NetSquared Projects
While at the NetSquared conference, I had the chance to be exposed to a lot of interesting projects. The top three walked away with $25k, $15k, and $10k to get their projects further along or just support their current states. Of the ones I saw, these were the most compelling:
- Squarepeg (being built)
This project is a recommender system that takes advantage of social networks and other information to provide what you need for organizing activism. It’s a bit vague right now, but the solid argument and passion that these guys have means you know it’s going to be good. - Ask Your Lawmaker
One of my favorite projects, because it bridges the digital and the physical. You vote online for questions to be asked to your lawmaker, and they track them down, ask them, and post the recorded audio. - Greener One
A database with a goal “to provide a simple environmental score for most products sold in major retail outlets across the US online and offline. We are bringing this score to the point of sale when and where people make purchasing decisions.” - MAPLight
This project won last year, but I don’t think it makes it any less interesting. They mash together information about political contributions, and the way the politicians vote based on location. - KnowMore
These guys were very professional, and seemed to have their marketing down pretty well, T-shirts and all. I liked them because their idea was very simple, yet powerful. They compile information about corporations and unethical things they might be involved with. They released a Firefox plug-in while we were there that reveals this type of information for any website that you might be viewing.
Again, these were all really inspiring projects, considering some of the limitations that people had in terms of resources. I hope to see lots more good things coming from these people.
Hi Imran,
I’m Isaac, one of the people who represented Squarepeg at the Netsquared conference. Glad to hear you are interested in our work! Were we able to talk at Netsquared? I’m so sorry if I’ve forgotten, John and I shook hundreds of hands those two days. Anyhow, I hope you’ll follow our blog and/or twitter. If you’re interested in helping push Squarepeg forward or integrating it as a part of you studies, you should definitely check out our recent post about getting involved.
http://blog.squarepegged.org/2008/08/11/expanding-team-recommender-technology-development-accounting/
Thanks for posting about us!
cheers
Isaac
Hi Imran, long time no see.
How was the conference? I really like these guys from NetSquared, actually their website was a very powerful resource for my thesis.
Thanks for the cool links!
Lucky you.
Hi Herbert!
The conference was really fun. I’m glad to see other IxDers interested in the stuff they do, I think it’s really important for us to be involved in it. Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog, I hope it will be interesting enough for return visits
I hope all is well with you.