Jump start your knowledge with Vancouver interactive workshops designed to help you leverage your web skills or attend the 2-day Interlink conference for more hands-on workshops.

Interlink Workshops offer a series of six hour hands-on workshops on the first Wednesday of each month. These interactive workshops are taught by industry leaders and are designed to teach participants digital-based skills — web design, WordPress, etc. The workshops are at the W2 Media Cafe on E. Hastings and run from April to June. Tickets go on sale beginning in February and cost $395 (early bird) or $495 (regular). Register early in order to reserve your spot. Lunch is included, a laptop is strongly encouraged for all workshops.

1. How to build and customize WordPress themes

When: Wednesday April 4, 2012 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

Tickets available starting: Feb. 8, 2012

The first workshop, by web developer Jeff Starr, teaches participants how to create a WordPress theme from the ground up including building & customizing your own theme, integrating e-commerce, support systems and chat forums. Additionally, he will explore social-media functionality through the use of widgets, advanced loops and more. Participants will be left with a flexible and scalable WordPress theme that is functional and SEO ready.

2. Adaptive web design 

When: Wednesday May 9, 2012 (9:00a.m. – 5:00p.m.)

Tickets available starting March 7, 2012

With the explosion of new devices–phones, tablets, media players and video game systems, web developer Aaron Gustafson will teach participants how to deal with an increasingly fragmented browser landscape through modern web design. Get a better understanding of Progressive Enhancement, CSS, HTML5 and JavaScript.

3. Responsive enhancement

When: Wednesday June 5, 2012 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

Tickets available starting April 4, 2012

In the third workshop, technical director Jeremy Keith teaches how to construct websites that are intuitive on a wide range of devices. Learn how to prioritize content, size images for different environments, apply fluid layouts based on percentages and more. This workshop is aimed at designers and developers.

4. 2012 Interlink web design conference

When: Wednesday June 6-7, 2012

Tickets available Feb. 1 at 8 a.m.

The Interlink conference is a 2-day event of  curated talks and hands-on workshops created for web professionals led by a mix of designers, developers, creative directors and more. Lots of extra free events are offered for connecting and lunch is included for attendees.

Our friendly neighbours have asked us to speak at this not so traditional conference, which is good, because we are not your traditional digital agency.

David Tedman Co-CEO of Invoke will be sitting on a panel discussing new and emerging tools and Corey Dilley, the Marketing and Business Development Manager at Eat St will be giving a talk on on managing and developing mobile apps and television integration. Oh, and food trucks.

Spend the day with us Seattle, along with a handful of game changers in the digital space such as the VP of Global Digital Marketing at Starbucks and Sir Mix-A-Lot (no joke).

The event is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15 at the Showbox SoDo, Seattle.

Through a series of panels and speakers, attendees will be inspired about new technologies, social media, convergence of music and tech, social TV integration, digital strategies and best practices, and more.

Register today. We can’t wait to see you there.

Previously known as the Canadian New Media Awards, the Digi Awards are Canada’s premiere showcase of the remarkable digital media companies, projects, products and pioneers that are putting Canada at the forefront of the international mediascape.

Along with our pals at HootSuite and Yellow Pages, we’re thrilled to have two products among the top digital apps in Canada. We have been nominated in two categories.

Most innovative digital media technologies:
Memelabs (Invoke)
ScreenScape (ScreenScape Networks Inc.)
YellowAPI (Yellow Pages Group)

and

Best in location-based services:
Eat St. iPhone App (Invoke)
Yellow Pages Application (Yellow Pages Group)
19-2 (The IvI* studio)

Expert Digi Award juries from across Canada will comb through the list of nominees, selecting final Digi Award winners. They will be honoured on the final day of the conference. So fingers crossed, as the winners will be announced live at the award ceremony on Dec. 6.

This Friday, at the Woodwards building in Gastown, Invoke is demonstrating our projects as a part of the VEDC Innovation Gallery. Along with five other Vancouver companies, we have been selected to display and chat about how the digital space and the TV/film space are intersecting more than ever, how our experience has been and what we think the future holds.

