Here’s a video version of the infographic:

A few joke that 20 years ago, we used to create music, write, shop or learn “in the real life”, and now, all you can see is everyone glued to their screens… even when going outside such as coffee shops. In 2012, numbers are still on the rise, with even a few countries stating that Internet access is a basic human right. With the development of mobile devices such as the Google glasses, and new high bandwidth networks, it’s obvious that trend is not going to stop anytime soon.

GetMeListed created this event to demystify location-based marketing and provide marketers knowledge that they can put into practice immediately. Attendees will know how to manage and measure their marketing and promotions through channels like Google Places, Yelp, Foursquare, Twitter and many more.

A few good names speaking at the event:
• Asif R. Khan, Location Based Marketing Association
• Michael Mire, Co-founder & CEO, Get Me Listed
• Mohamed Khalain, VP Products & Marketing, Mediative
• Malik Yacoubi, VP Mobile Marketing, Cossette Communications

Attendees will also have a great opportunity to network with experts in location based marketing, digital media and retail.

Register here http://guestlistapp.com/events/102981

RHOK Montreal is hoping to bring new innovation to the old unexploded ammunition problem by teaming up with game developer Ahmed Mansour (@OLPCMorocco).

Random Hacks of Kindness is all about developing high-tech solutions that help solve real life problems, especially in developing countries.

IAU reports that in Iraq alone between 48,000 and 68,000 people have undergone amputations due to Unexploded Ordonances (UXO) and landmines. In regions like Kurdistan 24% of victims were children. Report also stipulates that children are not educated enough about the dangers of landmines and UXOs.

Game developer Ahmed Mansour (Morocco) had an idea for an educational game that teaches kids how to avoid landmines that still litter many parts of the world. He assumed that it’s a perfect fit for programs like Computer Aid International (@Computer_Aid) that donate used computers to people in 3rd world countries.

“Why not load a game on those computers that teach kids how to stay safe” says Ahmed.

The project picked up some momentum, but as time went by the developer started to lose hope. Without contacts and additional coding power the project seemed to be headed for the rocks.

Tide seemed to turn when RHOK heard of the project.

While on the lookout for the next big challenge RHOKmtl organizer and CEO of DecodeGlobal Angelique Manella (@Angemanella) ran into one of Ahmed’s tweets on the IDRC facebook page and decided that it was a perfect fit and that RHOK developers will work on the prototype during the next event.

RHOK events are very similar to hackathons in which developers quickly code working protoypes that are iterated overtime into finished projects.

Most recent example is an Android app that examines water quality using petrifilm and a built-in camera.

Angelique is hopeful about this new collaboration and believes they can make a real difference together.

“If we can save one child with this educational game I consider the project to be a great success”.

ildar khakimov (@ildarius)

It’s secure, convenient, and quick, since there is no money transaction and there’s no friction in the gates. As you can see though, the system is not perfect, as you need almost 1 staff to guide people and make sure they find the scanner for the bracelet.

Coachella attracted 30,000 festival goers and it’s a big break for Montreal-based Intellitix. What’s also interesting is the social media integration. Each festival-goer gets their Facebook timeline updated everytime they check-in, adding more marketing opportunities for coachella.

Startups solve problems.

So if you find a problem there’s probably a startup idea lying somewhere nearby.

A Montreal developer Kenji Wellman developed an app called twtspire.com that scours twitter and automatically detects tweets from people that wonder why a solution doesn’t exist for a specific problem they’re having.

Here are example of tweets from twtspire.com that could result in some kind apps

Why isn’t there an app that auto-deletes texts you send after 4am. #facepalm

Oh my god. Someone needs to make an app that makes an instrumental out of any song. #IsThatLegal #KaraokeAllDayEveryDay

There’s also evil ideas like:

Wish there was a single website with complete book/movie summaries with spoilers.

Twitter has over 50 million daily tweets, so testing and refining the app was done in a single week-end. The app uses a combination of keywords as well as keyword exclusion rules (which eliminate unwanted terms) and keyword proximity rules. For all of the meaty details and source code headover to Kenji’s blog

It’s announced as a conference full of good keynotes, from successful entrepreneurs like BeyondTheRack founder, renowned Internet marketers, and other Internet execs. View more on the eventbrite page. As the name suggests, the presentations were curated to accelerate startups.

It’s more than a conference though, as it’s designed to create connections between investors and entrepreneurs. The keynotes and the fireside chats will be followed by a cocktail where startups can meet investors. The event is instigated by the C100, a Silicon Valley-based organizations aimed at helping Canadian-based businesses, so you are guaranteed to meet SV-based investors. Who knows? It can the ticket of success for your current startup.

The startup festival aims to explore the business side of startups, and with the goal of making connections happen between investors and entrepreneurs, it’s good to see that the promise goes beyond keynotes, speechs and elevator pitches, and that they actually promise to invest $50,000 in a startup.

