New Year - Back on the Horse

People liked the fact that my calendar had items on it that others neglected to cover, so I'll keep it quasi up to date.

Thanks and have a great start to 2011.

Blog snafu and calendar items

I was poking around some of my other blogs today - the day after Christmas - and noticed that this blog had a 'last post' date of 12/25. Well, that wasn't true. I hadn't actually put a post up here since 12/5 and thought it must be a mistake.

It sort-of was. You see, the blog counts itself as being published - as near as I can figure - any time there is a something new in it. And because there's a calendar embedded in the blog it sees all new entries as new posts.

Oddly, I haven't updated the calendar since the NogUp because many folks plan their own things around the holidays and I haven't taken the time to update stuff here. But to that end, I'm thinking about a new tack.

Going forward, I might do a few different things and want your opinions.

Should I...

Keep the calendar going as I had it - and update it weekly with new events?
Eliminate the calendar and just do posts on upcoming events and recaps of past events?
Embed calendars from other people - or provide just a link to their calendars?
Or something different?

Would love your input. Please leave a comment or send me a note on Twitter.

Thanks and happy holidays!

Look at the Calendar!!

Amazingly there are more things on the calendar than ever before and I wanted to share that with the entire readership. So go take a look.

And if you have an event you want listed or would like to share info about an event, just drop us a line. Contact info is in the sidebar or just leave a comment.

Thanks!

Duplication - not such a bad thing

Today I was poking around the calendar and making sure I hadn't overlooked anything and guess what I found? Right! Duplicate listings for a few events. Nothing wrong there in my eyes because it indicates that users are adding stuff to the calendar and participating.

I think I'd rather have a calendar with a few duplicate events rather than one without enough options for people. That's why I make sure at some point during the week to take a look at other calendars. If they've found a great event and we don't have it here, I'll just bring it over.

And if you're having an event or know of something we've missed here, drop a note in the comments. We want to make sure we have the complete picture of Boston and the region's tech and social events.

Thanks!

Have fun out there!

What's in a name?

There's been a lot of praise for the WithJeff Calendar and our approach to crowdsourcing Boston events. What has also happened - and this was only last night - there was some confusion about the naming of certain events.

While we all sort-of know what a tweetup is. And we know that the Nog-up was my creation and the Social Media Breakfast began with Bryan Person and now has iterations all over the free world, there are some other events that might not be as well defined.

Take for instance, Social Media for Social Change; Social Media for Social Cause; Tweetsgiving; Social Media Club; social media group; etc.

In fact, the issue that jumped to my attention was the trio of Thanksgiving fundraising events right here in Boston that were all named Tweetsgiving! Really. Well, what we're going to start doing (akin to having more specific hashtags for tweetups) is adding host names to the titles in Eventbrite. Then, if someone does TechInno it won't be confused with WebInno or MassInno as long as the official label is TechInno by Warren G. Harding, or some such iteration.

Good plan? We'd like your comments and participation. If you've got events that need some exposure, leave a comment here and we'll add you to the contributor list.

Thanks and Have Fun Out There!

Seriously? There is something for everyone!

If you can't find something to do this week, you're too picky. Take a look at the calendar at the bottom of the page. There are about 31 events going on this week. From traditional Tweetups to the coolest concerts to everything in-between.

I know that I'm totally booked this week doing something every night and day. What are you excited about this week?

And what do you have on your calendar that we might have missed? Leave that info in the comments and we'll add it. If you put on regular tweetups or social media or even basic social events, leave a comment and we'll make you a contributor and a calendar editor.

Thanks! And have fun out there!

Bare Calendar

The calendar isn't quite as bare as it looks right now at 1:27PM on Monday. Will be filling it shortly. Have been chasing cats and woodpeckers and bottles of root beer around, so I've been too busy to scour the boards for some fun events.

Off the top of my head, I know of at least five events this week including a Forrester Lunch, Pokin' Holes, Podcamp NH, PR Coffee, Open Coffee, and more. So stuff's coming.

If you know of stuff, sign up to contribute. Just leave your name in the comments of any post.

Thanks! Have fun out there!

Cake Wrecks World Tour

November 8th at 2:00 PM
Framingham Barnes and Noble

"The events will be set up the same as before, meaning there will be free cake provided by local bakeries, a fun slide show hosted by yours truly and John, a Q&A time, and of course the Wreckplica contest, complete with fabulous prizes."

To help us know how much cake and space we'll need, please RSVP."

CakeWrecks

GENIUS! I think I've got it

This post is really just for the contributors...but anyone can contribute by posting in the comments.

What I want to do is implement a quasi format. Gradon's post made me realize that everyone is doing tons of different things and with the right mix of people, we'll get an unbeatable mix of Bostontweetups, concerts, social media events and technology conferences.

SO, I'd love for all contributors to put a post up once a week detailing their week ahead. No heavy lifting, could be as simple as...

Monday - Mobile Mondays at The Place
Tuesday - Brunch Conference
Wednesday - #140 Conference Boston
Thursday - Networking at the District
Friday - Hubspot TV taping

Or could be as in-depth as the calendar at the bottom of this page. Just share and I bet we make everyone aware of the events that might be missed by other so-called sources for Boston tweetup and local area events.

