Currently browsing fun
Lijit was fortunate enough to be one of the sponsors of a fantastic party that took place last Thursday, on the closing night of the DNC in downtown Denver. The Rocky Mountain Blogger Bash aimed to bring bloggers from the area together to talk about one of our shared passions: blogging. Regardless of political viewpoint, bloggers from all over Colorado (along with many out-of-town bloggers in Denver for the convention) gathered to watch Obama’s speech, eat, drink, and exchange URLs.
Since bloggers are our people, it made sense that Lijit was there. We had the opportunity to meet many publishers already using our widget and the chance to explain what we do to others. Our Lijit t-shirts and stickers were a big hit with all attendees, as were the free drinks that our sponsorship provided.
Our new friends include: Amber of Crazy Bloggin’ Canuck, Heather of A Mama’s Blog, Laura of LaLaGirl, Amy of Crunchy Domestic Goddess, Melissa of Nature Deva, Aviva of Parentopia, The Crunchy Green Mom, Hubs of Artifacting, Rosie of Rosalicious, Tessa and Michael of My Left Nutmeg, and Kath of A Likely Story.
In addition, many bloggers from the Denver/Boulder tech community showed up to attend their FIRST ever Rocky Mountain Blogger Bash, including: Aimee of Greeblemonkey and her awesome husband Bryan, Julie of mothergoosemouse, Geekmommy, Jeremy Tanner, Dave Taylor of Ask Dave Taylor, Robin from CopyDiva, Gerhard and Kary of Fling it Girl, Kit Seeborg, and the fabulous Deb in Denver.
And let’s not forget the old pals from past Blogger Bashes: Molly, Wheels, Left off Colfax, and Andy of The World Wide Rant (pictured above) who, unfortunately, is no longer blogging.
A big thanks to the organizers of this fantastic RMBB: Mr. Lady and Zombyboy, who pulled off a great event on what some called “a crazy day to have a party in downtown Denver”.
You can read other recaps of the event here, here, here, and here.
Tags: Denver, Lijit publishers, RMBB, special events | View Comments
Jill writes a food blog about eating gluten-free, Hey, that tastes good!, and as soon as I saw that she had a recipe for making marshmallows from scratch, I was hooked. In addition to beautiful photography, Jill posts gluten-free product reviews, recommendations for gluten-free restaurants in both Europe and America, and instructions on how to make her favorite rice flour mix. And don’t even get me started on the recipes: jalapeno poppers, pizza, spring rolls, and, my favorite, chocolate overload cookies.
(Plus, she has a cupcake tattoo on her foot. Can you argue with that?)
When I saw her on the recent sign-up list, I wanted to know more about Jill and her passion for food blogging. She was kind enough to take time out from her cooking adventures to answer some questions I had for her.
How long have you been blogging and what got you started?
I started my food blog 2 years ago. Originally I started it because I was bored at work all day (although I couldn’t access the blogger page from my work computer, I could type posts at work and then post them when I got home) and because I was relatively new to being gluten-free. It was around then that I figured out how to bake/cook a lot of things that I’d had pre-gluten-free that I missed, and I had been calling my mom (who is also gluten-free) every day to tell her what I was eating because I was so excited. I stumbled upon a few other gluten-free blogs, and decided that was a good way to share with my mom what I ate, and anyone else who might be interested.
What’s the greatest thing you’ve received or the best lesson learned from blogging?
I think the greatest thing I’ve received are comments from people who say thank you for the recipes I post, that they never thought they would be able to taste whatever it was I was writing about again. Getting a comment like that makes me feel that I’m helping people realize that being gluten-free isn’t terrible, it’s just a different approach to thinking about your food. It’s a challenge!
I know it’s a hard question to answer, but do you have a favorite post?
I think maybe my Thanksgiving post from last year. It was the first year I hosted a Thanksgiving party, and my sister, my roommate and I did all the cooking ourselves. Everything was gluten-free, except for some bread that we got for cheese and pates. My sister did the photography, it has a number of recipes, and I think it really captured the spirit of the party.
What tips do you have for people looking to go gluten-free?
First, and most important, DON’T PANIC. Don’t spend a lot of time dwelling over the things you can’t eat anymore (I’ll never have pizza! I’ll never have cake! I’ll never have lasagna!) and instead think about the things you eat every day that you can still eat. Fruits, vegetables, meats, and many grains are naturally gluten-free.
