For the first time ever, we are excited to feature a new aspect of JavaOne within the pavilion.  Its called Java Utopia.  Its the most welcoming, creative, interactive, nontraditional lounge you will ever enter – all designed so you can experience and learn about the best Java technologies.  

• Create, Play, Learn and Share with the best and brightest of Java!
• Grab your laptop and hack code in one of the Java Utopia technology lounges.  
• Participate in games, competitions and even test your skills – You can win prizes!
• Engage in discussions and join a Java technology lightning talk
  

You never know who you might meet..or who just may be hanging out in Java Utopia
We hope to see you there @JavaOne!

I tell you where it is...you can win it right here!  Listen to our own Chris M tell you all about this very cool contest.


And go to http://java.sun.com/javaone/2009/contest to submit a video as to why you should win a free trip to JavaOne!!!!!

It's on!  The JavaFX Coding Challenge is here. There is no limit to your creativity. If you're a developer in the professional or student communities, we have an opportunity for you to win up to $25,000 in the JavaFX Coding challenge.  Download JavaFX 1.1 and use your talents to design a winning application with JavaFX.  Submit your application before the deadline and you could be selected as one of the top winners.  

Cash prizes of $5,000, $10,000 and our top rize of $25,000 will be awarded to professional developers or students. Three additional $1500 cash prizes will be awarded to the top applications submitted by students.  One prize per entry, please and  all top entries will be showcased on JavaFX.com as examples of great new applications.

For more visit: www.JavaFX.com/challenge

Take the challenge now!

In the days of online marketing, social media, interactive games, personal brands and instant YouTube stars, there is more wild content than anyone can humanly consume. At the same time, we are barraged with the never ending professional do's and don'ts. Everyday I am faced with many decisions about how and what we will be using to market our products. A matrix so complicated to some, but beautiful music to me. Why? Because we have evolved beyond the traditional, we have confidence in our mistakes and we never stop learning. So whatever you choose and however you choose to express it, just remember this. Take risks, use common sense, but try something new. Not every idea will work, but creativity is a leap of faith, so just jump.

 

 

Oh yeah...it is that time of year again!  And it is very rare when I get to say that I live in the “place to be” starting this Friday. SXSW has grown into a massive, creative gathering that not only reflects, discusses and showcases trends in culture, media and technology but also often creates them.  This is when people come celebrate the creativity and passion behind the coolest new media technologies...and JavaFX is going to be “expressive”

We have some very cool things planned!

First of all – follow us on Twitter to hear the latest and greatest happenings from the hottest panels and forums

Visit the JavaFX App Lounge on the tradeshow floorwhere you can see JavaFX in action on both PCs & mobile devices!
Mingle with the brains behind JavaFX during the SXSW Booth/Pub Crawl, Sunday, March 15, 2009 4pm-6pm

Check out our panel:
We Like Big Apps: Developing for All the Screens of Your Life, Saturday March 14, 2009, 5pm-6pm, Room 10
They will discuss the platforms, tools, tips and tricks that offer distinct advantages for web designers and developers who are seeking to stand out from the crowd.

• Eric Klein, VP of Java marketing at Sun moderates this session featuring:
• Peyton Lindley, executive director of UX design and technology, EffectiveUI;
• Bill Maggs, head of developer and partner engagement, Sony Ericsson; 
• Nizar Alibhoy, CEO, Telepop

And because it wouldn't be SXSW without parties - don't  miss the first ever Fusion Interactive and Film party - sponsored by JavaFX and Whrrl - Monday, March 16, 2009 8pm-10pm @ Red Eye Fly where some of the hottest web 2.0 compnaies and coolest designers will walk a mini-red carpet.

See U there!

Last week, I spent some significant time in airports. And while admittedly, a lot of it was spent quickly moving from one place to another, I did get some time to just stop and observe. Without question, there is no greater gathering of human emotion than in an airport.

You see business travelers, wearily dragging their carry-on rollers bags and laptops as to not waste any time at the baggage claim when they land for that oh-so-important business meeting. Sometimes they travel in packs, but mostly you see them by themselves – eyes straight forward and moving with a self-appointed purpose.

You see parents, grandparents and kids going to visit extended families – sometimes for the first time. They move like a small unit, never letting the young go too far away, but ensuring they learn from the new experience. Each one carries something special from home – a teddy bear or blanket, reading glasses or that special pillow. The parents? entertaining and distracting old and young alike so none of them realize just how tired they really are.

You see young couples, hand-in-hand, embarking upon an adventure. At first glance, their shoes and handbags usually give away their origins, and when they open their mouths to speak, you can figure out just how far they have traveled. They look around and take in every moment as to promise themselves they will never forget their youth (but we all do)

You see sports teams going to their next gig. Matching sweats, iPods in abundance, laughter on their faces and dance moves in front of the McDonalds. Clearly they have not lost.

There are the thousands and thousands of people who work at the airport. Who go to their day or night job to ensure each and every one of us makes it to where we need to be...because we all have to travel.

And at its worst, the airport is a public forum for the most private of times. The loss of a loved-one is devastating. Traveling to reach “home” during that time is excruciating. You know who they are, but don't want to look. They are the ones wearing the sunglasses - with a tear streaming down their face. They have no desire to be there, yet they move through.

