ArabNet 2011 only 3 weeks away

The ArabNet 2011 Shift Digital Summit, the largest gathering for the Arab web/mobile industry, will be kicking off with a Developer Day on March 22, targeted at engineers, developers, and techies from across the region. It will include programming case studies, tutorials, and in depth workshops by lead engineers from top regional and global companies. Some of the topics that will be discussed include developing mobile apps for different platforms like Google's Android and cross-platform development frameworks like Appcelerator's Titanium. The day will also include talks on popular content management systems like Wordpress as well as user interface and user experience issues. These subjects and more will be taken up by speakers from various leading companies from the region and beyond such as Cleartag, eSpace, Zedna, BORN Interactive, and Google. At the end of the day, attendees will have the opportunity to take part in exciting competitions and Sprints to develop applications to grow the Arabic web.

The Two-Day Forum, which will take place on March 23 and 24, will include discussion panels, keynotes, 1-on-1 interviews, workshops, and rapid-fire Q &A sessions, as well as the yearly Ideathon and Startup Demo competitions for entrepreneurs. This year's Forum will focus on the latest trends and technologies in Social and Mobile, the hottest developments in the web industry. Some of the topics that will be covered are the Mobile Application Landscape, Social Media and Marketing, Social Commerce, E-Payment Challenges and Solutions, Social and Mobile Gaming, Online Media Buying, Streaming Media, Digital Content, and Tech/Mobile for Good. Speakers include top executives from Microsoft, Google, TechCrunch, Seedcamp, Meydan, Aramex, Sarmady, Intigral, Groupon, Effective Measure, Ericsson, Ideavelopers, Souktel, Travian Games, Nokia, Communicate, The National and many others. Exciting developments for the Ideathon competition include a prize of two weeks worth of development services offered by eSpace to the top three ideas to help them build prototypes.

The Community Day, the final day of the event, taking place on March 25, will target the wider public, with a particular emphasis on students and young adults, and aims to raise awareness among them about the web and entrepreneurship. The day will include a panel discussion on the current state of the web/mobile industry and the tech of the future. It will also encompass career talks by leaders from top internet companies, giving attendees an idea of what its like to work in web; entrepreneur talks by successful entrepreneurs that will inspire attendees to start their own businesses and provide them with key lessons learned; and technical talks by lead developers on the latest programming frameworks and development techniques. Attendees will also have the chance to take part in workshops on digital activism, community journalism, social media, conducted by local organizations active amongst the community