DC Jobs: Sportsvite Seeks Developers
September 28, 2007
Sportsvite a company that demo’ed at TECH cocktail DC 1 is looking for bulk up its Arlington, Virginia office. They are looking for junior to mid level developers (2 to 8 years experience) that specialize in Java and the open source stack. If you are interested please send your resume to Vin Bhat at Sportsvite. Happy coding.
The New New Internet Discount Code
September 28, 2007
The New New Internet Conference is taking place in the Washington, DC area on November 1, 2007. I am pleased to be among the a solid list of speakers for the sessions which include (in no particular order) Om Malik, Ted Leonsis, Brad Feld, Tim Ferriss, Gary Vaynerchuk and Ryan Carson among others. The conference is put on by ExecutiveBiz.com, who I recently chatted with in this Executive Spotlight Interview.
The folks at the New New Internet Conference have been gracious enough to give TECH cocktail’ers a $100 registration discount by using the promo code: TechCocktail
I hope to see you there. 
Event Announcement: TiECON ‘07
September 27, 2007
Just wanted to make sure that all of you TCers in Chicagoland were aware of TiECON ‘07. It looks like it will be a great event with some very useful content (especially for all the entrepreneurs out there).
Unfortunately I will most likely be at the Red Sox’ second ALDS game at Fenway that night… Wait, what am I saying? That’s not unfortunate (well it is in that I will miss the TiE event but you know what I mean). Go Red Sox! Here is the official info (if you attend please shoot me a note to let me know how it went):
TiECON ‘07: Boosting Tomorrow’s Business Leaders (http://midwest.tie.org/tiecon/index.htm)
Friday, October 5, 2007
12 noon – 6:30 p.m.
Hyatt Regency Chicago
TiE Members: $50
Non-members: $75
TiECON Midwest is the premier event for entrepreneurs. Join this year’s conference to raise your entrepreneurial IQ. Following a buffet lunch, sponsored by Calamos Investments, hear local, successful serial entrepreneurs, brothers Howard and Glen Tullman, share their tips and tricks for growing successful businesses. Their keynote will be followed by four panel discussions addressing key issues for all growing businesses:
- Right Dollars at the Right Stage
- Attracting and Retaining Talent
- Business Model Refinement
- Executive Coach for the Entrepreneur
Terrific networking will follow at the cocktail reception.Register today on the website http://midwest.tie.org/tiecon/index.htm.
Chicago Jobs: PerkSpot in Need of a Lead Developer
September 25, 2007
Chris Hill from PerkSpot just filled me on a new role he is looking to fill so I wanted to make sure to share it with all of you. It is a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a fast moving start-up so for all the folks out there looking to make the leap this is one to consider. Rather than butcher the job description I will simply post what Chris sent my way. Enjoy!
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PerkSpot is a thriving Chicago startup that manages employee discount programs on behalf of large employers, including Fortune 1000 businesses, state governments, and leading non-profit organizations.
We are hiring a Lead Web Developer with a strong technical background and the desire to work in a startup environment. This position will be taking the lead on a number of new initiatives as well as working to enhance existing site technology.
You will be working with a small team of talented people and will have the opportunity to make an immediate impact. Given the small environment, you will be expected to be a team player, wear multiple hats, and work long hours when needed.
Required Skills:
- Microsoft .Net expert with 12+ months of hands-on experience using VB.Net or C#; must be self-sufficient in .Net 2.0+
- Expert in HTML, CSS and JavaScript; AJAX experience is a plus
- Working knowledge of SQL server and databases, sufficient to maintain the current database and make small enhancements
- Ability to work in a collaborative, team environment and maintain strong time and project management skills
- Excellent written and spoken English skills
Candidates must be local and authorized to work in the U.S. We are not able to offer sponsorship.
Please submit a resume and salary history/requirements to hr [at] perkspot.com.
Compensation will be commensurate with experience level and options will be available for this position.
Chicago: Silverlight Dev Camp This Weekend
September 25, 2007
Just wanted to relay the details for the Silverlight Dev Camp in Chicago this weekend. Looks like a good deal for the Silverlight Devs out there or for people who want to learn more about Silverlight. Without further adieu, here are the details:
Event Url: http://barcamp.org/SilverlightDevCampChicago
Dates/Times:
Friday, September 28, 2007, 7pm-10pm: Happy hour(s), planning sessions for Saturday, non-virtual social networking, foosball tournament
Saturday, September 29, 2007, 11am-5pm: Kickoff, presentations, building Silverlight applications, Q&A with roving Silverlight experts
Location:
Clarity Consulting 1 N Franklin St Suite 3400 Chicago, IL 60606
If you are planning to attend in-person, please visit the SilverlightDevCampChicagoAttendees page and add your name and contact info.
About:
SilverlightDevCampChicago is an upcoming gathering, inspired by BarCamp, to build Silverlight applications, It’s organized by volunteers & Silverlight enthusiasts, with attendance free to all. Plus you can help plan it or lead sessions with a simple edit of the event wiki page.
Attendees will include web designers, developers, testers, all working together over the weekend to build Silverlight applications, share experiences, ask questions, and push the limits of web application design. If you’re interested in Silverlight, but haven’t had time to learn, this is your chance to get up to speed. Plus you’ll be able network with other developers in the Chicago area who are interested in Silverlight. While similar to iPhoneDevCamp this event is focused on a singular technology, we’d like offer some diverse sessions like using PHP to generate Silverlight content, IronRuby/IronPython & the DLR or Moonlight on Linux.
