Jammer Direct has been in the press a lot as of late. Considering that the site has only been open since 10/1/2007, this is quite an accomplishment. Here is a sample of some of the press Jammer Direct has been getting. This page will be updated from time to time but it is important to know that the best publicity has come from you, the Jammers!
Social networking from A to Z
Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter may be household names by now, but what about those other, more niche geared social networking sites? I have complied a list from A to Z, of many of the less known, but still noteworthy, social networking sites. 
A: Amie Street: an Indieonline music store and social network service created in 2006 by Brown University Seniors.
B: Bebo: General
C: CafeMom: an ad-supported website specifically targeted at mothers, offering member-generated content such as profiles, journals, groups, photos, and polls.
D: DailyStrength: users provide one another with emotional support by discussing their struggles and successes with each other.
E: Eons.com: a social networking site for baby boomers.
F: Filmaffinity: a social network site about movies, allowing users to share movie ratings, discover new movies and meet others with similar movie taste.
G: GamerDNA Inc.: a social media company for computer and video game players.
H: Hospitality Club: an international hospitality service. Its members use the website HospitalityClub.org to coordinate accommodation and other services, such as guiding or regaling travelers.
I: italki: a language learning website, with social networking features.
J: Jammer Direct: a social networking website with its primary focus on the artistic and music scenes of the Midwestern, U.S.
K: kaioo is a non-profit social network.
L: LibraryThing: a social cataloging web application for storing and sharing personal library catalogs and book lists.
M: MeettheBoss: a business networking tool for business executives around the world, across all vertical industries
N: Ning: an online platform for people to create their own social network.
O: OkCupid: a social networking and dating website which features member-created quizzes and supports various modes of communication.
P: Passportstamp.com: a network for travelers to record their overseas visits and to record their locations as they travel round the world.
Q: Quarterlife:the first Internet series to have been created alongside a social networking website, quarterlife.com.
R: Ravelry: allows knitters and crocketers around the world to organize and share projects and ideas.
S: Scispace.net: a non-profit and free-to-use social network service designed specifically for collaborating researchers.
T: Talkbiznow: a comprehensive interactive business networking site for business professionals.
V: Vampirefreaks.com: an online community for the gothic/industrial subculture, and surrounding topics.
W: Wakoopa: a social networking site that monitors the software applications its members use.
X: Xt3: a social network managed by the Catholic Church.
Y: Yammer: a microblogging service, which like twitter, it allows users to post updates of their activities, follow others' updates, tag content, and create memes. Unlike Twitter, Yammer focuses on businesses, and only individuals with the same email domain can join a given network.
Z: Zoo.gr: a social networking and online games website.
jammer direct
i-magazine 2/2009
by bartholomew fish
In 2007, a progressive resource hit Fort Wayne. Two guys, one mission. The result: Jammer Direct. What puts Jammer Direct on the cutting edge isn’t just the fact that the concept is progressive, but that it never has been successfully done in the Fort Wayne market, until now. The masterminds behind the machine, owners Ryan Martin and Kent Christon, bring a set of unique and individual accomplishments that make this an explosive team. Ryan Martin is the creator of Jammer Direct, known for his software creations, graphics and knowledge of the virtual world. Kent Christon, owner of the Smash Alley record label, brings experience along with production, bookings and market research. The combination of the two talents and their desire to elevate artists to that next level has been powerful. In October 2007, Jammer Direct went live on the Internet. In February 2008, Jammer Direct teamed up with Piere’s, the Midwest’s largest nightclub, and brought to life The Jamnation Single Search. With a compilation of singles from local artists, giving them the opportunity to record an original single and get exposure with The Jamnation Volume I, a grass roots fire began.
Why does Jammer Direct exist and what’s in it for them? After all, everybody gets a piece of the pie, right? In a recent interview with Ryan Martin and Kent Christon, we asked just that.
Jammer Direct is about giving back to musicians and artists. It’s a resource to connect with one other, and industry leaders, both locally and globally. Kent Christon keeps his finger on the pulse of the market, while Ryan Martin continues to develop a better product for the members of Jammer Direct. Being able to help a band that may never get a chance to play a million-dollar stage, teaming up with the largest nightclubs in the Midwest, and being on the cutting edge themselves, Piere’s and Jammer Direct filled a niche that the Fort Wayne market had been waiting for. Watching the bands grow, and helping them along the way, is just a few things that are what’s in it for them. Introducing Fort Wayne to new artists and their music is another passionate stance Jammer Direct takes. So how do they make money off of it then? They don’t.
Approached to carry several advertisers, Jammer Direct is a not-for-profit organization that does not accept paid advertising. Owners of Jammer Direct say that by keeping advertising out of the organization, they can remain neutral and certainly want the bands, members of the site, and the public to know how important that is to them. There is no buying or selling these guys. Jammer Direct isn’t about making money, but making good business. A source says that the fact Jammer Direct doesn’t play favorites, is the main reason why they had tried out for Jamnation last year. They felt they had a fair shot. The first Jamnation compilation CD was released digitally on November 9th, 2008, physically on December 12, 2008, and has garnered much attention. When asked why the disk was released for sale at a meager $1.99, we were told that selling the disk at cost, with no profit, is aligned with Jammer Direct’s mission. The Jamnation Singles Search is about promoting local bands, not making a buck off of them.
