August 19th, 2008 admin
Have you ever wondered where geeks shop for all that crazy computer hardware? I know that since moving to Austin, I have always had some geeky place to go buy my warez from.
I started off at Smart Chips Computers in 1997, a local hardware dealer who worked out of a warehouse. I actually lived in San Antonio at the time. At the time, Smart Chips computer was the essence of that small little tech start up working out of a garage. Lines would form early on Saturdays and copies of inventory and price lists were distributed. My brother bought our first home brew components there. I believe it was a cyrix 120 with a 66mhz FSB, 8mb of RAM (later upgraded to 32mb!), a 1gig HD and a sound blaster 16bit sound card and a 4mb S3 Virge (man those were bad video cards).
Like so many other little shops that would pop up and disappear, SmartChips tried to scale big and fell down quickly. I will always remember it’s beginnings as the fun part.
But enough reminiscing. What shops are out there today? In this short series, I will answer that question - starting with Fry’s Electronics as Part 1, because well Fry’s is that big:)
Part 2 will look at great used stores like Discount Electronics, Best Bytes Computer and Goodwill ComputerWorks, as well as Altex electronics, which is in a whole different area in and of itself.
I would love to write about currently run local places to buy hardware dirt cheap and get great customer service, but I have yet to find one. Maybe, some of you have recommendations (from what I can tell, the era is over). Currently, if I am not buying from Fry’s (or the other stores listed) I am buying from NewEgg.com (how can ya beat free shipping (on most items) and no tax).
So here we go!
Fry’s Electronics- While not a local store, I welcome Fry’s as our Californian neighbor. The store certainly has geek cred. When you can go buy inexpensive computer components (yeah yeah, I know they tell ya the ECS boards are crap, but seriously I have been running a couple going on five years), get a tuna melt and buy enough candy for a year - all in one fell swoop - life is good.
Here are some tips if you are new to Fry’s and want to get a good deal:
1. The ad cycle is this: Wednesday, Thursday Ads work together and end Thursday, Friday Starts their Sale week (with a big four page spread), Sat, Sun, Mon, Tues are all lumped together with Fridays Ads which then end on Tuesdays and the cycle repeats. Confusing yes, once understood invaluable!
So what does this mean? Don’t look at Fri, Sat, Sun, Mon or Tues ad on Tuesday night and think you will pick something up on sale on Wednesday. Also, do not look at Wednesday and Thursday ads and think you will buy on Fridays.
Fridays Ads are usually the best deals. It is the biggest listing and there is almost always some hard drive on sale for 99 dollars (currently I think it is a 750 for like 90 dollars).
Also, please know the ad’s other then Friday are on the back of the Business and Sports page.
2. Know where Fry’s is located! If you are new to town, you will probably think Fry’s is just so far, then one day you will decide to drive to IKEA for some reason and realize how close Fry’s really is.
3. Know the stores layout. If you are looking for a quick and easy purchase, be ready to bolt around the vast volume of Fry’s with a plan. Some (not myself of course :p ) can easily get distracted by well placed new products on the end caps or baskets as you walk in. A favorite past time I see people participating in is watching the Big TV with that DAM animatronics video (no offense to those who made it, I hear it was local).
4. You can actually have not eaten before heading to fry’s! There is a TC’s, Opal Divine’s and, I hear, Thomas Super Buffet is a geek must (though I am too scared myself to go in). There is also a Thundercloud in the parking lot as well. Plus, Fry’s itself has a cafe in the middle, which has surprisingly good sandwiches (I write this at 6:44am and I am already planning lunch there!). It is also inexpensive.
5. Just like any other big box, Fry’s has it’s down sides. Know that the customer service people vary in ability to truly understand the geek. Some are awesome, while others are still learning the ropes. Their returns are a whole adventure (which, honestly has been good for me, but I hear of others who have been banned (some for good reason, I remember the whole put a brick in a video card box and return it trick, also known as the RadioShack Rental). Fry’s also could use a little more organization. But, hey at least we have one. I have friends who live and San Antonio (where I am from), every time I am down there it is so frustrating to go computer shopping.
