Revision3 Blog

We had a great time at the Future of Web Apps in London, and it was capped off by a tremendous live Diggnation!  Kevin and Alex were in their element, as 1,700 screaming fans showed up for the fun.

The full Diggnation will be out Friday October 17th, but here are some sneak peeks behind the scenes that I shot on my flip video camera.  Enjoy!

The great thing about this Diggnation is that Google bought free beer for everyone!  Fans grabbed fistfuls of Becks to bring in to make sure they had enough beers for the full show.

Virgin sponsored the Diggnation.  Here Revision3 VP of Sales Brad Murphy, and Alex Hunter from Virgin position the Virgin sign in just the right way.  Thanks to Virgin for sponsoring!

We had 1,700 people show up for the live Diggnation, it was wild.  Thanks everyone who showed up.  We all had a great time at the show, and at the after party sponsored by Facebook and Digg.

So and then the next morning, we all met for tea and breakfast, and then set out to the Virgin corporate offices in London to tape the next week’s Diggnation there.  Most of us took a Taxi, but Kevin and Alex had the ride of their lives…  on a Virgin LimoBike!  Here are a few videos of Kevin and Alex encountering the bikes for the first time, and then getting suited up and ready to go!

Checking out the Virgin Limobikes and getting suited up and ready to go.  These bikes are so cool, and so much faster than taxis in London.  Sign up for one today!

Off they go!

So after Kevin and Alex showed up, we toured the Virgin offices, and then the set up for a Diggnation in this really cool conference room in the offices, that sort of looks like you’re on stage at a Virgin music festival. 

As I was doing a quick little video walk through, coincidentally they were talking about my new favorite phone, which unfortunately I had to give back, the Nokia E71.  You won’t see this episode until October 24th, but it’s awesome too.

– Jim Louderback

So are we! In an effort to help everyone be as informed as possible, we’ve teamed up with the Commission for Political Debates and MyDebates.org. Starting RIGHT NOW, you can go to Revision3 Election 2008 page to learn about the biggest issues affecting this election and where each candidate stands.

Additionally, you will enjoy a live stream of the remaining presidential debates and clips from previous debates. Plenty of other materials are available, including voter registration info and a breakdown of how your opinions compare to others across your state and the nation.

Everyone at Revision3 is super energized by these elections and we want to make sure you, your family and friends are up to pace, too. Check out all the Election 2008 material right here on Revision3 and make sure to vote on November 4th!

Hey everyone,

It’s me, Prager, yet again only writing on the Revision3 blog for shameless promotions for Diggnation. But hey, what better place to talk about Diggnation than on the Revision3 blog — plus its something I’m excited about and hope you will be to.

Diggnation has a live taping on Friday, October 10th at 7:30pm (London time) from The Future of Web Apps conference in London! Additional details here: http://london2008.futureofwebapps.com/socialize

Following the show, there will be a Digg Meetup (read: huge party) with drinks provided by friends from Facebook (Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg himself will most likely be in attendance).

I’m sure many of you may not be in and around the London area - but if there is any chance that you might be, or any reason to decide to make plans for it - we would absolutely LOVE to have you join us.

Cheers!

David

San Francisco based Revision3, the leader in online television, is looking for the next web superstars to host our shows. Talented Bay Area men and women who would appeal to our core 18-35 year old demographic are encouraged to come to an open casting call on Saturday, October 4, from 11am to 1pm, at our state of the art studio in the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco.

We are looking for a broad range of show hosts for programming focusing on a wide range of topics such as music, technology, sports, news and video games.

Bring headshots (if you have one) and resume to audition. Sides for you to read will be provided that day. Hope to see you here:

Revision3 Studio
2415 3rd Street
Suite 237
San Francisco, CA 94107

Hey everyone -

I wouldn’t normally use up space on the Revision3 blog to talk about a sponsorship - but this one is particularly cool, I’m excited about it, and I feel like sharing a little bit more about why.

Since the beginning of Revision3, we’ve prided ourselves on the success of a relatively old school and grass roots business model for this high tech and rapidly growing medium of Internet television. Although we employ various methods of efficiently delivering advertising, the most genuine, high value, and high return for our sponsors has been the integration of products/services and sponsor messaging within our shows.

