dot conf deep dive: bitcoin, the new digital currency

NCI’s dot conf deep dive series continues on February 5th from 1pm on the topic of ‘Bitcoin – the new digital currency’. The session will be led by NCI’s School of Computing lecturer and Consultant at Version 1, Vikas Sahni, who has delivered several other very successful talks and bootcamps. Find more details and book your free place HERE through the NCI website.

The dot conf deep dive series takes place in NCI’s Cloud Competency Centre, created to support and strengthen the development of the cloud computing industry in Ireland and abroad. The Centre offers a number of courses including the MSc in Cloud Computing, Higher Diploma in Data Analytics (which are both now recruiting for a January start) and MSc in Web Technologies. It will soon be offering a Higher Diploma in Science in Cloud Computing and a Higher Diploma in Science in Computing Infrastructure.

Previous sessions have focused on XSS Hack Attacks, Amazon Web Services and Android; sign up to NCI’s mailing list via the college website to find out first about future events.

the dot conf deep dive sessions – a new event series from NCI!

The dot conf may be ‘Ireland’s best small tech conference’ (according to tech journalist Karlin Lillington), but it has one serious drawback: it only happens once a year! Now National College of Ireland is keeping the love alive by rolling out a series of events, based on the dot conf’s popular deep dive sessions.

Smaller and more intimate than the dot conf, the deep dives will focus on technical topics including security, virtualisation and app development and will take place in NCI’s Cloud Competency Centre, created to support and strengthen the development of the cloud computing industry in Ireland and abroad.

Who are these events aimed at?

This series will appeal to the IT community and anyone with an interest in applying web technologies to their organisation. This includes: coders, developers, software architects, usability engineers, educators, bloggers, IT personnel and more.

About the first event

The first event is taking place on Thursday 29th August from 12.45 – 2pm.

There is no charge to attend and a free brown bag lunch will also be provided. Attendees are asked to bring their own laptops so they can fully participate in the activities on the day.

Topic: XSS Hack Attack – Is your web app secure?
The session will investigate a number of website vulnerabilities associated with cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks. We will look at:

• What are the key characteristics of an XSS attack?
• Are there different types of XSS attack vulnerabilities?
• What measures can be put in place to mitigate the threat of your web app being susceptible to an XSS attack?

Participants will be given the opportunity to try their hands at an XSS attack against a vulnerable website and perhaps steal a few cookies along the way!

Book Your Free Place Now!

Book your free place on this event through the NCI website here. Rest assured we will only use your details to contact you in relation to this and other relevant events you might wish to come to at the college.

the dot conf 2013 – read all about it!

Here’s a taster of some of the photos from the dot conf 2013 – check out the rest on our Facebook page! 

If you have any images or links you’d like to share from the day, please feel free to post them there.

We’ve loved hearing about your experiences – here’s a selection of what people had to say:

• Social Zavvy went dotty at dot conf 2013 
• Fierce Clever shared their highlights of the day
• Prosperity Digital gave a great summary of the event
• Music and Everything shared what they found most interesting about the dot conf 
• Sarah won herself a year’s supply of Ben & Jerry’s with her amazing illustrations
• Three Thought Bubbles made a lovely Instagram video inspired by the dot conf Deep Dives 
• Norah found the dot conf gave her greater insight into the tech industry as a whole (and won some cronuts!)
• Hazel shared her personal highlights of the event

Thank you for supporting the dot conf 2013!

Huge and heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped to make this year’s dot conf the best one yet – from all the staff at National College of Ireland to our kickass speakers, generous sponsors and partners of the event, and of course, everyone who came along and enjoyed the day. A special shout out has to go to our fabulous MC, Karlin Lillington, Tech Journalist at the Irish Times.

We’re loving your blog posts – check out some of our favourites here and here and here – so do keep them coming!

We’ll be back soon with some photos and videos from the day.

Live Streaming… yea that’s us… yea right now

So you can’t make it to the dot conf. It’s a time of sadness for us all… BUT WAIT, never fear, the live stream is here.

Thanks to HEAnet, follow the day as it unfolds, with this handy link…

http://flashhost.heanet.ie/dotconf/

 

Win a year’s supply of Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream, at the dot conf!

James Whelton, dot conf keynote speaker, with Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield

Every year, in the run up to the dot conf, we like to get our giveaway on.

And this year’s is an absolute belter.

We love a bit of Ben & Jerry’s, and now we’ve more reason than most. They’ve only gone and picked our keynote speaker, James Whelton, as the cream of the crop, in Ben & Jerry’s social entrepreneur competition, Join Our Core.

CoderDojo was one of 10 organisations from across Europe that pitched ideas to 10 of Europe’s top ethical business minds. And as the overall winner, they’ll win a prize package that includes the Coder Dojo logo being featured on an exclusive Ben & Jerry’s tub in 2014!

But that’s not all. They’ve also given us a year’s supply of delicious dairy ice-cream, for one of you lucky, lucky lot.

So how do you get your hands on it?

Whether you’ve been every year or will be coming along for the very first time, we want to know why you’re excited about dot conf, and what you’re looking forward to most.

And naturally, given the digital nature of the event, we want you to share your excitement online.

Post your links – to a blog post, a YouTube video, a tweet (remember #goingdotty), a linkedin or Google + status – to the dot conf Facebook page, and we’ll announce the winner on the day.

Post your links by midnight next Wednesday, 26^th June – and for your entry to be eligible, include this link back to the NCI site: http://bit.ly/182YWRK

Best of luck – and see you at the dot conf!

Goodfella’s at the dot conf!

We know what’s really important to Ireland’d digital community.