Our experience in transmedia lies in creating digital strategies, using the memelabs platform, and building mobile applications.

The memelabs platform has been used for some outstanding transmedia projects in past, including VH1’s hit television show Single Ladies. TV viewers now have social networks to chat, share and comment on their favourite shows. For Single Ladies, we built a memelabs contest in Facebook people could submit entries too based around theme tied to the show. When the TV pilot first aired, the photo contest had a surge of photo entries. In the span of 65 day-campaign, there were 5,731 photos submitted.

Another path TV and film producers should consider are mobile apps. Paperny films, Food Network Canada, and Invoke came together to build a mobile application to be used alongside the TV show Eat St. The Eat St. mobile app is a utility app for finding food trucks in your area. The app is a tool and plays an important role in the real world and the TV show played a huge role in the app’s marketing.

It’s really no surprise that Invoke will be at the mix and mingler, networking reception of Friday’s event. We’re excited to chat with and help out the TV/film folks cross over to the interactive space.

From the website:
Merging + Media Conference is Canada’s premier cross-media conference. M+M’s current focus is to help promote the understanding of cross-media production in the media industry. Initiatives created aim at providing industry awareness and opportunities for partnerships to develop between media sectors. More info on Facebook and Twitter.

Regular Halloween costumes that double as tech-geek costumes

Apple

Pay tribute to Mr. Jobs this Halloween by transforming yourself into the Mac logo: an apple with a bite taken out of it. While adults will understand the reference, it’s also an appropriate and jolly costume to wear when you hand out candy to the trick or treaters in your neighbourhood.

Cloud with Cape

To everyone else, you’re some strange super hero cloud, but your die-hard tech geek friends will be bowing to your genius costume idea when they realize you’re dressed as the Windows7 tagline: “To the Cloud! ”

Mark Zuckerburg

A Harvard sweatshirt, an old pair of jeans and a throwback pair of 90s Adidas flip flops and presto change-o, you’ve magically transformed yourself into the zillionare mogul behind Facebook. This is an easy, last minute costume idea that will win your friends over, but it may not worthy of any best Halloween costume awards.

Nerdy Halloween costume ideas for pairs

Justin Long and John Hodgman — Mac vs. PC

Planning on spending Halloween with a friend or partner? Here’s an easy win for a costume. Try going as this famous pair from the popular Mac vs. PC commercials. One of you will have to dress up as the uptight office type (full suit required) while the other goes in a casual hoodie, tee and jeans. They may not make sense apart, but when you’re together, you’re pure nerdy genius.

R & L iPhone headset

This costume is for nerdy couples who are inseparable. If neither of you are ace with a sewing machine, try crafting this costume by wearing white painter’s coveralls and painting the letters “L” and “R” (in silver) on each of your chests. You can create oversize headpieces (the earpiece part of the costume) out of Styrofoam and hang loose shoelaces off your feet to indicate the rest of the cord.

Ultimate group Halloween costumes for Internet nerds

GOOGLE

Gather five of your favourite friends and colleagues and fashion yourselves into the Google logo. If you can’t get your hands on costume rentals for each letter, you can surely represent this costume idea by painting each letter on to a t shirt or using the aforementioned sandwich boards. Kick this idea up a notch and transform yourselves into your favourite Google doodle!

404

Three numbers perfect for three total Internet geeks. You’ll be the hit of any internet-themed Halloween party. Better yet, add a 404 error, such as file extension denied or site not found to your numbers to better describe the costume.

Halloween costume for singles, pairs or groups: Pick your favourite Internet meme!

Here are a couple of ideas for how you (or you and your friends) can turn yourselves into popular Internet memes.

Planking: Tie a plank of wood to your front and back. If your friends don’t get it, they’re not nerdy enough.

LolCatz: Dress up as cats and carry around some cheeseburgers. It’s that simple.

The team at Invoke wishes you a safe, hilarious not to mention totally geeky Halloween!

P.s. Here are a couple of honourable mentions for our favourite tech pet costume ideas:

AT-AT dog costume

iPhone dog