Tech finds its place at SXSWi (roundup)

As the Web generation descends on the South by Southwest Interactive show in Austin, AT&T's network actually works, Twitter announces its @Anywhere platform, Facebook focuses on games, and Digg unveils a revamp.

The future of in-car computing technology

At SXSWi, a Ford systems engineer opines on what consumers may be able to expect in terms of hardware/software platforms in their cars five years from now.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 18, 2010 2:56 p.m. PDT

Devo 2.0, the Internet start-up--take it seriously

Devo's presentation at SXSWi was a no-doubt-about it business pitch, yet it was so silly that people were nearly falling out of their seats.
• Q&A: Devo on the fate of the world--and Chatroulette
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 17, 2010 10:00 a.m. PDT

At SXSWi, Twitter may finally have met its match

No question Twitter is still huge here, but Foursquare and Gowalla have to be considered a major part of people's organizing principle.
• No big announcement at Spotify's SXSWi talk
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 16, 2010 1:16 p.m. PDT

Twitter CEO unveils '@Anywhere' platform

The microblogging company's big news at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival is its new way to integrate Twitter data into partner sites.
• Twitter's @Anywhere ID registered in late '07
• Is Twitter aiming at Facebook Connect?
• Lackluster Twitter CEO keynote leads many to bail
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 15, 2010 12:41 p.m. PDT

Rival parties square off at SXSWi

It was a big game of showmanship as Foursquare and Gowalla threw their rival parties at the annual Austin, Texas festival on the same night.
• SXSWi party wars: Foursquare vs. Gowalla (photos)
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 16, 2010 8:56 a.m. PDT

SXSW 2D bar code badge system confuses many

Designed to help SXSW attendees exchange profiles with smartphone scans, the bar code badge system is seen by many as requiring too many steps. However, it's likely a first step toward something better next year.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 16, 2010 6:00 a.m. PDT

A waterfall of Pepsi at SXSWi

The beverage giant has reached out to the social-media crowd like nothing else. So what does it hope to get out of its SXSWi marketing blitz?
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 15, 2010 10:34 a.m. PDT

Mog's music service comes to iPhone, Android

Already a subscription service on the Web, the company will launch radio- and playlist-focused apps for the iPhone and Android platforms this spring.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 15, 2010 9:49 a.m. PDT

Inside NASA's high-stakes Hubble repair mission

The new "IMAX: Hubble 3D" film--shown at SXSW--details the risks and rewards of keeping the Hubble Space Telescope functional.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 15, 2010 6:00 AM PDT

Mashup mocks SXSWi's 'geo' obsession, gender imbalance

Two Digg employees have built "Wheretheladies.at," a relatively simple map mashup that tries to figure out which South by Southwest venues are populated by the most females.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 14, 2010 5:59 p.m. PDT

At SXSWi, Facebook flexes its gaming muscle

The social network's annual developer get-together as part of the South by Southwest Interactive Festival focused on how it can bring its Facebook Connect technology to gamers on disparate platforms.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 14, 2010 1:35 p.m. PDT

Shirky: Napster tapped into our primate instincts

We don't want to share goods, but we want to share information, the NYU professor says at a SXSWi talk, and Napster transformed music into information.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 14, 2010 10:36 a.m. PDT

'Faster,' 'instant' Digg 2.0 unveiled at SXSW

Digg CEO Jay Adelson surprises the audience by announcing a revamped version of the service with a big slate of new features.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 14, 2010 12:51 a.m. PDT

#OMGConan: The big Digg party Twitter hoax

Word begins spread on Twitter like wildfire that Conan O'Brien was joining Internet TV network Revision3. But it was actually a hoax that hundreds participated in.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 13, 2010 11:35 p.m. PST

Privacy is not dead, says SXSWi keynoter Boyd

Recent PR debacles surrounding Google Buzz and Facebook's privacy settings have put the spotlight on basic misunderstandings by tech companies about how people use social media.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 13, 2010 5:06 p.m. PST

Selling a car the iPod way

Chevy is hoping to tap into the same sentiments that spark gadget fandom with its new Volt electric car. But is the crowd at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival the right audience?
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 13, 2010 3:24 p.m. PST

AT&T's network up to SXSW iPhone onslaught

After last year's network meltdown at the hands of thousands of iPhone-toting geeks at the interactive confab in Austin, Texas, AT&T promised it would do better. People were skeptical, but they've been won over.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 13, 2010 2:47 p.m. PST

@ScrewYouSXSW vents at absent husband

We might never know if a Twitter feed purporting to be by a woman left behind on her anniversary weekend by her SXSW-bound husband is real.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 12, 2010 6:40 p.m. PST

Emergency alarm evacuates convention center

Was it a glitch or a mischievous prankster who pulled the fire alarm during the South by Southwest Interactive Festival? Or is it a sign that everyone should just head to happy hour?
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 12, 2010 3:25 p.m. PST

Drowning in ads at SXSWi

Marketers are everywhere at the annual digital-culture fest. It sort of makes your face start to melt a little bit.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 12, 2010 1:43 p.m. PST

Let the geolocation games begin

The competition will be particularly fierce at the annual digital-culture bash between Foursquare and Gowalla, rival social-media services that want to own the location-based networking market.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 10, 2010 4:00 a.m.

Too busy at SXSW to RSVP? No problem

Maybe it's a sign of SXSW excess or perhaps it's a prank, but RSVP While You Sleep is advertising a $37 service that tasks overseas virtual assistants with responding to your party invites.
(Posted in Geek Gestalt by Daniel Terdiman)
March 12, 2010 6:00 a.m.

In geolocation wars, SXSWi is mere skirmish

The rivalry between Gowalla and Foursquare might seem to define the nascent geolocation market. Hold your horses: Let's see what Facebook is cooking up.
• Foursquare unveils its SXSWi arsenal
• Gowalla debuts Travel Channel deal, Android app
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 10, 2010 12:39 p.m.

Wear Stickybit on your sleeve, or elsewhere

One of the start-ups hoping to make a splash at this year's South by Southwest Interactive Festival is Stickybits, a set of bar code stickers that you can "tag" with anything.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 11, 2010 5:00 a.m.

For SXSWi, Chevy plugs into social media

An ambitious load of marketing initiatives from the GM division, which is preparing to launch its Volt electric car, emphasizes that brands increasingly see the digital-culture fest as a place to test campaigns.
(Posted in The Social by Caroline McCarthy)
March 9, 2010 7:19 a.m.