Diggnation has been a successful proving ground for delivering integrated sponsor messaging and I’m really excited about our new campaign with the Michelob Brewing Company. Ever since episode number one of Diggnation, we’ve kicked back and had a beer while delivering the content of the show. It is a part of the show. As a result, the most natural fit for an integrated and identified product placement within the show is a drink sponsor. We were very excited to in working with the folks at the Michelob Brewing Company for some time to put together a 6 week campaign to cover the new Michelob Craft Beer Sampler Pack.

The excitement is two-fold:

One, Michelob is a brand that has a rich history as well as a tradition in seeking excellence along with analysis and strong identity with the properties through which they carry out their extensive and successful marketing initiatives. The Diggnation viewers have proven to be the perfect place to spread the word in a fun and engaging way about the new and innovative product offerings in the Michelob Craft Beer Sampler Pack.

Two, The Michelob Craft Beers have been formulated with the same passion for brewing specialty beers that the most detail oriented micro-breweries bestow. Being beer connoisseurs ourselves, we are genuinely excited to be able to sample each of the beers in the sampler pack and allow the viewers of Diggnation to try them along with us.

Last week Diggnation flew to St. Louis MO for a behind the scenes Brewery tour at the Michelob Brewing Co. Brewmaster Florian Kuplent walked us through the beer making process from Barley to Bottle. Check out the video from the tour (note that you will have to enter your birth date to access.)

Over the next 6 weeks we will be drinking craft beers from the Michelob Sampler Pack on Diggnation. If you like beer as much as we do, pick up a Michelob Sampler Pack and drink along with us. Here is the rundown of the beers we’ll be drinking over the next 6 episodes:

Episode 168: Michelob Amber Bock
Episode 169: Michelob Marzen
Episode 170: Michelob Irish Red
Episode 171: Michelob Pale Ale
Episode 173: Michelob Porter
Episode 174: Kevin and Alex Choose their favorite beers from the Michelob Craft Beer Sampler Pack.

You can learn more about the beers and at www.Michelob.com

Cheers,

David Prager

Revision3 is proud to announce the launch of our new show development hub, Revision3 Beta! We’re launching with seven fantastic programs that cater to a broad range of tastes. Shows include:

- What Should You Know?: Hosted by Ethan Bloch, WSYK is the world’s primary weapon of defense against ignorance. By using in-your-face educational explosions, discussing the people, places, things and ideas currently floating around the place we call earth, WSYK will actively protect you against becoming an ignoramus.

- Your Weekly Music Lesson : Host Walt Ribeiro’s forthright teaching style has created an entire community of those interested in music or not. ‘The Internet’s Music Teacher’ has created a fleet of dedicated viewers, and shares his lessons, passion, and knowledge of Music Technology, Guitar, Piano, News, Interviews, and more.

- Hack College: Educating the students of the world about effective open source software, putting techno-political arguments in everyday language, and creating a cult of “Students 2.0.”

- The Slice: SThe Slice, hosted by Steven Carpenter and Sven J., is the official show of Cake Financial. It focuses on the past week’s top news in the world of business and finance based on the real trading activity of the Cake Financial community.

- The Minx Mandate: Madeline Minx meets with world-renowned scientists, entrepreneurs, philosophers and troublemakers to investigate the future of science, celebrity, sex and tech.

- Bottles, Blends and Brews: A drink culture review show dedicated to finding the most quirky forms of “deliciousness” out there, and serving it to you weekly.

- That’s Awesome.TV: Primarily a tech show, That’s Awesome.TV is aimed at teaching awesome things, from taking awesome pictures to securing an awesome router to getting an awesomely cut lawn.

And why is Revision3 doing this? Because as the landscape of new media becomes more and more crowded, it is increasingly difficult for talented content producers and hosts to find audiences for their shows. Revision3 is striving to locate these content producers and expose these shows to a new and vibrant fan base. We want to help exciting new shows succeed.

Please let us know what you think about Revision3Beta’s new lineup of shows, and let us know whether you have a show that you’d like to be a part of the action! You can submit your show ideas to us on Revision3 Beta.

An extra special thanks goes to our partners at Viddler.com, who are powering Revision3 Beta making it easier than ever for video producers to create great shows and get them on the Internet. We’re very excited about Revision3 Beta and hope you’ll give these new shows a look.

The tech scene in New York has a long history of success centered in and around “Silicon Alley.” Silicon Alley Insider has put together a list of the top influencer’s in the scene in New York and Revision3 is proud to have several of our friends and associates in the list of some of New York’s big movers and shakers.

