Techmamas

Project Mom Casting

2010-07-26T23:30:00-07:00

Similar to MommaSaid.net, I was also once again amazed at my fabulous blogging friend Ciaran Blumenfeld of Momfluential by coming up with an idea about a TV show based on mom bloggers (Project Mom Casting).

I am a big fan of reality TV, I have it on while I am blogging to put me in the blogging mood. Life as a mom of three boys can be crazy, so viewing reality TV helps me realize that I am not alone - that there are many people in much "crazier" situations. I am also a fan of moms blogs, they give me that "I relate to" feeling and regularly inspire me. That is why I will be excited to see what Project Mom Casting comes up with.

But if I take a step back, I sometimes feel as though I am living a reality TV worthy life right now. Here is my true, but crazy storyline:

1. Techie girl discovers her inner geek: Techie Girl discovers that while math was not her strong point in school, she excelled at anything related to technology and programming. Techie girl then decides to become a programmer when she grows up.

2. Techie Woman: After college Techie Girl realizes her dream and becomes a programmer, then a systems project manager. Techie Girl becomes techie woman, then gets a job at a big ole consulting firm (Deloitte).

3. TechMama: Techie woman enjoyed working at family friendly Deloitte and became Senior Manager. She had her first son then had fertility problems (including 5 miscarriages). After she used technology (IVF), she delivered twin boys and decided to jump off Partner track.

4. TechMama "The Domain": Techmama decided that having three boys and a wonderful husband was gratifying in a family sense, but missed having a work life. Techmama also did not like how she was treated by tech sales people when she was with her kids, she kept reminding them "Hey, I run all the technology for our family - so I will be installing that wireless router myself". TechMama started blogging as Career 2.0.

5. TechMama "Social Media Addict": Along with blogging, Techmama started Twittering, Facebooking, Flickr'ing and joining communities online to meet other tech moms.

6. TechMama "The Adventure": TechMama takes blogging to the next level, searching out interesting and adventurous stories of others to share on her blog. She became inspired by the brave men and women on the USS Nimitz, the tech community in Paris, how Vivienne Tam designed her HP Netbook, the technology behind the fabulous animated 3D movie Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, hang out at CES , see a live taping of the Chelsea Lately show, met Katie Couric and fabulous bloggers along the way. Best of all she had the chance to realize a dream, at a red carpet event she not only got a spray tan to help combat her pale geeky skin color, but also met some reality stars live (Real Housewives of Orange County).

Sunset Dream House: Fireplace 2.0, Internet TV, HP Media Server and ePrinters

2010-07-24T09:36:12-07:00

I am a big fan of Sunset Magazine, They always present recipes, trips and decorating tips that I aspire to. I have also toured Sunset Dream Houses (houses where Sunset works with the developers to design and decorate the house) and always leave with great ideas. But, while I have a healthy dose of the "geek" gene, I don't have the "decorator" gene - even if I do have an eye for knowing what looks good. So I like to leave decorating to the professionals.

That is why I was thrilled when HP offered me a chance to tour a local Sunset Dream house before it opened to the public. The Sunset Dream House I toured is in Los Gatos, CA and it is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday starting today (July 23) through August 15, 2010. I suggest everyone stop by because it is not only a beautiful remodel, but also a house that has something pushing TechMama into a techy frenzy: Family Media 2.0.

When I arrived at the house I was greeted by Kathi McCalligan (Sunset Home programs Director), Gordon Van Zuiden of cyberManor and Josh Schoonmaker from HP. Josh is involved with the HP Smart Home program. I originally became fascinated with HP's vision of the home after seeing the HP technology at the Disneyland Innoventions Dream Home. I appreciate that Ann Finnie from HP supports my smarthome obsession and was kind enough to invite me to the tour.

We all sat down to discuss the house design and technology. Of course, I asked for all the details and here are some highlights from our discussion:

The Sunset Dream Home was designed as a seamless integration of technology and design.
Technology, now part of the tools needed for school, social, entertainment and more, should be a seamless experience in the home.
There are sophisticated technology systems in more expensive homes, but there are also more budget friendly options providing enormous value in smaller spaces.
Sunset brought together traditional and new technology, connecting TV to the network and antique photos with digital photo frames.
Technology is presented with a "real family lives here" vision rather than as science fiction.

Here are the schematics (below, implemented by cyberManor) of the technology behind the Sunset Dream House in Los Gatos and a description of the technology from the cyberManor website.

