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Code For Oakland: The Most Diverse Hackathon Ever

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Hackathons have always been creative. They remind me of spontaneous music jams - only instead of drummers and saxophonists, we gather as product managers, UI designers and coders. By Romy Ilano (Founder, Snowyla)

Sometimes people ask me why I go to so many hackathons... "Isn't it a lot of work?" I just laugh, because I feel like this is such fun to me. Who wouldn't want to spend a weekend meeting smart, passionate people pushing forward to make stuff for the world to use? This is fun!

Nowadays hackathons have diversified, and there are Government 2.0 hackathons. Yes, government!

Code for Oakland celebrated its second year this July, and it was one of a new breed of Government 2.0 hackathons

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Learn From Leaders Of Product Innovation: Women 2.0 PITCH 2012 Videos Now Available Online

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For $30, get full access to Women 2.0 premium videos for the next 30 days online. By Shaherose Charania (Co-Founder & CEO, Women 2.0)

We have exclusive videos from PITCH 2012, our 1000 person conference last February in Silicon Valley. We recorded all the conference talks, panels and pitches for you so you can pop some popcorn and make it a night of learning and inspiration.

We are excited to be sharing this exclusive content with you. A 30 day subscription to premium Women 2.0 videos will give you access to 6 videos - that's 3 hours of great talks - from female founders including Zipcar’s Robin Chase, Care.com’s Sheila Lirio Marcelo (pictured), Chomp’s Cathy Edwards (acquired by Apple)

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A Father’s Influence On MonkeyWish, The Digital Answer To Gifting

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My enthusiasm for entrepreneurship started at a young age and was sparked by my father. By Kristi Taylor (Founder, MonkeyWish)

Behind every great entrepreneur, there is an even greater family. That’s my belief. From childhood through my years as a wife and mother, family has played an integral role in the pursuit of passion. It began when I was young. Just as most parents do, my mother and father instilled within me the belief that I could do anything I set my mind to. They reminded me every day that there are no limits. With their continued support, along with the support of my children and husband, I was able to develop the universal gift registry, MonkeyWish.

My enthusiasm for entrepreneurship started at a young age and was sparked by my father. He owned a self-storage facility

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From Your “Forty-Godmother” – Here Are 3 Tips For A 20-Something

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This week's 3 tips from one generation to another - from your "Forty-Godmother." By Christina Vuleta (Founder, 40:20)

Women in their forties today are part of the first wave of women to grow up with more choices. We have seen the consequences of delaying marriage, fore-going childbirth or following an unexpected career path in large numbers. And while we all have made different decisions, what we all have in common by the time we hit our forties is the comfort of finally making decisions that are right for us.

We feel stronger, sexier and smarter than ever. We may still have shit happen to us, but we now know “shit happens” and we have a whole vault of experiences and strength to

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This Is What An Angel Investor Looks Like – Joanne Chang

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Women 2.0 profiles women angel investors in our "This Is What An Angel Investor Looks Like" series. By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)

Chicago-based Joanne Chang is a healthcare angel investor and advisor with companies in stealth and early-stage mode.

She holds a joint MBA-MS degree in healthcare, clinical sciences and general management from Harvard and MIT.

While Joanne is best known as a Chicago-based healthcare angel investor, she invests in areas outside of Chicago - and in consumer as well. Find out more about the healthcare angel investor below:

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Is It Time To Rethink The Stigma For Tech Companies Led By Couples?

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Two other recent acquisitions by companies led by couples: Kush sold to Smule, and Yell bought Moonfruit. By Liz Gannes (Writer, AllThingsD)

Romantically involved tech company co-founders are having a good year.

In the past four months of big-ticket tech exits, Wildfire, co-founded and led by the engaged couple Victoria Ransom (CEO) and Alain Chuard (head of product management), was bought by Google for at least $250 million; Michael (CEO) and Kass (COO) Lazerow’s Buddy Media sold to Salesforce for $745 million-plus; and LinkedIn purchased married couple Rashmi Sinha (CEO) and Jon Boutelle (CTO)’s SlideShare for $119 million.

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Low-Cost Ways To Earn “Brand Bragging Rights” Using Your Existing Products And Services

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Women 2.0 readers save $150 on the Smarter Branding For Startups class for creating a powerful brand. By Brenda Bence (Instructor, Udemy)

Bragging rights – everybody wants them. But when it comes to your brand, do you honestly have them? How confident are you that your products or services are truly superior to your competition?

  • If your answer is “not that confident…”, then hang with me. I’ll share some ideas for how to create a perception of superiority even if your products and services are the same as your competitors.
  • If your answer is “very confident!” then it’s key to get your products or services in the hands of potential customers, even if it means you have to give the away for free.... Read More...
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How Long Is Your Startup’s Runway?

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Why runway is one of the most important things for a startup founder. By Florence Lowe (Founder & CEO, SQBlueSky)

From a simple Google search:

Noun: run·way [ruhn-wey] 1. Strip of hard ground along which aircraft take off & land. 2. Raised aisle extending into the audience from a stage.

Let me suggest a third definition.

3. The amount of time a startup founder has to figure it out and make it happen before they have to give up and go find a job.

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My First Hackathon: iOSDevCamp 2012

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While I didn’t have a clear output to show for my efforts, I made the complexity of the task apparent. I got to know the people working on projects in the same room. Most importantly, I became inspired to learn more about CSS3. By Veronica Ray (Senior, Duke University)

I’m a rising senior at Duke majoring in Public Policy.

I took my first Computer Science class this past spring and did web development over the summer for Y Combinator startup Jellyfish Art in San Francisco. This fall I’m taking a class on iOS development and another on web application development. I was hired as a part time web developer for Jellyfish Art for the upcoming school year. I will return to the Bay Area when I graduate.

My first hackathon was iOSDevCamp at PayPal/Ebay headquarters on July 20-22, 2012.

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Did You Really Miss That Opportunity? (Startup Recruiting)

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If someone is asking for your services, ask for a partnership opportunity, an equity percentage or simply a return for your effort. By Adriana Galue (Co-Founder, Mint Consulting)

There is a new business model available today. It involves recruiting talent at low or no cost. I know several talented people who are currently “doing internships” at both new and established companies in exchange for “experience”, “recommendation letters” and “peanuts”. I don’t think that this model is sustainable nor do I think that it generates true economic development.

Nowadays, it is extremely important to refine one’s negotiating skills. After having made a plethora of errors by jumping too soon into a deal, these are my recommendations:

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Zynga Adds Ellen Siminoff To Board Of Directors This Month (Women In The Boardroom)

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Ellen Siminoff, founding executive at Yahoo!, joins the all-male board of social gaming company Zynga. By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)

From the successful Internet campaign to add Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg to the all-male board of directors at the social networking giant (which happened after the company went IPO), to a steady stream of studies and articles touting higher ROI for companies with women on the board, there is a growing awareness of board hegemony making decisions for a heterogeneous society.

Former Yahoo! executive Ellen Siminoff was added Zynga's board of directors this month, the first woman to join the previously all-male board. She will also join the audit committee at Zynga.

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