Have fun out there!

Growing Pains

Still trying to figure out if you'd also like to have daily events posted here.

Let me know in the comments. Otherwise, you know you can always go to the blog post that covers the entire week...or just click on the calendar at the bottom of the blog.

Going forward, we'll be adding some more functionality. Maybe even linking to each author's Eventbrite and/or Upcoming schedule.

Please share your comments about this site so we can make it better. Or if you have the name of a person who should be invited, the editorial board here at WithJeff will bring it up at our next meeting.

Have fun out there.

Jeff's Week Ahead - October 18-24

While there are multiple authors on "With Jeff", this is just what I have planned for the upcoming week.

If you'd like to become an author here, drop me a line. We'd love to find out what you have planned for the week ahead!

SUNDAY, October 18

Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. The second of the two-day sporting event should be fun as the weather is supposed to break and make wandering around the Charles River a lot more bearable. Head of the Charles

MONDAY, October 19

Aside from this being Meg Fowler's last day in Boston - See her on Twitter - there are some other events on tap.

Mobile Monday and TCN: Making money through carrier and OEM app stores. A cool little event on Monday evening from 7-9PM at The Place on 2 Broad Street, Boston. Sign up here

TUESDAY, October 20

Solo PR Practitioner Coffee in Newton. From 9AM to whenever, Chuck and the gang host a PR chat at the Taste Coffee House, 311 Walnut Street in Newton. Sign up here - or just show up. Great coffee according to Roy Krantz and Chuck.

WEDNESDAY, October 21

Mid-morning each Wednesday is an event at Andala Coffee House in Central Square. Start time is around 8:30 but the meetup is a little free-form. It's essentially an open coffee hour where startups, investors and interested tech people join to chat about everything.

NomX3 taping at Ted's Montana Grill in Westborough at 2PM. Come join Mike Langford and me as we dine on beef! Setup at 1PM, taping at 2.

TOP CHEF SOUTHIE. This invite-only event will pair four chefs off in a Top-Chef-style cooking competition. Sponsored by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, the cook-off will require each chef to use coffee in their dishes. May share a recap after the event. If they have coffee with each meal, I'm gonna be wired!

THURSDAY, October 22

Holland-Mark Digital is having a Launch Party on Thursday. The renowned digital agency is inviting marketing, advertising and other media professionals to come and enjoy drinks and polite conversation at Post 390 on Stuart Street. Sign-up is required, so go here to get on the list.

Blogtoberfest! I missed it. This is one event I want to attend but I was too focused on some of my own stuff to remember to sign up. Jenny will assuredly put on a FANTASTIC bash and some of the coolest people are already going. Maybe I can find a John Wall namebadge and sneak in. For more info, check out the site.

Thursdays at Berkman. Tech talk with some smarties at Baker House, 1587 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge. Runs from 7-9PM. For more info and to join the mailing list for all things related to this event and a few other great things happening in and around Harvard pertaining to tech, go here and join.

Pokin' Holes. A fun session from 6-9:30PM that involves an open exchange of opinions and ideas, all moderated and organized by my friend Cortlandt. More info is right here. Not to be missed if you can help it.

FRIDAY, October 23

All-Day Social Media for Business Seminar in Arlington. eBiz Symposium 2009 should be a blast. Use ebiz100 to get a free ticket - a multi-hundred-dollar value - to the event. I'll be on a panel talking about the tools people are using today to be successful. Sign up here, the event goes from 8:00-4:30.

The CR Live with Jim Storer and Rachel Happe. Join them - and often me - in Bedford this week, so don't be stuck in Harvard Square. Join us for lively discussions about community management, beer and fashion. OK, it's mostly about social media and community management. Details right here. Starts at 12PM.

Hubspot TV. The inbound marketing specialists put on a fabulous show each Friday from 4-4:30PM. Get there - Hubspot, One Broadway, 5th Fl, Cambridge, MA - at 3:40 or so for a seat in the front row. They talk marketing, take questions via Twitter, give great insights and generally put on a light show that entertains and informs. Stars Mike Volpe and Karen Rubin. *Did I mention they have free beverages (MALT BEVERAGES!!) in the studio for all audience members? But don't drink the Raspberry UFO, that belongs to Rubin and she'd knock you out if you bogart her beer.

That's all I've got for this week, I'm sure there's more. Please share your events in the comments or sign up to be a contributor.

Our mission is to share events so people can have fun and learn stuff. Just leave a comment and we all win.

What to do in Boston

Recently, I found that the services I had depended on for accurate information about Boston events were woefully inadequate and unreliable.

In fact, one of these services even neglected to list one of the largest social media events of the year - a book signing and show taping with Gary Vaynerchuk at the Estate in Boston.

So I've decided to crowdsource - partially - and create a more comprehensive collection of events. These events might interest you, or you might be ambivalent. But that's the name of the game. I want you to share your info too.

Please get in touch via the comments - and leave your email - so that if you want to contribute to the blog I can send you an invite.

Thanks so much for your help and support.

Have fun out there!