The story of the Alta Vista party at SXSW

Uncategorized 1 Minute

We were tired of waiting in line for the Google party at SXSW. So, what did we do? We went to Twitter, just like CNET said.

Who throws the best “unofficial” SXSW parties? The same guy who throws the best “official” ones, of course!

Scott Beale!

What did he do last night after getting tired of waiting in the Google line?

He found a bar that was empty. Sat down in the back. And Twittered “Alta Vista Party at Ginger Man.” In the video I shot of the Google Line, you see Francine Hardaway as she found out about Scott’s party and follow us as we walk down to Scott’s party. At the end of the video you see Scott Beale explaining the whole thing.

We were among the first eight there. Soon there was 50 or so. Gotta love Twitter!

Why “Alta Vista?” Well, Alta Vista is the search engine that Google basically relegated to a footnote in history (it was #1 back when Google was born).

Of course Scott got revenge. The line for his party later in the evening was even longer than the one to get into the Google Party. Which, of course, he apologized for on Twitter.

Advertisements

Published by Robert Scoble

I give you a front-row seat on the future. Focusing most of my efforts now on next-generation augmented reality and artificial intelligence, AKA "mixed reality." SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER: http://clevermoe.com/scobleizer-news/ BUY OUR NEW BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/Fourth-Transformation-Robert-Scoble/dp/1539894444 "The Fourth Transformation: How augmented reality and artificial intelligence will change everything." WATCH MY LATEST SPEECHES: State of VR with Philip Rosedale (done in VR itself, very cool): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zAA1EVGUZU At GEOINT, June 2017: http://trajectorymagazine.com/glimpse-new-world/ Augmented World Expo, June 2017: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4xHILvLD8E At Leade.rs, April 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI +++++++++++ BIO: Scoble gives you a front-row seat on the future. Literally. He had the first ride in the first Tesla. Siri was launched in his house. He's been the first to share all sorts of technologies and companies with you, from Flipboard to Pandora to Instagram. Today he's focusing on mixed reality, AKA "next-generation augmented reality" which will include a new user interface for EVERYTHING in your life (IoT, Smart Cities, driverless cars, robots, drones, etc). That's based on his view thanks to his past experience as futurist at Rackspace. Best place to find Scoble? On his Facebook profile at https://www.facebook.com/RobertScoble He has been a technology blogger since 2000, was one of five people who built Microsoft's Channel 9 video blog/community, worked at Fast Company Magazine running its TV efforts, and has been part of technology media businesses since 1993. ++++++++ SPEAKER PITCH: Apple and Facebook now have revealed their Augmented Reality strategies, which means your business needs one too. Rely on Robert Scoble, the world's top authority on AR, to bring to your conference what businesses should do next. SPEECH ABSTRACT #1: TITLE: The Fourth Transformation: What's next in mixed reality (AR and AI) and the future of technology? Here's an example of this talk at Leade.rs in Paris in April, 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI Why "the Fourth Transformation?" Soon we will have phones and glasses that do full on augmented reality. Everything you look at will potentially be augmented. This world is coming in late 2017 with a new iPhone from Apple, amongst other products. Microsoft is betting everything on its HoloLens glasses that do mixed reality and the industry is spending many billions of dollars in R&D and funding new companies like Magic Leap. This future will be the user interface for IoT, Smart Cities, autonomous cars, robots, drones, and your TV. This is a big deal and Robert will take you through what mixed reality is and how it will change every business. Learn more about Robert's speaking style and contact his agent at http://odemanagement.com/robert-scoble/Robert-Scoble.html ++++++++ SPEECH ABSTRACT #2: "The Next Two Clicks of Moore's Law." Over the next four years, or two clicks of Moore's Law, a ton about our technology world will change. Scoble will bring you the best from his travels visiting R&D labs, startups, and innovators around the world. He views the world through his rose-colored-mixed-reality glasses, which will be the new user interface for self driving cars, Smart Cities, IoT, and many other things in our world. He'll send you off with some lessons for companies both large and small. ++++++++ SPEECH ABSTRACT #3: "Personalized Meaning: What is Augmented Reality For?" As we enter a far more technological world where even cars drive themselves, I predict we'll see a blowback toward the analog, more authentic world. What role does augmented reality play in both worlds? Get Scoble's insight into where augmented reality is going, see tons of real-world demos, and understand what he means by 'personalized meaning.' CONTACT: If you are looking to contact me, email is best: scobleizer@gmail.com. ++++++++ ENDORSEMENTS: IZEA Top 25 Tech Influencers: https://izea.com/2017/07/07/25-top-tech-influencers/ Time: One of the top 140 Twitterers! FT: One of the five most influential Twitterers! Inc. Top 5 on list of Tech Power Players You Need to Know: http://www.inc.com/john-rampton/30-power-players-in-tech-you-need-to-know.html Next Reality: #4 on top 50 AR influencer list: https://next.reality.news/news/nr50-next-realitys-50-people-watch-augmented-mixed-reality-0177454/

Published

32 thoughts on “The story of the Alta Vista party at SXSW”

  9. Very funny!

    I love how this sort of proves that social media competes with search engines!