Generally, there are lots of VC funds and angel investors in a conference, but there are no advertised guaranteed deals, and conference-goers hear about deals after the conference. Here, the festival becomes a place for startup transactions. Perhaps in a few years, we will have a “Startup trade market”, where startups get bought and sold?

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Q: Can you present yourself, and specifically what lead you to be a web entrepreneur today?

My name is Dominic St-Pierre, 31 years-old developer-entrepreneur living near Montreal, Quebec Canada. I have a huge passion for developing web application. I founded Focus Centric inc. in December 2007 and switch from a 9-5 employee to a freelancer / business owner since. While completing contracts were bringing money, I always wanted to build my own products. Having a strong background in commercial credit, I’ve built a complete collection agency software that I’ve sold to only one agency (they still use the product today after six years though). I also built ModulusCMS a content management and e-commerce platform from 2008-2009.

My most popular product has been twollow.com, which I have acquired, re-developed and grow to almost 12K users before selling it. I was unable to find any way of having a revenue model from it at that time, a huge mistake ;). All those ventures thought me lessons and was sharpening my marketing skills. In 2009, I also subscribe to Rob Walling’s Micropreneur Academy, that help a lot and still do today.

Q: What’s bunkerapp? What problem does it aim to solve? It seems to compete with basecamp, freshbooks and many other web apps at the same time

Bunker App is an online business suite targeted at freelancers and small businesses. I’ve been there and done that, sometime you have no contracts and three or four weeks later you’ve got five pending contracts all approved at the same time. Having a tool that helps you in all your daily processes and hopefully saves time is the goal of Bunker App. At this time, we have the initial proposal, project management, time tracking, invoicing and expenses built-in. Having the same professional look and feel for the proposal, collaboration interface and the invoice is possible for the prize of a small pizza.

I don’t think Basecamp or FreshBooks are direct competitors. Those are fantastic products and as a matter of fact; I’ve built a template app for FreshBooks near 2008. There’re enough freelancers actually to offer something different. It’s all about the workflow of each product, if you try a tool and like the way it handles things for you this is great, otherwise, try another one. Bunker removes the fact that paying $20 per month for a proposal software plus another $20 to send invoices is a truck load of money for a single freelancer.

Q: I saw the pricing, it’s very affordable compared to other alternatives. Who is your typical target customer?

As you might guess, solo freelancers represent the majority of our customers base. I ‘already blogged about this couple of months ago. In today’s society why something has to be ultra expensive to be considered desirable? I’ve set up the price from what I think it should be for a solo freelancer knowing that this kind of lifestyle comes with high and low in terms of cash flow. I would have loved to have a tool at that price when I started.

Q: I see you’ve done and sold twollow.com before, and now bunkerapp. Are you working full-time on bunkerapp? Does it get enough revenues and press, or are you still doing client work and/or looking for grants in the meantime?

I’m happy to say that I’ve kept only ongoing projects / clients I had agreements, no more new clients or contracts. I’m not sure everything would be possible in that market without being dedicated to the product.

In the next two years, each startup will be eligible to a $150k in convertible note from the BDC. During and after Demo Day, the Business Development Bank of Canada and FounderFuel will assess together which startups have what it takes to be venture-ready in the following months, and will then fund up to $150k per startup.

This is great news, since between Demo Day and their first funding round, it’s often an egg-and-chicken situation where potential investors are asking for market traction, and where startup co-founders need funds to get market-fit and also develop their technology. Furthermore, many investors are also asking that a first investor commit before agreeing to put their money in, another uneasy situation where the startup CEO has to play his cards carefully. With BDC’s convertible note, Venture Capitalists and angel investors will feel secured, both by the fact that each startup has gone through the FounderFuel program, and also has been selected by expert investors. It’s also an additional motivation for FounderFuel team, knowing that there is new funding waiting for them after the long 12-months business acceleration.

FounderFuel also confirmed today that the following startups received investments: Playerize, Ooh-la-la, wavo.me and Seevibes, raising a total of $2.5 million. It’s great news for Montreal, wavo.me and Seevibes being local startups and Playerize and Ooh-la-la still having employees here. With the new support from BDC, the number of funded startups for the second cohort as well the total amount should raise significantly.

Along with unique access to funding, FounderFuel general manager Ian Jeffrey still highlights that the program’s best proposition is its wide array of mentors that entrepreneurs can tap into.

FounderFuel also invites experienced and new entrepreneurs to discover the new FounderFuel startups at Demo Day, on May 23rd. The last Demo Day was inspiring, and it’s worth missing out for a half-day’s work to attend the event, especially if you’re planning to join the next FonderFuel cohort. In the same week, we’ll also have AccelerateMTL as well the CVCA conference which will be here in Montreal this year.