6. If you really want to have some fun, do a black Friday at Fry’s (the day after thanksgiving). This is hardcore event not for the faint at heart. You usually have to show up early in the morning (4am) and the lines are amazing. Remember to get your ad earlier that morning and make of map of what you want to get… But this is actually a whole other article, one I would probably let Brandon Wiley write…
7. Fry’s is also a fun road trip with friends, everyone is always entertained in some way at Fry’s. Once while walking in, I heard a kid say “Daddy I am hungry”, the dad then said “Son when we get home we will get you a turkey leg out of the freezer”. I could only imagine how that would go down. I once drove there with the roads frozen over to get some gigabit Ethernet cards. (note the main picture above and how happy my wife looks after having her go there)
So yeah, check out Fry’s if you have never been there. It is a truly a trip, and I promise you will leave with some type of feeling… Feel free to leave your fry’s stories in the comment section, we would love to hear them.
Next Time: Part 2 will look at the rest of the hardware scene, I hope to talk about the stores listed above and any other leads given to me by readers.
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August 16th, 2008 gloriakt
Oh, Texas always does it bigger.
WordCamp challenged the attendees with the best WP tattoo placement. Being from TX, we decided to step it up.. Here’s a preview below.
To see the entire stream (which will track the craziness throughout the week) check:
Http://www.Flickr.com/michaelcummings
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August 16th, 2008 gloriakt
- Over 400 in attendence
What you really want PICTURES:
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August 16th, 2008 gloriakt
After six hours of pure travel shenanigans, the Texas representatives have officially raided the Valley.
As many of you know, a small contingent of local Austinites (@johnerik,@cesart,@imdane, myself) have made their way to San Francisco. Why are we here?
Simple, two reasons:
1) WordCamp
2) Preach and share the Austin love
I look forward to sharing what we learn from the speakers and WordPress, which this site leverages.
Already, San Fran has welcomed us with open arms. It’s going to be a packed weekend, and let’s be honest, we’ve got a couple tricks up our sleeves.
So keep your eye out for updates.
Going to attempt to do all of this via iPhone - fabulous!
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August 5th, 2008 gloriakt
So Brandon and I threw StartUpCamp Austin and it was a huge success. we had over 60 people come from all walks of life and give their perspectives on Austin’s potential as a startup space. We would like to thank all those who donated their time and money in order for the event to take place. It was decided at the conference that we should have this type of meet around 3 to 4 times a year. I think that sounds great. I liked that the sessions were really diverse, we had people talking about venture capital all the way to people talking about how to create co-op startups. The “feel” was great!
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August 1st, 2008 gloriakt
Ok, I’ve been sitting on this post for quite sometime, but after the SummerMash party and reading @rizzn’s write-up/video, I felt compelled to hit publish (as is!).
NOTE: This is not to exclude the great work in Houston, Dallas and or surrounding Texas areas. However, since we focus on the Austin scene; well, you get where I’m going. Here goes. . .
—–
For those who had the dedication to read Part I in its entirety, we think the following claim is pretty clear:
The Austin tech scene remains at a static state.
Let us explain. Fifty years since the inception of Austin’s tech scene, the city remains on the cusp of greatness. Since the infusion of several technology companies between 1950-2001, the city has grown steadily, but seems to have hit the pause button since the bubble burst.
For now, the city remains dormant, hidden under what we call the “old technology veil” - the AMDs, the Dells, Freescale etc.. But, as we write this, under this veil, there are rumblings of something greater on the horizon….
Recently, we’ve had the privilege to listen to several conversations around town, which have all touched on what, in truth, is an incredible set of circumstances that may simultaneously collide and finally push this city into greatness.
We’ve highlighted a few that we think will be the key differentiators for 2008:
- Lessons learned from the 2001 bubble burst remain top of mind
- Increased understanding that collaboration = community
- Perhaps, it is the residual effects of SXSW, but there is undoubtedly a new energy moving through the tech scene. From Austin Tech Happy Hour to Jelly to Refresh Austin et al. ., the community has woken-up, dusted off its shoes and is ready to two-step
- The economic downturn has forced old-tech companies to pull back and respond by tightening their purse strings - limiting R&D and threatening innovation
- The dreamers mixed with the millenials combined with the start-ups and empowered by social networking tools have unlimited access - to each other, to information, to ideas and to the city
- Three words: Start-Up District
Lastly, one key element in this recipe is that this new generation of geeks bring to the table an incredible enthusiasm and passion for Austin. They pursue their dreams in hopes to better the city - not solely for fame or money. It may seem idealistic, but we challenge you to ask the question: “Why Austin?” And, surely you will be met with nothing less than an enthusiastic; “Why not? I love this place. It’s a small city with big city dreams.”
