Humor, patience, and a smile. Please don’t forget these at home.
Be friendly! Relax! Oh, and one more thing? It’s not a race. We’re here to learn and have fun!
Expect long lines. SXSW has grown up and become an enormous conference that takes over downtown Austin for nearly two weeks. That’s a lot of people who all want to get into the same bars, clubs, restaurants, and more. Expected attendance for Film is about 7,000 people, with 11,000 expected attendees for Music, and about 12,000 attendees for Interactive!
Show up early to parties and panels. If you’re nervous about an event, it doesn’t hurt to show up earlier rather than later. RSVPs for parties often don’t guarantee entry, so the early birds will be inside, while you’re waiting in line outside. Same for the popular panels and talks. Get to the room 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a seat, or, for some popular speakers, that you get in at all. This can be especially true for keynote speeches.
And know that even if you didn’t get into that one panel, party, screening, show, or club, there’s plenty of fun elsewhere during SXSW. Have a backup plan.
Or just ask around for whatever else might be going on, text message a friend, ping Twitter, or talk to the people who also didn’t get in. Plenty of new friendships have been forged in line for an event or in the hallways of the Convention Center.
]]>If you miss this sale, don’t worry, starting on Wed 3/17, several of the music venues participating in the Music Festival will also have them for sale.
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Foursquare has also added 16 new badges specific to the Interactive conference and festival and are giving away free Foursquare tattoos. In addition, they’ve also added four new badges specific to the Music conference and festival as well as a contest to win free tickets to SPIN’s showcase at Stubb’s. But more importantly, you can check in for charity with Foursquare. Starting at 9am CT tomorrow, Friday, March 12, every time you check-in on Foursquare in Austin or use the hashtag #sxswHaiti on Twitter, Microsoft and PayPal will donate 25 cents toward Save the Children up, to $15,000! Find out more on the Foursquare SXSW page.
Not to be out-done, Gowalla has also added Gowalla items that lucky folks can find scattered about town when they check in using Gowalla, some redeemable for prizes like Lomography analog cameras, Palm Pixi and Pre smartphones, Adobe CS4, and Eye-Fi cards! Gowalla is also supporting the Livestrong Foundation during SXSW. If you find a yellow Livestrong bracelet and add it to your collection, Gowalla will donate $1. Find out more on the Gowalla SXSW page.
And even if you’re not into checking in on services like Foursquare and Gowalla, you can use the handy sitby.us service to locate your friends in crowded panel rooms during the Interactive conference. It’s a mobile-friendly web site that allows you to check in to a room, mark your approximate location, and add a note that your friends can see. It uses Twitter to figure out who your contacts are and allows for easy posting of location to Twitter.
]]>Click. Click. Click, click, click. Click, click, click, click, click, click, click, whoosh.
Please turn off any extraneous notification sounds and keyboard clicks, or you’ll drive everyone around you insane from hearing those little iPhone typing sounds or an SMS notification wind chime.
In short: don’t be that guy.
]]>If it’s your first time at SXSW, here’s a handy video from the festival/conference organizers. And you may also find it useful to listen to the podcast of last year’s How to Rawk SXSW panel.
]]>Here’s a great list of all of the events happening that focus on food. And the ones that caught my eye:
And don’t forget to check out our Where to Eat During SXSW 2010 guide.
]]>I usually bring:
The hand sanitizer is especially handy if you find yourself at an outdoor party with BBQ and only porta-potties during the Music Fest.