Way back in the mists of time, when we were planning the very first dot conf, we asked you to tell us what you wanted from the day.

And you told us: pizza, beer, and cake.

Since then, they’ve been crucial elements of the dot conf after party. Which is just one of the reasons we’re so happy to welcome Goodfella’s pizza to the dot conf team this year.

(The others are that it’s insanely delicious, and gives us an excuse to talk like American gangsters. Got that, you wiseguys?)

And like all the best partnerships, the feeling is mutual! “We couldn’t be happier to be serving up delicious slices of Goodfella’s Pizza at the dot conf next Friday,” said Susan Weldon, Brand Manager, Goodfella’s Ireland.

“It’s the Teddy Bear’s picnic of the internet and we’re delighted to provide the perfect post-picnic pizza.”

BRING. IT. ON.

The dot conf 2013: the deep dives

Please book your place for your chosen deep dives through the NCI website, by clicking on this link HERE. Pick one session from the following list. Places are allocated on a first come, first served basis so be quick, or you might have to pick again.

The dot conf takes place at NCI on Friday June 28th; check out the running order HERE and the speakers’ bios over HERE.

1. Barry Hand – Simple Analytics Dashboards

When it comes to Analytics – What metrics are important, how do you identify them and make the most of measurement?

This session will be a short guide to help you make sure you are measuring the right metrics for your business.

2. Julie Pichon – Making Your First Contribution to Open Source

This talk is for people who like open-source and would like to give back, but are not sure where to start or if their skills would be valued. Together we will be looking at the usual workflow for contributing, and bring to light how everyone can participate.

3. Donal O’Connell – Dissecting Open Innovation

This talk will provided a ‘deep dive’ into open innovation, providing a formal structured approach to help organisations ‘slice and dice’ open or collaborative forms of innovation. Examples of how different entities are embracing open innovation will be highlighted as there is no ‘one size fits all’. The role of Intellectual property and how it underpins open innovation will also be explored.

4. Rowan Manahan – ON YOUR FEET – SELLING YOUR GREAT IDEA

A deepdive into the world of pitching, peddling and presenting your idea, yourself and your company to the world at large.

5. Emily Cunnane, Yelp Community Manager Dublin

You go to all the trouble of building a baseball field. You want them to come right? Come, stay for a while, have a drink, relax! Then go home, tell their friends, and get them to come! In this seminar, Emily will give her experiences on the importance and ‘how to’ of building a community that will grow your business for you.

6. Jennie, Sarah and Grace McGinn, Prowlster – Startups: Lessons Learned

This deep dive shares the lessons learned on the Prowlster journey so far. Prowlster is an online lifestyle magazine that you can shop. It was founded by the three Mc Ginn sisters who were selected to take part in the NDRC Launchpad programme for high potential start-ups. The co-founders explored the idea of ‘magazine commerce’ and built out the Prowlster platform to prove that there was a thirst for original, inspirational content with an option to ‘shop what you see’ directly off editorial.

7. Horacio Gonzalez-Velez – Beyond Cloud Computing: The Next Decade

Unless you have been living in a deserted island without internet access for the past five years, you have heard Cloud Computing a zillion times. But what is real in “The Cloud” today, what is hype, and more important what is to come.

This session intends to provide a short, technically-sound guide to technology trends in cloud computing.

8. Sarah Williams – Fashion and Social Media

How online and offline media co-exist in the ever changing world of fashion, and the Arnotts Shoe Garden twitter party case study.

9. Patrick Comerford – From Enterprise to the Eurovision and back again

Patrick will talk about his journey from an enterprise developer to an App developer. He will talk about how he has used these new techniques in his current role in a large traditional enterprise and how he used his skillbase to try and predict this year’s Eurovision winner!

Picked your favourite? Great! Now remember to head on over to book your place HERE – you’ll get an email when your booking’s been accepted.

Tiger Beer is the official drink of the dot conf!

The dot conf after party is always a highlight of the day. Heads are buzzing with ideas and inspiration, and it’s a chance to relax, unwind and talk it all over in a fun and friendly environment. It’s also the perfect chance to get to know the people behind the twitter names!

This year there’s even more reason to stick around. We are delighted to announce that Tiger is the official drink of the dot conf, and yes, there’s one for everyone in the audience!  It’s the perfect match for the event, as brand manager, Emma Jane Gorham, confirmed.

“The dot conf is a perfect match for Tiger”, she said, “as it encourages people to follow their instinct and venture into something new –  this behaviour echoes the Tiger attitude. “

If you haven’t already booked your ticket for the hottest show in town, make sure you do it HERE  – tickets are flying and we don’t want you to be left out!

Will you be #goingdotty on June 28^th? Tweet us @dotconf and let us know!

Whoop! IrishMirror.ie is the official media partner to the dot conf!

We know we say this every year, but this year’s dot conf is shaping up to be the biggest and best one yet.

We’re thrilled to announce that the Irish Mirror have teamed up with us as the official media partners for the day. Keep an eye out on the paper and the IrishMirror.ie site for all the latest news and developments, and for exclusive interviews with some of our speakers in the run up to the event. Check out the line-up HERE.

Maria Scannell from the Mirror Media Ireland said: “We are delighted to partner with the dot conf this year and to showcase our new breaking news website – IrishMirror.ie – along with our new eEdition format of the newspaper. We’ll be speaking on the day about the future of news in the digital age and look forward to sharing our experiences, as well as learning from the other great speakers on the day.”

Don’t miss out on the highlight of Ireland’s digital calendar – book your ticket HERE!

Are you #goingdotty on June 28^th? Tweet us @dotconf and @irishmirror with the #goingdotty hashtag, and let us know!