We’re excited to announce the revamped version of Kincast– our latest Sprout!

Kincast started out by solving the real problem of how to privately share and store video taken on a smartphone. With this latest version, Kincast has taken direction from its 20,000+ early customers to develop new and exciting ways to engage their loved ones.

Unlike public social sites like YouTube or Facebook, Kincast is private by default, using email addresses and private links to share directly with loved ones. Senders of video don’t have to worry about privacy, size limitations or upload progress bars, and recipients don’t need accounts or the app installed to view videos.

This week’s release of Kincast includes several new features that get the whole family involved:

Chat. Every share starts a chat – giving loved ones an easy way to say thanks and join the conversation without having to create an account.

Video Greeting Cards. A new, neat way to reach out on holidays and special events – helping you stand out and show you really care. Plus it’s personal, fast and free.

Say Hello. Kincast’s video messaging feature is an easy way to say hello. It’s more personal than a phone call and easier than writing.

We also focused on stepping up the user experience. We went screen by screen creating a beautiful new user interface. We also developed Flair (a fun way to add sizzle to your videos with frames, music and titles), and a “scroll-friendly” immersive timeline.

To see the product in action check out this short video:

The Kincast iPhone app can be downloaded at http://iphone.kincast.com. Web users can create a Kincast account at http://kincast.com.

  |    |    |  

This alternative purpose of this post is to announce Finish Day. Read on for more details!

The Indiana startup community is growing at an amazing pace. It’s true. More events, more entrepreneurs, more startups, and more amazing ideas are getting started. This is an encouraging thing to watch. Lots of people from different disciplines are getting together at Startup Weekend, Bloomtech, Verge, and other events to talk startups and get people involved. The Indiana startup community is a friendly and thriving place!

We’ve Got a Kink In Our Armor

Everyone needs software developers. From startups trying to get their idea off the ground to fully funded companies wanting to lay down some rubber, we need developers. Every startup event I attend I hear the same thing, “How can we attract more developers to the startup scene in Indiana?”.

CS Students Don’t Know We Exist

We need to pull students in technology-related majors into our ecosystem. Take the lead and offer internships for your startup and promote them like crazy with professors and students. Students want this experience and a well-motivated young programmer will learn how to contribute quickly. Internships are a great way of coming up with candidates for developer positions or part-time work.

Mentor An Inexperienced Developer

Getting the right kinds of experience for building web applications and mobile apps is hard to get from the perspective of someone doing a non-startup tech job or a student. If the developer you’re looking for doesn’t exist or already works for someone else, bring an inexperienced developer for an unpaid internship or a part time job. This is a great way to test the most important trait for startup developers: the ability to learn fast.

Poach Them From Silicon Valley

So what if a developer can make 30%-50% more in an equivalent position in the Valley? Our cost of living is 88% less according to Salary.com’s cost of living calculator:

Let’s Be a Real Community

Indiana’s startup events are forging real communities and churning out great entrepreneurs with great ideas and companies. Let’s build a network of Indiana developers. We’re announcing Finish Day. On Saturday, July 21 we’re opening up the SproutBox office space to local developers, designers and any other tech-related-unclassifiable-creatives. Finish Day is a free day-long event; the goal is to take a personal project that’s been hanging around for too long and finish it. We’ll have snacks, pizza for dinner, and board game breaks. Join us!

  |    |    |  

Hi, everyone! My name is Emily Mungovan and I am one of the new student interns here at SproutBox. My first assignment was to create a post for the SproutBox Blog about all of our new interns. I had a great time working on this, and loved getting to know each of the new interns a little more. I hope you do too!

Check out the newest members of  SproutBox interns! These individuals will be working in the Box in areas of social media, marketing, design and development. Keep checking back to see all the work they’re doing!

Anna Saraceno
Design Intern for CheddarGetter
St. Louis, MO

When I am not at the Box, I am: posting pictures of my cats and dogs to Facebook, walking my dogs on the B-Line Trail, frantically trying to make progress on my master’s capstone.

In three words, I am: enthusiastic, friendly, and creative.

The most daring thing I’ve ever done is: well, I’m not a very daring person. Jumping off of the top level of a double-decker party pontoon boat on Lake Monroe was pretty much the most daring thing I’ve ever done. But it was awesome anyway.

My biggest pet peeve is: chronic whiners.

If I were a superhero, my superpowers would be: to play guitar, drums, and piano at the same time.

My favorite 90’s television show is: seasons 1-7 of The Simpsons (back when it was funny).

My guilty pleasure song of choice is: “We R Who We R” by Ke$ha (although, to be honest, I don’t feel too guilty about it).

Stuff I like:

• Whiteboards
• Pets
• Motown
• Super Mario Galaxy
• Sandwiches (this much)
• Road trips
• Buying musical instruments
• Bad dance movies
• Hiking
• Rummy (My partner and I are playing to 1 million– we’re both around 25,000 right now.)

Check out my Online Portfolio.
Follow me on Twitter.

Julia Meylor
Design Intern for CheddarGetter
Carmel, IN

When I am not at the Box, I am: running, freelancing, and trying new restaurants.

In three words, I am: motivated, outgoing, and energetic.

The most daring thing I’ve ever done is: run a mini marathon.

My biggest pet peeve is: cracking knuckles.

If I were a superhero, my superpowers would be: flying.

My favorite 90’s television show is: Full House.

My guilty pleasure song of choice is: anything Britney Spears.
Follow me on Twitter.

Zach Zuber
Design Intern
Fort Wayne, IN

When I am not at the Box, I am: exercising, reading, keeping up-to-date with my favorite sports teams, local startups, and craft beer scene.

In three words, I am: curious, a dreamer, and respectful.

The most daring thing I’ve ever done is: whitewater rafting and launching a startup, but I want to go skydiving and bungee jumping too!

My biggest pet peeve is: people chewing with their mouths open.

If I were a superhero, my superpowers would be: like Batman, I always wanted to be a master of disguise and have expert acrobat skills.

My favorite 90’s television shows are: That 70’s Show and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

My guilty pleasure song of choice is: any Jimmy Buffet song.

Stuff I like:

• Beef Jerky (Yes, I’m addicted!)
• Detroit Red Wings
• Chicago Bears
• Chicago Cubs
• Craft Beer
• Movies, especially Action and Adventure ones!
• PG Tips (English Tea)
• Startups
• Design
• Having new experiences, wanna take a trip?

Follow me on Twitter.

Emily Mungovan
Social Media/Marketing Intern
Fort Wayne, IN

When I am not at the Box, I am: studying, “Pinning” on Pinterest, exercising, and jamming out to my favorite tunes.

In three words, I am: personable, goofy, and motivated.

The most daring thing I’ve ever done is: skydiving for my 19th birthday. I would recommend trying it to anyone, it was incredible!

My biggest pet peeve is: anything having to do with driving- failure to use a turn signal, driving slowly in the passing lane- yeah, I get pretty serious behind the wheel.

If I were a superhero, my superpowers would be: either to fly or breathe underwater, or both!

My favorite 90’s television shows are: Legend of the Hidden Temple, Saved by the Bell, 7th Heaven, Full House… I could go on and on.

My guilty pleasure song of choice is: “Forever” by Chris Brown. You can’t listen to it and be in a bad mood.

Stuff I like:

• Sticky notes
• Sunshine and being outside
• Learning new things
• The color yellow
• My dog Toeby
• My planner (I really don’t think I’d survive without it.)
• Jogging
• Music (I listen to every genre.)
• Sleeping
• Road trips and traveling
• Spring cleaning

Follow me on Twitter.

  |    |    |