Editor's Note: Maria de Los Angeles will be writing about social media for Riptide. The title of her scribbling, Silicon Beach, refers to....well you know, you geek!
There's a different kind of silicon in Miami and no, it's not inside boob implants. This gooey stuff is virtual and social. It's in the hands of some very smart geeks and social media lovers who are slowly but surely creating and shoring up a viable tech and new media community here in the 305.
Back in 2006, five geeks showed up at a Starbucks in South Beach to create what would become Refresh Miami, today's core meet-up group of more than 1,500 South Florida professionals and start-ups. We're a motley crew -- ranging from balloon artists to iPhone application developers -- all interested in connecting via technology.
So it's no surprise that a good number of Miami techies are heading to Austin next March 12 through 16 to South By Southwest Interactive -- the country's biggest gathering of geeks and social media specialists. (Started in 1999, it'spart of that lil ole music festival you might have heard of. Everbody from Microsoft to garage geeks attends for workshops and chatter.)
Our locals want to put a Florida sunshine spin on the conference's hot topics, but there's a catch. Everyone gets to choose who gets to present what at the SXSW panel picker.
You have until 1 a.m. Saturday, September 5, to vote for Miami panels and presentations. If they make the rounds, they'll be proudly representing the 305!
Don't believe it? Well, here's what Miami has to show off:
Coconut Valley - Building a Tech Community on the Beach
From the Idea to the App Store: Getting Apps Done
The Truth About Launching a Web Service
What To Do If Your Design Is Stolen
How To Be an Emergency Response Technician
The Best.Problem.Ever: More Clients, Better Clients
My Three-Year Old is My Usability Expert
If you can't make it to SXSWi, don't worry. Our Miami geeks don't really hide behind computer screens. They're very social and they'll all be twittering, live streaming and blogging the heck out of the conference. More to come.
