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360iDev – Volunteer to help out and get in free

We realize that the economy still a little suck-tastic. As you may know we try to keep our events as cost effective as possible, 40 sessions, Sunday hands on. Hotel block pricing to help lower the cost of staying near the event, etc.

Sometimes it’s not enough, we get that. Back in September we experimented with having volunteers. We’ve had temps at past events (360|Flex San Jose ’07 and Seattle) and while that works ok, we tried to reduce the need, because that helped keep our costs low.

BUT

We’ve realized, time and again that we still need manpower at certain points, and in fact we’re planning to increase our need (More on that later).

Registration is a bottleneck, whether it’s just Tom and I, or my wife Nicole, or anyone else who pities us in our time of greatest need.

SO…

We’d like to open the call for volunteers. Obviously locals are preferred but anyone is welcome to apply. It’s simple, we need about 8-10 volunteers. In exchange for a few hours a day of time, you get a free pass to the conference and when we don’t need you, you’re free to attend sessions etc. We can’t cover hotel/airfare etc. Just admission to the event.

If the price to get in the door is outside your budget for whatever reason, this might be the perfect opportunity for you.

Here’s what you need to do.

Email us at info (AT) 360idev (Dot) com

We need:

Your Name

Why you’d like to volunteer

Your background in iPhone development

That’s about it :) You need to be able to commit to Sunday thru Wednesday and be at Ebay by 7:30am each day.

Our needs aren’t over the top or anything. We need help making the badge pickup/registration process faster. We hate having to delay the keynote in order to hand things out, etc.

We’re hoping to get some sort of basic videography set up for each room. As volunteer you’ll be in charge of starting and stopping the recording for that room, and telling the speaker when he/she has 10 and 5 minutes left. That’s it. After each session, you’ll have to bring the camera to us to offload the video, that’s it.

We’ve got a schedule worked out, so no one will be working all day every day.

We’ll be making volunteer selections the week of March 15th. Spread the word, the submission window isn’t open long!

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360iDev – Get your iPad Dev on!

So yeah, iPad this iPad that :) The best part of Apple’s new iPad, is that it runs the iPhone OS, that means our awesome speakers and attendees now have one more kick ass platform to write apps and games for.

That also means that 360|iDev is now THE event for developers writing apps for the iTouch, the iPhone, or the iPad. You won’t have to wait for WWDC, or for the next 360|iDev around the end of summer some time. You can get awesome iPad related sessions right now, this April.

We’ll be working with our speakers to update any presentations that make sense, to include iPad related materials, but right now we know for certain, Kendall Gelner, who’s delivering our Sunday Adv. Debugging session, will be leading a panel discussion on the iPad.

This panel will be awesome, how can it not be. 360|iDev falls right around when the iPad should begin shipping. That means there’s gonna be a lot to talk about!

We’ll keep you posted as we update more sessions to include iPad stuff.

Don’t miss out on the most technically deep conference for developers around. 40+ sessions, 40 speakers, 4 days, hands-on training. All for a really awesome price! Half the price of most training sessions, which only cover 1-2 things.

Register now! Don’t miss out!

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360iDev – The Speakers – Brian Robbins

I was grabbing a bite to eat at Sam’s #3 the other day when I ran into Brian Robbins. I met Brian for the first time at 360|iDev Denver, he was a speaker there, just like he is in San Jose.

Me: Hey Brian! How are you man?

Brian: (Sits across from me) Hey John! Grabbing some lunch? (I point to my Haystack, a totally yummy pile of Chili, cheese, and fritos) I’m good. Getting excited for San Jose, I can’t wait!

(Brian orders ‘Two Dogs WET’)

Me: What do you think people who attend your session will be most surprised by/about?

(I take a few bites of my Haystack. You can’t let these things sit too long. Chili and cheese and fritos don’t stay together long)

Brian: That in spite of all the hoopla and attention and stories of ridiculous success or failure, it is actually possible to build a solid business without having a big hit title.

Me: (Nodding) Totally, with what? hundreds of thousands of apps? A million? Not every app is gonna a mega publicity blockbuster. There’s a lot of people doing well that we probably don’t know. I think it’s good that developers here this stuff. What session are you most excited about, besides your own of course :)

Brian: (His dogs arrive, smothered in chili, one red, one green) Dave Whatley gave a great talk in Denver and Keith and Natialia have a lot of great information to share. As it stands right now those are probably the talks I’m looking forward to the most.

Me: David’s session was great last time! He’s a good guy, with a ton of great information to share!

(I finish off my haystack, and ask the server for a milkshake, they make a mean milkshake at Sams)

What are you most looking forward to at 360|iDev San Jose?

Brian:It’s a tie between getting to reconnect with all the great people I met in Denver and having fun at another Game Jam.

Me: The Game Jam is gonna be off the hook! Touch Arcade is sponsoring, so it’s gonna be even better than Denver!

(My milkshake arrives. mmmm mmmm)

What would you tell someone that was on the fence about attending 360|iDev to convince them to come?