]]>So where to eat? I’ve pulled together a list of spots for your perusal. The focus here is listing mostly restaurants that:
View Where To Eat During SXSW in a larger map
Things to note about eating downtown:
Closed Sundays: Taco Shack, Iron Works BBQ, Bakerman’s
Closed Mondays: Chez Nous, El Sol Y La Luna
Open Late: Halcyon, Casino El Camino, Jackalope, Habana Calle 6 (under Texas Embassy), Parkside, Peche, various street carts
Notable movings and closings: Las Manitas (closed), Torchy’s Tacos (closed), El Sol Y La Luna (moved downtown, used to be on South Congress)
Downtown Coffeehouses I’ve Enjoyed (Drinks, Light Fare like Sandwiches and Soups)
All of these have good coffee, food, a nice atmosphere to hang out in, and free wireless internet access. There’s also a coffee shop (Java Jive) in the Hilton that’s always too crowded and has slow service due to the huge number of people who all want coffee at exactly the same time (i.e. ten minutes before a panel). I’ve heard similar reports about the Starbucks in the Marriott near the ACC. If you’re willing to walk, there’s also Progress Coffee (500 San Marcos St between 5th and 6th) but you gotta cross under the highway to get there.
I’ve also enjoyed Jo’s Coffee, which has two locations. The closer one is 242 W 2nd St (between Lavaca and Colorado), and the other one is located in South Congress, at 1300 S Congress (at James St). And the South Congress location usually features some live musical acts during SXSW Music!
Only Open For Breakfast/Lunch
Restaurants (and Bars with Food)
Happy Hour Specials
Newish Spots On My Radar
Street Carts
Most of these carts come out at night on Sixth Street, but may be out in full force with longer hours during SXSW. Cheap and convenient, especially when hopping between bars and shows. And many of them are also on Twitter! Check out austinfoodcarts.com for info on the cart scene.
Again, here’s a Google Map of all of these spots.
Got any suggestions? Add them in the comments. Please make sure to note if your recommendation is NOT DOWNTOWN. Additional spots nearby the Convention Center would be appreciated.
Happy eating!
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But if you do have SMS updates on, I recommend setting Twitter off during sleeping hours, say between 1 AM and 8 AM.
If you don’t have SMS updates on, you might also want to turn on direct message forwarding to SMS. Tell people to DM you if they want to arrange a meetup and you’ll receive their message as a text message. Simply reply back “D username” with your reply, to direct message them back.
I hope you all increased your SMS plans with your cellular provider already! Now would be a good time to call to either add a text messaging plan or increase your allotment.
You may also want to warn your Twitter friends that you’re going to SXSW, and that it’s OK to unsubscribe from you or snooze you for a little while.
Hint: if you’re on AT&T, dial *DATA# to see your remaining text messages for this billing cycle. You’ll get a text message back with your billing cycle date, data usage so far in this cycle, and text messages used so far.
I also recommend using some of the more advanced features of Twitter to stay on top of things.
You can change your notification preferences for specific people by clicking on the Device Settings icon next to their username. This way you can choose to only receive some people’s tweets via SMS.
Search for information in real time on search.twitter.com. Try plugging in event names, venue names, or panel names, if you’re curious what people are thinking at any given time.
I’ve also collated some interesting people on Twitter on my SXSW list.
And of course don’t forget to give out your username when you meet someone new, and get theirs in return!
]]>The “Together Shuttle” will be providing complimentary service to the Austin Convention Center and several downtown hotels, with free cocktails and a sneak listen of the band’s new album.
Wanna ride? Sign up now.
]]>By the way, if you plan on putting your extra camera batteries into checked luggage and it’s lithium, put it in a separate plastic baggie.
Oh, and do turn off the fake shutter sound on your camera. Nothing says “I’m a newbie taking a picture of the panel! Look at me!” like hearing those little beeps. Same for your smart phone: turn off any annoying “fake shutter” sounds if you can.
Before you leave, set your smartphone up to send photographs to your preferred mobile uploading service: Twitpic, Yfrog, Flickr, etc. and your favorite uploading application. I like to set it up so that Flickr automatically adds a “sxsw” or “sxsw 2010” tag, too.
You may also want to post your photos to Twitter using the #sxsw or #sxswi hashtag.
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My favorites are:
Austin360.com’s SXSW on the Side list (all parties and events for SXSW Interactive, Film, and Music)
Showlistaustin (only unofficial events for SXSW Music, with a comprehensive listing of free daytime events)
Don’t forget to follow @SXSWPartyList, too, on Twitter.
]]>Don’t forget to leave room in your suitcase for all the extra swag you may be bringing home with you from other attendees.
