Gnomedex Platinum Sponsor: Yahoo!

05.28.2005 @ 08:48 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

For the second year in a row, Yahoo! is coming in at one of our top levels of sponsorship. “When Yahoo! was founded in 1994 by Stanford Ph.D. students, David Filo and Jerry Yang, it began as their hobby and has evolved into a global brand that has changed the way people communicate with each other, find and access information, and make purchases.” You’ll see their logo prominently and proudly displayed at Gnomedex, much like you do online. Without a doubt, Gnomedex would not be headed into its fifth year without the support of key individuals at Yahoo - and for that, we are forever grateful.

Gnomedex Sponsor: Wiley

05.28.2005 @ 08:48 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

For the first time, Wiley will be contributing items to Gnomedex. “The company was founded in 1807, during the Jefferson presidency. In the early years, Wiley was best known for the works of Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Herman Melville, and other 19th century American literary giants. By the turn of the century, Wiley was established as a leading publisher of scientific and technical information.” I have it on good authority that there will be a few book giveaways over the course of the weekend!

Gnomedex Sponsor: Google

05.28.2005 @ 08:47 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

For the third year in a row, Google is showing its support for technologists at Gnomedex. “Google is a play on the word googol, which was coined by Milton Sirotta, nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner, and was popularized in the book, “Mathematics and the Imagination” by Kasner and James Newman. It refers to the number represented by the numeral 1 followed by 100 zeros. Google’s use of the term reflects the company’s mission to organize the immense, seemingly infinite amount of information available on the web.” Yes, I think we all know who Google is, and they’re making the Welcome Party possible!

Gnomedex Sponsor: SXIP

05.28.2005 @ 08:46 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

This marks the first time SXIP will be a sponsor for Gnomedex. “Sxip Identity provides identity management solutions that leverage the Sxip Network and drive Identity 2.0 infrastructure. Sxip empowers individuals to create and manage their online digital identities and enables enterprises to instantly provision and manage their users.” This is quite fitting, as they’re providing the lanyard and badge holders - which will house your identity for the weekend. Or, at least, your name.

Gnomedex Participant: Dan Gillmor

05.16.2005 @ 06:32 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

Dan Gillmor - Having joined the Mercury News in September 1994 after about six years with the Detroit Free Press, Dan has recently launched Bayosphere. “At Bayosphere, we’re going to create a community fueled by that notion. We will reflect - and reflect on - the news, needs and ideas of the San Francisco Bay Area and especially the technology sphere that is the prime economic driver of the area.” He’s the author of “We the Media,” one of the industry’s first manifestos on citizen journalism. With Dan, we might learn:

• How grassroots media trumps traditional media
• Why the blogging revolution was long overdue
• Where new opportunities await eager tech tinkerers

Gnomedex Participant: Matt Mullenweg

05.16.2005 @ 06:31 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

Matt Mullenweg - Matt is the founding developer of WordPress, the blogging software that runs much of this site and thousands of other sites around the world. The website says WordPress is “a state-of-the-art semantic personal publishing platform,” but more importantly WordPress is a part of who Matt is. Since moving to San Francisco, he’s worked at CNET Networks doing things too cool to blog about. Matt should be able to help us understand:

• How open source efforts are good for the economy
• Where blog platforms are headed in the near future
• Why style is just as important as substance

Gnomedex Participant: Hobie Swan

05.16.2005 @ 06:30 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

Hobie Swan - Hobart (Hobie) Swan is Manager of External Affairs for Mindjet and co-author of The Cancer Code, the story behind the creation of Mindjet, the company, and MindManager, its software. Before starting at Mindjet, Hobie produced health programming for CBS Radio’s The Osgood File, and was a freelance writer and video producer in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has since left that burgeoning megalopolis for the wide sidewalks of Boise, Idaho. On a Tablet PC, Hobie will be presenting “Mapping the Floating Bicycle: An audience participation presentation using Mindjet’s MindManager to design the next extreme water sport.”

• What the heck “mind mapping” is and why it’s catching on
• How to recreate the dreaded business meeting
• Why using more visually oriented GUIs makes sound business sense

Why Should Your Company Send You To a Conference Like Gnomedex?

05.10.2005 @ 11:11 PM PT | Chris Pirillo

From 2005 Gnomedexer, Josh Bancroft:

If I were trying to get a company to send me to a conference like Gnomedex, I’d focus on the following things. First, Gnomedex is a collection of incredibly smart people. These are the people that understand and are shaping the future of the way we are going to do business. It happened with the web, it happened with blogs, it’s happeneing with podcasting and video blogging, and whatever the future holds, it’s these people that are going to catch on first. Second, the opportunity to network. You want to get to know people, and get people to know you, so that when your company needs help with getting a blog started, or something similar, you’ll have a bunch of people that remember hanging out and having fun with you at Gnomedex, and who will be more than happy to help. Lastly, the community should see your company’s willingness to participate in something like Gnomedex as a sign that they’re starting to “get it”, or at least that they want to start to learn. Lastly, preach the Cluetrain. Buy the cheap $5 copies on Amazon and give them to your manager, and others that you want to help understand what this is all about. Even though the full text is available at www.cluetrain.com, most manager-types are more likely to read the dead tree version, and getting them to read it is definitely worth buying and sharing a few cheap copies.