Are YOU coming to BarCamp Philly? If you want to be featured, please answer the following 5 questions:
November 7, 2008 – 3:34 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
Oh hai, I’m Jesse Middleton and I’m a technophile and consultant. I work with a number of companies in the Philadelphia area and abroad helping awesome companies to build their technology so it can be
brought to the masses. It’s important to me to bridge the gap between technology and the real world to aid businesses and individuals in better utilizing the tools that could enhance their lives.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
Being part of the coworking community here in Philadelphia has been a blast. It has led me to many ridiculous events and has introduced me to some of the most amazing people. I hope to accomplish two things at BarCamp Philly — 1) Meet even more interesting and creative people and, 2) Share some of my knowledge and experience with those people that are willing to listen.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
My discussions could go one of two ways. I would either lead a discussion on developing for the Android and other new-age smart phone platforms or it would be on the importance of privacy and security in this public information age.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
When I started at Drexel University, my plan was to graduate with a business degree. That took a turn for the better when I was offered a job in network security and spent the next couple of years visiting Mexico, the UK, Poland, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Wales. After visiting all of those places, I still speak only one language, English.
Where can we find you?
My blog when I rant about anything and everything - http://srcasm.com
My Twitter feed where I do most of the same in smaller chunks -
http://twitter.com/srcasm
November 7, 2008 – 11:12 am
Who are you and what do you do?
Hey, I’m Alex Hillman, and I love Philadelphia, coworking, social technology, traveling, and throwing parties.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I’ve been planning on attending BarCamp Philly since it was a glimmer in JP and Roz’s eye. We’ve been coworking for a year and a half, we’ve had 2 Ignites, countless Juntos. It’s time for a Barcamp to feel what it’s like to be rocked by Philly.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
It wouldn’t be about coworking, that’s for sure.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
Before being involved in computers, I wanted to be a professional magician.
Where can we find you?
http://www.dangerouslyawesome.com
http://twitter.com/alexknowshtml
November 7, 2008 – 1:03 am
Who are you and what do you do?
Hi all, I am Aaron Held and I work as a Director of Engineering for Comcast Interactive Media (CIM). What I do is write emails so my team can write code…. Sarcasm aside I’ve found a group of highly talented individuals here and look forward to coming to work every day to help them.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I’m attending because I grew jealous seeing the passion and excitement about this within my team. People like Arpit, Livia, Kevin Fitzpatrick, Matt Schaffer and Maurice Gaston have been dominating the espresso room with chatter about this for weeks. The other day they were talking and I was wearing a shirt from the last open source initiative I was involved in, and I realized that shirt was pretty old. I’m hoping that this event will rekindle my personal excitement about participating in the community and getting projects out for the fun of it.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
I’d be happy to talk about the complexities of managing a site as large as http://www.comcast.net. (40MM page views/day lots of partner connections, multiple CDNs, datacenters, video platform etc…) We recently migrated our entire portal into a new data center with an entirely new codebase and that was an interesting adventure. I’m also a proponent of mentoring and think that would be an interesting topic for this crowd. It is a challenge to balance innovation against the need for stability without crushing the joys of our industry.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I’ve hacked rabbits with assembly code.
Where can we find you?
http://www.aaronheld.com
Twitter and AIM: @IamAaronHeld
http://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronheld
I’m usually at 1701 JFK, a trinity in BellaVista, Holland PA or travelling between them
November 7, 2008 – 12:56 am
Who are you and what do you do?
Roman Zubarev: The name is Roman and Mobile Marketing is the game. Most of my time is focused on getting the word out about a Philly startup called Everywhereigo. Recently launched, we help organizations strengthen relationships with customers and group members that are on the go. Think of it as Constant Contact (email marketing) but for mobile phones via text messaging. We also develop websites, which render well across all mobile platforms, including iPhones, Blackberries, G1s and flip phones. In other news, I’m currently a senior at Drexel University, studying MIS and marketing. In my free time I like to study social media, support startups, and absorb as much knowledge as I can from people brighter than me. Oh, and I love Philly sports.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
This is my first event of this nature and I’m attending expecting to meet motivated, like-minded individuals with a lot of knowledge and expertise to offer. I also hope to contribute some of my own thoughts to great conversations. Usually, you walk into an event expecting to learn at least one new thing. With BarCamp Philly, you may walk away with fifty.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
I would lead a session about mobile marketing and describe how it’s an inexpensive way to engage and re-engage your customers while pushing each marketing dollar further.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I was born in St. Petersburg, Russia and have lived in Prague, Czech Republic and Riga, Latvia before settling down in Philadelphia.