Also, don’t settle for something you don’t like. If you buy a loaf of gluten-free bread that’s gross (and chances are you will), grind it up in the food processor and use it for bread crumbs, and don’t buy it again. Read gluten-free blogs (I have a big list on the side of my site) and get a good gluten-free cookbook or two. Read the introduction, most have a chapter or two about how to be gluten-free, and tips, and flour mixes and ideas. Also, read Shauna’s book. And, contact me or any other gf blogger, we’re (probably) happy to help.
How has Lijit helped you as a food blogger?
I’m new to Lijit, but hopefully it will give me a sense of what people are interested in so I can focus more on those topics (or ingredients!)
I appreciate all the hard work that Jill puts into her blog and the fact that she has chosen Lijit as her trusted search tool. Be sure to visit Jill’s blog to find out more about eating gluten-free and to read about her delicious kitchen experiences!
[All photos are from Jill's blog.]
Tags: food blog, lijit, profile, publisher spotlight | View Comments
Rocky Mountain Blogger Bash 5000**
Aug 22nd
by Tara Anderson in Company, Lijit publishers, events, fun
We are excited to be one of the sponsors for the upcoming Rocky Mountain Blogger Bash, taking place on Thursday, next week in downtown Denver. In addition to having the usual suspects gang of bloggers from the area, because of a certain little event that will be taking place at the same time (ahem, the DNC, cough, cough), there will be MANY more bloggers in attendance that night. The response from attendees has been overwhelming and it’s shaping up to be a bash to remember.
If you’re interested in joining us, you can find out more details and RSVP here.
And if you’re worried about missing Obama’s speech, don’t. The RMBB has reserved the only room in the bar with a TV.
Finally, if thinking about the parking in Denver stresses you out, don’t. (As in don’t even think of driving!) The organizers of the RMBB have put together a useful guide to help you navigate Denver’s public transport system.
We look forward to seeing you in the Mile High city and yes, there will be many comfy Lijit t-shirts at the party as well. So, whatever your political leanings, remember that this party is for the bloggers, by the bloggers, and booze has no party affiliations.
Big thanks to the organizers, Shannon and David, for making this happen and thinking of Lijit as a worthy sponsor. (Funny that they asked around the same time we got our recent funding…)
**The RMBB numbering scheme is as mysterious as the recent sightings of Sasquatch. Less hairy, but still unexplainable.
Tags: Denver, event, lijit, publishers, RMBB | View Comments
This Wednesday, Frank Gruber and Eric Olson bring their traveling techie road show to Boulder for a second appearance. If you’ve never been to a TECH cocktail before, you’re in for an evening of fun. Imagine a bunch of tech enthusiasts, VCs, bloggers, and entrepreneurs drinking together, watching demos, and sending the geek quotient of the Boulder Theater through the roof. Yes, it really is that good. (And I’m not just saying that because Lijit is a sponsor…)
- Where? The esteemed Boulder Theater
- When? August 20th, from 6:30-9:00 PM (although the TC site says that it’s taking place EST, I wouldn’t bet on that, or we’re all going to be early…)
- Why? Duh…because geeks and beer are a great combination.
- How much? Totally free, but you must RSVP
Last time the boys brought the show to town, we found out that as a sponsor, Lijit was supposed to be one of the demos. We hadn’t really thought about that and, at the last moment, grabbed our homemade widget to bring with us to the party. People loved being turned into widgets, as Frank Gruber can attest…
While we’re not sure if the widget will make an appearance this time, the TechStars are coming out to play and they will be demoing their wares. TECH cocktail will be the conclusion to their day-long investor presentations, so you can imagine the relief these teams will be feeling. The TechStars have been working hard all summer and honestly…the least you can do is to come out and support your local tech community by drinking some beer. Is that too much to ask?
In conclusion…
What more could you want? (Unfortunately, due to the limited supply of Lychee liqueur, there will probably NOT be any Lijitos made at this event.) You can RSVP here and we hope to see you on Wednesday night!
Tags: Community, good times, lijit, tech events | View Comments
This is another in our ongoing series of guest posts written by different employees around the office. Charlie was kind enough to help out this time and in case you couldn’t figure it out, he loves his bike. And now, with his bionic knee, he’s an even better rider.
Sure, that sounds too much like a box of chocolates, but, well, nobody would ever accuse me of being original.
