Mosaic uses these technologies:
- Linux Servers (PHP & MySQL) running on Amazon AWS
- iPhone App
- Android App
- Processing.org Desktop Programs

I am looking for a programmer(s) with 10-20 hours per week to put into the project. All time will be banked and paid out if/when certain revenue goals are met.

The biggest points I need help with at the moment:
- Improving the server setup. I want to have a load balancer and be able to run up additional servers automatically as needed.
- Improving the Android app. I’ve made progress here but I am much stronger with iOS programming.

Please send me the following:
- Links to 1 or 2 (not 20) apps that you have developed
- Why you are interested
- What type of deal you would accept (hourly rate / your availability / when you would expect payment / etc)
- Any other relevant information

I will be in Chicago this coming Tuesday – Friday (10/9 – 10/12/2012) and will be available for meetings.

Cold Calls
In order to find Event Planning & DJ services that are interested in offering Mosaic at their events, I have had to take on making cold calls. I have never enjoyed talking on the phone, but have found cold calling to be a rather rewarding experience. Other than referrals or exhibiting at an expo, cold calling is the best way I have come up with to reach my intended audience.

The #1 rule I have developed for cold calls is “Just dial the phone”. If I sit around and think about it too much, I will psych myself out before I ever get moving.

Cold calling has helped me define what types of businesses are interested (event planners vs. djs), practice my sales pitch, and start to get the word out about Mosaic. Like it or not, there comes a time where you have to sell.

Chicago
I will be traveling to Chicago for the week of October 8-12, 2012. Looking for DJ & Event Planning companies that are interested in seeing a live demo of Mosaic. Contact me at Chris@Feltpad.net

I have been working on an upgrade to The Mosaic Andriod App. This will improve the photo quality, workflow, and general dependability of the app.

For the time being it appears that Mosaic for iPhone is playing nice with iOS6. I will be working on an update to make use of the iPhone 5′s larger screen.

Coaching
I have been getting some business coaching. My coach is using “The Transportation Model of Coaching”. It has been a great experience so far and I will share more about this as time goes on.

Bootstrapper’s Mastermind Call
Still working on drumming up some momentum for the Bootstrapper’s Mastermind Call. The next call is Tuesday, October 2nd.

I pulled both apps from the App Store for a short time, and got some emails from users asking what was going on. The support was enough to encourage me to re-release the app and provide a minimal listing of events at Chicago’s largest museums.

This being said, FREEvents will not be a core product at Feltpad. I have listed FREEvents and FREEvents+ for sale on Apptopia. The reserve price is set at $4,706 with a “Buy it Now” price of $8,999.

Click here to view the FREEvents listing on Apptopia

FREEvents and FREEvents+ are two apps used to map all the free events going on in Chicago. These apps include a website (freevents.net) and backend that uses PHP and MySQL.

These apps can be built out to include additional cities – or be used for mapping and scheduling of events other than “free events in Chicago”.

We have stopped updating the calendars beyond the basics because we do not have time for matience and updating the events. I belive that if this was someone’s main project, they could generate money through custom ad sales / event partnerships.

Free Version Stats
Recevies 400-500 users per day.
Downloaded more than 3,500 times between Jan 1, 2012 and July 1, 2012.
4-star rating on 66 reviews (current version)

Paid Version Stats
The paid version has been downloaded 90 times in 2012.

Website
All PHP code and MySQL Databases inculded
The Domain www.freevents.net is included
Current hosting expires on April 2, 2013
Hosting is through ICDSoft.com

Transfer App Account
Feltpad Inc will maintain ownership of the Feltpad App Store account. When you are ready, we will provide an app update to our users, which will direct them to download the “new” app from your App Store account.

Support
Feltpad Inc. will provide 10 hours of support, to be used within 2 months of purchase. Additional support will be provided at a rate of $75 / hour.

Click here to view the FREEvents listing on Apptopia

Technori Reunion
Last week I ran Mosaic at Technori Reunion, a private event for all the businesses that have been part of Technori Pitch for the last year.

Clean Stream
Participated in the Missouri Clean Stream event on the Big River.