We here are Revision3 are all self confessed fans of Gary Vaynerchuk “Vayniacs” as his fans are affectionately known. Host of Wine Library TV and Wine Library Reserve, Gary gained the title of “The Internet’s Most Passionate Wine Program”. Revision3’s ecstatic to hear Gary has been placed amongst the finest influencer’s in the industry and we’re here to support him, so please give him a vote and help spread the wine gospel.

Vote for Gary at Silicon Alley Top 100 List Here.
Be sure to tune into Wine Library TV and Wine Library Reserve here on Revision3.

While our long time friend Michael Lewis, organizer of the wildly successful and fun Diggnation/Revision3 Meet Up in New York City has been nominated for Silicon Alley Top 100 List. This list represents New York’s Top 100 most influential digital business executives. Help Micheal spread the word about Revision3 and the shows we create by sending him some love and voting for him in the Top 100 list.

Vote for Michael at Silicon Alley Top 100 List Here.
Join the Revision3 NYC Meet Up Here.

Systm + David Calkins = More Mayhem, Completed Projects

We’ve been searching for a new full time cohost for Systm for what seems like forever. In a perfect world, we’d have found somebody months ago. Instead, we found somebody perfect for the job… it just took us a while to find them. Meet David Calkins, robotics expert, RoboGames founder, occasional pyromanic and the new cohost of Systm.

Lest you think David is just another pretty face, we’ll skip past his experience teaching classes on how to build your own R2D2 droid at events like Comic-Con to his experience as a Lecturer of Computer & Electrical Engineering at SFSU.

To say that David loves robots and robotics (and all the various disciplines required to make them work, from programming controllers and milling metal to the terminal search for better battery tech you can actually afford to buy) is a gross understatement.

Forget about his combat and Cocktail Robots... to advance the art of robotics David founded RoboGames, the world’s largest open robot competition (It’s in the Guinness Book of World Records) The annual event has a stellar reputation for bringing contestants together from around the world to compete in dozens of events. The real focus, though, underlying the competition, is cross pollinating ideas across the all too specialized fields of robot development. (OK, the robot combat is of epic intensity, and well worth watching… think 504 robots in 58 events, the video is sick)

Then there’s his work in advancing robotics in education, working with local high schools, NASA, and, of course, as the president of the Robotics Society of America, which works especially well with Systm: David’s not only used to sorting out tech puzzles, but explaining them to other folks.

Did I mention R2D2 earlier? David molded the plastic to build his own Stormtrooper armor. Chances are he takes his nerdly obsessions a tad farther than you: there were Stormtroopers at his wedding. Think I’m kidding? It made BoingBoing I won’t get into where it was held.

So join me in welcoming David Calkins to Systm… this should be fun!

Go Daddy presents the coolest Diggnation contest ever! Win Diggnation in your living room!

In this once in a lifetime opportunity, Kevin and Alex will travel to a fan’s house to shoot an episode of Diggnation this fall. From now until October 22, every time you use the code “diggcouch” when you purchase something from Go Daddy you are automatically entered to win. Go Daddy will choose one lucky winner at random. This fall, Kevin and Alex will travel to their house to shoot an episode of Diggnation in their living room.

In addition to entering the contest you also get 10% off your entire order when you use the code “diggcouch” at check out. So make sure you get over to GoDaddy.com and make some purchases and get your entry in today!

You can also enter and see all the details about the contest at www.revision3.com/diggcouch

This is going to be HUGE!

It’s dueling launchpad show week here in California, with the venerable Demo show rolling out a fall slate of nearly 100 cool new companies here in San Diego, while another group are on display in San Francisco’s aging Design Center at the Tech Crunch 50.

Revision3’s David Prager is covering TC50, while I’ve been scouring the floor of Demo. David’s update will be up soon, but here’s my look at the best of Demo.

RealDVD: Although the geeks among us have been ripping DVDs into our computers for years (albeit illegally since the DMCA passed), it’s never been as easy as digitizing music. Not anymore. RealNetworks (the company that brought you RealAudio) showed its RealDVD software here for the first time. Using it is as simple as inserting a DVD into your PC – it’s designed to store all your DVDs on either an internal or external hard drive, and includes an easy-to-navigate interface to let you easily find and watch a movie.

