Austin JS SXSW Party and {Dev:unplugged}

As an added bonus this year to all of the other fun and festivities, Austin JavaScript will be proudly promoting the IE team's {Dev:unplugged} event at our SXSW party. Don't know what you {Dev:unplugged}? Don't worry, the IE team will be out promoting the event at the party!

Here's a bit more information about {Dev:unplugged}:

Today, we are announcing the launch of Dev Unplugged, a contest that challenges web developers to push the limits of a modern browser without the use of plug-ins. We believe that HTML5 and related technologies, in conjunction with faster and faster browsers, finally give developers the tools they need to create experiences that are as vivid, interactive and compelling as anything you have seen in native applications. We hope that Dev Unplugged becomes a forum where developers around the world showcase their talents and what’s possible and inspires all of us to see where the web is going.

The Challenge

As we look around and see the amazing things that people are creating using these new technologies, we decided that two categories really stood out to us: Gaming and Music. Developers can choose to submit an app in either category.

For the gaming category, we hope developers will push the limits of a modern browser and create games that are fun and addictive.  In order to help developers get started and give them some inspiration, we worked with Mike Mignola, the creator of Hellboy, to license his characters exclusively for the developers to use to create their HTML5 game.

In the music category, we want developers to help us discover new ways to experience music online. In order to give them some material to get started, we’ve teamed-up with two hot bands provide them with tracks to get started: “Boy” by Ra Ra Riot and “Sail” by AWOLNATION.

The Judges

To help us judge the submissions we have assembled an amazing panel of judges that feature experts in HTML5, design and user experience on the web, including the likes of: Dion Almaer, Ben Galbraith, Remy Sharp, Grant Skinner, Rob Ford and Robert Nyman.  The panel will be asked to judge the top-40 finalists according to creativity, quality of implementation and fit with the contest theme.

The Prizes

In order to really capture the attention of cutting-edge web developers, we have put together a set of 9featured prizes and 9honorable mentions.  The prizes include:

• $40,000 in total prizes including $9,000 for the Grand Prize.
• Front page exposure on theFWA.com and beautyoftheweb.com
• Cool hardware: laptops and slates from Alienware, HP and ASUS
• An all-expense paid trip to the Future of Web Apps Las Vegas with “golden ticket” VIP access

Developers, Start Your Engines!

Below are the dates for the contest.  We will have a private submission process for 5 weeks, at which point we will open up the submissions to the public so that they can check-out the submissions and vote on their favorites.  Once submissions close, we will announce the 40 finalists who the judging panel will review in order to find out who our winners are.

• 3/1 – Contest Opens (submit early, don’t miss a chance to get voted-up!)
• 4/5 – Submission gallery opens to the public and voting begins!
• 5/9 – Submission deadline
• 5/12 – Top-40 Finalists are announced
• 5/23 – Winners are announced!