The Element Fusion crew arrived in Austin, Texas this morning for the first full day of the SXSW Interactive Conference. The weather in Austin is warm and we jumped right into the fray along with 7,500 interactive conference attendees. Here is a quick look at what we saw today:
Opening Remarks with Henry Jenkins and Steven Johnson
This was the opening keynote to kick off the conference. Jenkins and Johnson delivered a broad, intellectual look at social interaction in the web and society, the next generation and today's youth, and the social implications of the high tech world we live in. Lots of high-level ideas here, but maybe lacking in the tactical things we often expect from these sessions.
10 Things We've Learned at 37signals
Jason Fried delivered a practical, no-nonsense extension of 37signals' Getting Real in this compelling presentation. Fried discussed the truths, processes, and business philosophies the company has honed over nearly 4 years of developing their incredibly popular web applications. This was a must-see.
A General Theory of Creative Relativity
Jim Coudal, of Coudal Partners, provided another great session immediately following Fried. Coudal's tongue-in-cheek theory explored the business of creativity and the ins-and-outs of idea generation. Thoughts about the source of inspiration, ways to find ideas when you don't feel creative, and how to foster a creative environment in the studio were presented in Jim's frank, self-deprecating, and humorous style. This is sure to be another highlight of the entire event.
After all of this inspiration, it was time for some authentic Austin Tex-Mex and to pour over the schedule for tomorrow's panels. We'll be back with more highlights tomorrow.
Posted on
Sat, March 8, 2008
by Jason Zimdars
filed under