How can they do it without breaking the law? Do they have the implied or explicit endorsement of the movie world? To the latter, the answer is no: they just informed the powers that be about the product a few weeks ago and are “working through the issues”. As for the former question, Real claims they are on solid ground. RealDVD does not break encryption. Instead, it creates a complete ISO – or disc image – of the movie DVD, and stores that file on your hard drive. It’s essentially a legal piece of DVD playback software, but instead of streaming the bits off of a plastic platter, it streams them off of your PC’s hard drive.

I can’t imagine that Netflix or Blockbuster will be too happy about this solution, as the $20 piece of software lets anyone with enough disk space copy rented DVDs along with store bought ones. And the required disk space is enormous – at 9 gigabytes for modern dual-layer DVDs.

It’s also a PC-only, and a single computer solution. It’s not designed to be shared across multiple systems. Want to share? Store the DVD ISOs on a USB flash/hard drive, and then plug it into different computers. You’ll have to pay $20 for each machine, though, in that scenario. Speaking of hardware, the company is talking with NAS vendors, like Drobo, to build DVD ripping appliances. It’s a brilliant, albeit shocking development that’ll definitely be controversial. But at just $20, it’s certainly alluring.

Imagine a Kindle, stretched out to 8×11, slimmed down to the thickness of a newspaper, with a full-sized screen stretching from corner to corner. That’s what Plastic Logic plans to release in early 2009. It uses the same digital ink display found on the Kindle and Sony’s reader, but sized up to the dimensions of a standard magazine. The device should cost about as much as a Kindle, should store as many pages, includes built in wireless (although they were cagey about EVDO vs WiFi) and will last for days on a single battery charge. It’s far closer to electronic paper than anything I’ve seen. It’s annotatable, which makes it ideal for textbooks, business documents, and reading magazines and journals. It’s all plastic, so it ought to be relatively rugged as well. I want one!

EchoNest: Run by ex professional drummer and reformed lawyer Jim Luccchesi, this company provides audio pattern matching software for developers that make it easy to roll your own Pandora, and build all sorts of creative audio weblets. The company showed off an applet it built for iMeem that plays a lengthy list of “more like this” songs, and even demonstrated an eerie “duet” feature, where they combined Michael Jackson and Estelle to produce a weird, mostly unlistenable mashup of two of their songs that was surprisingly note and key pure. The company also has a more cowbell example on their website that adds cowbells to, well, just about any song. Definitely worth playing with!

WebDiet: Want to lose weight? Eat better? Here’s a cool new web service that installs on your iPhone (or other smartphone), and helps you keep track of everything you eat. It uses GPS to find healthy restaurants,and will even recommend smart dining choices at your favorite eatery, depending on what you like, and what you’ve already eaten that day.  WebDiet will be out soon, although you can apply for the private beta today.

Maverick Secure Mobile:  The motto of this company:  “Payback’s a Bitch”, or maybe “To Annoy a Thief”.  For a dollar a month, these guys ensure that if your cellphone gets stolen, the thief will get the worse end of the deal.  Here’s how it works:

Load the Maverick Mobile software on your phone, and pay the company a dollar a month.  When it gets stolen, the fun begins. From your new phone (or a friends), you can remotely trigger your old phone to send you everything that happens on it: who it calls, what text messages are sent and received - you can even download the complete address book.  Tired of spying?  then simply send a “stop thief” alert to the phone, and it’ll display a bright red “stolen phone” screen, and play an incredibly loud and annoying siren sound through the speaker.  The only way to reset it is to remove the battery - but you can do it again, and again, and again.  You may not get your phone back, but at least you’ll have the satisfaction of really annoying the thief.

FFWD:  If you’re a fan of Revision3, you know that it’s often hard to find other web video shows that you like.  There were a few discovery engines rolled out at Demo, but FFWD was clearly the best - and the only one designed specifically for the new world of internet video.

OK, maybe I was biased - when the company demonstrated FFWD on stage, a SYSTM logo appeared on the home page.  And as I was using the software, Diggnation, Wine Library Reserve and Internet Superstar kept popping up too.  But this is a great tool for finding, watching and sharing all the great Internet video out there, including shows from Revision3 and elsewhere.    You can start using it today!

TikiTag:  Oh, one bonus - near field communications tags that cost about a dollar each and let you turn anything into an internet connected device.  Roll your own Webkins with Tikitag!