OK so I have written the full rundown of what I listened to over on my work blog so head over there for that but here I thought I would write more about the dynamics of the web/IT community gatherings instead.
Long story short I started in my current job almost 3 years ago now on the premise of helping do a little design whilst mainly doing scheduling for a design studio only to quickly realise that the company was in fact much more of a development one with a tiny portion of design and this portion mainly consisting of web. Well I quickly upskilled in my geek and now am three years along but I still feel very much like an outsider as my art side still vastly out-weighs my science one.
This outsider perspective though means I can sit back and gain some insights from their subculture. I find even though most are introverts they are also massively social as the internet if nothing else has given a forum where the shy can have a screaming voice and yet hide simultaneously the only analogy I can think of even remotely like this in our pre digital days would be graffiti. This voice means that they can break the ice and therefore get to feeling comfortable with a person/group before they have even met them. Plus they are vastly more cheeky over a chat than in person.
So warp speed ahead to an event such as Web Meetup, Webstock, Full code press or the one I have just attended Barcamp and you suddenly see all these shy guys and gals getting up in front of crowds and networking. Now think how many other subcultures could adopt this kind of intro system to eliminate their public speaking and networking fears. It means we finally get to hear talks from people that in the past may never have gotten up and are often the ones you really want to hear being super passionate and knowledgeable about one niche subject.
They can even get celebrity status and like hollywood celebs they have pseudonyms so instead of Madonna or Prince we have names like bigman_01 or the likes. Although you do have to pass a rigorous on/off-line test to become a celebrity including having presence on atleast 3 of the following - Linkedin, Facebook, Flickr, Tumblr, Blogger, Wordpress, Twitter, YouTube and so on but lets face it you should be on all. Having followers and this is pretty big as the more you have the brighter your star will shine. If you can quote lines from Simpsons, Dr Who or other current Animation, Sci Fi and Fantasy TV that helps. The more acronyms you can run off the better too such as CSS, HTML, SEO, UI, RSS and so on (See I can only do 5). Plus the more gadgets you carry the better so if you are just a laptoper you are boring but if you also have an ipad, iphone, Blackberry or notebook much better, if you have all that's supreme.
They are also one of the most highly opinionated set of people I have ever met so if you love debate this is a great forum for it.
Anyway I am hoping I am getting closer to becoming one with my geek-side and entering this world 100%. I think the penny is even starting to drop as words like HTML, Pinging, Wireframing, SEO and so on are all making sense now. The question remains though — is my original online name "totaltanya" now naff and too nineties?
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