London Geek Dinner

This post isn't much to do with canals or waterways, and if you don't know your blogs from your podcasts, switch off briefly to avoid boredom.  It would be a bit like Waterways World dedicating an issue to the world of journalism.  I'll be back to normal tomorrow, don't worry. 

Last night in London I attended the Geek Dinner, a party for a hundred or so new media enthusiasts at the Texas Cantina near Trafalgar Square.  These are people who, like me, love communicating via blogs and podcasts, and all the twiddly new bits of what has been called 'the conversational web', or 'web two dot oh'. 

I've tried to make Granny Buttons a 'global microbrand'.  That is, a very, very small, and very specialist name, but valid worldwide.  Not big, not authoritative, but honest and trusted. One of the keys to doing this is to make sure you only write about your specialist subject, which for me is the British canals and waterways.  I'm straying a bit from the waterways right now, but I wanted to mention the people who gave me the time of day last night...

Hugh McCleod is the former ad executive and now 'new media' consultant who organised yesterday's gathering, and coined the term 'global microbrand'.  He believes that even if your market might be small, you should stick to it, using the new tools like blogs, and you'll be trusted and followed all the more.  All around the world, in fact; you can sell yourself anywhere.  He's persuaded a few small businesses to do it, and it's transformed them. His microbrands include English Cut (the tailor, not the canals) and Stormhoek wines. He seems hospitable enough, but I found him a bit intimidating and serious, and not approachable to shy strangers. I never saw him smile once the whole evening.

Robert Scoble is Hugh's Jekyll.  'The Scobleizer' is the Microsoft blogger who was the figurehead of tonight's dinner. His own 'microbrand' is Channel 9.  The original 'Channel 9' is what the Americans call the radio link between the pilot and the control tower, and his theme is that if you (the user, the buyer) understand what's happening within the company (e.g. the big corporation) you'll come away with more confidence. But since he takes Bill Gates' shilling, I guess he's the macrobrand yang to Hugh McLeod's microbrand yin.

Robert introduced me to a Chinese blogger, who's name I didn't catch.  Or perhaps his name really was Hu and I did catch it.  As a kid in the 1950s in colonial Trinidad I remember we used to live next to a Chinese diplomat called Dr Hu, and he worked for UNO.  Kevin Wen, whom he referred to as one of the leading Chinese bloggers.  Kevin smiled warmly and shook my hand but said nothing.  I therefore assumed he (Kevin) was fresh off the plane from Shanghai and didn't speak English.  In fact his blog shows he lives in Austin (Texas), he's half my age and just as - quite likely more - literate.  Certainly better educated. Likee speechee? 

Scoble is indefatigably enthusiastic, and is followed worldwide (well, not literally) by tens of thousands of people.  Last night he was followed by (literally) tens, but I found him incredibly approachable, and puppy-dog friendly, darting everywhere in the room, not missing a chat with anyone who wanted it. 

It's lucky Robert doesn't have a tail, or he'd knock over drinks every time he turned around in a bar!  He blogs like he talks, with charm, authenticity and contagious enthusiasm.  And - have you noticed? - he resembles a cross between Robert Redford and a Kennedy.

Danny Sullivan is the independent specialist in internet search whose Search Engine Watch was invaluable in my early efforts to understand how to make Google find Granny Buttons, even when I didn't have much to say. 

I didn't have much to say to Danny last night either, except 'thanks for all you've taught me'.  I'd be out of my depth in SEO to say much more. I was intrigued to hear that Californian Danny has married England, and he now lives in rural Wiltshire. I guess you don't need to live anywhere in particular to be an expert on web search, but somehow I figured that he'd be camping on Google's doorstep.

"In the future of blogging, everybody will be famous for fifteen people", is the latest joke.  I didn't really 'clock' many of the big names there, because in the blog world there aren't many famous people.  You only know the people you need to know. 

Some who caught my ear and eye:  Sven Latham (whose Blogwise blog directory is pretty authoritative, not least because it includes Granny!)  Neil Dixon runs Britcaster, doing much the same as Sven, but for podcasting.  Neil introduced Regularjen, his pretty "email order bride" (her own term), and when she insisted on changing the Grannybuttons business card I gave her for one that was more 'her colour', I was charmed into calling her 'Superjen'.  Here's a pic of the trio, Sven on the right.

Tim Scarfe of dotnetsolutions heard about my market (waterways) and casually asked me how long it would take him to commute from Windsor to Paddington by boat.  Twice a week, I said, and his jaw dropped. But it's only twenty or so miles!, he pleaded.

Cary and Neil of Mydeo.  Cary's this gorgeous blonde who's offering to host your streaming videos for a nominal sum each month.  It could be a great deal, but none of my own videos feature her, unfortunately. She's even better in real life, wow. 

Token waterways link today:  I told Sven and Neil about Canalplan AC, the canal route plotter, and they both wrote down the web address unprompted.  It might not be a blog, nor anything to do with blogging, but Canalplan's Nick Atty is a one-man self-starting internet phenomenon, and that's right within the orbit of the London Geek Dinners.

Normal service resumed tomorrow.

Comments

[Richard]

Ooops - seem to have missed out the word 'group' from my comment there... I meant to say that I have a group for pictures from Saturday set up on Flickr if you'd like to add your set.

[Richard]

Great write up of the evening, and also a great set of pictures on Flickr (I did set up a for all the pictures if you want to add them).

I have to say I got a good laugh out of the caption on the one of our table - me and my wife were sat next to Dave Oliver, the birthday boy trying to hide his 'I am 40 badge'.

[Andrew Denny]

Well, regularjEN,I might even have been as complimentary of you as of the blonde I also mentioned, but then I wasn't standing next to her husband :-)

[jEN]

Awww, you're gonna make me blush! :) Thanks so much for the little write up and the absolutely stellar photos on your flickr account! You take a fine picture.

I did look up 'superjen' for a domain... available... hmmm... (In truth, I have an unused one of a similar name ilk, but domains are so cheap these days that I just might snap this one up too!)

It was great to meet you and I look forward to seeing you at another Geek Dinner.