Twitter?

[bascule]

Re: Twitter?

Looks like Twitter can be used as a DoS amplifier this year. Nothing like X number of random people showing up (for certain values of X greater than maximum occupancy of Room Y) for a gathering. :D

Well, last Defcon they played in the ballroom on the top floor, and while they attracted a big crowd, they certainly weren't pushing the maximum occupancy of the room.

[bascule]

Re: Twitter?

@bascule that someone who volunteered meaning you. http://bit.ly/jwZVb

If you can secure a computer/projector and tell me a time and a place, I can get search.twitter.com for #defcon auto-refreshing in about 5 minutes.

[kive]

Re: Twitter?

I finally created a forum account just to respond to this thread. Meh!

Nikita,

The best input I can give you is this: last year, I was unable to make it out to DefCon. As a result, I spent quite a bit of the weekend watching the Twitter stream. It gave me a small sense of being there... especially watching the more diverse view of what was happening.

Long registration lines... speaker gaffes... they were a really nice second place.

I think the Twitter feed is primarily useful for two different things:

1) When the hype of Defcon is fresh, it helps to expose newcomers.

2) To folks that aren't there, or are doing other things (I rarely listen to the talks -- too much other stuff to do!), it helps us to keep in touch with what's happening.

As a result of those, I would suggest:

1) Focus more on describing the really significant events. People re-tweet this and reference it in blogs, IRC, etc...

2) Be more descriptive in what's happening -- even the mundane. A lot of folks end up having to miss out -- the twiiter feed is the absolute best thing for the die-hards to keep an eye on when they can't attend. That said, you're not the only one tweeting, so don't sweat the small stuff...

I'd actually suggest from that you get a small group of folks together that comprise a fairly representative sample of Defcon-goers. From there, act as moderator (probably part of a team to have 24-hour coverage) to determine what makes it onto the feed.

To answer your question more directly: we want to see -everything-! There has to be balance, of course, but the goal should really be to make anyone watching the Twitter feed feel the next-best thing to actually being there.

I'll also be there this year, and I'm happy to help if you like.

-kive

I will be doing the defcon twitter at the show this year. I'll be compiling tweets, re-tweeting, etc.

Meaning:

What's going on.
Fed Spotting. (Trixie hobbits)
Party Spots.
Contest results.
Schedule changes ( hopefully NONE)
General tweets, etc
Undercover reporter spotting.
Vendor announcements.
Hopefully Info booth announcements.
Meeting locations.
Toxic BBQ announcements.
Eff notices. ( hopefully)

That said, I want to know WHAT you want to see and read when you're at the show from the official twitter? Anything specific? Twit Pics? Things of that nature.

Please advise, so you can get the most of the Defcon twitter while at the show. If you want to be able to make requests to have things posted to the twitter, what will be the easiest way for YOU to do so? Etc etc. Looking for feedback here.

Thanks much
Nikita

[TheCotMan]

Re: Twitter?

I finally created a forum account just to respond to this thread. Meh!

In all seriousness, this is a good example of a first post. It contributed new ideas and thoughts to an existing thread which were more than good enough to meet the age-vs-quality for posting to older threads. It was well supported with reasons for the ideas.

Thanks for your contribution and well supported suggestions. :-)

[Nikita]

Re: Twitter?

I finally created a forum account just to respond to this thread. Meh!


I'll also be there this year, and I'm happy to help if you like.

-kive

GREAT feedback! I think we can work something out if you want to help contribute content. Email me at nikita at defcon dot org and we'll get in touch coming up with some ideas. I would love to have more input and help to make the best out of this new medium.

Also, as an update: we will be working on a plan to add video and or "twit casts" where I may be taking interviews ( quick question or two) and posting them to the feed.

[bascule]

Re: Twitter?

To answer your question more directly: we want to see -everything-! There has to be balance, of course, but the goal should really be to make anyone watching the Twitter feed feel the next-best thing to actually being there.

If you really want to see everything, why not watch the #defcon hashtag? Then you do get everything as opposed to just relying on _defcon_ to relay the information (and I assume _defcon_ will hashtag everything with #defcon too)

[Dark Tangent]

Qik?

So I have a new phone that comes with a built in QIK.com client.

Essentially it does two things, live stream and recall a stream.

You create an account like any other social network and fire up the app. Your live video stream goes to qik.com into whatever category you want, and end users can either watch your live stream from your page in qik, or you can embed the js player on a different location and see when your live stream comes up.

If there is no live stream you can still go to the qik site and view all the past live streams you have missed out on.

My idea was to wander around defcon with my phone and lots of batts, live streaming interviews, random contest stuff, etc. The difference to say youtube seems to be that people can embed a bunch of players on a single page and then watch 5 or 10 or 20 channels when they become live.. sort of like a giant robot chicken screen!

This might be a nice complement to twitter, especially if we promote it and more people use their camera phones to push up pictures or video.

[sintax_error]

Re: Qik?

So I have a new phone that comes with a built in QIK.com client. <snip snip>

That sounds like a pretty interesting idea, DT. But is there a base of people out there willing to do the same, so it's not all on your shoulders? If no one has looked into it, a quick googling will reveal all you need to know for iPhone (gen 1, 2, and 3), Blackberry, and WM6 Qik apps. Perhaps something that can be tied into the Twitter feed?

[Dark Tangent]

Re: Qik?

That sounds like a pretty interesting idea, DT. But is there a base of people out there willing to do the same, so it's not all on your shoulders? If no one has looked into it, a quick googling will reveal all you need to know for iPhone (gen 1, 2, and 3), Blackberry, and WM6 Qik apps. Perhaps something that can be tied into the Twitter feed?

I played more with qik today, and streamed some test feeds, you can see the quality differences. Looks like they let you download the video, too, so you don't have to rip it somehow.

There is a feature in qik where (if you) trust them with your twitter, facebook, etc. credentials then once you have completed a stream it will announce it for you on all your social sites automatically.

I've also created a defcon group on qik, not sure how people can join it to aggregate all their videos, that will need some playing about.

Looks like qik supports https the whole way, too.

https://qik.com/thedarktangent/

[theprez98]

Re: Twitter?

Will try this on the iphone tonight.

[mage2]

Re: Twitter?

I am installing on my phone now. this seems like a good idea. If there were a mob of attendees doing things like this it could be fun. like being in 100 places at once, because we all know we all want to be everywhere at once. well maybe not.

[theprez98]

Re: Twitter?

Will try this on the iphone tonight.

Just installed on the iphone. ~2-3 second lag to "live", works pretty well!

[sintax_error]

Re: Twitter?

I'll play around with it on the 'Berry as soon as I can sneak away from work related crap long enough to have some me time.

[bascule]

Re: Twitter?

Qik is awesome, however after using it for several months my account consists mostly of "you're live on the Internet! rofl this is so weird" videos

[TheCotMan]

Re: Twitter?

I'll try it out at Defcon for a few events. I will need to find a way to let people know that it is happening before and as I am doing it so they can let me know if they do or don't want to be recorded.

Suggestions on this? What is the best to to announce to people that I will be recording and that I am recording at the time I see them?

It would suck to keep saying, "I am recording and broadcasting," over and over once I start, as that will be part of the audio stream.