Greetings CLUGgers, We are fortunate to be offered a talk / lecture by Mike Culver, of the Developer Relations Group of Amazon Web Services.
This promises to be one of the more interesting talks we have ever had. The venue is still bing organized, but will in all probably be a lecture theatre in the University. Confirmation will follow as soon as possible. However the date is firm, so please make an entry in your diary for Monday 18 Feb 2008. This is an open to the public lecture so if members who are on other lists or affiliated to other organisations could forward this notice to all and sundry that would be apprciated. Thanks. Here is the blurb for Mike's Talk <quote> Session Description What's possible in a post Web 2.0 world? Innovation continues at a mind-bending pace, and this presentation will showcase some thought-provoking new directions that Web Services are headed in (imagine computers programmatically calling people to perform tasks), as well as introduce a concept known as "Web Scale Computing". The presentation will also provide an overview of Amazon Web Services, and feature a demonstration showing how to set up Amazon EC2. More importantly, it's an opportunity for an interactive discussion about what the future, shaped by Web services and Web Scale Computing, looks like. Amazon spent over 11 years and over $2 billion developing a world-class technology and content platform that powers Amazon web sites for millions of customers. Most people think "Amazon.com" when they hear the word; however developers are excited to learn that there is a separate technology arm of the company, known as Amazon Web Services or AWS. Using AWS, developers can build software applications leveraging the same robust, scalable, and reliable technology that powers Amazon's retail business. AWS has now launched ten services with open API's for developers to build applications, with the result that over 290,000 developers have registered on Amazon's developer site to create applications based on these services. Bio Mike Culver joined the Developer Relations Group of Amazon Web Services in May, 2006. He brings with him fifteen years of technology leadership experience, including at companies such as Microsoft. In addition Mike has a strong background running an IT organization, with over a decade of experience in the Electrical Wholesale Distribution industry. As a Web Services Evangelist at Amazon, he helps developers take advantage of disruptive technologies that are going to change the way we think about computer applications, and the way that businesses compete. </quote> -- Sincerely etc. Christopher Sawtell