Where can we find you?
www.romanzubarev.com
Twitter: @romez
November 7, 2008 – 12:52 am
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m Michael McLaughlin. I’m a Paleolithic archaeologist by training, an education IT support professional at Penn by vocation, and a full-stack Web 2.0 developer by interest. I used to dig up Neandertals, but now I solve problems and design websites in my spare time.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
To meet other like-minded people, network ideas, and develop connections.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
Probably something highlighting the importance of having, managing, and using data, but only in context of solving real human problems.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I race bicycles for the oldest cycling team in the city, the Quaker City Wheelmen (originally founded in 1889). I also live about three blocks from UArts, so the location just could not be better for me.
Where can we find you?
http://www.twitter.com/michaelmc at the moment. Or at home, but if you “accidentally” find out where that is and show up, it may be a little awkward.
November 7, 2008 – 12:45 am
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Walt Ribeiro and I am ‘The Internet’s Music Teacher’. I teach Daily Music Lessons on Ustream.TV, Revision 3, Youtube, and more. I teach students all over the world - everything from guitar, piano, sightreading, technology, theory, and much more.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I’m heavily involved in the tech scene, Web 2.0, and attend most of the meetups. I’ve met amazing people and made great friends. Plus I’m a geek, and I find this stuff to be so cool 
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
How to do New Media as a Full Time Job. I feel its important that others learn “How to build sponsors, your brand, and your community.” I came from the ground up and would love to help others on their journey.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I go salsa dancing quite frequently
Where can we find you?
www.waltribeiro.net
www.twitter.com/waltribeiro
www.youtube.com/waltribeiro
www.revision3beta.com/watch/music/
and at @BarCampPhilly this weekend! Yea!
November 7, 2008 – 12:36 am
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is J. Tomar and I’m a freelance Illustrator/Cartoonist/Graphic Designer/Web-bitch for the highest bidder, and one something-th of Liquid Vinyl Productions, a grassroots concert and event promotions company based in South Philly about to enter its fourth year.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I hear that’s where all the cool kids will be. This is actually my first BarCamp, so I’m interested in learning what it’s all about, meeting people, networking, etc.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
Social networking and how it’s changed the way we consume and produce art…or maybe how it hasn’t? I’m really more about hanging back and getting a feel for things this year, rather than try to present anything; but who knows?
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I’ve been gluten-free–no wheat, no rye, no barley–for three years. Please don’t offer me cupcakes unless you want to see me cry. If you do want to see me cry, shame on you!
Where can we find you?
http://www.liquidvinylproductions.com
@tomar_jay on twitter
November 6, 2008 – 3:46 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m a freelance product manager and Web 2.0 evangelist working mostly with medical publishers and nonprofit medical associations in Philadelphia. My particular speciality is the professional user of medical content, like how a physician interacts with information (and with other docs) to provide patient care, to continue learning, and to run a business. Many times what I do involves developing a Web or mobile application for physicians, sometimes it’s a service or collaboration platform. It’s an interesting time to be in the health information field–everything is changing about physician-users, patients, the technology, and the economics of health.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
While I’m more of a strategy & project leader nowadays, my background is in enterprise content management and information architecture, and I’m still interested in how developers and designers solve information puzzles. I think BarCamp, non-profits, and Health 2.0 all work together conceptually — I’m very curious to see who shows up from those worlds!
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
There are a number of well-known, persistent information problems in healthcare, and the world is hungry for solutions to them. Wouldn’t it be great to open up the discussion about them with creative designers, analysts, and developers from many fields and see what happens? I could envision a HealthCamp Philly in the future for sessions like that. And I am really looking forward to finally meeting @ekivemark at BarCamp Philly!
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
Ok, totally random: I just love the idea that there’s a movement to reduce light pollution and to restore the Milky Way to our night sky.
Where can we find you?
Just look me up on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter @mageier
November 5, 2008 – 10:36 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
I am Rachel Sooy, I attend Tyler School of Art for a double major in digital media and art education. When I am done school I plan on opening my own design firm with an undecided concentration. When I’m not doing school work I like to craft, read and of course get sucked into the internet.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I am attending BarCamp Philly so I can meet new and exciting people and learn a whole lot!
