Monthly Archive for February, 2009

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Is your head still spinning from the great ideas you saw and heard at Ignite Portland 5? Did you have so much fun that you can’t wait to do it again? Were you inspired to Share a Burning Idea at the next Ignite Portland?

If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, we have good news for you. Ignite Portland 6 is scheduled for July 16, 2009. And our talk idea submission form is open for you to let that burning idea out of your head and into the world.

When we opened submissions for IP5 immediately after IP4, we saw a surge of talk ideas submitted right away – we figure lots of people were saying to themselves “I should TOTALLY do a talk on (insert favorite topic here)!”. If that’s you, head over to the submission page and give us a description of your idea (don’t worry, you can flesh it out more later).

Want to “wow” and impress the selection team? Be creative! Hack the format! Record a video of yourself pitching the idea, and put the link in your submission. Show us what you’ve got, and you just might be on stage at Ignite Portland 6. Fame, glory, and bacon* could be yours! (Note: OK, maybe no bacon.)

Mark your calendars, and we’ll see you all at the Bagdad on July 16!

It’s almost time! As has become tradition, here’s a list of things to keep in mind to get the most possible enjoyment out of your Ignite Portland 5 experience tomorrow (!) night. We’re super excited – this should be the best Ignite Portland yet!

Dos and Don’ts

• DO remember to bring your ticket. Either print it out (if you’re into the old fashioned dead tree token kind of thing), or display it on the screen of your iPhone/other mobile device of choice (much better!) for the nice volunteers checking tickets at the door. Ticketholders get in starting at 5:15 5:30 PM, and at 6:00 6:15 PM, your ticket turns into a pumpkin, and we open the doors to General Admission (update: fixed a time discrepancy).

• DON’T freak out if you don’t have a ticket, and still want to come. We reserved lots of seats for General Admission, and last time, everyone got in just fine. Come down early to get a good spot in the GA line.
• DO “give up” your ticket if you reserved one, but aren’t going to make it, so someone on the ticket waitlist can use it instead. Go to the Ticket page, and click on Request Help to send a note saying that you’d like to turn your ticket in. Make sure to include the name and email address you used when you reserved your ticket.
• DO Take pictures, tweet, and blog about the event. Remember to use the tags #ip5 or “igniteportland” so we can all find the great stuff you create.
• DON’T be a jerk, and boo or heckle any of the sponsors. It’s not cool to act that way towards the people who paid for the seat you’re sitting in. ‘Nuff said.
• DO make sure you’re following @igniteportland on Twitter the night of the event. That will be our main channel for up-to-the-minute updates like how long the lines are, and any other important stuff. You may consider turning on SMS/device updates for @igniteportland just for the night.
• DON’T forget to have fun! Socialize, mingle, meet new people, connect people’s faces to their Twitter handles, laugh, and have a good time.
• DO be thinking about ideas for the Ignite talk you want to give at Ignite Portland 6. We know you have burning ideas in your head. Let them out and share them with the rest of us!

Live Video Stream

We’ve tried this before, with mixed results, but this time we’ve got a good feeling about the live video stream for the event. We can’t make any guarantees, but if for some reason you’re not able to come down to the Bagdad to enjoy IP5 in person, we should have a good video stream for you to participate remotely. Stay tuned to the blog and @igniteportland for the URL of the stream when it’s ready.

Keep Ignite Portland Green

We want to make special mention of the efforts that have gone into making Ignite Portland a green, earth-friendly event. Here’s Liz Grover:

Ignite is greening up by providing recycling bins near the refreshment table in the lobby. Please do your part to dispose of your garbage, food waste and paper products into the right bin, which will be clearly marked with what you can put in them. McMenamins (and the Bagdad) already does an awesome job recycling behind the scenes and is generously helping us to properly recycle the waste after the event.

Thanks in advance for doing your part to help us and the Bagdad minimize the mess we make when we all get together like this.

Party Party Afterparty

There will be an afterparty after Ignite Portland 5! Hosted in conjunction with Recent Changes Camp, head over to the Eagle Lodge (4905 SE Hawthorne, near 50th Ave) whether you came to Ignite or not, and party until the cows come home. Need more motivation to come to the party? Here you go:

Light It Up!

The time is almost upon us! The organizers are stoked, volunteers are ready, and the speakers are probably nervous. But we know it’s going to be great. So come join us at the Bagdad tomorrow night, and let’s Ignite Portland for the fifth time!