"cyberManor integrated and deployed the HP (www.hp.com) and Control4 (www.control4.com) family of hardware and software products to provide a seamless, reliable, and easy to use method for the control of the electronic home entertainment, lighting and comfort equipment from several in wall keypads, touchscreens and universal remote controls."

Yes, this technology set up is something I have dreamed about and am saving up for when we do our remodel sometime in the near future. Here are some pictures I took of the key technology at the Sunset Dream house - Los Gatos, CA:

The picture below is what Gordon van Zuiden of cyberManor coined as "Fireplace 2.0" when I commented that having one screen over the fireplace is the future of family room technology. But this is more then a screen over the fireplace, it is command central with access to home media, TV, movies, music, security, temperature controls, lighting and more. The screen can be a Internet connected TV or a Computer Screen.

The picture below shows is the screen that shows the temperature controls:

The picture below shows is the Windows 7 media center screen:

The picture below shows is the lighting control screen:

The picture below shows the media cabinet below a window seat to the right of the "screen" to store some of the technology needed to run Fireplace 2.0 (including an Intel set top box).

Here is the Control4 wall unit:

In the office, the HP Dreamscreen and the HP MediaSmart Server are design and compact enough to sit next to the family pictures. All family media can be stored in one central place (HP MediaSmart Server).

Next to the family pictures is a desk with the HP TouchSmart Desktop and the HP Photosmart Premium e-All-in-One Photosmart (that prints from mobile devices or the "cloud" or mobile devices).

Below is the "cord clutter free" cyberManor house control box. Just to compare, I took a picture of the TechMama not-so-sophisticated (no time) cord clutter under the desk setup and shared it over Twitter. A fellow tech mom (TechSavvyMama) also admitted that she suffers from cord clutter (and a few other tech moms admitted it as well).

There were many beautiful rooms in the Sunset Dream house, but this was for a girl and it is called "Bella's" room:

Bella is lucky enough to have the limited edition HP Vivienne Tam laptop:

It was hard to leave and come back to my "needs to be remodeled" house after the Sunset Dream House tour. For now, I can keep dreaming...

DETAILS ON THE LOS GATOS, CA SUNSET DREAM HOUSE from the website:

Days and Dates:

Friday, Saturday and Sunday
July 23 - August 15, 2010

Time:

10:00 am - 5:00 pm

Tickets (purchase on-site):

$15 adults
$12 seniors 65+ Fridays only
$5 children 12 and under

Location:

100 Towne Terrace
Los Gatos, California 95032

(off of University)

Disclosure: This post was based on a media tour, no compensation was given to blogger.

39 Clues: 10 Stop Blog Tour and Giveaway - STOP 1 IS LIVE!

2010-07-23T00:21:12-07:00

I always enjoy when I get to blog about something that is already popular in my house. A few weeks ago, I took my son to the bookstore to see if Book 10 of the 39 Clues series was out yet. He had already read all the other books in the series. The good news is he goes through books quickly. The bad news I am constantly looking for new series for my son to read. I was excited when my son started reading 39 Clues because it was published by Scholastic. I did not see Book 10 at the bookstore so I checked online for the release date (August 31, 2010).

39 Clues is an adventure series published by Scholastic for children ages 8-12 that spans 10 books. The book series also has a website http://www.the39clues.com/ that allows kids to use cards (they get with each book) to find clues through online missions.

The day after a trip to our local bookstore with my son, I received an email about the 39 Clues Blog Tour, asking if I wanted to join in the fun. Of course I said YES! The Blog Tour is a 39 Day Countdown to book #10 and I am the first stop (see a full listing of Blog Tour stops below).

My stop is for 39 Clues Book 1. Here is an exclusive video from Book #1 Author, Rick Riordan:

Sadly, my son will still have to wait for Book 10 to come out. But - the good news is that I am doing a giveaway to my readers to share the adventure love:

GIVEAWAY: One winner will receive the (one) complete 39 Clues book series (PLUS book #1 will be autographed by Rick Riordan).

HOW TO ENTER:

To enter - you must be the parent, family member or caregiver of child or teen who loves adventure series. A full listing of rules is at the bottom of this post. ONLY TWO ENTRIES per person. One entry equals one comment on this post. 1st entry should be a comment explaining why you want to win the 39 Clue series for your child/teen. For those that want a second entry, please share this contest over Twitter and comment on this post with a link to your tweet. Here is a suggestion for those that want to tweet:

Entered @TechMama 's #39Clues Blog Tour giveaway http://bit.ly/bf3i3k

Winner will be chosen using Random.org. Only TWO entries/comments per person.

