Posted on January 29, 2007 at 3:48 PM in @earthlink
Note: The below is an archived entry from Earthling, formerly EarthLink's official blog. The blog itself has been decommissioned and is no longer updated, and comments are trackbacks are no longer accepted.
Liuzza's on Bienville was packed when Ken and I got there on Friday night. We had chosen Liuzza's for a number of reasons, not the least of which was my having never experienced the Frenchuletta, a Muffaletta-ish sandwich served on a huge piece of french bread. It was interesting to see what it was like on a Friday night at a neighborhood restaurant in a part of town still very much in the thick of coming back to life. It was packed, loud, and full of good cheer. When we got there, both rooms were completely full and we ended up waiting outside with our beverages for our guests to arrive.
We were soon joined by local bloggers Alan, Karen, Maitri, and Becky. We shared some excellent food (Frenchuletta is highly recommended) and talked about the daily issues that come up there, technology-related projects like how to get video off of TV and on to the web, and the specifics of EarthLink's Wi-Fi project in New Orleans. Sitting down with the four of them and hearing about all of the votes and decisions and meetings and legislative sessions that have become the bread and butter of their everyday life made us realize how different resident life is there now from any other city. It's not just the physical space of the city that's different; it's all of the new concerns that come with trying to have a voice in the city's current and future development. It's trivial by comparison, but I have a hard enough time making it to my own neighborhood association meetings in Atlanta once a month -- if I lived in New Orleans there'd probably be meetings I'd feel like I should attend several times every week.
Maitri told us about an ongoing compound issue near her house -- the "grand canyon" on Magazine Street that's in need of repair and construction. Residents held a block party in the rain on Saturday to draw support for the issue. Here's Maitri providing some context about how the "grand canyon" creates traffic problems on that stretch of Magazine:
The need for online communication and community post-Katrina makes New Orleans simultaneously a place open to new technologies and a test of their true utility. It's a place where lots of non-geeks depend on blogging in order to stay connected with their former neighborhood and share what they saw at the last City Council session. They use podcasting and VoIP conference calling because it's cheap and portable. Wikis are helpful because all of the information is spread across lots of different people, and no one person has time to compile it all. Video is starting to play a role as well. One question Alan had for the group is what we've used to capture video off of tv and share it via the web. Ken explained his setup at home and how he uses Elgato's EyeTV for capturing and converting video. I chimed in with an endorsement of Blip.tv as a good platform for sharing video online with reasonable terms of service and the ability to serve ads (and share revenue from the ads) if you choose. Everyone at the table had their own story about the political theatre that unfolds at meetings and hearings, and sharing more video could play a crucial role in keeping interested residents in the loop.
The EarthLink Wi-Fi network is just over a month old in New Orleans, and there were several questions at dinner about the details -- from the software and hardware that goes with the paid tier to the areas the network covers. I explained that part of the EarthLink Wi-Fi home service is a device that attaches to your computer or router that significantly boosts your signal strength indoors. We also offer connection security software for Windows XP and 2000. There's more information on the product page and FAQ.
Karen tells us about demolition hearings
We didn't get the chance to see Schroeder on this trip, who had been the first blogger to write about spotting the FeatherByEarthLink SSID in the wild, but we did hear a couple of stories about how the network has come in handy. Karen told us that she's been glad to have the free network around. She said she uses MapQuest from the road as she criss-crosses town looking into Katrina-damaged houses and buildings slated for potential demolition. Needless to say, that's not a use case we're likely to find too often in other cities.
More photos from the trip in this Flickr set.
Comments
We stayed at Le Cirque when we went for Accepted Students Weekend at Loyola in March of 04. I really liked it (nice wireless). I also love Frankie & Johnny's and have eaten there quite a few times. For a great lunch Uptown, try Domilise's. Yummmm.
Thanks for the pics.
Posted by Sophmom | January 29, 2007 5:28 PM
Geek fests rule!
Posted by noah kagan | January 30, 2007 6:31 AM
So sorry I missed this. I wanted to come but I had a previous engagement. Liuzza's is only a few blocks from my house and I love it dearly -- though I've never had the Frenchuletta. Yet.
Posted by Editor B | February 6, 2007 10:56 PM