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web 2.0 expo 2008

Jonathan Schwartz's Twitter Q&A posted

Better late than never, as the saying goes.

On Saturday, O'Reilly Media's Tim O'Reilly put up a blog entry with a series of answers from Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz that were in response to Twittered questions from the audience at their Friday morning keynote address at the Web 2.0 Expo.

The post was a result of O'Reilly's having offered the audience at the keynote address the ability to ask questions of Schwartz via Twitter, but subsequently not posing any of those questions.

Afterward, O'Reilly offered a mea culpa on CNET News.com … Read more

Why it's time to dump the Web 2.0 sobriquet once and for all

Maybe it's a throwback to my childhood recollections of "duck and cover" school drills, but this nuclear winter Andreessen thing is still rattling around in my head.

First, the gloomy view: The economy is slowing down and so what's up with the increasingly pointless me-too social-networking apps getting link love these days on Techmeme? They're cute, but outside of the echo chamber regulars, who really cares? Let's be frank: The world does not need another social news aggregator or online scheduling assistant.

Now, the slightly more optimistic view: This isn't the first time … Read more

Web 2.0 Expo wrap-up video

The Web 2.0 orgy known as Web 2.0 Expo being finally over, Josh and I thought it'd be good to pick out the most interesting new products and services on display here.

You'll find two of our picks fairly obvious (watch the video to see them), but I bet a lot of people will be confused by our third pick, AirSet. This is a virtualization product. It's a complete cloud PC that you can pour calendar info, Web sites, wikis, blogs, etc., into. Who needs it? That's a good question, and the company's … Read more

The six secrets to mobile computing success

There are six things that developers need to keep in mind when developing for mobile computers, six things that don't necessarily come into play when thinking about PCs.

That's how Ben Bederson and John SanGiovanni, co-founders of Zumobi, described their philosophies of mobile computing: immediacy, adaptability, one-handed use, visual elegance, put the user in control, and thinking differently. The two engineers hosted a session during the waning days of the Web 2.0 Expo for Web developers interested in making products for smartphones, mobile Internet devices, or whatever convention we settle on to describe the next generation of … Read more

Google's pointers on countering Web spam

SAN FRANCISCO--It's no secret that spam now pollutes Web sites as well as e-mail in-boxes. But Web site operators can take actions to combat it, a Google expert in the area said Friday.

Matt Cutts, head of Google's Webspam team and an engineer who's been working on the problem for eight years, offered some tips about combating it during a speech at the Web 2.0 Expo here.

"Spammers are human," Cutts said. "You have the power to raise their blood pressure. Make them spend more time and effort...If spammer gets frustrated, he'… Read more

Fake Steve Jobs lights up Web 2.0 Expo

SAN FRANCISCO--If there's one person in the world of Web 2.0 technology--or tech in general--who hasn't yet been skewered by the infamous blogger Fake Steve Jobs, get ready: He's coming for you.

In a frenetic keynote address Friday morning at the Web 2.0 Expo here, Fake Steve--otherwise known as Forbes writer Dan Lyons--gave his unique take on the world of technology, the people who drive it, and the future of media.

Fake Steve began his talk with a discussion about the issues related to surviving backlash from audience members at conferences. I was rather pleased … Read more

O'Reilly invites Twitter questions at Web 2.0, doesn't ask them

Update: This story now reflects Tim O'Reilly's mea culpa for not asking audience questions sent in via Twitter.

SAN FRANCISCO--After all the hooplah over interactivity--or lack thereof--during keynote speeches at the South by Southwest Interactive conference in March, I've been thinking a lot about how conferences can incorporate the backchannel.

That's why I was pleasantly surprised to see Tim O'Reilly, who runs O'Reilly Media, which is the co-organizer of the Web 2.0 Expo here, invite the audience for his keynote conversation with Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz to Twitter him questions to ask … Read more

Jonathan Schwartz: A top blogger sees end to blogging

SAN FRANCISCO--Sun Chief Executive Jonathan Schwartz rightly gets credit for pioneering the corporate blog as a tool to reach customers, employees, and others. But pretty soon the novelty of his methods will wear off, he predicted.

"At some point the word 'blogging' will be anachronistic," Schwartz said at the Web 2.0 Expo here in San Francisco. "I communicate."

And he predicted, in effect, that the rest of the executive world will catch up. "Historically, communication took place by being a celebrity CEO who met with heads of state, and got the local media to … Read more

The Web 2.0 economy hangs in limbo

This post was updated at 10:11 AM on Friday with comment from Chi.mp's Myles Weissleder.

SAN FRANCISCO--Wednesday night was a wild one.

As part of this week's Web 2.0 Expo, the ubiquitous digital-media blog Mashable enlisted a brand-new social-media site called Chi.mp to sponsor its all-night bash at a cavernous nightclub called Mighty. The open bar was flowing, the dance floor was seeing plenty of attention (a rarity at a tech industry party), and young women left and right were posing for photos with snappily-dressed Mashable overlord Pete Cashmore and numerous Chi.mp-branded trucker … Read more