Giveaway timing: Contest runs from July 23 to August 31, 2010 10pm pst.

But wait, there is more fun: with 10 books there will be 10 blog stops on the Blog Tour. Here is the schedule of the 39 Clues Book Tour, stop by each stop for more fun!

The Scholastic On Our Minds Blog posted a summary.

Stop #1 July 23 Techmamas: 39 Clues Book 1: The Maze of Bones (September 9, 2008) by Rick Riordan

Stop #2    July 27   Brimful Curiosities: 39 Clues Book 2: One False Note (December 2, 2008) by Gordon Korman

Stop #3    July 30   Susen Haim On Parenting: 39 Clues Book 3: The Sword Thief (March 3, 2009) by Peter Lerangis

Stop #4    Aug 4     Manic Mommies: 39 Clues Book 4: Beyond the Grave (June 2, 2009) by Jude Watson

Stop #5    Aug 9     HighTechDad: 39 Clues Book 5: The Black Circle (August 11, 2009) by Patrick Carman

Stop #6    Aug 12   Tree, Root, and Twig: 39 Clues Book 6: In Too Deep (November 3, 2009) by Jude Watson

Stop #7    Aug 18   The Children’s Book Review: 39 Clues Book 7: The Viper's Nest (February 2, 2010) by Peter Lerangis

Stop #8    Aug 23   Robyn’s Online World: 39 Clues Book 8: (April 6, 2010) by Gordon Korman

Stop #9    Aug 26   On Our Minds @Scholastic    39 Clues Book 9: (May 25, 2010) by Linda Sue Park

Stop #10 Aug 31   5 Minutes For Mom: 39 Clues Book 10: (August 31, 2010) by Margaret Peterson Haddix

RULES:

--A Valid email address must be entered in the private "email" section of the comment (not in the comment text). If a valid email address is not provided, another winner will be chosen.

--Winner must be located in North America (Canada/US). Shipments can only be made to Canada/US.

--Scholastic is not responsible for any lost packages or incorrect shipping addresses. The prize is not redeemable in cash and must be accepted as awarded. Approximate value of prizes may vary.

Disclosure: Blogger did not receive compensation in any form for this post.

PRESS RELEASE:

About The 39 Clues

    * The 39 Clues is a groundbreaking, multi-media adventure series for children ages 8-12 that spans 10 adrenaline-charged books, hundreds of collectible cards, and an online game that allows readers to play a part in the story and compete for prizes.

    * The 39 Clues launched on September 9, 2008, with Book 1: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan, which debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. On December 2, 2008, Book 2: One False Note by Gordon Korman was released and also debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. Since then, the series, including Book 3: The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis, Book 4: Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson, Book 5: The Black Circle by Patrick Carman, and Book 6: In Too Deep by Jude Watson, have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists.

    * Movie rights for The 39 Clues have been acquired by DreamWorks Studios with Steven Spielberg eyeing to direct. Deborah Forte, President of Scholastic Media, will produce. The script is being penned by Jeff Nathanson whose credits include “Catch Me If You Can” and “Rush Hour 2.”

    * 39 Clues Online Game: Create an account, discover which branch of the Cahill family YOU belong to, and start exploring the website to see if you can be the first to find the Clues. Get the latest intelligence on the authors, upcoming books, answers to your questions, and more. Plus, talk strategy and share secrets with other Cahills on the 39 Clues message boards.

    * The 39 Clues Madrigal Maze app, launched in September 2009, is a Top 100 Paid Kids Game in the App Store

    * The 39 Clues has been licensed in 22 languages to date.

    * The 39 Clues series centers around the Cahills—the most powerful family the world has ever known. But the source of the family’s power has been lost. Grace Cahill, the last matriarch of the Cahills, changed her will minutes before she died, leaving her descendants an impossible decision: receive a million dollars or a clue. The first Cahill to assemble all 39 clues hidden around the world will discover what makes the family so powerful—a reward beyond measure. It’s Cahill versus Cahill in a race to the finish, with readers hot on the heels of the main characters, fourteen-year-old Amy Cahill and her eleven-year-old brother, Dan. The series highlights famous historical figures kicking off with Benjamin Franklin in The Maze of Bones, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in One False Note, Toyotomi Hideyoshi in The Sword Thief, Howard Carter in Beyond the Grave, Anastasia Romanov in The Black Circle, and Amelia Earhart in In Too Deep.

