Fan To Pro - The Blog of Professional Geekery

Why You Shouldn’t Keep Your Projects A Secret

As someone who works with intellectual properties, and someone who knows a lot of people who also work with intellectual properties, I can safely say that a lot of us like to keep our ideas to ourselves.  There is a fear that if your idea is leaked, then there’s a team of coordinated and efficient coding enthusiasts that will take your idea and do it faster than you.  Probably better than you too.  And they all wear sunglasses and matching black leather uniforms with lightning bolts...

Where was I?  Oh, right, the fear of being copied.  This fear has a less-paranoid-but-still-paralyzing twin: the fear of someone coincidentally doing the same thing as you, making you look like the copycat nonetheless.

My advice to you is to fight that fear and show off (or at least talk about) your works in progress.  There are several reasons why this will help you rather than hurt you.

Yahoo Shuts Down Four Entertainment Sites

I completely missed this news.  Not that it surprises me as, well, it's Yahoo and they've been having their problems lately.  I'm not sure it means anything except likely more unemployed people, and makes me wonder how their talks about acquisitons are going - and Microsoft is a possible suitor.

With so many sites on the web I'm not sure Yahoo's offerings will be missed, though people writing in similar entertainment venues might want to be a bit concerned about A) a bit more competition, and B) they may be seen as unnecessary as well.

Also, if a buyout is coming, yahoo may be streamlining themselves . . .

- Steven Savage

Promoting Professional Geekery #9: Build a Site

(I've moved this series to Monday, since it's a way to encourage you for the week to come - and a good lead in before we know the news of the week).

Want to share your legacy and enthusiasm for professional geekery?  Start a web page.

Oh, I'm not talking a blog - though it may be part of it.  I'm talking a page that has and does something for people you want to reach, mentor, encourage, or just kick in the backside until they get their progeek on.

I'm talking a page that is a tool.  A page that does something.  A page that is basically an application or a library or something that lets people get something done.  Say . . .

• Maybe an archival page filled with useful advice, lessons, diagrams, what have you for a given profession.
• A blog/archive where people swap and record advice.
• A useful interactive map of services, locations, clubs, etc.
• A calculator, destination-finder, or planner of some kind.
• Snippets of code, useful stuff, etc.
• A "compiler" that combines several sites (social media, code archives, what have you) in one place for various projects, lessons, etc.
• A site documenting a continual project - and it's continual educational benefits for progeeks.

Ask yourself what people need - and then build it.  Or team up with someone to build it.  You get the idea.

What do you get from it?

• You get to create a unique service for people.
• You get to make that service available.
• You get to learn a lot from deploying it.
• It can combine well with other projects - like speaking or writing.
• It looks good on a  resume.

Making a site is easier than ever, from a repurposed blog to Joomla to template-driven creators.  Teamed up with (or being) a web developer and the sky's the limit.

Set your sights on a site and help share your professionally geeky wisdom and knowledge!

- Steven Savage

How to Tumblr

Hello, everyone.  Today we’re going to talk about Tumblr, and how it can be used to promote your creative project or personal brand.  Here’s the short answer: you can’t... but someone else can.

The thing about Tumblr (and for that matter, Twitter, Facebook, and all other forms of social media) is that your page is obviously created by you.  Therefore, when you promote your own brand, your efforts have a clear bias to them.  If you’ve already got a following and you’d like to keep them updated, then Tumblr is a good way to do it for a couple of reasons.

Beyond The Loading Screen: August

Whoa, September first is tomorrow?  I've got to rush to King's Cross station to be at Platform 9 3/4 before 11 tomorrow morning.  But first, a review of the past month.

Launch or Be Lunch, Day 2 - Oh Shi---: Tweaking (the Way You Want to Go)

We're now in launch week.  Needless to say, this is a terrifying exciting time.  But hey, we're consumate professionals, so we'll take it in stride, bravely moving along with a dance and a song.

Launch or Be Lunch, Day 27 - Pushin' Polycotton, Paper and Pixels

Well, in between the art, the writing, the rendering, the website coding, the font creation, three French hens, two turtledoves and a bottle of Advil in a pear tree, I spent time today talking with the folks over at my bank regarding the merchant account I'm going to need for the site store, as well as the API specifications required to get it to interact with the site.

Wait...what?  We haven't even launched and I'm already thinking of merchandise?  I'm sure all of you right about now are probably thinking the same thing:

Launch or Be Lunch: 30 Days to Production

Hello, all, this is Rob Barba of Megami Studios.  I'm writing this article series for the wonderful folks here at Fan to Pro detaililng the launch of our primary series Claude & Monet.  After all, what better way to show moving from fans to professional geeks than to do it right before the cameras?  During the next 30 days (okay, well, 29, since we started late), either myself or Ayne Hart (the studio artist) will be presenting what we're doing while prepping for launch, from the high points to the low, from the scars to the bottles of aspirin, and everything in between.  You'll also get to see some of the behind the scenes look at what it takes to launch a work; even at the end of the 30-day-period, when there's just one starting page on the screen, it takes a lot more than people tend to realize, and we're putting that out there for you.

Now, one bit of warning: we're showing you all the ugly sides.  Which means that oftentimes, we're going to have opinions that may be different than the standard (because when you really want to make a good impression, start insulting people...right.....) and that many might vastly disagree with.  Well, that's what the comments section below is for.  Voice your opinions!  Let them fly!

And with that....

The Not So Great Cornholio

There’s a new “Beavis and Butthead” cartoon coming to MTV.  Oh, joy.  This time around, instead of mocking music videos, they’re going to be mocking YouTube videos.  Just like Tosh.0, so it’s original.

Go Farther: We Need Cosplay Diagnosis!

And here's another part of my occasional, rambling ideas on businesses fans, geeks, and otaku can start.  This one is not so much a business as a side business, but it'd be a great one for someone who makes money with costumes, cosplay, or photography.

A site for cosplay diagnostics.