There’s a good amount of variety for developers interested in the newest web technology. Unfortunately, many of the events are cost prohibitive for the average, non-corporate geek ($350 per workshop; up to $1000 for the conference). This is especially frustrating when you consider the bulk of the technologies to be discussed are free, low cost and/or open source. A post for another time.

Nevertheless, there are some freebies to be had:

• Atlanta Javascript Meetup’s Javascript Framework Overview
• UX talks at the Portfolio Center
• WE Rock Tour
• AIGA Studio Hops 1 & 2
• Amped (the hack-day, reloaded)
• Various parties/networking events

Acknowledging that I am somewhat privileged, I will be attending Web Directions, as well as Amped and a few of the other events. I’m hoping to meet other web folk throughout the week (especially those based in Atlanta). If that’s you, feel free to hit me up at the conference or one of the social events.

• Superblogger Nichelle Stephens graciously interviewed me for Queerecents.
• A work project has me so confused I don’t know whether to scratch my watch or wind my butt.
• Inspired by Foursquare, I’ve been trying out some restaurants for the first time including, Oceanaire Seafood Room, Leon’s Full Service and Cuerno.
• Recently, I had to fire one client. But I’m developing others.
• I attended Mashable Mixer Atlanta last night, which was all kinds of cool. It was so well-attended, most of us ended up missing someone we wanted to meet. Social Media, meet Atlanta. She has arrived.

So you see. I haven’t been inactive. However, my mini-horoscope had this to say today:

“Throwing yourself into work and current commitments could be a manifestation of lonlieness or disappointment.”

But no one pays attention to those, right?

You remember how much I enjoyed SXSW last year, right? I went again this year with little expectation other than seeing old friends and attending some panels. Somehow, I had an even better time than last year! That doesn’t mean every panel or event was a home run (there were definitely some disappointments). But the combination of geekery, social media enthusiasts, sidebar conversations, feminist energy, lightbulb moments, gamers, uncontrollable laughter, late night connections and alcohol, adds to an experience that’s hard to beat.

So much so, that I haven’t quite or fully assimilated back into my day-to-day.

Next year, I’m going to have to force myself to document each day as it happens. It’s too difficult to recap five days and nights of nonstop stimuli. I was losing track of the days even while I was still in Austin. One night during dinner, Clarence made a comment about a panel we attended earlier that day. I turned to him and asked “Was that today?”

Since a list worked so well last year, I’ll give it another try.

Favorite Things About SXSWi 09

• Seeing an evolution of diversity at SXSWi (feminism, race, privacy and equality issues)
• Meeting a bunch of great people for the first time
• Feeling like an intregal part of several communities

Least Favorite Things About SXSWi 09

• Again, the weather in Austin was cold, wet and windy. And on Sunday, it was sunny and 80 degrees. Ugh.
• Attending panels in the neighboring Hilton (I just didn’t like going to another building).

Favorite Panels/Events

• Blacks in Tech Meetup at Carver Museum and Cultural Center – Great turnout and panel discussion.
• From Freelance to Agency: Start Small, Stay Small – The topic worked for me and Jeffrey Zeldman is hilarious.
• That’s Not My Name: Beating Down Online Misogyny – Wow!
• Can Social Media End Racism? – Wow 2.0!
• CSS3: What’s Now, What’s New and What’s Not? – A great breakdown of the future of CSS (Molly has links to the slides). Welcome to the party, IE.

Least Favorite Panels

• Not the Same Old Story – Somehow this interesting topic made for a not-so-interesting discussion. The panel’s energy felt low and I expected more visuals based on the topic. Bummer.
• Can the Afrosphere Survive the Age of Obama? – Unfortunately, the panel got stuck on discussing identity and didn’t adequately answered its main question. This happens often when race is introduced into a topic. It almost occurred in Can Social Media End Racism? when an attendee wanted to debate “racism”. But that panel skillfully steered the discussion back on track.
• Digital Urbanites: How to Become Part of the New Social Capital – An interesting premise. But too much time was spent on discussing “social capital” for my taste (then again, I’m sensitive to PR/marketing/social media “buzzwords”). I’m still not convinced I know what makes a “digital urbanite”.