Inside Look: Disney's new "World of Color" attraction and tour

2010-07-20T19:22:16-07:00

I just returned home from a trip back East and was very busy getting my kids summer schedule finalized, when I received an email about a Disney media event in San Francisco. Attending Disney media events are always worth the schedule shifting and babysitting recruiting time, in return for some Disney magic. So - on July 8 - I attended the Disneyland World of Color road show stop in San Francisco. Here is the link to the World of Color road show press release with details on the tour, my pictures of the event are at the bottom of this post. The tour was created to take some of the magic of the World of Color attraction on the road.

I first heard of the new World of Color attraction at Disney California Adventure park last spring and hoped to bring my kids to see it after it opened June 11, 2010. I showed my kids a World of Color video and they were fascinated with the fountains, images and special effects.

The World of Color opening day event at Disneyland press release explained the details of a the new attraction at Disney California Adventure:

"There has never been a show like “World of Color,” the mega-scale, after-dark celebration of Disney storytelling. “World of Color” brings animation to life with powerful fountains that become stars of the show as they create one of the world’s largest projected water screens.

The Disneyland News press release also explained some of the details of the special effects used in the World of Color attraction, which runs just under 25 minutes:

"The sweeping story and stunning effects are created with:

Nearly 1,200 powerful and programmable fountains with heights ranging from 30 feet to 200 feet (50 feet higher than Mickey’s Fun Wheel). Each fountain has multiple points of control to direct the lighting, color intensity, water angle and height.

One of the world’s largest projected water screens – a wall of water 380 feet wide by 50 feet high, for a projection surface of 19,000 square feet.

Nearly 30 high-definition projectors – 14 of them submersible.

Synchronized flame projections, lasers and special effects that will flood the senses.

A soundtrack performed by more than 100 musicians.

“World of Color” has been some five years in the making, beginning with brainstorming by show director Davison and his creative crew. As the concept grew, the Disney team sought out new technologies and multi-media to support a vision in which water and light could dance, change character and move the audience, becoming, in effect, the “stars” of the show."

The online interactive version of can be found at:www.disneyland.com/worldofcolor or www.worldofcolorcreator.com. There are blog posts with World of Color Viewing tips, I found a post on the DisneyParks blog that explained how to get reserved seating: " Picnic meals may be ordered online – www.disneyland.com – or by walk-up purchase, subject to availability, at the Sonoma Terrace, Golden Vine Winery. Picnic meals purchased online will include reserved viewing for the first show reserved viewing for the second show and walk up picnics will include ".

As usual, my kids and I needed to find out more about the behind the scenes. We found this YouTube video on the DisneyParks channel with just that:

Attraction Insider: World of Color control room:

Here are some details of the Disney World of Color Road show from the press release:

"In each city, specially produced animation will be projected onto a familiar city landmark, using a sensational mixture of special effects, high-tech projections and one of the storytelling themes presented in “World of Color.”

The public is invited to participate online only at the “World of Color” Road Show website (www.worldofcolorroadshow.com), where viewers will enjoy a rich experience that includes Disney animation and music, video entertainment and a “viewer’s choice” opportunity to vote for the starring color in that evening’s show. Each city will have a broadcast location designed for media only."

The San Francisco media event was at the San Francisco Palace of Legion of Honor, which is a beautiful landmark. When we first arrived to the San Francisco Palace of the Legion of Honor, it looked like the building had green tape on it. We later found out that was just lights - and just the beginning of the fun.

I did not know who else would be there, but it happened to be a fun bunch of local bloggers:

For left to right top row: @Glennia @DearBadKitty @tippytoes @ginavon @svtwinmom @techiediva, @whostheboss

Bottom row left to right: @xiaolinmama @Garza_Girl @TechMama

Soon after we arrived, it got dark - on cue - as if Disney could control the sun going down as well. How do they do that?

We saw the live webcast going on while we were watching the event.

When the light show started, the building came to life. First, it was the blue show:

Then the green show:

And then the red show:

At the end, they displayed animated Disney scenes, which made the building really come to life:

My attempt at taking my own pictures (holding my DSLR steady while I used the night settings) barely gave a taste of how amazing it was to watch a light show bring a building to life - so I found the YouTube video of the World of Color Road Show, San Francisco:

The tour is nearing the last stop: Los Angeles. The Los Angeles live and prior performances can be found online in English at www.WorldofColorRoadShow.com and in Spanish at www.coloresdisney.com. Here is some information about the Los Angeles Disney World of Color road show from the press release:

"LOS ANGELES: The final shows of the online tour will be projected onto the Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles Thursday and Friday, July 29 and 30. The theme will be “Sky,” illustrated by scenes from such films as “Aladdin” and “Fantasia.” As before, the live online presentation will be repeated continuously from 9 to 11:30 p.m. Encore performances (not live) will be webcast from 9 to 11:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, July 31 and Aug. 1."