So the next time you are in an airport, take a look around. Each person is there for a different reason. There is no greater gathering of human emotion or a more beautiful diverse slice of humanity.  

 

Heading to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress to make sure the world knows about JavaFX!  (if I can ever get there)

Check it out!  Sun launched the most complete open Web application platform: built on the Web, for the Web.  Bringing together the price/performance-leading open-source GlassFish Enterprise Server, the record-setting Sun Web Server, Sun Proxy Server and a complete enterprise message platform as well as several new products:

• New Sun GlassFish ESB
• New Sun GlassFish Web Stack 
• New Sun GlassFish Web Space Server
• Additional Sun GlassFish Portfolio Add-On: New  Sun GlassFish Communications Server
  

But don't let me tell you about it – learn more here

And for those of you who are not used to my tecnical blogs, Its kinda like this.  The GlassFish Portfolio is like giving you a Marc Jacobs jacket for free...and if you want the belt, we will give it to you at Target prices.  It does not get any better that that.

We are moving at the speed of Life...the new found speed in which we cram more stuff into a single day and drop in our beds exhausted at night.  Where everything seems to be measured in terms of tasks started and tasks completed.  This week I am very excited, we have two major launches in our software portfolio ( you will be hearing about them soon!) And believe me, dashboards are my middle name.  Long documented lists with tremendous detail – transparent to the working world – illuminating your every move.  Are you red, yellow or green?

We are all green!

While there were many new gadgets that surfaced at CES, none were as eye-catching as the bright pink Barbie Digital Nail Printer by Mattel.  This cross-over gadget brings modern technology to the tweens and teens of the world.  Targeting the girly market, the Barbie Nail printer hooks up to your PC and enables you to print designs directly on your nails!  Use one of the 1000 Barbie designs or upload your own. You can even size the designs to fit those tiny little nails with the help of a built in digital camera that displays your finger on  the screen.  And while designed for ages 8 and up, I would not be surprised if this this girly-girl beautronic device ends up in homes and home offices around the world.

When I was in preschool, I made 5 pictures when everyone else painted one.  When I was a kid, I rearranged my room every 6 months.  I downloaded the background app for my iPhone so I can look at a new graphic every day.  I change my hair cut and color every time I go to the stylist.  See the pattern?  I like to change things up.  So I am really excited to unveil my new blog look for 2009!  I know its a skin, but for me...its a look.  A fresh color, a new hairdo and the addition of two fury friends that keep me sane in an insane world of software, fashion and friends.  And while we can always change the outside, the inside remains the same.

P.S.  Thank you Gwen!  You bring color to so many lives. 

A manifesto from an innovative, passionate and successful organization that sells more than just apparel – lululemon athletica.  Agree or disagree with the approach...its up to you, but it's refreshing to see a new and bold approach to company culture, marketing and product...and a brand that goes beyond itself. 

Then this conference is for you!  Check out BlissDom '09.  The conference that was developed by bloggers, for bloggers.   Do something special for yourself. Mingle and learn - from writing to social media...and best of all...meet people who share your passion for blogging.

Even better...Jen Lancaster is the keynote!  So you know you will laugh.

P.S. A Must Read: Bitter is the New Black

Happy New Year!  And as with all good New Years, we find ourselves reflecting back and looking forward.  I am going to spare you the reflective rhetoric but 2008 was an extraordinary year. A year of successes and challenges. A year of growth and yet at times, uncertainty.

I took more time than anticipated this holiday season to look back, take stock and set my sights on the year ahead.  I have been absent from the blogisphere for a while (no excuses…lets just chock it up to an introspective time) but plan to change that in the year ahead.

So to kick off the new year, here is a list of my pseudo resolutions

•    Blog more (because I love to write)
•    Read more (other than fashion magazines and technology websites)
•    Eliminate some of my less-likeable personalities (That’s for you AmyO)
•    Try one new marketing idea a month…even when no one wants “new”
•    Laugh more (and less loudly)
•    Grace
•    Care more…and in some cases…care less

Who really knows what the year holds, but I do know that it is a year that will be defined by character.

It is going to be a very good year

We all have them– no matter your gender. We have family obligations! Carpools, soccer games, (in my case - football games) first days of school, ballet recitals, holiday carnivals, sick children and even sick pets.  And while these events rarely fall outside of “normal” working hours, in today's 24-hour globally connected marketplace, 9-5 is an obsolete term.  Lets be honest - what is 9:00 am to me maybe 7:00 pm to my co-worker.  Yet, through the miracle of technology, we are connected.  We perform our jobs at all hours of the day and join in with exuberance as if the “life” part is not a distraction (and at times, does not exist).  But life does exist.

This blog is not meant to be a rant or series of complaints, but rather a tribute to the creativity, skills and talent we have developed over the years to multitask, do our jobs and keep our lives going – without the team of people on the other end of the phone knowing it.  

So here's to everyone of us who has taken a conference call during a child's sporting event, dressed and fed our children wearing a blue tooth headset, put a call on speaker phone while we changed our clothes in the other room, pulled the car over to look at a presentation and comment because you are stuck in traffic, or even crouched behind a car door in a parking lot to present an idea on the phone.  Congratulations. You were all great!

P.S.
Now lets hope video does not take off more