Most Heartwarming Experience

• Offsite Party at Cheryl’s!
• Meeting Shani and Davidé on the flight to Austin and instantly bonding.

Most Bizzare Experience

• Watching my (mostly) drunk friends sing karaoke at Feministing/Pandagon Karaoke Happy Hour

Most Annoying Experience

• Watching a few people get “caught up” and treat others as if they were unimportant

Beverage of Choice

• Ketel One & Red Bull

Favorite Food

• Moonshine (old favorite)
• Le Café Crêpe (new treat)

Least Favorite Food

• Paradise (and the service was crappy, too)

Favorite Dinner Conversation

• Paradise (isn’t it ironic?)

Favorite Parties

• I didn’t attend any “big name” parties this year. I refuse to stand in a line to get free beer. Besides, the first nights of SXSWi were cold and rainy. The Feministing/Pandagon Karaoke Happy Hour was fun (Spitfire Grrrl agrees). But I prefer local parties where the music is more conducive to dancing. That said, the Beauty Bar party with DJ Mel (my favorite Austin DJ) had crazy energy and allowed me to flex moves I forgot I had.

Most Used Gadgets/Accessories

• Twitter (duh)
• Power Supply
• Ipod Touch
• Brightkite
• Digital Camera

Things I Missed But Wished I Didn’t

• How to Rawk SXSW: The Basics
• Are PR Agencies a Dying Breed?
• Try Making Yourself More Interesting
• Adobe 12th Annual SXSW Web Awards Ceremony
• Beyond Aggregation — Finding the Web’s Best Content
• Ultimate Showdown of Content Management System Destiny
• 20×2 v. 9.0: “What’s It Gonna Take?”
• Designers and Developers: Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?

Overheard on Twitter (you know who you are)

• “if it were warmer out, I’d be walking around, party-hopping + people watching. but it’s not.”
• “Right now, my iPhone is Rhianna and AT&T is Chris Brown”
• “Seriously, it seems EVERYONE got action this week except me. I think my vagina is allergic to SXSW. “
• “If you write about pop cultural things that people are really invested in ‘like fraternities and games’, that’s crazy bait”
• “#bitchlips”
• “Working for yourself is great; you get to work half-days.. any 12 hrs you want.”
• “someone said ‘I want to be internet famous.’ Shouldn’t you raise the bar just a little bit?”
• “so crowded in this CSS3 panel. starting to smell like a gym locker room.”
• “Breaking News: I will be launching an End Racism App for the iphone. It will cost 1 million dollars.”
• “Riding on some little ass bike rickshaw bullshit thing. I feel bad for this tiny thighed cyclist cause…well, I’m fat.”
• “It smells like baby powder and pussy in here”
• “my friends are drunk. but you knew that already.”
• In ur party, tweetin ur disappointment”
• “I have not smiled this much in a long time.”

Blissfully Reconnected

Angela, Baratunde (aka “Mr. Everywhere”), CC, Cecily, Cheryl, Cheryl, Chris, Clarence, Denise, Eric, Derrick, Erica, Ernie, George, Gillian, Jason, Lanie, Liz, Lynne, Melissa, Samiya, Twanna, Wayne

ATL Crew Members

Brandon, EJ, Jayson, Kimberly, Leatrice, Michael, Scott, Tessa, Tiffany, Victor

Met For The First Time

• Ann Friedman
• Brad Graham
• C. C. Chapman
• Corvida Raven
• Davidé Di Cillo
• Fredric Mitchell
• Jay Smooth
• Latoya Petersen
• Matt Thompson
• Markus Robinson
• Mike Knight
• Molly Holzschlag
• Nichelle Stephens
• Samhita Mukhopadhyay
• Sarah Dopp
• Shani Petereson
• Others who have slipped my mind

Last night, I attended Network Solutions’ (wordy) Network Stars Atlanta Seminar: Learn How Your Small Business Can Effectively Compete Against the Big Players at LITKitchen. It was a sold out – and diverse – crowd (about 175 people, I think) and I enjoyed the event.