Also, when you go to get your badge at the Convention Center, you’ll also big up the “big bag” of conference materials (this is heavy, and filled with swag). I always go straight back to the hotel, and empty it out, looking for the good stuff. Sometimes it will include really useful geek stuff, like coupons for free wireless or tech gear. Don’t ignore the swag you get in the Big Bag!
]]>First off, when you’re at the convention center, don’t be an outlet hog. If your Apple computer’s power brick covers up free outlets, please bring an extension cord. It’s that weird snake like thing that snaps into your power brick. It’ll also make your life easier at the hotel, right?
Bring a power strip, if you’re got one, and you’ll be the most popular kid on the block during Interactive.
I find it also helps just to bring my cell phone charger with me at all times. It’s small, it’s light, and sometimes a nice bar or restaurant will have an open outlet. Just saying. (I’ve also made a lot of friends at the airport this way.)
Always Be Charging. Always Be Charging. The Convention Center never seems to have enough handy outlets (and your hotel room might not either). Note that wireless connectivity in the Convention Center can be spotty due to the huge number of people connected at once. Some folks like to bring an ethernet cord, just in case, so they can plug into the wall at the ACC.
Each night, before you go to bed, do remember to charge your all of your essential gadgets, like your phone. There’s nothing worse than having a dead or dying phone at SXSW. So charge your phone at night, every night, before your collapse into bed. And if you have a smartphone, take note of various power-saving settings.
Got an extra battery for your digital camera, smartphone, or laptop?
Don’t forget your batteries at home! And put it in a plastic bag if you’re going to put it in your checked luggage. The Department of Transportation (DOT) will no longer allows loose lithium batteries in checked baggage.
The really heavy users of smartphones often bring a spare battery. Now’s the time to hop over to Best Buy if you need one!
Some of the official sponsors are also offering recharging services and/or extra outlets at lounges in the Austin Convention Center. Check out the Chevy Volt Recharge Lounge, open daily at the 1st Floor, northwest corner near 4th/Trinity.
]]>Many people who attend SXSW Interactive prefer leaving their laptops in their hotel rooms, preferring to focus on non-computer activities during the day. After all, you came all this way, didn’t you? Close the laptop, and you might end up learning more and having more fun! But if you absolutely must do some work, there is also abundant and free wireless throughout Austin, like the hotspot in the Downtown Hilton’s lobby.
At the Austin Convention Center during SXSW there will be one WiFi Network, called SXSW2010.
This is the only official wifi network for internet access at the Austin Convention Center, Hilton, Courtyard and Radisson. But personally, if you have time, I’d hike it out to Halcyon, Jo’s, Progress, or The Hideout instead. Way better atmosphere!
Other things to consider bringing: a USB thumb drive, blank CD-Rs or DVD-Rs, the display cable you need for your Apple laptop to plug into a VGA port, and screen wipes. Bring any other tech bibs and bobs you can’t live without.
Additionally, it might help to clear off some hard drive space and backup your files before you arrive in case you plan on downloading photos to your computer, etc.
]]>Simon D, on his Outroversion website, has went through the bands and culled out 85 tracks that he believes are the highlights of SXSW. Not only that, but he’s wrapped them all up in one archive file for you to download onto your MP3 player of choice:
Two things you should remember if you have the very gall to complain- 1. This took me ages 2. It’s just my opinion 3. If you don’t like it do it yourself… Ok 3 things! If you like the musical stylings that I’ve offered over the past 1 year and 18 days then chances are you’ll like my selections. I’ve left off a few of the better known artists like Eisley, Boxer Rebellion, She Keeps Bees, etc.
More information on Simon’s selection here, or you can head straight for the archive file on Multiupload.
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The newly redesigned SXSW website was supposed to launch on Monday, along with the opening of registration for the 2010 conferences and festivals, but it appears they threw the switch a little early.
Through September 25, registration prices and hotel availability are the lowest and best they’ll be this year. We’ll dig around the joint a bit later but, in the meantime, you early birds may wish to head over there and make your plans for spring.