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
If I were to lead a session it would probably be art related in someway, most likely a hands on demonstration that I could get everyone involved in. I’m gonna brain storm and see if I can get something figured out in time. I may come in and bring some crafty type things to battle with Far and his electronic creations/soldering iron.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
When I was little, I’m talking three or four years old, I saw Madonna on TV, and my dad had told me from that point on I had an imaginary friend that I called Ladonna. I made him answer the door and everything when she came over for tea. My mom also made me a bear costume for Halloween(when I was that age) that I wore for a zillion years. The pictures are hilarious because I had these little spindly legs that stuck out from this furry brown baggy dress with these giant bear claws for shoes. They are some of the best pictures of me ever.
Where can we find you?
I have a really unfinished/rarely updated blog that I plan to actually use in the future
http://rachelsooy.com
But you can find me on twitter
http://www.twitter.com/interjection
November 5, 2008 – 12:16 am
Who are you and what do you do?
I am Gloria Bell and I am the owner of Red Stapler Consulting. I have spent most of my adult career in the insurance and legal fields while running a few small businesses, in between. It was the varied experiences, joys & struggles of running my own businesses that planted the seed and desire for independence from the corporate world. Then a few years ago, my life changed when a good friend introduced me to the tech, creative and social media communities. The smart, driven, focused, creative, amazing people I met prompted me to finally solidify the idea behind Red Stapler and begin to offer an authentic, affordable office management solution to freelancers, independents and small businesses in those fields. Red Stapler offers just about every conceivable service that an office manager would handle in an a la carte format and at a price the average freelancers can manage. Our goal is to help the freelancers and indies be more creative, productive and profitable by relieving them of the grunt work of running their business.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I am attending BarCampPhilly to meet even more new interesting, exciting, passionate people. I want to learn, learn, learn and hopefully to share some of my knowledge and experiences.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
If I were to lead a session it would be about how to run your business better and more efficiently so you can free up time to be more creative and productive. My session would include tips on how to identify your strengths and weaknesses and how to capitalize on the strengths and diminish the weaknesses, especially if you are working for yourself. Work, whether for yourself or someone else, should be about following your dreams and passions and when you work more efficiently and effectively you have more of the right balance of time and energy to pursue those passions.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
A random fact about myself - I grew up as an Army brat, went to high school in Japan and moved 14 times in 18 years.
Where can we find you?
http://redstaplerconsulting.net/
@gloriabell on twitter
November 4, 2008 – 11:28 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
Hi All! I’m Christine Cavalier, a.k.a. PurpleCar. The more relevant question for me is what haven’t I done. I mean, professionally. Wait, that doesn’t sound good either.
I have a Masters and an undergrad degree in Psychology, but I’ve had a long career in tech. Lately I’ve been freelance and fiction writing. My goal is to publish a novel.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
This will be my first barcamp, so I’m really excited to see how it all works. I’ve presented at various podcamps, so it will be interesting to see the differences. Plus, I love the Philly tech crowd. I’m their biggest cheerleader (and occasional photographer!).
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
I tend to be advice girl. People ask me for advice on many different topics. My mother says it’s because I am level-headed. I think I’m too polite to tell people to bug off. Anyway, my session would go off the beaten track. I’d gather up a few cool chicks that are at barcamp, put them on a panel, and lead a fun and informative session about what geek guys don’t get about women and how they can improve their chances. When I was working as a server admin, all the guys would come up and ask me about this. I definitely have answered them enough to make a whole session out of it. And there are some pretty hot chicks coming to barcamp, so I think the panel would be well attended, don’t you?
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I think rap music is modern day poetry. Ok, maybe only some rap music. But you get my point.
Where can we find you?
http://www.purplecar.net (blog)
http://www.pushmyfollow.com (podcast)
@Purplecar on Twitter
November 4, 2008 – 11:10 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Brad Leclerc, and I’m an online content specialist…by which I mean, blogger. I’ve been writing online for years, but just recently started making a go out of it as a career. My background is very scattered, but I suppose “geek” pretty much sums it up. I’ve studied everything from theoretical physics to massage therapy to criminal law and all sorts of things in between. Never could find that one thing I could stick with, until I started writing anyway.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I’ve never been to anything like it, and figure I need to get out more and meet some interesting people. Seems like a good bet that that will happen at BarCamp Philly, so I’m packing my trusty cargo-pants full of gadgets and heading into the big city for the weekend. Good excuse to get a good cheesesteak too.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
I haven’t the slightest idea. Whatever it would be, it would be either be a massive (and hopefully hilarious) success, or a horrible(and guaranteed to be hilarious) disaster. There is no half-way with me.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
Most people think I’m shy when they see me lurking around, but I’m not. I am, however, the extreme quiet type…feel free to talk to me about anything under the sun (and many things above it now that I think about how silly that phrase is…). I’m one of those people who answer a question whether or not the person asking REALLY wants an answer. You’ve been warned.
