CityControllers releases WatchDog App for Android, claims National Award of Excellence [LINKS]

Controller iPhone app wins prize [Daily News] From a press release announcing the release of the app for Android: “The National Association of Government Communicators recently honored the Controller’s Office with an Award of Excellence for its iPhone app. The Philly Watchdog app was recognized for being a special purpose product that according to one judge, “â€¦was very impressiveâ€¦ and took advantage of new technology to reach out to and connect with citizens.”
Just A Friendly Reminder Of Our Brotherly Love: TC Is Hitting Philadelphia On June 19 [TechCrunch] “The Philly Meetup will begin promptly at 6pm and go until 10pm, and will be held in The Fieldhouse on June 19. If you’d like to RSVP, head on over to our Plancast page. Specific questions can be directed to john@techcrunch.com. Oh, and if you want to tweet us, it’s @johnbiggs and @jordanrcrook. We’re also holding Office Hours earlier on in the day, around high noon, although the official reservations are already closed. Still, it wouldn’t be the first time we met up with some eager, yet unannounced startups at an Office Hours session, so feel free to stop on by the Caribou Cafe around then and we’ll try to squeeze everyone in.”

WURD Releases New APP for Iphone/Android Users [WURD 900 AM] “With no fees and in less than one minute, the easy-to-use app downloads to cellular phones and mobile devices. With an option to submit the user’s postal code, there are no set-up steps required to listen to live streaming. The interface is clean and simple to use unlike other radio apps that are full of ads and registration forms. The WURD App screen includes an icon to access the 900AM website, as well as an email icon that links directly to the phone user’s email system to send feedback or troubleshooting issues to the station’s business office.”
Lack of computer access a major hurdle for the poor [Inquirer] “At a KEYSPOT computer-access center within the Families First/People’s Emergency Center in West Philadelphia, Reynolds is enrolled in computer classes to help get off welfare. Reynolds, 36, keeps hearing the whole world is online. That’s not entirely true. “When you’re poor and without a computer, there’s a big gap between you and everyone else,” Reynolds said. “For me and my two sons, it’s very hard not having one.”
As Google Tinkers with Search, Upstarts Gain Ground [MIT Technology Review] “”I believe that there’s an opportunity for multiple new search engines to fragment the market a little bit, and that represents a great opportunity,” says Gabriel Weinberg, who founded DuckDuckGo in 2008 as a side project, but whose company now employs four people full-time and received $3 million in investment funding late last year. “It’s the same as happened with Web browsers. People realized that there was very little choice, and then it fragmented again,” he says, referring to the way that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer lost its dominant position.”
University of Pennsylvania Joins with Mark Group to Bring Sustainability Home [Greentech Media] “Mark Group, a leading global provider of home energy efficiency analysis and improvements, has joined with Penn Home Ownership Services (PHOS) at The University of Pennsylvania to offer ‘Penn sustainability @ home.’ Through the program, university employees are granted access to home performance-focused educational workshops, free home energy assessments, and discounted rates for energy efficiency home improvements. The University’s $7,500 Enhanced Forgivable Loan, available to eligible Penn homeowners, can be applied to home energy upgrades.”
Science= Summer Fun! [More than Medicine Blog] “New for us this year is the partnership with The Franklin Institute which is administering the [Science in the Summer] program in the Greater Philadelphia area. The coordinators from Philadelphia and the surrounding counties and teachers met at The Franklin Institute. We even had a chance for some hands-on science as we balanced random objects. I am excited about the science education expertise that The Franklin Institute bringing to the program.”
Bob Moul on Selling a Company and Building a Startup Community [Under 30 CEO]
Geek of the Week: Jerome Cathaud of NewQuest [Geekadelphia] Technically Philly wrote about NewQuest here.
Bentley Announces 2012 Student Design Competition Winners, Names Educator of the Year [BusinessWire]
Drexel Professor Creates Side Mirror with No Blind Spot [Geekadelphia]
Two Philadelphia Agencies Merge to Form Full-Service Marketing & Technology Firm, Lyquix [BusinessWire]
SunGard Announces Chief Financial Officer Transition [BusinessWire]
After Years of Controversy, a Museum Urbanizes [Atlantic Cities]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMe3r9PLtpI?rel=0]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wyv1YIvEgn0?rel=0]
What We’ve Been Up To [Hive 76]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNFVW9_lB2I?rel=0]

Companies: 900am WURD / Mark Group

People: Alan Butkovitz / Jerome Cathaud

Knowledge is power!