OtherInbox launching to the public at South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi)

February 24 2009, 7:00pm

This is Joshua Baer, the founder of OtherInbox. Sorry I haven't written an update in a while - "Leah":http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-ZJUmGoof8, "Hoon":http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9efMFINXd0, "Caroline, and Erica":http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4bThQcfnJw have been "hard at work":http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u38L3PH4-_U here while Mike has been working with the product team and I've been working on the launch and some exciting partnerships that we have lined up for later in 2009. I also had my first child over the past few months!

We're looking forward to seeing y'all here in Austin for the annual "South by Southwest Interactive, Film and Music festivals":http://sxsw.com/interactive March 13-22, 2009. We'll be opening OtherInbox up to the public, releasing Gmail and calendar integration, presenting at numerous events, throwing a party, and generally just hanging out with all of you who can make it to Austin!

While you're at the show, stop by our booth and say hi! Come meet Leah, Hoon, myself and other members of the OtherInbox team. We'll be giving demos, talking about what's in store for 2009, and giving away a mailbox full of $1,000 in cash!!!

We're showing some extra love to our Austin peeps by organizing an "OtherInbox meetup at Dave and Busters":http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=51211349625&ref=ts next Tuesday, March 3 at 6:30pm. We're still a startup, so don't expect an extravagant affair - but you can meet members of the OtherInbox team and get the inside scoop on our plans for SXSW and the public launch. If that's not enough, one lucky winner will walk away that evening with a Gold badge to attend the SXSW Interactive and Film festivals worth $695!

Please "RSVP for the party":http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=51211349625&ref=ts so we can plan accordingly!

We'll be kicking off SXSW at the "City of Austin Interactive Showcase":http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/090213/20090213005609.html?.v=1 on Friday from 5pm-7pm at "Fogo de Chao":http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=E+3rd+St&daddr=fogo+de+chou,+austin,+tx&hl=en&geocode=FezLzQEdrpks-g;Fa3MzQEdsZYs-iGwWuuns5PTMg&mra=cc&dirflg=w&sll=30.26421,-97.73989&sspn=0.004369,0.006309&ie=UTF8&z=18. OtherInbox will be presenting along with 24 other local Austin companies at this exclusive, invitation-only event. This will be particularly fun for me because in addition to representing OtherInbox, I am an investor in 3 other companies presenting at the showcase - Bazaarvoice, B-Side Entertainment and Onespot. We're honored to be included!

If things go as planned, it will be hard to miss us on the SXSW tradeshow floor this year. We have a double-sized booth that will be staffed by Leah, Hoon, Caroline, Erica, Mike, myself and other members of the team. Our booth has 2 numbers, so look for 213 or 312 at the end of one of the rows. We'll be giving live demos, signing up new users, and talking about what's in store for 2009. I have a personal goal to meet as many OtherInbox users at SXSW as possible - if you see me walking around or at the booth please say hi and introduce yourself in person!

We need your help to make SXSW as huge success and spread the word about OtherInbox! There are 2 things you can do to help if you'll be at SXSW: 1. Sign up to spend 1 hour at the booth with us so that you can share your experiences with other prospective users 2. Wear an "OtherInbox t-shirt":http://www.zazzle.com/otherinbox_tshirt-235093482463374632?gl=joshuabaer&view=front&group=mens&lifeStyle=all at SXSW to show your support.

If you're at SXSW, you probably will notice "Mr. Spam":http://twitter.com/mrspam. Don't worry, you'll recognize him from the cape! Take your picture with Mr. Spam and email it to us to get a chance at the mailbox full of $1,000 in cash. To get an extra chance at the $1,000 and updates on Mr. Spam sightings, "follow Mr. Spam on Twitter":http://twitter.com/mrspam.

To save some time in the comments, I will answer three popular questions about Mr. Spam now: 1. No, I'm not Mr. Spam. 2. Yes, Mr. Spam really has a cape. 3. Yes, Mr. Spam really has super-powers.

Come hear OtherInbox co-founder Mike Subelsky's presentation about "Scaling Rails Applications in the Cloud":http://sxsw.com/interactive/talks/panels?action=show&id=IAP0900703. Skeptics argue that Ruby-on-Rails "can't scale". In this talk, Mike proves them wrong by demonstrating how cloud computing technologies have changed the game, enabling developers to use the expressiveness of Ruby and Rails to build high-performance applications that scale easily. Includes case study and live scaling demo.

"Scaling Rails Applications in the Cloud":http://sxsw.com/interactive/talks/panels?action=show&id=IAP0900703 Saturday, March 14th 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Room Hilton C

If you liked Mike's presentation, you'll want to head straight from there to my presentation titled, "Should I Build My Startup on Ruby on Rails?":http://sxsw.com/interactive/talks/schedule/?action=show&id=IAP0900619 You've heard Ruby on Rails is the hottest new technology for developing web applications. You've also heard of concerns about scalability and hiring talent. How do you separate the facts from the hype? Hear the business perspective on why to consider Ruby on Rails now and why you might want to wait and see. Get ready for a head-to-head comparison with PHP, Java and .NET!

"Should I Build My Startup on Ruby on Rails?":http://sxsw.com/interactive/talks/schedule/?action=show&id=IAP0900619 Saturday, March 14th 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm Room Hilton D

On Sunday night I'll be honored as one of the top 25 people in social media in Texas at the "Texas Social Media Awards":http://www.statesman.com/life/content/life/stories/other/02/18/0218social.html at Ballet Austin. This event will attract the who's-who in social media and the proceeds go towards a great cause - the "Sunshine Camps":http://sunshinecamps.org/ for high-potential, low-income kids. You can still "buy a ticket":https://www.tickets.balletaustin.org/public/auto_choose_ga.asp?area=8 for $12.

During the day on Monday we'll be presenting the new, public release of OtherInbox to Guy Kawasaki, Brad King, and others at the "SXSW BizSpark Accelerator":http://sxsw.com/interactive/accelerator along with 7 other companies in the Innovative Web Technologies category. I'll be showing off OtherInbox for Gmail and also our new calendar integration. Please attend the event and wear your OtherInbox t-shirt to show your support!

We're wrapping up SXSW with a party, of course! OtherInbox is teaming up with FiveRuns to sponsors the SXSW "Austin on Rails Party":http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=54291741989&ref=ts at Buffalo Billiards on Monday night from 6pm-9pm. This is always one of the best parties of the conference! In addition to beer, music, and pool tables there will be other games and lots of interesting geeks to talk to. Of course, Mr. Spam will be there taking pictures. Please "RSVP if you plan on coming":http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=54291741989&ref=ts so that your name will be on the guest list and you'll get free drink tickets. There are already hundreds of people who have RSVP'd so you'd better do it soon to make sure you get a spot.

Even if you can't attend the party, please become a "fan of OtherInbox":http://www.facebook.com/pages/OtherInbox/10044456730?ref=ts on Facebook.