Change will happen, and it will be lead by a new group of tech heads/geeks/entrepreneurs. A group that this site is dedicated to showcasing.
2008 has the potential to be a great year, and we look forward to reviewing this same scene next year.
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August 1st, 2008 gloriakt
Ok, I’ve been sitting on this post for quite sometime, but after the SummerMash party and reading @rizzn’s write-up/video, I felt compelled to post it.
NOTE: I wrote this MONTHS ago, but had a difficult time filtering the immense amount of data below - so, please be kind in judging its raw form. Also, this is not to exclude the great work in Houston, Dallas and or surrounding Texas areas. However, since we focus on the Austin scene; well, you get where I’m going. Here goes. . .
The proliferation of technology companies has led to the region’s nickname, “the Silicon Hills,” and spurred development that greatly expanded the city to the north, south, east, and west. - Wikipedia.com
Since the Dot.com bust over a decade ago, the Austin Tech scene has struggled to grow new resources and and cutting edge initiatives. Now this is not to say there haven’t been attempts, but making that “break through push” has yet to happen. This article chronicles the Austin Tech scene, from the 1950’s to present in order to help us gain more perspective on what has been successful. We can then take a look at how we might adapt our scene to be more agile to the current changes in the tech scene. We have broken this article into two parts in order to give focus to our two main points:
- Part I: highlights historical data about the scene
- Part II: examines the tech scene now and takes a chance with a prediction of what may come next
Disclaimer: This post is by no means comprehensive, and we realize its length becomes a biased filter all on its own. What we’ve included below helped shape our opinion - so we share it with you in hopes that it supports our thought process for part II. Additionally, the excerpts included discuss the following: technology adoption, Texas employment, start-ups and funding.
So, let’s rewind and take a quick trip down memory lane.
1950s:
As Austin emerged from a post WWII economy, the seeds of the city’s future as a center of high technology were being carefully planted. By the 1950s, several research laboratories and think tanks had been founded, and began to draw innovative thinkers and high-tech companies to the area—a trend that has continued to this day.
The first three major high-tech firms in Austin’s high-tech wave were Tracor (1950s), IBM (1967), and Texas Instruments (1969). – Austin History Center
1980s:
High-tech industries are important to Texas but are far from an employment panacea, a business researcher said Monday as lawmakers considered using state pension funds to spur high-tech growth in the state.
“Under the most liberal assumptions, it is very difficult for us to see high tech constituting more than 9 or 10 percent of total wages and salaries as we approach the next century,’ said Vic Arnold of the University of Texas Bureau of Business Research. — Dallas Morning News
The Austin Technology Incubator is formed at the urging of entrepreneur-educator George Kozmetsky. — Austin American-Statesman
1990s:
Austin gets a direct connection to Silicon Valley when American Airlines begins nonstop service between Austin and San Jose. The flight becomes known as the Nerd Bird. — Austin American-Statesman
Thirty-three Austin companies raise a record $164.5 million in venture capital. — Austin American-Statesman
2000:
Austin has been good at creating and re-creating itself first imagining it through imagination. The town is pantheistic in the number and diversity of its creation myths: liberal enclave lodged in a heathen state; blissful love nest inhabited by hippie and kicker; thriving economy spawned on the University of Texas’ 40 acres; bar band creativity morphed into high-technology IPOs.
On Monday morning Peter Zandan was more temperate than Watson about the joining of downtown and technology. Zandan is a high-tech venture capitalist and executive; he organized, with others, the 360.00 Summit of new economy business leaders. His message was a warning: High-tech could be hazardous to your downtown.
Zandan said technology firms can be cranky tenants, incessantly squeaky wheels. Moreover, if too many technology firms come to roost, “you can kill downtown for everybody else.”
Simply, the tech firms can take over, forcing out the funky stores, pawnshops and newsstands that make a downtown a downtown. “Austin could become a two-dimensional downtown,” Zandan warned. Tech workers love diversity, but if only tech firms are downtown, “the place probably won’t be that cool.” — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “The future of the digital downtown // What is Austin becoming? // Movers and shakers say city’s creativity is key to culture, high tech” By Bill Bishop)
For the past year, the spotlight has been on Austin’s growing “Downtown Digital District.” Although it has attracted a number of high-tech folks recently — from the large campuses planned by Computer Sciences Corp. and Intel Corp. to the smaller software companies and dot-coms that fill office towers — downtown hasn’t replaced Loop 360. — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Austin’s high-tech highway// Dell’s move solidifies Loop 360 area as technology corridor” By Michelle Breyer)
* Texas’ increase in high-tech exports topped the nation, growing by $3.9 billion between 1997 and 1999.
