Coté Memo #034: No longer blending iPhones, Applefornia, Developer Relations & Marketing

Sep 09, 2014

Meta-data

Hello again, welcome to #034. Today we have 41 subscribers, so we're +/-0. I'd love to hear what you like, dislike, your feedback, etc.: memo@cote.io. (If you're reading this on the web, you should subscribe to get the daily email.)

See past newsletters in the archives, and, as always, see things as they come at Cote.io and @cote.

Follow-up

One of you replied the taking my toys homes thought in yesterday's newsletter, saying they think of it as "learned helplessness," which sound even more right. As they added: "I think I can identify when I enter the learned helplessness phase but I will be damn if I know how to get out of it. You either quit or get fired."

Tech & Work World

Quick Hits

I'm sure you can get your own Apple event coverage.
Chef muscles up with Microsoft, Amazon
How To Code Like A Startup - interesting metrics on what startups use and pointers to developer market sizing for the US via jobs stats.
In putting together developer relations presentation below, I finally got a chance to use thestocks.im - it's pretty good, actually.

Finally, I'll be getting a new phone

Obviously, there was a big Apple event today. I'm overdue getting a new phone (I've got an iPhone 4s!), so I'll be shelling some cash out once it's available; I'll see what kind of AT&T discount I get. I finally waited until I was due a new phone, so hopefully not that much.

Like most people I saw, I was impressed by the Apple Watch more than I thought. I like how Apple just kept piling on functionality to it. Pretty Amazing.

It was also fun to see Kevin Lynch in action. I used to work with him in tiny ways, mostly over lunches, when he was at Adobe. He always seemed like a very genuine, very smart guy who actually had a passion for computers. I think that came through in his talk today. He had a nice sense of humor too which popped up a tad. Last we saw, he was blending iPhones, but you know, because the cause.

Applefornia

The other thing I find fascinating is the weird world that Apple's personas all exist in. It's somewhere between stock photos at Target and the mall, and high-end PowerPoint clip-art. I like to think of it as Applefornia: that cool, ocean-filled place where people seem to constantly be on vacation and covering them selves with patinaware. That Umberto Eco should write an essay on it.

Developer relations and marketing

At our upcoming HCTS cloud conference (look above for more info and discount code if you want to register), I'll be doing a short talk on developer relations and marketing, followed by a panel on the topic.

I put together a first, incomplete draft of the slides. Take a gander and tell me if you have any feedback:

I'm not sure where I came up with that title, but it looks like something I'd type...

Fun & IRL

No fun today, just work.