- The more skill you have, the more fun you have. The more challenging a trail, the more satisfying it is. If search was easy, it wouldn’t be fun.
- You don’t always know *exactly* where you’re going.
- Sometimes there are crashes, and you have to fix your bike or the web servers:
- You have to keep moving and be able to improvise to get through the most difficult bits.
- You have to suck it up for some long, brutal climbs sometimes.
- Beer is good at the end of the day.
I’ve been riding seriously for 7 or 8 years or so, and over the years have fallen in with a group of people that are great riders, and great friends. We all ride regularly and go on weekend trips together, with different combinations of people every time. I’m not the best rider in the group, but we all like the same kind of difficulty, and are willing to work on the technical sections until we ride them clean.
I’ve known some of the people at Lijit for 15 years. These are among the most technically competent people I’ve ever worked with. We’ve worked together for a variety of different companies, in different product domains and different combinations. We all like to have a tough problem that’s worth solving, and are willing to work on it until we get it done.
That is why I ride with those guys, and that’s why I’m at Lijit.
Sure, that’s a pretty short post, but, well, nobody would ever accuse me of being too vocal. And beer is good at the end of the day.
Tags: Charlie, employee guest post, lijit | View Comments
Yet another BlogHer wrap-up
Jul 23rd
by Tara Anderson in Company, Lijit publishers, employees, events, fun
Micah and I attended BlogHer this past weekend, held in San Francisco. This was my third BlogHer event and they’ve all been unique. With a thousand attendees, the BlogHer organizers did a fantastic job of logistically insuring there was an ample amount of activities scheduled in order to have lots of opportunities to meet other bloggers and learn from them. As a representative of Lijit, it was helpful knowing some bloggers going into the event. On top of that, Lijit was mentioned on two different panels as a useful tool for bloggers. (Yippie!) And to round out our good Lijit vibes, when I told people where I worked, I was greeted with looks of recognition.
From attending a session on why mommyblogging is a radical act (shhhh…it’s because women are telling the truth) to a session on how to pursue your passion, there were intelligent and dedicated bloggers all over. I know that some women were concerned with the high school/sorority aspect of the conference, but for me, it was all about thanking the publishers who are currently using Lijit and following up with those who have yet to install. Building relationships is a HUGE part of my job and BlogHer presents a wonderful space to do just that.
I would never have started blogging if it weren’t for taking a job with Lijit and I love that because we make a blogging tool, it’s a no-brainer for us to have a presence there. (I’m thinking that next year, we might even have to get a booth!) It’s amazing how being social, striking up conversations, and meeting people can take it right out of you. I never realize how hard I work at a conference until I come home, sleep-deprived and with a three-inch stack of business cards.
Micah wrote a post about his experiences as one of the few BlogHims in attendance, while I posted some personal highlights of the trip over here.
In order to share the link love, here are some of the blog publishers that I ran into at the conference who are currently using Lijit:
Schmutzie’s Milkmoney Or Not, Here I Come
califmom
Everyday Goddess
Greeblemonkey
electromute
Send Chocolate
Whiskey In My Sippy Cup
Dirt to Dish
PHAT Mommy
Average Jane
Pause
This Mama Cooks! On a Diet
Scheiss Weekly
Greek Tragedy
Table for Five
contentious
CityMama
Queen of Spain
Mommy Needs Coffee
SecondHand Karl
MOMocrats
A Mommy Story
POP! PR Jots
Her Media
And then, if that isn’t already a great list, we’ve also had some blog publishers sign up as a result of Lijit being at BlogHer. We’d like to welcome these new users…
bad mom
Elkit in Wonderland
Oh, The Joys
happykatie
Alex Year Two
Glossed Over
Moms In The Right
Thanks to all those who gave us great feedback and shared their thoughts about Lijit. We loved having the chance to listen to what you had to say and appreciate your continued support!
Tags: BlogHer08, conference, lijit, publishers | View Comments
This guest post was written by Dan Jones, our VP of Engineering Chief Architect and one of the original “fantastic” four to start Lijit.
Lijit celebrated its second birthday on Saturday, and like a proud parent, it seemed only appropriate to force people to look at pictures and listen to endless stories about our wonderful child. Actually, if you think in terms of “internet years”, Lijit is probably more like a 30 year old than a child. But I’ll still take this opportunity to get a little nostalgic and talk about how things have changed over the past 2 years.