At the media event, I also received information about the Disney Wonder Cruise Line 2011 schedule. Something I hope to hear more about!

Disclosure: This is coverage from a media event. No payment was received for this post.

Giveaway - Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one PC!

2010-07-06T18:00:00-07:00

**Winner is LisaC. My3Sons33 Congrats! .

While gadgets are getting more mobile, I suggest every family have a Desktop PC. Desktop PC's are budget friendly, have bigger screens then laptops and can do double duty as a "work at home" PC for work at home parents. Desktop PC's also make it easier for mom and dad to keep an eye on what the kids are doing online - because if they are set up in the family room - they stay in the family room.

I recently had the chance to review the Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one Desktop PC, which has become not only a valued family PC, but also a work PC for a "work at home mom" (i.e. ME!). I am happy to say that I also have the fun of announcing a giveaway of one Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one PC to one lucky reader. Here are the details:

TIMING: Contest starts July 6th and ends July 10, 10pm pst.
PRIZE: One Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one PC
HOW TO ENTER: Each contestant can only comment 2 times - one (1) with how they would use the PC and another (2) only if they share the contest details over Twitter - and provide a link to the Tweet in the comment text. For use of a new PC, would you be looking for a family, work at home or small business PC? The tweet should have the Twitter IDs @TechMama and @lenovosocial, the bitly of this post "http://bit.ly/bTiQZe" and the hashtag "#A70z". **Only 2 comments/entries per person will be used to determine winner.
HOW WINNER IS CHOOSEN:We will be entering the number of comments into Random.org to randomly choose a winner.
OTHER RULES:

--A Valid email address must be entered in the private "email" section of the comment (not in the comment text). If a valid email address is not provided, another winner will be choosen.
--Winner must be located in North America (Canada/US). Shipments can only be made to Canada/US.
--Lenovo are not responsible for any lost packages or incorrect shipping addresses. The prize is not redeemable in cash and must be accepted as awarded. Approximate value of prizes may vary. By claiming the prize, the winner authorizes the use, without additional compensation of his or her name and/or likeness and/or voice/photograph and municipality of residence for promotion and/or advertising purposes in any manner and in any medium (including without limitation over the internet and picture data storage).

--This giveaway is running on other sites. Individuals who've won at another site are ineligible to win a second time. Here are the other sites:

June 28 - July 2: The Gadgeteer
June 29 - July 3: Slash Gear
July 1 - July 5: Chip Chick
July 2 - July 6: Tech Virtuoso
July 3 - July 7: Mobile PC World
July 5 - July 9: Moosh In Indy
July 6 - July 10: Tech Mamas
July 7 - July 11: Morningside Mom
July 8 - July 12: Digital Home Thoughts
July 9 - July 13: Geeks Room
July 10 - July 14: Twenties Life
July 11 - July 15: Gear Live
July 12 - July 16: The Art of Accessories
July 13 - July 17: Hack College
July 14 - July 18: Neowin
July 15 - July 19: Absolutely Windows
July 16 - July 20: SDR News
July 17 - July 21: Gear Diary
July 18 - July 22: Clinton Fitch
July 19 - July 23: OSNN
July 20 - July 24: Active Win

Here is the link to find out more information about the Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one PC.

Here is the link to my Hands On: Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z All-in-one PC

Disclosure: The Lenovo ThinkCentre A70z was provided to TechMamas.com on a long term review. There were no requirements to blog, just to experience the computer. My words are my own.

Low Tech July 4th: Snow Cones and TNT Pop-its

2010-07-04T12:00:11-07:00

We are getting ready for July 4th, and part of that prep was thinking about some fun and safe activities my kids and their could do together.

SNOW CONES:

Target has a display with snow cone machines, flavors and cups. We decided to buy a set not only to use on July 4th, but also to use for the kids to set up a stand of their own sometime. Snow Cone stands are a good first business for kids to start because of the low cost of capital and yummy, easy to make product.. There are plenty of good electric ice shaving machines under $30, so no need to buy anything fancy. We purchased an electric ice shaver for $20.

