SiliconPrairieSocial - Chicago Suburban Tech News and Events

Announcing SPS ChiTAH Collaboration

admin — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:14:43 +0000

Dear SiliconPrairieSocial Readers,

On March 28, 2013, Arthur Zards, President of XNet Information Systems & founder of SiliconPrairieSocial (SPS) and Jim Huguelet, President of The Huguelet Group LLC & co-founder of Chicago Tech After Hours (ChiTAH) jointly announced plans to combine a large portion of SPS into ChiTAH to form a major technology networking series for the western Chicago suburbs. SPS, which began holding events in 2007, and ChiTAH, which began holding events in 2009, host regular networking events that have drawn nearly 2,000 attendees from the technology community together over the past 7 years.

“ChiTAH has always had the same philosophy as SiliconPrairieSocial: connecting local members of the technology community with their peers for the benefit of everyone,” said Zards. “I’m excited to be able to see the mission of SPS continued through ChiTAH in the years to come.”

“Silicon Prairie Social served as inspiration for creating ChiTAH several years ago, and through the years we’ve borrowed several SPS ideas for organizing and running ChiTAH events,” said Huguelet. “Being able to bring SPS and ChiTAH together is a great development for the suburban technology community.”

In the future, large networking events will be held under the ChiTAH moniker but will include past participants from SPS.

SPS, however, will not be vanishing completely. While the majority of group’s membership and resources will be merged with ChiTAH, SPS will be transforming into a more intimate, small-scale peer group specifically designed for business owners and C-level executives who wish to share information and explore ideas with a close-knit, trusted group of business individuals.

The objective of this transformation is to ensure that SPS members have access to the growing group of tech-minded individuals that ChiTAH provides, while bringing the SPS event itself back to its roots of creating meaningful dialog between local business leaders. As Zards states, “By combining SPS and ChiTAH resources, it allows both of our groups to provide networking opportunities to all types of individuals with all types of networking needs.”

The first combined event, ChiTAH 008/SPS 2013, is in the final stages of planning for spring 2013 and is expected to be announced in the next week.

SPS’s first peer group will also be announced soon, so stay tuned for information!

For more information on Chicago Tech After Hours, please visit http://www.chitah.org/

Thank you for your readership these past years. We look forward to meeting you in our peer group and at ChiTAH events!

The SiliconPrairieSocial Team

Announcing SPS Restructuring to New Peer Group

admin — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:40:36 +0000

Attention SiliconPrairieSocial Members!

You’ve probably noticed that you haven’t received an SPS newsletter recently and may have been wondering why. Well, to be brief, as local newspapers have begun requiring registration and fees in order to view their articles, it’s been getting more and more difficult for us to supply quality tech articles and events to you.

So, in an effort to get back to our networking roots, we’re refocusing SiliconPrairieSocial on what it was built upon, honest, in-person collaboration.

Today we’re announcing the creation of a new, more intimate SiliconPrairieSocial. We will be hosting monthly, small-scale peer groups at XNet’s office in Lisle, IL. The objective of these peer groups is to bring together business owners and C-level executives who wish to network, share information, and explore ideas with a close-nit, trusted group of business individuals. Think of it as a Vistage group, but without the fees.

Guest speakers will be presenting new technologies, business concerns, or just explaining an idea to help spark conversations during meetings. These peer groups are built to get you networking and collaborating, and through that, improve your business.

If you are interested in attending our next peer group meeting in April, please just send a short reply email to us at info@siliconprairiesocial.com.

Stay tuned for another exciting announcement next week concerning SiliconPrairieSocial!

Thank you for being a part of this, and we look forward to continued networking with you in the future.

Sincerely,

The SiliconPrairieSocial Team

Evanston Startup Launches New Way to Help Homeless

admin — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 20:34:23 +0000

Mercy Cards is a credit card-like form of payment that you can use to pay for a homeless person’s meal or whatever you like. The company is launching through popular crowdfunding site indegogo.com. Continue reading here.

Fermilab Physics Slam Thrills Attendees

admin — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 19:35:41 +0000

In mid November, Fermilab hosted its first Physics Slam, a rap battle of sorts, but with physics. Five physicists met on stage in front of a live audience full of laymen and were told to discuss one high-level aspect of physics. They could use any prop on stage and had only 12 minutes to make the audience knowledgeable. Continue reading here.

This photo taken by Reidar Hahn, Fermilab, was taken at the first Fermilab Physics Slam. Here, audience members cheer after one of the physicist's speech.

Google Street View Car Heads Through Naperville

admin — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:20:04 +0000

Last month, Google Maps Street View cars could be seen going street-by-street in an effort to update the old maps taken back in 2007. Did you know Naperville was one of the first communities to have Google Maps? Continue reading here.

Local citizens are hired on temporary contracts to drive the street view cars through their local neighborhoods. Google now has street views of all seven continents...yes, that includes Antarctica.

TEDxNaperville Highlights the Suburban Tech Scene

admin — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 15:50:36 +0000

Earlier in November, individuals from around the suburbs and city attended a unique, out-of-the-box technology event based on sharing world-changing ideas and opening minds. SiliconPrairieSocial was able to be a partner of this incredible event. Continue reading here.

Attendees listen as one of TEDxNaperville's unique speakers talks on their "idea worth spreading", a unique, world changing idea.

Schaumburg Library Haven for Tech Teens

admin — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:15:57 +0000

The Schaumburg Township District Library just opened its “Teen Place”, a $1.2 million center at built around providing teens with the best technology available. The new center features audio and video production studios, gaming systems, computers, and digital whiteboards. Continue reading here.

This image by George LeClaire of the Daily Herald was taken after the opening of the high-tech Teen Place at Schaumburg Library November 24th.

Orland Park Will Have High Tech Snow Plows This Winter

admin — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:07:16 +0000

A new system implemented in Orland Park Snow plows will allow the fleet of trucks to better route and understand their location relative to others. The GPS trackers and additional hardware and software improve response times and allow plowing “triage” during poor weather conditions. Continue reading here.

This snow plow tracking application was implemented by the city of Ann Arbor Michigan and allows residents to track plows online. A similar system will be implemented in Orland Park, but more for the plow drivers themselves.

Des Plaines Receives Funding for Alternative Fuel Project

admin — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:54:57 +0000

The Department of Energy is granting funding to Des Plaines and other cities around the US to develop infrastructure for creating the next fuel efficient or alternative fuel vehicles. Continue reading here.

Federal funding was given specifically to the Gas Technology Institute in Des Plaines in hope that the R&D and training institution will help push national initiatives

Small Businesses Can Go Far with IT Checkups

admin — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:42:55 +0000

The more small businesses stay informed of the changing IT scene, the better they can understand the possible tools that can make their business more successful. A local IT professional of Itasca-based MotherG LLC thinks you should speak with your IT professional as much as you speak with your accountant in order to stay informed on the constantly changing tech scene. Continue reading here.

Dave Davenport of MotherG talks about how technology can be a boon for small business, but only if you know how to use it.