Brian: (His plate is clean, a common phenomenon at Sam’s) First climb down off the fence, there’s no reason to put yourself in harm’s way like that. Once your feet are firmly planted back on the ground go get your ticket to 360iDev. 360iDev Denver was easily the best iPhone conference I went to last year and I expect San Jose to be just as good.

Me: Better, much, much better! (We both laugh and toast, me with my milkshake and Brian with his water)

Brian: I better get a move on, busy day. Was awesome to bump into you John! (He stands and starts to walk toward the register)

Me: Oh hey Brian! Who do you think would win? Lion Voltron or Vehicle Voltron?

Brian: (Without even pausing) Lion Voltron every time without question.

Don’t miss out! 360|iDev will be awesome this April! It’s gonna be a blast, we promise you’ll be telling us you’ve gotten your money’s worth by Monday night! Register now, don’t miss out!










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360iDev – Speaker Chat – Nathan Eror

Join us next Tuesday at 11am MST for a cool live chat with San Jose speaker Nathan Eror.

You can sign into Adobe Connect on Tuesday using this URL.

The chats are open to anyone who’d like to hop in. Feel free to ask about his session at 360|iDev San Jose, iPhone Development, dragons, whatever you want.

Don’t miss this great opportunity to chat with speakers before 360|iDev!!

If you haven’t registered for 360|iDev yet, use this link! It’ll help Nathan in our Speakers get a Fly Suite contest. The speaker who gets the most registrations from their link, get’s a kick ass room upgrade.

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360iDev – The Speakers – Marcus Zarra

I was at Cocoaheads the other night, and Marcus had come up from Colorado Springs to attend, and sign some books.

We got to chatting a little bit about 360|iDev (Of course!)

Me: You’re speaking in San Jose right (He nods) which 360|iDev was your first?

Marcus: Denver this past year.

Me: Ah nice. You’ll like San Jose, it’s a great place, Ebay has an awesome campus.  What do you think people who attend your session will be most surprised by/about?
(One of the other cocoaheads comes over, book in hand, kinda gushing, but that’s to be expected and Marcus handles it with aplomb. He signs the book, chats a bit about Core Data and turns back to me)

Marcus: The ease of use of the API I am presenting and how valuable it is to the iPhone community.

Me: (nodding) I’m a nut for synchronization. Regardless of the situation, i want data in sync, whether it’s shopping lists, contacts, or whatever. What session are you most excited about, besides your own of course :)

(Another cocoahead comes over, i don’t recall seeing him earlier. He looks like an Android developer. He holds out his copy of Marcus’ book for signing, asks that it be made out to Sergey…. weird)

Marcus: (Handing the book back to Sergey) Nathan’s talk on Core Animation, Brent Simmons on best practices, Ashley Streb on team development

Me: All good choices, great guys too, that always helps.

(We order more beer, after all it’s a cocoaheads meeting)

What are you most looking forward to at 360|iDev San Jose?

Marcus: The networking. It is always great to meet the other iPhone developers in the community and share a conversation with them. You never know what is going to come out of it but it is always interesting.

Me: (nodding vigorously) Yeah the presentations are awesome, and we strive for the best tech talks around, but the awesome is often the community interaction. Meeting new friends, business partners, publishers, etc. You can’t put a price on that aspect of the event.
(Marcus nods)
What would you tell someone that was on the fence about attending 360|iDev to convince them to come?
Marcus: (takes a sip of his beer, buying some time to think. He’s probably finding more PC words than the expletives that come to mind for these fence sitters)
That if they want to be a part of the iPhone community and not just an iPhone developer, they need to be there.
Me: Well said. Anyone can start coding, buy a book, etc. but to get the most out of the experience and process of being an iPhone developer, get involved in the community. No one can exist and thrive in a vacuum.
(The meeting is wrapping up, every is paying their tabs)
So who do you think would win in a fight? Lion Voltron or Vehicle Voltron?
Marcus: (Not even needing a second to think) Lion, without a doubt.

Whether you’re new to the iPhone community, or been here a while, you’ll be kicking yourself for missing 360|iDev San Jose. It’s gonna kick ass. Join Marcus, Brent, Ashley, Nathan and almost 40 other speakers in San Jose for the best iPhone conference around. Register now! Don’t miss out!






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360iDev – get your twitter avatar Ribbon

Show some love! Throw a cute little 360|iDev ‘twibbon’ (Hate that term!) up on your twitter avatar.

Create a special Twitter avartar on http://www.avartize.com/jwilker/

Not registered yet? Why wait? Register now for the best iPhone Developer conference around! Register now!

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360iDev – Lots of cool Sunday Hands-On options

If you haven’t checked the schedule yet for 360|iDev, you should, and you should make sure to take a look at the Sunday Hands-On stuff.

Check out and subscribe to the gCal (iCal) feed. You won’t get more up to date information anywhere else.

As always Sunday will be a busy day. Included in your registration you can pick from any of these awesome hands on options. If you’ve already registered, just send us an email and we’ll update your registration.