TNT POP-ITS:

We looked all over for sparkers so the kids can have their own little light display when it gets dark tonight, but realized that in my area you can only get them online or at specialty stores. So instead, we again went over to our friendly Target and purchased TNT Pop-Its. These are little caps that make a noise when stepped on or thrown against the sidewalk. The package says "flammable" which is true, so parents need to be involved and packages should be handled with care (the package has all the safety information).

I found an About.com article that explained how Pop-Its work "The rock is rock or sand that has been soaked in silver fulminate. Silver fulminate (like mercury fuliminate, which would be toxic) is explosive. However, the quantity of fulminate in Pop Its is very small so the little exploding rocks are safe."

I wonder what other fun "low tech" activities families are doing this July 4th.

Forbes 100 Top Websites for Women

2010-06-24T21:04:28-07:00

I enjoy reading Forbes and Forbes Woman (@ForbesWoman ), but today I was thrilled to find out I was included in their list of 100 Top Websites for Women. I found the list to be an interesting group of websites, some of which I was excited to learn about while reading the article.

The selection of websites for women on the web is extensive and offers diversity, information, connection, inspiration, business/tech insight and more. There is also an extensive network of "offline" organizations for women in almost every different area. All of this makes it very easy anytime someone asks me for a women's website or organization for "x, y or z". I am feeling the power of women!

Hanging at the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) Line Show NYC

2010-06-21T20:45:24-07:00

I am excited to be heading to NYC to attend the CEA Line show June 22/23 to listen, discuss, learn and speak on a subject near and dear to my heart: consumer electronics.

Natali Del Conte (CBS/CNET Correspondent) is the Conference Chair and Suzanne Kantra (Founder and Editor in Chief Techlicious) is the CEA Line Show spokesperson. They will be there along with speakers on the theme "Consumer Tech Reality Check '10".

I am speaking at the CEA Line show on something I obsess, read, discuss and rant about every day: Mom Tech. Fellow mom tech Andrea Smith from ABC news is also speaking.

Using Pearltrees To Prep For BlogHer 2010

2010-06-17T10:26:09-07:00

Summer is finally here and it is getting close to my favorite conference of the year (other then the Consumer Electronics Show): BlogHer . This year is "BlogHer10" and it will be held Friday/Saturday August 6/7. BlogHer conferences give me the opportunity to connect "live" with a wide range of interesting and amazing bloggers that I read about online.

I used Pearltrees to starting gathering information for the presentation:

1. A Pearltree on BlogHer Conference Info:

BlogHer2010 Conference INFO

2. The fabulous Kimberly Blaine and Susan Getgood - and I (Beth Blecherman) are excited to be presenting the following BlogHer10 panel: "Integrating Your Online Presence Across All Platforms: It Can (And Must) Be Done!" that is part of the Room of Your Own Professional track.

Here is the description: Whether your brand is your personal brand, your small business or your employer's, the plethora of networking tools and opportunities can be overwhelming. Share best practices on building a consistent brand by integrating your efforts across all available platforms, including social networks, traditional media and even offline events.

August 6, 2010 - 2:45pm - 4:00pm

Conference Day: Day 1

To prepare, I am reading up on everything I can about Online Brand(s). I hope to get suggestions for more interesting online branding reads from my community. I created a Pearltree to collect the information I have found so far:

OnlineBrand

3. I am also starting to refresh my memory of last year's conference by taking a look at some of the Live blog posts from BlogHer09. I just added a few of the liveblogs from last year to start:

BlogHer09 Liveblogging

Disclosure: I am advising Pearltrees.com

Update on SVMomsGroup

2010-06-15T14:22:04-07:00

Many of my readers know me as TechMama on Twitter and for my personal blog TechMamas.com (TechMama and TechMamas.com are a trademark of Beth Blecherman) where I discuss technology, parenting and gadgets galore. I am doing lots of other fun stuff listed on my bio page - but for now I wanted to answer the questions I have been getting about something else I was apart of.

One of my other separate businesses was the Silicon Valley Moms Group (I am one of the co-founders) . We just announced that we are in the process of shutting down (yes - it is true). I can't say how honored I am to be part of the team that managed such an amazing group of contributors. Reading their blog posts as their shared their perspectives on motherhood was not only inspiring but something I valued.

Here is the link to the press release with Silicon Valley Moms Group LLC statement.

Here is the link to the Silicon Valley Moms Group home page.

Cyber hugs to each and every one of the Silicon Valley Moms Group contributors.