The idea…
Lijit was founded on the idea that we were going to do something cool around trust networks. This was an area of expertise of our original CTO, Stan James, and was the basis of his Master’s thesis–the Outfoxed browser plug-in. However, like most startups, the original idea changed along the way. After a few months of building the service, a slightly different idea began to emerge which involved creating trust networks for publishers (bloggers) and making those networks searchable. Along the way we have continued to refine this concept but the core idea is to create search based applications that can make publishers better.
The name…
The company was originally incorporated as Outfoxed Corporation, named after the browser plug-in that Stan created. However, it was decided early on that we needed a new name that was fresh, hip, and available (sounds like we were looking for a relationship). Anyone who has ever tried to come up with a name that is available as both a .com and .net domain knows that this is a hard and frustrating process. All the cool names you come up with are taken, and you quickly digress to considering silly names that have marginal relevance to what you actually do.
Our group was no different, and we spent several weeks thinking of names and promptly rejecting them. This was all supposed to culminate with a meeting at the Old Louisville Inn, with a notebook containing several pages of potential names, where we all voted for our favorites. Fortunately no consensus was reached because shortly thereafter, Leslie had a flash of brilliance while in Las Vegas, and came up with Lijit. It was the first name that everyone seemed to like and it didn’t take long before we were officially Lijit.
The office…
For the first couple of weeks of Lijit’s existence, we met in Todd’s basement, hatching plans, and figuring out what needed to be purchased to actually move into an office. Todd found some office space in Louisville that was a good deal and had nice views of the mountains. We moved in and decked out the office with cool Ikea furniture and an old foosball table that Stan bought on craigslist, and hunkered down to build a kick-ass service. Then last summer, with the continued addition of new people, we outgrew the Louisville office and needed more space.
Sing the following to the tune of the Beverly Hillbillies:
Well the next thing you know Lijit needs some air…
The investors said Todd move away from there…
Downtown Boulder is the place you oughta be,
So they loaded up a truck and they moved to Walnut Street…
Boulder, that is…
Coffee shops…
VC’s downstairs.
Todd, Stan and Colleen found a great office and had it built out with all the standard high tech startup amenities (cool colors and cubes, brick wall with skylights, umbrellas to keep the developers from getting sunburned under the skylights, a new foosball table and a couple of game consoles–and of course, Rockband). Boulder is a really cool place to work. It’s a great town in a beautiful location, with lots of places to eat, etc. But even better, there is a very tangible tech/startup energy here that I don’t think you’ll find elsewhere in Colorado.
The infrastructure…
One of the tricks to starting an internet based company is figuring out how to scale your infrastructure. It is usually not too difficult to set up a few web servers and a database in a hosting facility to get you going. We started out with 3 web servers and a couple of database servers in a half rack with me acting (and I mean that literally) as the system and database administrator. However, the challenge is figuring out how and when you need to buy lots more hardware and hire professionals to manage it so that you can scale to the next level.
We were very lucky to attract two of the best Systems and Network guys we know (Mike and Zach) to build out our infrastructure. Mike wrote a great post about it, so I won’t go into details here. Suffice it to say that they have built some cool stuff that will allow us to continue to scale incrementally as we grow.
The people…
I saved this one for last, because I truly believe that it is the people that make Lijit special. Lijit has grown over the past few years and we have managed to attract and hire a lot of sharp people that work well together. But while the number of employees has changed, I think that the culture has been a constant. It’s a culture that promotes doing a great job that you can be proud of and having fun doing it. And one that values the individual and the contribution that they make to the success of the company as a whole. I hope this never changes.
As you can see, Lijit has gone through many changes over the course of its young life and we continue to grow and mature as we go. Fortunately, we have a great group of people that have the experience and the willingness to adapt to the changes required at each stage of this growth. There are still lots of challenges that we will face, and lots of things that we would like to do better and faster, but I really believe that with the team of dedicated people we have, we will be up for meeting these challenges at each step along the way.
So thanks for sitting through the tales of a doting parent. I hope I didn’t bore you too much (and I hope you’re not thinking “Man, that is an ugly baby…”). It’s been a fun ride and I’m looking forward to the next 2 years to see where we go from here.
