me a note off-list. :)
Thanks to LinearB (Lynn Bender) and Whurley for putting this together! I’ll kick out more details as we get closer to the event.
Tags: event, geek austin, happy hour, meeting
Five to seven people will have 10 minutes apiece to talk about a single tool or service that Web-related work (development, design, client communication, Flash, billing clients etc.) can’t be done without.
SlickRun
Free floating command line utility for Windows
Password Safe
App to store your passwords. Windows executable and Java versions available.
1Password
OS X Password manager with browser and Keychain integration.
CrossLoop
A very convenient app for sharing Windows desktops
GigPress
WordPress plugin for event listings - concert oriented, but easily modified.
Charles
Web debugging / HTTP proxy / HTTP monitor / Reverse Proxy
Jott
Service that you can call to have a message transcribed and sent to you or other services via SMS or e-mail. Demoed in tandem with I Want Sandy. Can be used as a standalone service.
I Want Sandy
An e-mail and Web-based virtual personal assistant. Alex wrote about the service in October. Demoed in tandem with Jott. Can be used as a standalone service.
Presenter: Sam Foster
The idea behind this is not to teach a programming language, rather it is to provide a foundation for people who haven’t programmed, or haven’t had a formal education in programming. Some questions that may well fit into the presentation:
Tags: development, event, meeting
Presenter: Alex Jones
This month’s meeting is all about clients. Whether you are a freelancer, at an agency or work in-house at a large corporation, you work for and with clients day in and day out. So, the first half of the meeting will discuss common client needs and expectations and how to create the best atmosphere possible for successful projects and relationships. Striking a balance that satisfies both sides of the equation takes a little bit of work up front, but pays huge dividends over time.
The second half of the meeting will be a Client Tip Roundup, which will consist of five to seven Refreshers sharing their tips, and tricks of client management.
Presenter: Ryan Joy
The timing seems right considering the following:
Tags: design, development, event, meeting, mobile
