A for Appsterdam or How to Start a Technological Revolution in Europe!

Have you heard of the Appsterdam movement? Are you interested in joining its ranks? Do you want to be part of the city of apps? Appsterdam is looking forward to having you on board!

As the furor surrounding the Appsterdam Launch Party on the rainy but eventful evening of 24 June, 2011, slowly fades away, a dazzling opportunity arises from the sultry mistiness in the air. The curtain has been lifted, the lights are on, and the show has begun. Yet, this is not an exclusive act, which only a handful can join! On the contrary, it’s open to all of those determined to succeed and shape the future. Indeed, now all of you have the rare chance to embrace and idea, to infuse a fresh dose of talent and skills into a living and breathing concept, and to take part in a technological revolution that is bound to surge through Europe. How? By joining the technological nouvelle vague called Appsterdam!

For those of you who are still in the dark, Appsterdam is an initiative started by Mike Lee, a former Apple and Tapulous product software engineer, who after a year of traveling around the world finally chose Amsterdam, the Netherlands as the best place to start a revolution. Yet, unlike many other rebels without a cause, he had a clear vision. After carefully weighing all the pros and the cons, Mike decided that he and the enthusiastic developer community have what it takes to restore the faded technological grandeur of Europe by turning Amsterdam into a focal hub for software development. Another hopping, buzzing, and boiling Silicone Valley in the midst of Europe’s Lowlands. This is how the concept of Appsterdam was brought to life.

Instantly, Appsterdam became a magnet that attracted Dutch government officials, the Municipality of Amsterdam, a sizable crowd of venture capitalists and investors, a solid number of companies, and a huge army of developers, designers, marketers, and other creative individuals who wanted to become part of the bloodstream of Appsterdam. Moreover, this avant-garde movement captured the imagination of people all over the world and they are now looking forward to moving to Amsterdam and starting a new, brighter life. Why? Well, because many of them saw the prospects of becoming the driving force behind something larger than life. Moreover, for a lot of developers, designers, entrepreneurs, and other creative minds, partaking in Appsterdam equals joining the ranks of those destined to change the status quo as far as technology, communities, and even mentality are concerned. You won’t believe it? Well, let me tell you a bit more about some of the benefits of becoming a proud Appsterdam member:

• Appsterdam aims at bringing developers, designers, marketers, creative thinkers, and other bright minds under the spotlight. You can be listed and thus easily found by other like-minded individuals who share your values and are interested in what you have to offer;

• Appsterdam is brimming with opportunities for talented individuals and/or companies! There are always people looking for loaded guns for hire! And it covers the entire spectrum: from internships, to short-term contracts, to permanent vacancies! Appsterdam has it all in store;

• Appsterdam provides you with the opportunity to meet new people by attending one of the Appsterdam weekly events. People you might consider great to hang out with;

• Appsterdam gives you shelter! You can go and work or simply chill at the NDSM wharf, Appsterdam’s first Official Hangout! There you can discuss ideas, get help or even find your new best friends and/or business partners! It is a place to share ideas, exchange know-how, and get together with other like-minded individuals. It is at little havens like this one where grandiose things get started;

• Appsterdam gives you the unique chance to further improve your critical, analytical, programming, designing, and even public speaking skills! Indeed, Appsterdam will provide its members with speaker training and initiate them into the art of engaging, capturing, and driving audiences to action! This is an invaluable asset that each and every techie person requires in order to speak to clients, journalists, bloggers, investors, industry stalwarts, and people in general to persuade them that his or his work is worth checking out;

• Appsterdam provides you with numerous channels such as the official Appsterdam Zwapp Channel, where you can promote your work, share it with others, and get feedback on how to improve it;

• Appsterdam can get you funding! Indeed, Mr. Floris van Alkemade, a local investor, is putting together a seed fund, appropriately called Appsterfund, to serve the Appsterdam vibrant community with investments of 10-50,000 EUR per company. So let the creative sap flow! Now you can get the money to make your dream products or services a dazzling reality;

• Appsterdam gives you a sense of belonging. A sense of belonging to a collective, a feeling that you are not alone as there are other people who share the same values;

• Appsterdam can do many other things for you! From helping you get you a spare bike to borrow or a place to crash to assisting you relocate to Appsterdam! There are people dedicated to meeting your needs all the way!

These are just a few of the perks of joining Appsterdam. There are many more coming your way! Yet, you have to become an Appsterdammer to fully benefit from those! Indeed, Appsterdam is not yet another project that simply puts you on a map. Appsterdam is an initiative that gives you all that you require to succeed. It is an incubator, a beacon, a new order, and most definitely, the way to go! In addition, Appsterdam is a breath of fresh air amidst an ocean of alarming pieces of news about a Dutch cultural meltdown or the declining importance of the Netherlands. After all, it is not all doom and gloom!

So far, so good. Now, what’s the catch? Well, here it is: in order to rise to power and attain its foretold greatness and leverage, Appsterdam needs you to join its ranks! Yes, you, dear reader, Appsterdam just want you! It needs your valuable contribution, not your soul! It is your once in a lifetime chance to be where the action is. Just, check Appsterdam out, follow them on Twitter, join them on Facebook and LinkedIn, and find out why you have to participate in this technological and cultural resurrection for yourselves! Once again, the die has been cast, the Appsterdam show is on the road, and things are already happening. Yet, bear in mind that Appsterdam is more than yet another community initiative. It is an idea, a way of thinking, and a state of mind. It has already gained initial momentum and it cannot be stopped. Success is imminent. Indeed, as a quote from a very famous comics book and movie goes, ideas are bulletproof. We all know how sweeping the power of ideas can be. Yet, as another quote from the same movie tell us, “you cannot kiss an idea, cannot touch it, or hold it… ideas do not bleed, they do not feel pain, they do not love… And it is not an idea that I miss, it is a man.” Thus, great ideas should not live a life of solitude. They are destined to be shared with others. Therefore, the Appsterdam movement will not be the same without you! Alternatively, your lives and careers might not be as interesting if you decide to opt out.

Make this summer worthwhile! Join Appsterdam now! It will give you the shelter you require!

• The author used to be affiliated with the Appsterdam movement. Yet, she had to quit the movement over irreconcilable conceptual differences. Moreover, many of the initiatives and/or resources described in this article never materialized.