Demoliscious

For my first tech related event of the new year I rode over to the east side via the TriMet #15 to Nemo Design.  Listed via Upcoming one can go check it out if they like.  There is a Demoliscious event every first Wednesday of every couple months (or quarter – I missed the part where frequency was stated).  To check out more browse over to PDX Web Innovators.

Open Lazlow presented by Dave

The Open Lazlow Project is based on standard markup for dialog with ECMA Compliant Javascript.  The javascript is then built into either a *.swf Flash file or a AJAX based HTML Code Markup.  Either way one ends up with a graphically pleasant user interface for building Rich Internet Applications (RIAs).

The project when built is hosted on a Tomcat Server, which I believe Java Servlet Code is what executes at this point to provide the actual application.

There are numerous widgets, or as many would call them, user controls available.  From the famous drop down to the complex standard data grid, the toolset is available.

One thing I did notice is that the framework, once built, is pretty compliant in a browser.  I would assume that it is about 1/3 to 1/2 as fast in IE however, since it executes Javascript so poorly compared to Safari.  I only mention that because Safari was used for the presentation, and it executes Javascript pretty fast (still, neither hold a candle to Google Chrome).

www.metroseeq.net by Kevin

Metroseeq is a search tool for anywhere.  You could be in London, England, Portland, Oregon, or Rapid City, South Dakota and this tool would work.  It utilizes reverse Geocode Lookup against the Google Maps API to find the nearest searched for item around a particular zone, custom travel path and respective zones, or between two stated zones.  A zone being an address, or better yet merely a zip code or physical area like a city such as “New Orleans, LA”.

I really dug this tool and am surprised, knowing Kevin myself, that I had not looked at it more (I’m almost embarrassed, if I got embarrassed).

If you’re ever in a city, I’d definitely give this tool a try.  You might find yourself using it instead of Google itself to find locations near you.  I know I’ll be using it whenever I travel now, as it is kind of a pain to find coffee shops, particular food establishments, and other such places when I travel.

www.foodisms.com by Michael Kelly

Foodisms allow you to search for specific ingredients in Portland, OR and Tuscon, AR.  If you craze a particular ingredient or want to find a place that has something unique like Veal, check this site out.

I did however look up Gumbo, and unfortunately it reminded me that Portland is sorely lacking in Cajun Foods.  No real Gumbo, Etouffee, or Jambalaya.  It did find the last one, but the places that serve it suck – not worth the effort.  You want Jambalaya, you’ll probably have to go all the way to New Orleans.  If New Orleans even has it anymore.

www.sunagocommunity.org – Scott

The Sunago Community Software was built single handedly by Scott on Ruby on Rails.  It is social networking software built primarily for the niche market of non-profits and charity groups.

I must say, for a single person working on it the platform is very feature complete.  There where a few exceptions that where thrown here and there, but overall a very nice software package!

mugasha –  ?  Sorry – missed the name, if you read this entry – lemme know!

Mugasha is a site that finds mostly techno that has come out very recently and lists the songs played in various podcasts.  If you ask me, it’s a pretty nice site, even though I’m no big fan of electronic/techno music.

 

Overall, in summary, a great night and great presentations of the various demos.  I’d suggest the event to anyone interested in seeing what the tech community is up to here in Portland, or wherever any other Demoliscious takes place.