Tags: birthday, celebration, employee guest post, reflection | View Comments
We are targeting July 1st for the First Annual 2008 Boulder Sushi Regurge Open (also known as the Quest for Second Place Behind Micah First Annual 2008 Boulder Sushi Regurge Open).
Please comment if you 1) want to participate; 2) want to watch; 3) want to help Tara Social Media this sucker. (Ustream, Twitter, Live Blogging and perhaps some play by play…)
Bring it.
Tags: boulder sushi, lijit, sushi eating contest | View Comments
Ningsheng Liu (pictured above with Derek and a Lijit shot glass) is one of the newer faces you’ll see around the Lijit offices. He’s only in the office a few times a week, so when he comes in, it’s like seeing a long-lost friend…that you’ve only just met and don’t know very well. In the process of composing this post, I was able to find out that besides reading, Ningsheng also enjoys taking long walks through Cherry Creek State Park and traveling back to China to visit his family. Let’s hear what else the man has to say for himself…
- What is your Lijit contribution?
I am Database Architect at Lijit, responsible for data modeling, database design and database maintenance, in addition to participating in database application development. I am hoping that I can apply my knowledge and 15 years of experience in data and database to daily work to make Lijit application backend healthier in terms of performance, scalability, stability, and maintainability.
- What is your least favorite sound and why?
A few days ago when I was working in my study at home, all six smoke detectors suddenly fired up, almost at the same time. I was completely terrified, running from the upstairs to the basement and the basement to the upstairs, trying to figure out what was going on. I knew people outside would hear it and I just didn’t want somebody else to call 911. After making certain there was no noticeable smoke and any danger, the first thing I wanted to do was shut down the sound by disconnecting the power, but unfortunately I couldn’t, since I had unsaved work on my computers. Guess what? The only thing I could do was physically disconnect the smoke detectors, one by one. Finally, it all stopped and my small world was back to normal. I then realized that I had never really appreciated the normal quietness we get every day. I don’t want to hear that sound again ever.
- What is your favorite word and why?
I am pretty sure ‘lijit’ is not officially an English word, at least one I cannot find in a dictionary for now. That’s fine because ‘google’ is not either. At the time I’m writing this, spellcheck keeps complaining about ‘google’ as well as ‘lijit’. I know I can let spellcheck keep silent on ‘lijit’, but I would like to see the day that ‘lijit’ is officially a word and no longer a problem with spellcheck. Is that possible? Certainly. How soon can it happen? Well, it depends…we need to work harder and smarter.
- What is a profession, other than your own, that you would like to attempt and why?
I taught for a number of years before becoming an IT professional. I enjoyed teaching as that is one of a few ways we can influence people, especially younger generations, for their future lives and careers.
- Something you’re guilty of…
Every time I drive to work, I see people driving from an opposite direction and wonder how nice if all of us could work around our neighborhood. On the one hand, I burned 4 gallons of gasoline for a round trip, contributing to the lack of resources we have been experiencing globally. On the other hand, I produced carbon dioxide for every mile I have driven, contributing to global warming.
We’re excited to have Ningsheng on the Lijit team, even if we only get to see him every now and again. On an interesting side note, Ningsheng mentioned that he had a ping-pong table at home. He went on to tell me that his family only played on it for a month after they bought it…twelve years ago. Perhaps Ningsheng will want to dust off that table and donate it to the Lijit offices?
Tags: Lijit employee profile, Ningsheng | View Comments
Chicago. The Windy City.
I was under the impression that the nickname came from the weather, but according to Wikipedia, it may also come from the fact that politics is a sport in Chicago, and that there are a large number of windbag politicians that reside there.
So, I am going to join the windbags and speak at the TechCocktail CONFERENCE:
May 29, 2008 – 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CST
Kasbeer Hall – Loyola University
Water Tower Campus
25 E. Pearson Street
Chicago, Illinois 60611
My topic? “SEO Has Grown Up: My Quest to be The #1 Douchebag on Google.”
I plan to discuss how SEO has moved past the standard blocking and tackling of on-page content, clean code and relevant links. Personal or corporate brand has become so interwoven into online reputation, that companies can no longer avoid branding as part of an SEO strategy.
Interesting? I hope so. Interested? Register here.
And, hopefully, I wont be adding to Chicago’s nickname much. (Although how cool would it be to say you saw a douchebag be a total windbag in the Windy City?)
Tags: micah, speaking, techcocktail, techconference | View Comments