Mosaic Photo System
Working on getting a load-balanced system up and running for Mosaic Photo System.

Chicago Fringe Festival
The Chicago Fringe Festival kicks off this Thursday. Feltpad created the Chicago Fringe Festival iPhone App. Be sure to check out The Mosaic Photo System built into the app, with the live slideshow running at Fringe Central.

TEDxWindyCity
Work has begun on the 2012 TEDxWindyCity iPhone App. More to come on this soon.

For more information, visit www.ChicagoFringe.org

Mosaic Photo System
This week we saw the release of Mosaic for Android v1.2, fixing a major bug that was causing some phones to upload scrambled images.

We are patiently waiting … for Mosaic for iPhone v1.1 to be approved, after a few scary questions came back from the app review team.

Digispark
Finally, after starting to make plans for The Raspberry Pi computer and starting back into some Arduino hacking, I came across the Digispark, a mini Arduino that is small and cheap enough to be left in a project for a long time.

The keynote speaker of the night was David Kalt, owner of Chicago Music Exchange. David has built and sold several businesses and has an incredible down-to-earth way about him. Check out his video:

Chicago Fringe Festival
This week we submitted the 2012 Chicago Fringe Festival iPhone App to the App Store. This year’s app has The Mosaic Photo System built in and we will have Mosaic running live at Fringe Central for the entirety of the festival. If you are in Chicago, be sure to check out The Chicago Fringe Theater Festival, August 30 – September 9.

Mosaic
The past few weeks have also seen a lot of work going into The Mosaic Photo System, in all sorts of areas. I have made improvements to every piece of software that is a part of the system, and made some upgrades that will keep the server running smoothly. I have fallen off the wagon on doing cold calls, and have recommitted to doing 1 hour of calls during each workday.

Mosaic ran at a live event last Sunday. While it was great to see people enjoy the experience, some bugs were revealed:
1. Some Android devices are still uploading scrambled images
2. Some Android devices are uploading small images, which become pixelated when viewed on a large screen
3. Our EC2 Micro Server Instance couldn’t handle (less than) 10 users uploading simultaneously

All these issues are being addressed and will be resolved before our next scheduled event on August 22nd.

At 5:30 we held our first Mastermind meeting. We decided that we will meet in person before each StartLouis Meetup and will meet via conference call 2 weeks after each Meetup. The goal of the Mastermind Group is to provide an outlet where startups can share their experiences, ask questions, and get input from like-minded entrepreneurs.

At 6:30 we headed downstairs for a bit of networking and to hear talks from @pradeepr about SCRUM Project Management and @RussHenneberry about D.R.I.P. Marketing, Blogging, and more.

Mosaic Photo System
Last week I ran Mosaic during our 4th of July cookout and dug up some bugs along the way. First I tried running a new version of the Slideshow software, which wasn’t quite ready. Then we ran into a few bumps with the Android devices. The last few days have been spent debugging the Slideshow and Android app, adding the “Browse” tab to the Android app, and digging up some client work.

I also had a discussion where I realized that I have been avoiding doing the work that needs to be done to get Mosaic in front of event planners. I then went to work creating a list of DJs, Event Planners, and Venues and have set a goal to call 10 of them each work day.

Techweek was a great networking event and I will plan on attending next year with a profitable version of Mosaic. I have read that Techweek 2013 will be only 3 days, Thursday thru Saturday – rather than 5 days, Friday thru Tuesday that was Techweek 2012. I am no event planner, but I think this scheduling change will be a big improvement. This year, Friday was very busy but the weekend was slow – and everyone was hungover by Monday.

Click Here to View the Gallery from Techweek Startup City

Mosaic Photo System
While running Mosaic at Techweek’s Startup City there were a few bugs that I noticed and those are being addressed. I have also started to implement some new ideas and continue to bring the Android app up to speed. Several possible partnerships arose out of being at Techweek and I will be following up on those during the coming week.

Google Glass
I will leave you with a video from the Google IO conference. Pretty amazing stuff, despite a few awkward “whoo-hoos!” from Sergy Brin.