RT @rebelprince: My post on the Topology of Social TV is live on the Talk NYC blog: http://bit.ly/eXjdix
A Topology of Social TV
Television has always been inherently social, in that we watch it together and share it as a part of popular culture. And technology has been tip-toeing into the picture for years. But the thing that defines the modern era of Social TV, the spark that started the fire, is mobile computing. Laptops, smartphones, and tablets have put the our friends, tastes, and media front-and-center when it comes to TV. The current explosion of innovation under the Social TV umbrella is aimed at trying to figure out how these pieces will fit together.
Adam’s post on the Topology of Social TV is live on the Talk NYC blog, check it out!
Defense Contractor Raytheon to Purchase Socialbomb for Undisclosed Amount: http://bit.ly/gFSuKt
Raytheon to Purchase Socialbomb for Undisclosed Amount
Defense contractor Raytheon has acquired Socialbomb, a social technology firm. In a unanimous decision this morning, Raytheon Corporation’s board voted to approve the acquisition of the New York-based technology firm that develops social web and mobile applications. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the merger would value the software company at $500 million, say sources close to the board. While analysts question the deal on strategic grounds, there is industry speculation about the company’s plans to weaponize social media.
“We’ve all heard of the atomic bomb, the hydrogen bomb, and the neutron bomb, but we believe the future lies in newly developed ‘social bomb’ technology,” said senior executive who requested anonymity since he was not authorized to speak on the matter. Frank Newcastle, an analyst at AFD Research, notes that while the technology was unproven in defense applications, early tests show promising results.
It’s too early to tell how Raytheon plans to develop Socialbomb’s technology into a weapons-grade defense product, but contacts at the Pentagon have expressed interest in the technology. Representatives of both Raytheon and Socialbomb could not be reached for comment.
Come talk social TV with us next Wed, 3/30! Free beer + the future of TV, what more can you want? http://t.co/lVnNlqN
Nick Grossman with good points on “Bootstrapping a Developer Outreach Program” http://bit.ly/fiPRT9 thx @brainwane
Socialbomb Engineering: Foursquare Hack Day
Foursquare held their first Hackathon/Hack Day on Saturday (the 19th) at General Assembly, and a whole bunch of NYC nerdtrepeneurackers (including half of Team Socialbomb) turned out to tinker. Hell of a day they set up.
Team Foursquare worked with the GA folks to set everyone up with an amazing space, and gave us plenty of inspiration, food, and caffeinated beverages. Naveen and the other 4sq tech wizards walked us through some of the new API functionality, best practices, and proper examples, and kept tabs on the folks there to hack things.
A bunch of us Socialbomb-type-folk went to the Foursquare Hackathon on Saturday, and made some fun stuff. We did a lil’ writeup on the Socialbomb Engineering blog, which we’ll update with specifics of how we made the app, and more examples when we’re ready to turn our idea loose.
Oh, and did we mention that we have an engineering blog? Well, we have an engineering blog set up now, which we’ll be posting to with information about our technology and the things we make, use, and just enjoy. You should check it out!
-Mike
Hey! Wed, 730a, w/ plenty of coffee, @scottiev will be discussing Social TV for #SMWNYC - see http://www.ibreakfast.com/
Free Lunch Friday @socialbomb http://t.co/LzkggiG
Socialbomb is hiring!
Socialbomb is hiring, and you should come work with us!
We’re lookng for UI/UX designers, graphic design folks, and backend developers to join us on some really excellent projects. Shoot us a note if you think you might be a fit!
UI/UX Designer:
We’re a social technology company born and raised in New York City. Our platform connects people’s mobile phones, blu-ray players, computers, and connected devices to their friends and the things they love. We’re hunting for a UX specialist who can help us with the user interface and user experience design with an exciting, growing company — and we hope that’s you!
You should be:
- Passionate about usability and creating products that people like interacting with
- Familiar with current web standards and developing trends
- Well-versed in the layout and language of social networks
- Comfortable translating concepts into wireframes and user flows for discussion
- Excited about solving problems, proud of your designs, and happy to work with others
Qualifications:
- Extensive Photoshop/Illustrator skills (HTML, CSS and JavaScript chops a plus)
- Experience with wireframing and rapid prototyping tools
- Experience with designing for social sites (Facebook platform a big plus)
- Experience with third-party API integration and social web design
- BS or MFA/MPS in graphic/interaction design or equivalent experience
Graphic Designer:
We’re a social technology company born and raised in New York City. Our platform connects people’s mobile phones, blu-ray players, computers, and connected devices to their friends and the things they love. We’re looking for someone who can work with us on the user interface and graphic design for a few exciting projects we’ve got coming up. If you like the sound of this, you should give us a shout!
You should be:
- Passionate about good design and creating products that people like to look at
- Familiar with current web themes and developing trends
- Well-versed in the layout and language of social networks
- Comfortable creating mockups and assets from wireframes and concepts
- Excited about creating user interfaces that a wide variety of people will use and enjoy
Qualifications:
- Extensive Photoshop/Illustrator skills (HTML, CSS and JavaScript chops a plus)
- Experience designing for social networks and services
- Experience with design for web and mobile platforms (iPhone and Android specifically)
- BS or MFA/MPS in graphic/interaction design or equivalent experience
Senior Backend/Platform developer:
We’re a social technology company born and raised in New York City. Our platform connects people’s mobile phones, blu-ray players, computers, and connected devices to their friends and the things they love. We’re searching for an experienced developer who can run with backend development and platform build-out with an awesome, growing company. If this sounds like you, read on!
You should be:
- Passionate about creating robust, scalable, and awesome web applications
- Skilled at explaining and clearly documenting code
- Well-versed in the concepts of social network development
- Comfortable working with and developing REST APIs and third-party services
- Excited about solving problems, proud of your code, and happy to work with others
Qualifications:
- 5+ years experience building web applications with PHP, Python and MySQL (Tornado or similar frameworks experience a plus)
- Experience with building and scaling high-traffic social sites
- Experience with third-party API integration and social web development (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
- Experience with varying combinations of Nginx, Apache, OpenSolaris, Ubuntu, and Amazon Web Services
- Experience with source control systems like SVN and git
- BS or MS in Computer Science or equivalent experience
Junior Backend developer:
We’re a social technology company born and raised in New York City. Our platform connects people’s mobile phones, blu-ray players, computers, and connected devices to their friends and the things they love. We’re searching for a capable developer who can dive in with the backend development with an awesome, growing company. If this sounds like you, read on!
You should be:
- Passionate about creating highly-trafficked web applications
- Familiar with current web standards and developing trends
- Interested in the concepts of social network development
- Comfortable working with REST APIs and third-party services
- Excited about solving problems, proud of your code, and happy to work with others
Qualifications:
- 1-3 years’ experience building web applications with PHP, Python and MySQL (Tornado or similar frameworks experience a plus)
- Experience developing for high-traffic social sites
- Experience with third-party API integration and social web development (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
- Experience with source control systems like SVN and git
- BS or MS in Computer Science or equivalent experience