Where can we find you?
www.twitter.com/bradleclerc
www.bradleclerc.com
www.dslrblog.com
www.thevinecast.com
November 4, 2008 – 9:03 am
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Jon Adams and I am not the second president, I am however an electrical and computer engineer who at times moonlights as a Chef (yes professionally). My engineering background is varied, some of the highlights include; the design and development of a multiprocessor North-bridge chip set, 10 gigabit network interfaces, a recognized contributor to a few public and non-public standards/specifications, and a couple of third party apple iphone/ipod products. Currently I have hitched my self to another start up where we are designing and manufacturing low power wireless mesh network devices for the home. These devices enable the homeowner to monitor and control their energy consumption from individual outlets to heating and cooling systems.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
To experience and learn something new, and to let people know that we do more then just program software on the east coast… we actually design and build whole devices from hardware to software.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
Educate people on how open the hardware development process really is.
Also In this economy and the economics of scale can electronic product development become local and sustainable?
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
Once a year I go on a winter vacation with a bunch of guys to climb mountains and ski/snowboard the backcountry, we call it Mancation.
Where can we find you?
I can be found at the Fair Food Farm-stand most Saturday mornings where I have been volunteering my time for over 3 years now. Random thoughts can be found on twitter @dangertater
November 3, 2008 – 11:47 pm
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Mark Scrimshire and I am a troublemaker, troubleshooter, Internet strategist and blogger who has worked in and around IT for more years than I care to mention. By day, I have just taken on the responsibility for CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield’s Web Strategy. This is at a particularly interesting time.
I also organize the HealthCamp series of events and am active in the Web 2.0 and Health 2.0 scenes. I am also a big proponent of the DataPortability movement.
In my past I have spent 18 months blogging for O’Reilly Media at AOL, producing a daily blog for AOL staff talking about the implications of Web 2.0 technology.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I am not a developer but I am a geek at heart. I really enjoy getting under the covers of technology and working out how it can be applied in new and interesting ways. I have attended a number of BarCamps and also run a series of HealthCamps. I really enjoy meeting and learning from passionate people. The energy at these events is just awesome.
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
As a big proponent of DataPortability I would like to lead a session talking about how this can and should be leveraged in the Health Care world. Via Twitter I have already been asked to take time at the event to give a de-brief on the happenings at the recent Health 2.0 Conference that took place in San Francisco in Mid October. So that my very well surface as a session if more people express an interest.
Tell us one random fact about yourself
My son (the UK jazz artist - Scrimshire - you can catch his random podcasts on his site) has challenged me to swim around a bunch of Greek Islands next year. I was daft enough to accept. You can follow my training on twitter using search.twitter.com.
Where can we find you?
You can find me on Twitter as ekivemark.That same name is often found on AIM and Skype too.I blog at http://ekive.blogspot.com. My profile can also be found on LinkedIn and elsewhere via Google.
November 3, 2008 – 8:50 am
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Kimberly Blessing and I’m a Computer Scientist, a Web Developer, and a Standards Evangelist. I’m the Chief Consultant of KimmieCorp and I teach Computer Science at Bryn Mawr College. In the past I’ve worked for PayPal (Principal Web Developer and Manager of the Web Development Platform Team) and AOL (Senior Web Developer, Program Manager for Technical Standards and Strategy, and Acting Director of Web Development). I’m also a member of the Web Standards Project.
Why are you attending BarCamp Philly?
I’ve just moved back to Philly (I grew up here, went to college here, then moved away, boo hoo) and need to make some friends who are as or more geeky as me. BarCamp seems like the perfect place to do that. Shockingly, I’ve never been to a BarCamp before — but I always meant to!
If you were to lead a session, what would it be about?
Web Standards, of course! I often talk about this topic in a variety of contexts: how to move to standards in the workplace, how to sell standards to your boss, how to be an effective coding team with standards. I can also speak about the transition from a technical role to a management role, or how to be a leader as an individual contributor, or how to work effectively with remote teams, ’cause I’ve done all of that, too.
Tell us one random fact about yourself.
I was Miss Most Enthusiastic of my junior cheerleading team in 1983. I’m not sure how I got this accolade, because I hated cheerleading. But I think that explains why I get a bit “rah-rah” at times.
Where can we find you?
www.kimberlyblessing.com, www.thecircleofstandards.com, www.kimmiecorp.com, www.twitter.com/obiwankimberly, or just Google me.