  • 9am – 5pm : Kendall Gelner – Advanced Debugging
  • 9am – 12pm : Joe Keeley – Intro to Quartz 2D
  • 1pm – 5pm : Jeff LaMarche – Open GL ES for the absolute beginner
  • 9am – 5pm : Appcelerator Hands-On with Titanium, and Hack Lab in the afternoon.
  • And quite likely one more, that we haven’t confirmed, but will be awesome (trust me)

As you can see, lots to keep you busy on Sunday, so plan on arriving in time to hit these up. I mean, Sunday basically turns 360|iDev into a 4 day conference, for a crazy low price.

Register now! there’s still a few of the cheaper “early” tickets left, but not many!





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360|iDev – The Speakers – Ashley Streb

I met Ashley in Denver at 360|iDev Denver 2009, it was his first 360|iDev.

I was hanging out at an In-N-Out a few days ago and guess who walks in. Ashley Streb.

Me: Hey dude! How are you?

Ashley: Oh hey John! I”m good you? Mind some company?

(I put my Double Double Animal Style down)

Me: Of course not, go get your food and have a seat.

(Ashley goes and places his order. Thankfully the mysterious rush that often hits In-N-Outs at random times through-out the day, had just passed.)

(he sits across from me)

Me: So… Excited about San Jose? (He nods) What do you think people who attend your session will be most surprised by/about?

Ashley: My representation of engineering excellence through interpretive dance. Also, how easy it is to integrate Xcode into automated code coverage checks should be pretty nifty.

(I put my burger down, so I wouldn’t drop it, laughing as hard as I was)

Me: awesome! Will you need anything special for the dance? pieces of lace or sheer fabric, a baton or something? (I smile, he laughs) I’ll have to make sure to pop my head into your session. ha!

The code stuff sounds good too of course. I can’t wait so see how you interpret function names.

What session are you most excited about, besides your own of course

Ashley: (he gets up when they call his order and comes back with a double double protein style, Fries well done, animal style and a neapolitan shake) 200 – Jonathan Saggau – I can has coverflow? Exploring third party libraries that closely mimic Apple’s UI.

(My own fries well done are calling my name so I munch a few of those.)

Me: (finishing my chew) What are you most looking forward to at 360|iDev San Jose?

(I’ve never understood the Protein style. Meat wrapped in lettuce leafs. Really? )

Ashley: The entreprenurial vibe and excitement around the iPhone platform!

(He takes a bite of lettuce wrapped beefy goodness)

Me: Yeah iPhone devs are a great group and very entrepreneurial. Get a game idea, start a company do their thing. What would you tell someone that was on the fence about attending 360|iDev to convince them to come?

Ashley: (between bites of fries, and a shake chaser) Fool.

(I wait for more, but no, that’s it. Can’t say I disagree, though I try to refrain from calling people… no, no I don’t. If you’re an iPhone developer, it’d be foolish to miss 360|iDev. I agree with Ashley)

Me: Fo’ Shizzle.

(we’re gathering up our wrappers, and such so I ask)

Who’d win? Lion Voltron or Vehicle Voltron?

Assley: (First he kills his shake and tosses the cup) I’m more nostalgic for lion voltron, but when vehicle voltron forms he looks like a super duper bad ass ninja. I think Vehicle voltron would dominate.

Me: He does have helicopter blades.
Don’t miss Ashley’s talk, and his interpretive dance. Register now before the price goes up! Don’t miss the only iPhone developer conference, that’s exclusively iPhone.
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360idev – Happy Holidays to all!

We want to wish all our iPhone developing friends out there a happy holiday! It’s almost new years, and we’re crazy excited for what 2010 is gonna bring.

Don’t think there won’t be talk of iTablets at 360|iDev. Maybe not San Jose, but the late summer show for sure. It’s gonna be awesome. ;-)

Sure it’s anecdotal, but if attendance from the first to second 360|iDev is any indication, the iPhone developer community is growing like crazy.

The next 360|iDev is coming up fast, and we hope to see all our friends in San Jose, and hope to make  a ton more!

Let’s rock 2010 harder than we rocked 2009!.

If you haven’t checked the schedule, you should. Also make sure to check the speakers page. That’s some serious star power! We’re gonna have a Game Jam like we did in Denver, we’ve got sponsors lining up parties, it’s gonna be good stuff.

See you all in 2010!!

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360iDev – Official Logo!

logo

Keyvisuals_SquareLogoWe’ve been a little behind getting a logo for iDev, but here it is! Thanks to Chris Borrello at Keyvisuals

We’ll post speaker and attendee badges in the next day or two, yeah speakers will be announced in the next day or two as well, coincidence…? Actually yes, but it worked out ok :)

We sent the schedule around to some folks to make sure we got it right, and one of the comments back was “Dude, that seriously looks awesome!   I mean great stuff in there!”

That’s a great feeling when the schedule illicit’s that kind of response.

Stay tuned for more, but for now, enjoy the logo :)

Make sure to register now before the early cheap tickets run out. After they sell out, you won’t find a cheaper deal! Don’t miss it, spend that 2009 budget before you lose ;)

Register now!