* The state ranked fourth in total venture-capital investments, pouring $1.5 billion into startup companies during 1999. — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Study: Texas high-tech hiring soared” By Heather Cocks):
Guy Kawasaki and Garage.com crew host “Garage.com Bootcamp for Startups Series”
2001:
During the past few days, the bad news got worse.
First came numbers showing Austin is losing its allure to venture capitalists. Then on Monday, Dell Computer Corp. said it would lay off as many as 4,000 more workers during the next six months. On Tuesday, Vignette Corp. decided to shelve its headquarters project, a centerpiece of downtown revitalization. — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “With tech momentum gone, Austin must recruit again” By Michelle Kay)
The Statesman’s Lori Hawkins publishes: “Where have all the angels gone? Austin’s angel investors have had their wings clipped, leaving hundreds of startups without a wing and a prayer” (archived)
Over the past decade Austin was the sixth fastest growing city in the US. The population surged over one third during that time and has been increasing at an even quicker clip with the arrival of dot-coms. Between 1998 and 1999, Austin took hold of the number 2 spot in US metropolitan area growth, according to the Chamber of Commerce’s figures.
In addition, high-tech employment in the five county area surged 88 percent since 1990. There are now more than 2,500 technology-based companies employing 95,000. With all of this activity, venture capital poured into the city quadrupling in 1999 year-over-year. Austin now sits in second place just behind San Jose in Silicon Valley as the most attractive spot for venture capitalists. — IDG News.com
2002:
Cushing’s study of data compiled by the Internal Revenue Service reveals a stark shift in people and their moneymaking talents: Older centers of regional growth and economic power are giving up people and their creativity to Austin, Houston and Dallas — three of the nation’s cities of ideas.
This new geography has thousands of features. For Austin, the most important connection with other U.S. cities isn’t distance, but the design and production of semiconductor chips and computer software. — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Austin boom in ’90s part of creative shift in U.S. ; Migration of talented, highly paid workers creating new landscape ” By Bill Bishop and Mark Lisheron)
In 2001, the Austin-San Marcos region lost nearly one of every five of its 85,000 high-tech jobs. But the region lost $1 of every $3 of its $2.2 billion in quarterly high-tech wages, according to the most recent data from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The 15,013 high-tech jobs that were lost in 2001 represent a relatively small part of the overall labor pool — just 2.2 percent of the area’s jobs. But fourth-quarter wages were $707 million lower than those in the first quarter — a hefty 10 percent of the region’s total wage pool.
Some of the tech cutbacks are part of the normal ebb and flow of business. But in other areas, such as semiconductor production, the losses may be permanent. No part of the high-tech economy is being hit harder than semiconductors, which account for one of every four tech jobs in Austin. – Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Tech tumble took high-paying jobs ; Glory days may never return, but sector is still an economic force in Central Texas“ By John Pletz)
2005:
Venture capital in Austin has been steadily improving over the past three years, but the April-June period this year produced the lowest investment total since $61 million in the second quarter of 2002.
But the results may point to a bigger issue: Austin has solid base of technologies it breeds and feeds in the semiconductor, information-technology and software industries. Yet activity beyond that core is sparse in Austin, even as other industries are pushing the growth of venture capital nationwide.
Looking back over the past three years, there has been relatively little investment outside Austin’s core industries. Nowhere is the absence more stark than in life sciences, where investments rose 50 percent to $1.5 billion nationally in the second quarter from $1 billion the first three months of the year, according to the survey. — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Venture capital in Austin falls 63% ; Decreased investment seen as sign of maturing core technologies in Austin ” By Dan Zehr)
2006:
The dreaded Bs are back, sure to cause a shudder here in a city that has for more than a generation defined its economy as a bubble that booms and, inevitably, bursts. Investment in technology companies by venture capitalists in Austin and across the country so far this year is greater than it has been since 2001, when air began rushing from the hole in the first great and overinflated dot-com bubble.
