From all of us at XNet, we had a great time at Silicon Prairie Social 3 last Thursday night. Thanks to everyone who came out, making the event what it’s become known as; the premier technology networking event in the Chicago suburbs.

Photos
Here are the photos taken by our photographer, Glenn Phenicie. We’ve uploaded them to Flickr with the tag ‘siliconprairiesocial3‘ (please tag your Flickr photos with the same so others can find them). We’ll also add them to the event’s Facebook group.

Prize Winners
Congratulations to our raffle winners, and thanks to our sponsors for some great prizes! The winners are as follows:

• Grand Prize Winner: Matt Schwartz - 24.1″ LCD Flat Panel Monitor from Sun Microsystems
• Terry Flanagan - Lunch and iPhone 3G from Obtiva
• Stacie Berkmeier - Trademark Consultation, Research, and Filing ($1000 value) from Saper Law Offices
• Stan Fisher - Iomega 1TB Desktop Hard Drive from Imprint Enterprises
• Young Wang - 2GB iPod Shuffle from XNet

Keep in Touch:
Use the Facebook Group and LinkedIn Group to keep in touch with fellow Silicon Prairie Social attendees.

Thanks
From all of us at XNet, we’d like to again thank everyone who came out and made this event memorable by your presence. We’re honored that our simple idea of bringing the suburban technology community together has caught on to the degree it has. Also, special thanks to Stephanie, Scott, and the entire staff of Mullen’s Bar and Grill for the wonderful hospitality and smooth event.

We want to especially thank our sponsors, without whom this event would not be possible: Premier Sponsor Sun Microsystems, along with Obtiva, Imprint Enterprises, Delivered Innovation, Saper Law Offices, M5 Networks, Heil & Heil Insurance, AMCORE Bank, Immigration Law Associates P.C., and Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group.

Stay Tuned:
Finally, to receive updates on future events, take a moment to subscribe to this blog via RSS or via email by following the links below the sponsor logos to the right.

Until next time,

Arthur Zards
Tim Courtney
XNet
Co-Hosts, Silicon Prairie Social

Silicon Prairie Social is back in style this Thursday evening, July 10. Come out and have a good time with area technology professionals, executives, and entrepreneurs at the premier tech networking event for the Chicago suburbs. For details on the event, including time and location, you can read the original event announcement here. Can’t wait to see you there!

RSVP Required
If you haven’t already, make sure you and your friends RSVP here for the event as it’s required to attend.

Speed Up Your Check-In
To minimize your wait in line when you arrive, print your EventBrite confirmation email and staple your business card to it. We will be sending people through the line to collect these and give you your wristband so you can go in.

Taking the train?
Mullen’s is just a 6 minute drive from the Lisle Metra station on the BNSF/Aurora line. Here are some quick links to the Outbound Metra schedule and inbound Metra schedule.

Need a ride? Have extra room? Carpool!
Feel free to use the comments below or the Facebook or LinkedIn Groups to link up with potential carpool partners.

Parking
Mullen’s has plenty of parking. If, however, their lot is full, you are welcome to park next door at the Wyndham hotel at no charge.

Special Thanks
We’d like to again thank our sponsors, without whom this event would not be possible: Premier Sponsor Sun Microsystems, along with Obtiva, Imprint Enterprises, Delivered Innovation, Saper Law Offices, M5 Networks, Heil & Heil Insurance, AMCORE Bank, Immigration Law Associates P.C., and Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group. Finally, a special thanks goes to event host company XNet.

Greetings, Jeff Huber here from Sun Microsystems, Premier Sponsor for next week’s Silicon Prairie Social. At Sun, we help bring people together to share and to succeed. Innovation, Participation, and Collaboration lead to Opportunity for all of us.

From the very beginning, sharing has been a key ingredient in Sun’s identity. In fact, it’s firmly rooted in our vision that The Network is the Computer. The true power of the network is in sharing ideas and technologies to drive innovation and create new opportunities - both social and economic - around the world.

We believe that core technologies should be shared building blocks that are available to everyone to create, compete, and innovate. That’s why we share key technologies such as OpenSolaris, GlassFish, MySQL, OpenJDK, OpenOffice, and OpenSPARC, just to name a few.

At Sun, sharing takes many forms. Whether it’s taking advantage of a free Try and Buy program, Downloading Software, or joining a community and exchanging information, we offer customers a wealth of resources with one goal in mind - to help them to succeed.

Please stop by the Sun Microsystems table where we will be showcasing programs, communities, and technologies designed to help you:

• Launch your business FAST and at LOW COST with Sun’s Startup Essentials
• Gain ACCESS to developer forums, tools, and on-line training through the Sun Developer Network (SDN)
• Tap into the POWER of the GRID with Sun’s Network.com

Be sure to enter the raffle, as one lucky attendee will be taking home this 24.1-Inch LCD Flat Panel Monitor!

A big thank you to Tim Courtney and the team at XNet for the opportunity to participate in this outstanding event. See you all next Thursday, July 10!

Jeff Huber
Solution Architect
Sun Microsystems, Inc.
jeff.huber@sun.com