The first 30 minutes were dedicated to networking, munching (on some great food) and drinking. Honestly, I tried to keep a low profile since I’m in the middle of revamping my web business and don’t want to explain what I’m doing or take on any new clients.

Things got started with Shashi Bellamkonda who lobbed questions at the panel (Geoff Livingston, Christina Warren, Brent Leary and Toby Bloomberg). Attendees also got a chance to ask questions or voice their opinions.

Geoff Livingston was the most pragmatic panelist. He’s the CEO of a public relations firm in Washington, DC and extolled some of the often-heard cautions about being “careful” of what you write and how you present yourself online. I get the basis of his position but I’m a little tired of the hyperbole. Also, he is too conservative about social media and networks for my taste (I suspect his clients are as well).

For instance, he complained about the “noise factor” on Twitter which is an argument I’m tired of hearing. If your sole/primary reason for using Twitter is business and you are getting too much “noise” in your Twitterstream, you are following the wrong people. This isn’t a problem with Twitter; it’s user error. Frankly, I like a mix. Reading tweets from people who only publicize their start-up activities, marketing strategies or political positions doesn’t interest me. Big whoop! Including “noise” from interesting people about their daily life activities adds value to my social network experience because it helps me to understand who they are.

More disturbingly (for me), Livingston shared a story about how he didn’t bother to vet a potential employee because he looked at her Facebook page and saw pictures of her doing shots of alcohol. That really turned me off. I recognize there are employers who view life in this way (I’ve worked for some of them). But any employer that doesn’t recognize I have a personal life – and respects that it’s personal – isn’t one I trust or would want to lend my skills any longer.

Luckily, there was one attendee who challenged this position saying she thought the whole point of blogging (and social media) was to share yourself with your reader (I applauded her). If we’re so worried about everything we share online, why exist online at all? The point is to decide why you want to share (whatever it is), identify your goals and strike a balance. I’m not saying everyone should share everything. But if you’re so wound up and guarded, it makes me think you are hiding something and makes it difficult for me to trust you. I’m radical like that.

Christina Warren touched upon this a bit. As the youngest person on the panel, she related how her experience with social networks and as a writer differs from some of the other “strictly business” goals and how being accessible and transparent (to a point) helps her socially and in gaining business opportunities.

Brent Leary erred on the side of caution but seemed more flexible than Livingston. He’s a CRM consultant who writes for Black Enterprise and other blogs/magazines. He had a good grip on business practices and expectancies (which I appreciated). He’s also very funny.

Toby Bloomberg had the best balance and real-world stories of how she’s leveraged blogging and Twittering to expand her client-base and create new business opportunities. Social networking is not just a hobby; it’s an integral part of her success. In fact, she’s the reason I attended. Toby emailed a personalized invite (somehow, I missed my invite from Atlanta Web Entrepreneurs).

My favorite highlight of the night was when attendee Grayson Daughters offered a passionate explanation of how she uses Twitter on her iPhone to communicate and stay connected (she also poked at Atlanta’s absent mainstream media). This spawned a slew of questions aimed toward her. Clearly, she needs to be on the next panel of one of these things.

Honestly, I didn’t learn anything new at the event. I’ve been blogging since 1998 and I joined Twitter a month after it launched. I already get social networking. But I did get a good sense of how small businesses are viewing blogging/social media and attempting to venture into the space. This is important to me since small businesses tend to be my clients. Overall a good score for Network Solutions.

I don’t know about you, but I’ll be at Mary’s on Friday listening to the musical selections of DJ Punch & Pie while getting drunk and smoky (nicotine is not your friend, kids).