Kent Christon says he has always believed Fort Wayne has some of the best music. The bands locally are not just extremely talented but are strong enough to hold their own against any market.
There is more. The reach of the Jamnation single search doesn’t stop locally. National acts that have appeared in Fort Wayne since the release have also received copies of Jamnation Volume I. Two bands that made the Jammnation first compilation disk, Sirface and Second Sun were selected to be the opening acts for national act Shinedown, whom appeared at Piere’s in December 2008.
The second annual Jammnation Single search begins at Piere’s, February 5th 2009. To sign up go to www. jammerdirect.com and on the home page, fill out the form for sign up. It doesn’t guarantee selection; it does guarantee every application will be reviewed. There is no fee to sign up, and no fee to play if selected, no fee to join and become a Jammer on the Jammer direct website. Jammer Direct will also be recording live video of the first three songs of each selected band that performs live, and those videos will be played in the Jam Media section of Jammer Direct community to be seen globally. If you want to make your mark, here is your chance.
Jammin’ at Piere’s
By Steve Penhollow | The Journal Gazette
Published: March 30, 2008 6:00 a.m.
You just knew that the JamNation Singles Search was going to go well.
Any compound word with two capital letters in it rarely fails in the music business.
The JamNation Singles Search is a venture of JammerDirect.com, a MySpace-reminiscent Web site devoted to local artists and musicians.
For three weeks, bands have been auditioning every Thursday at Piere’s.
On April 17 and May 1, 8 and 22, more bands will audition (and cheering sections are encouraged to attend).
They’re all vying for a spot on the inaugural JammerDirect compilation CD.
Various local venues and radio stations have put out compilation CDs over the years. One of the things that makes this project unique is the projected retail price: $1.99.
“We are offering the disc at a low cost to make it something people want to get involved in,” says Kent Christon, one of the two brains behind JammerDirect and founder of Smash Alley Records.
In a business climate where most music listeners seem to want most musicians to figure out a way to perform and record for free, $1.99 is a mighty fine price.
Christon says some of the bands included on the CD will be invited to join his label.
Mojo Dub, longtime stalwarts of the local live music scene, has already been signed under the name Joe Dub.
The first compilation CD is scheduled to be out in July at all the usual area outlets, Christon says.
More such CDs will follow annually.
Whatzup did an article on for the week of 1/10/2008 on Jammer Direct's Jamnation series of events at Piere's. Click here to read the article.
Jammer Direct was featured on Indiana's News Center on 10/30/2007. Linda Jackson discusses the features of the site. Click here to view the video of the newscast.
Steve Penhollow featured Jammer Direct on the front page of the Encore section of the Journal Gazette's Sunday paper on 10/28/2007. Click here to view the article from journalgazette.net.
Site lets artists share visions
By Steve Penhollow | The Journal Gazette
I have become something of a technological moron.
Columnists use phrases like “something of a technological moron” because they lack the courage to say “exactly like a technological moron.”
So here’s my dilemma.
Something technologically wondrous has made its wondrousness known on the Fort Wayne arts scene.
It’s called Jammer Direct, and I have to figure out a way to describe it in layman’s terms.
The layman in this case is a guy who was so impressed with the telegraph that he decided to give up his carrier pigeons.
Jammer Direct is a Web site where all sorts of area artists can establish a substantial Web presence and network with one another.
Visual artists can create online galleries, filmmakers can post films, musicians can post music and videos, and chefs can post recipe demos.
It’s all the brainchild of Ryan Martin, a local programming whiz and amateur musician.
He describes it as a cross between MySpace and YouTube.
“It’s time to show the rest of the world how creative Fort Wayne is,” Martin says.
Each jammer (that’s Martin’s term for anyone who roosts on the site) gets his or her own URL, an acronym that someone who undoubtedly had my best interests at heart told me means Urological Research Lab.
Alas, what it really means is Uniform Reference Locator, aka your own Web address.
Martin says he has four independently dedicated servers, which is great because I’m a big tipper.
See how difficult this stuff is for me?
When Martin bragged about his servers, what he was really bragging about was Jammer Direct’s capacity.
Martin says that if every video posted to Jammer Direct were an hour long, he’d be able to host 150,000 videos.
“It would take more than a quarter of a million people all watching the same video at the same time for there to be any lag,” he says.
Martin will maintain the site in his free time, and he insists it will always be free to users and always be free of advertising.
He also plans to help produce yearly compilation CDs of Jammer Direct artists. The first one should be out next spring.
If there is selfishness in all this, it resides in Martin’s desire to connect with other artists.
“It’s about networking,” he says. “By giving something like this to the public, I’ll be able to meet new people and maybe they’ll be able to help me out on my projects. The site is all about creative people helping other creative people.”
You can find Jammer Direct at www.jammerdirect.com.
Whatzup and Fort Wayne Reader did back to back articles on Jammer Direct within the same week.
Click here for FWR article.
Click here for Whatzup article.