    When people are looking for something to DO – social media connects trusted sources of information (a Tweet from a friend/follows) that tromps any monolithic algorhythm of Page Ranking (the party list).

    The social aspect of Twitter (friends tweeting friends) meant probably that the coolest people arrived earliest — which is an in real life example of the social filter beating out Google’s policies (represented by the bouncer/list keeprr).

    Best,

    Gib

    PS: AltaVista is always on my list for Babelfish, which seems slightly better at translation than Google’s tools.

    PS2: relegate is a great word.

    Like

  10. Very funny!

    I love how this sort of proves that social media competes with search engines!

    When people are looking for something to DO – social media connects trusted sources of information (a Tweet from a friend/follows) that tromps any monolithic algorhythm of Page Ranking (the party list).

    The social aspect of Twitter (friends tweeting friends) meant probably that the coolest people arrived earliest — which is an in real life example of the social filter beating out Google’s policies (represented by the bouncer/list keeprr).

    Best,

    Gib

    PS: AltaVista is always on my list for Babelfish, which seems slightly better at translation than Google’s tools.

    PS2: relegate is a great word.

    Like

  11. Pingback: Organizing Spontaneous Parities at SXSW via Twitter | Laughing Squid

  14. The Austin Zealots brewclub was also at GM that night. But they went in the front because of all the bird droppings. When locals tell you not to sit under a tree, it’s a sign…
    (The tweets convinced me to go to GM but I hung out with the brewcrowd. Still got a chance to chat with Merlin Mann.)

    Like

  15. The Austin Zealots brewclub was also at GM that night. But they went in the front because of all the bird droppings. When locals tell you not to sit under a tree, it’s a sign…
    (The tweets convinced me to go to GM but I hung out with the brewcrowd. Still got a chance to chat with Merlin Mann.)

    Like

  16. A “footnote in history”? Robert, that’s a bit harsh. Couldn’t you have gone with something like “a now largely forgotten *chapter* in history”?

    How soon we forget even the roots of Altavista — which grew out of DEC (“Digital Equipment Corporation”) once the second largest computer company in the world but now also largely forgotten.

    bob wyman

    Like

  17. A “footnote in history”? Robert, that’s a bit harsh. Couldn’t you have gone with something like “a now largely forgotten *chapter* in history”?

    How soon we forget even the roots of Altavista — which grew out of DEC (“Digital Equipment Corporation”) once the second largest computer company in the world but now also largely forgotten.

    bob wyman

    Like

  18. The sad tale of AltaVista is one that every startup should study.

    Great technology for its day – but short sighted people who never saw the potential of search.

    Wonder how much politics and egos had to do with their decline.

    Ironically, brin and page were encouraged to invent Google because they discovered that one could use the LINK: operator in Altavista.

    It was bizarre when the man who oversaw AltaVista’s decline was hired by Yahoo – who also declined in search share

    Like

  19. The sad tale of AltaVista is one that every startup should study.

    Great technology for its day – but short sighted people who never saw the potential of search.

    Wonder how much politics and egos had to do with their decline.

    Ironically, brin and page were encouraged to invent Google because they discovered that one could use the LINK: operator in Altavista.

    It was bizarre when the man who oversaw AltaVista’s decline was hired by Yahoo – who also declined in search share

    Like

  28. That altavista party was the best one I went to. Free beer was good too of course! See, it does pay to stalk people on twitter (thanks laughingsquid!)

    Like

  29. That altavista party was the best one I went to. Free beer was good too of course! See, it does pay to stalk people on twitter (thanks laughingsquid!)

    Like

  30. Pingback: Fortune On The Increasing Role of Social Media at Conferences | Laughing Squid
  31. Pingback: Gelatobaby » Blog Archive » South By South…what?
  32. Pingback: Finally, a use for twitter. « Jarrod Morgan | The SlamBlog

Comments are closed.