If anything, investment in Austin technology is too cautious, he says (Randy Baker, vice chairman of technology for the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Chamber’s AusTech Alliance). This wariness might mean it takes a little longer before we begin to think of ourselves again as the Silicon Hills. But it might also mean we don’t get stung by killer Bs. – Austin American-Statesman
2008:
In Austin, a growing number of startups are building products and services to let business customers add features to their Web sites and communicate with customers.
Austin Ventures placed a big bet in April, laying down $50 million to build an Austin-based corporate social networking software and services company. Chris Pacitti, a general partner of the venture capital firm, has said that social networking is creating a business dynamic that’s similar to the explosion of the Web in the mid-1990s.
“Today, corporations know all about Facebook and LinkedIn and MySpace and want to figure out how to leverage social networking,” Pacitti said when the firm announced its new effort. “We see that as a huge opportunity.” — Austin American-Statesman (no active link: “Venture dollars follow social startups” By Lori Hawkins)
Congratulations, you’ve made it through! Now, onto Part II..
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July 31st, 2008 gloriakt
So gather round kids. I’m about to tell you a short story about a newbie Austinite and his lost ring.
Scene -
Yesterday, marked the beginning of what we’ve noted as the summer-tech stretch. It started off with a bang as Erica O’Grady, the fabulous crew from Yoono and Mashable hosted SocialMediaCamp Austin downtown. The room was packed with eager and inquisitive social media minds. Check out @omarg’s recap for more.
Later that evening, the gathering moved to Buffalo Billiards for the SummerMash party. With over 400 attendees, the place was a rockin. The vibe was great, the drinks were flowing and the Austin tech scene definely cleans up nicely. Check out more pictures here (props to @michaelcummings for the photos).
Enter Ray! Newly transplanted from Dallas via Hawaii. While at SummerMash up, Ray had left his ring in the men’s bathroom. Unbeknownest to him, @jonray picked it up from the floor and tried to find its owner. During the night, this mysterious ring was passed around.
The following afternoon, I received a frantic email from Ray. It read:
Hi,
I met Joey last night quickly, but didn’t get to meet you Gloria. I kinda have an emergency issue. I left my wedding ring in the bathroom last night when I washed my hands. And someone picked it up. After going through Michael Cummings photos I found a guy wearing my ring. And you were in the picture with him. I’m hoping you know who he is, so I can get it back. My fiance got me that ring on the side of the road in china so it’s not replaceable. Anyway hopefully you know the guy on the right in the photo:
http://flickr.com/photos/michaelcummings/2718996621/sizes/o/
Dusty D???
If you do please let me know how I can get ahold of him so I can get my wedding ring back.
Thank you.
+300 pictures later, Ray and his awesome sleuthing skills were able to track me, JonRay and Michael down. The happy ending - we all met at Conjunctured to give his ring back.
Gotta love the internetz!
So that’s one story from just one night. Did YOU meet anyone interesting or have a story to tell? Please share!
UPDATE: Check out Ray’s POV here!
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July 31st, 2008 gloriakt
So I went to the social media bar camp totally ill prepared… No photos, no video, totally unlike me. However, I hear Kristine got some shots, so be on a look out:)
I am here to report that the Social Media BarCamp/Mashable event was a huge success. There were n00b’s, nerds and geeks all floating around, creating various circles of discussion, everything from learning about what Virtual Worlds were, to advanced discussion about designing and implementing peer to peer based social systems.
It is a good time to be a geek in Austin! As Kristine noted, make sure you check out the calander and see all that is going on.
As a side note, and a self promoting plug, Brandon Wiley and I invite everyone to come to StartUpCamp Austin this Saturday at UT. For more information, please visit the offical website. We have people from all over the nation showing up to give presentations, as well as some great locals. It is sure to be a good time.
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July 27th, 2008 gloriakt
If one were to look at the slew of Tech events happening this week, you’d think we were gearing up for SXSWi. Instead, it’s 104 degrees outside, and it’s just another eventful week in Texas; it’s time for our mid-summer stretching exercise.
So mark your calendars, lace up your chucks, charge up that iPhone, spruce up your networking skills and power up that Macbook - it’s going to be a fun couple of days.
Wednesday, July 30
Friday, August 1
Saturday, August 2
If you’re having an event this weekend, and we missed it, please do let us know! And, as always, check out door64 for a listing of upcoming tech events in the Austin area.
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