Let's kick off the new year with a post about our upcoming MIX08 event in Las Vegas. This is the third year for this annual conference, and we've found ourselves with a unique problem: we have so much great content that we've had to say "no" to a lot of really good sessions just to fit everything into the schedule. Truly insane! We're back at the fabulous Venetian Resort Hotel Casino from March 5-7, 2008. I'll be there the whole time, and if you're planning to attend, drop me a line so we can hook-up. After we've heard Steve Ballmer, Guy Kawasaki, and Scott Guthrie speak, maybe we can go see Big Elvis. I'm almost not kidding.

Anyway, you're probably reading this because of the "Contests" tease in the title (or maybe you Googled "Big Elvis"...I don't know), so let's get to it. There are three fun ways to win cool stuff around MIX08, and I want to make sure you're aware of them:

• ReStyle, formerly known as the REMIX contest, challenges anyone to redesign the look and feel of the MIX08 home page using CSS. Three winners will receive paid registration to MIX08, three nights at the Venetian, and $1,000 USD towards travel. That's a value of around $3,000 USD by the way. Pretty decent winnings, even by Vegas standards! Check out some of the MIX06 entries for inspiration.
• Show Off is the ultimate ego stroke. We provide a kick ass soapbox at an event attended by your peers, and you get to show off the cool developer and designer stuff you've created. All you have to do is submit a 3-minute-or-less video that represents your obvious superiority, then we'll pick the best entries and show them back-to-back on a big screen at our evening event. Your peers will feel pwned. Prizes will be awarded to the best entries. We don't know what those prizes will be yet, but they will not be lame. To get your brain humming, check out prior audience favorites Bar Code Blitz, /cameraFlow Labyrinth, and RoboCoaster.
• The Signal is our MIX08 podcast, hosted by me and my partner-in-crime, Thomas Lewis (who still doesn't have a blog I can link to). If you've ever wanted to hear what I sound like, tune in to our weekly interviews to get the behind-the-scenes scoop on MIX08. As it relates to contests, we have two Xbox 360 Elite packages to give away, and we still don't know the best way to rid ourselves of them. If you have any ideas, or if you just want to give us feedback or suggest a future show topic, send an e-mail to signalm@microsoft.com or leave a voice-mail message at (425) 703-4650. Yes, you'll have to use a phone for that latter series of digits...it's that old skool device on your desk that your mom calls you on.

Last, if you want to sit back and watch a one-hour grainy video taken at a bar (and who doesn't!?), be sure to watch our video interview on Channel 9 called MIX 2008: What the hell is this MIX thing, anyway? You'll not only hear me speak, but you'll also see me move. Scary.