In the barcamp spirit, this is a community event driven by attendee participation and contribution. If you have ideas for topics or you want to show off some Silverlight applications you’ve built, please add it to SilverlightDevCampChicagoSessions.
The SilverlightDevCamp in SF 2 weeks ago had over 100 attendees. Notes from the sessions can be viewed at http://barcamp.org/SilverlightDevCampSFSessions. SilverlightDevCamps are also planned for Seattle, Dallas, and DC.
Contact:
If you have any questions, are interested in sponsoring the event, or would like to present a session, contact: silverlightdevcamp [at] gmail.com.
Graphing Social Patterns: Discount for TECH cocktailers
September 21, 2007
I’ve got some good new for all the TCers out there. My friend Dave McClure, one of the fine folks behind the Graphing Social Patterns conference, was nice enough to provide a 15% discount off the registration price for all of you.
What is this conference all about you ask? Well, it is all about Facebook apps which I know a lot of you are trying to wrap your head around right now. Here’s how Dave describes it:
Graphing Social Patterns: The Business & Technology of Facebook ia a conference for marketers & developers on how to build and distribute apps for the Facebook Platform. This event is for both business executives & technical developers who want to learn more about the Facebook environment, and how to reach online communities using social networking platforms and applications.
Conference speakers will include representatives from Facebook, O’Reilly, LinkedIn, Google, Slide, SocialMedia, RockYou, ClearSpring, Forrester Research, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, InsideFacebook, Charles River Ventures, Altura Ventures, among others.
Gimme the details you say and, of course, I will oblige.
The conference will be held in San Jose, CA from October 7th-9th. Monday 10/8 and Tuesday 10/9 are the main conference sessions; an optional pre-conference workshop is Sunday, 10/7.
Click here to register with the TECH cocktail discount.
Knowing Dave this will be a quality event so if you are interested in Facebook apps and the business behind them you should be there.
Connecting After the Event: LinkedIn and Facebook Groups
September 19, 2007
I just wanted to remind all of you TECH cocktailers out there that we do have a couple of ways for you to stay in touch and interact with the group in between events.
First off we have a LinkedIn group (currently 493 members strong) which you can join by following this link. The LinkedIn group will allow you to get in touch with anyone in the group directly (unless of course that person has changed their settings in such a way that won’t allow that) and, since we maintain only one LinkedIn group, you will also have the added benefit of getting in touch with other folks from our other cities (Chicago, D.C. and Boston).
Second - and last - we have a group on Facebook (currently 293 members strong). Please check it out when you have a chance and join up. We’re currently trying to figure out how we can make this group more useful so please do comment on this post or send an e-mail to eric [at] techcocktail.com with any idea you have on the subject. Again, this is a city agnostic group so it will allow people in all cities to get to know each other.
To continue on with the feedback theme we would love any feedback you have on other ways we can keep people interacting in between events. Again, commenting on this post or e-mailing eric [at] techcocktail.com is the way to get your voice heard. We work hard to make sure that TECH cocktail adds value for you and we will be able to do a better job of that if we have more feedback so please don’t be shy.
OK, carry on!
October 18 - Midwest Java Technology Days
September 17, 2007
Attn all Chicagoland Java Developers:
Midwest Java Technology Days are coming to Chicago on October 18. The event will feature a keynote followed by eight technical breakout sessions covering core Java, jMaki, AJAX, Netbeans, Web Services, EJB, Java FX and Solaris Dtrace.
Midwest Java Technology Days are technically focused events offering attendees a great deal of interaction with the technical experts presenting. You will have the opportunity to learn about the latest and greatest in the Java space and network with peers, experts and the development community at large.
To Register Visit: https://www.suneventreg.com//cgi-bin/register.pl?EventID=1652
This should prove to be a great and useful event so check it out if you can.
Silicon Prairie Social Reminder
September 17, 2007
If you haven’t RSVPed for the Silicon Prairie Social yet do so in the next couple days. The event is taking place this Thursday and it looks like it is going to be a blast. Here are some highlights for you:
- Over 250 RSVP’ed guests, including CEOs, CTOs, private equity/VCs, designers, developers, business development, support specialists, and bloggers from companies including Motorola, Argonne, Microsoft, AT&T, Mercantec, and Lisle Technology Partners, to name a few.
- Free food and drinks: We’ve opened a tab for you punctual types and ordered some food as well. Once the tab is gone, look forward to plenty of Rolling Rock making it’s way through the crowd–on us!
- Microsoft is giving away an XBox 360 with Gears of War!
- Bill Jacobs BMW is bringing out a couple cool cars.
If you want to find out more or need more details please check out the official reminder post. Looking forward to seeing you all there!
OpenCoffee Chicago: Round 2
September 17, 2007
Coming up this Wednesday, September 19th at 10am OpenCoffee Club Chicago will have its monthly meetup! midPhase, webhosts extraordinaire and fighters of The Good Fight™ for the tech scene here in Chicago are again sponsoring the event which drew a healthy handful of local tech enthusiasts last month (myself included - it was a great time!).
OpenCoffee Club will be meeting up at Argo Tea, located at 15 W Randolph on the second level.OpenCoffee Club is meant to be a technology show and tell where you can show up, get some delicious beverages on midPhase’s tab and discuss any and everything concerning who you are, what you do and how you’re trying to save the world.
If you have any questions or want to RSVP please visit the signup page for the Chicago OpenCoffee Club. You can also check out what OpenCoffee Club is all about at the official OpenCoffee Club site.
TECH cocktail supports this effort fully and we hope to see you September 19th at 10am. Bring your ideas and expertise and midPhase will provide the drinks!
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