The HDI Heartland Chapter 2011 kick-off social is just one week away! This networking event will be a great opportunity to meet new people, talk about good motivational books and hit the art galleries. Modis will be providing gift cards for drawings and appetizers at the Brick!

We'll be sharing books that help motivate you and your team in the IT industry. Please bring your good reads to share.

We moved February's event to the first Friday to provide an opportunity to follow-up our meeting by checking out "First Fridays" at the Crossroads Arts District. Art galleries, retailers and other participating art venues showcase art throughout the evening. It's a real treat and great experience. Learn more about the area and "First Fridays" at www.kccrossroads.org.

This is the perfect event to bring a guest!

For more info and to register go to http://www.thinkhdi.com/chapters/heartland/meetings.html


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Hello!
Next Tuesday is our next AAUGA meeting. Local freelancer Larry Springer will be showing new features in Cinema 4D and talking about some of the projects he's worked on. His client list includes, Virgin Galactic, Adobe, and Salesforce.com. Looks to be an interesting meeting.

Also, I wanted to bring up a discussion to see who would be interested in being charter members of a KC area Siggraph chapter. I need 3 other people to be officers. There would be annual dues, but we would get the added bonus of having at our disposal various siggraph related presentations and have the ability to screen the Electronic Theater. This would not mean the end of AAUGA. What I intend to do is alternate meetings, so every other month would be AAUGA then Siggraph and so on.

If you're interested in either of these topics, by all means RSVP here or direct message me and I'll add you to the list. Come on, KC, let's start to move the industry!


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Meeting Schedule for Thursday, January 27th, 2011:

* 2:30 - 2:45 - Greeting and Housekeeping
* 2:45 - 3:45 - New Features Coming in SQL Server "Denali" -- Sudhir Gajre (Microsoft)
* 3:45 - 4:00 - SSMS Tips & Tricks -- Bill Graziano

Please note this a small schedule change from our normal time. The overall start time hasn't changed but the time of the actual presentation is a little earlier. This email contains the correct schedule.

The web site isn't updated at the time I'm writing this but we're working on it. And congratulations to Andrew Cross and his wife who had a baby yesterday. He came a little earlier than planned but we're all glad he's arrived!

Location:
Microsoft
10801 Mastin Blvd, Suite 620
Overland Park, KS 66210
http://www.microsoft.com/about/companyinformation/usaoffices/northcentral/en/us/kansas.aspx

KC SQL Server User Group web site: http://kansascity.sqlpass.org/


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When: Tuesday, January 25th, 2011: 6:00PM
Topic: Agile Mythbusters
Abstract: We've all heard the agile buzz by now (hopefully). There's a lot of information out there about agile and all the different tools and practices that go along with it. You may have even come to the conclusion that being agile is not a fit for your organization. Some of that decision might be based on bad information. There are a lot of myths being perpetrated on the agile community. Come and see if the things you've heard about agile are true or not. This is meant to be an interactive meeting so bring your questions, and answers and don't be afraid to speak up.
Presented By: Lee Brandt
Bio: Lee has been programming professionally for more than a decade and currently works as a Project Lead Consultant with AdventureTech. He speaks regionally about software development practices and has mentored teams on improving their approach to lean/agile software development through achieving technical proficiency. He is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional, one of the leaders of the Kansas City .Net User Group, and serves as the Regional Mentor for .Net user groups in Kansas and Missouri.


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The January 19th - Access SIG meeting for tonight has been cancelled due to heavy snow. Rescheduling information will be supplied at a later date.


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Our next meeting will be held:
6:30 PM, Wed, January 26, 2011
Centriq Training Center
8700 State Line Rd, Leawood, KS
(West side of State Line Rd, directly across from Ward Parkway Mall)
Sponsor: RiverPoint
Food and door prizes will be provided by : RiverPoint

This month's topic is:

LIVE JoCo Coupons website using Flash/Actionscript 3 (speaker: Joe Minenna)
Joe will be showcasing the JoCo Coupons website which uses Flash, Actionscript 3, XML, and the Google Map API to deliver dynamic content. He will cover the client's requirements, how he designed the site to meet requirements, show how a single page transitions between 'views' so that multiple 'pages' are not required, and highlight some of the actual cod! e. He will also show some other websites he's developed using this technique.
Joe Minenna:
Joe will be showcasing the JoCo Coupons website which uses Flash, Actionscript 3, XML, and the Google Map API to deliver dynamic content. He will cover the client's requirements, how he designed the site to meet requirements, show how a single page transitions between 'views' so that multiple 'pages' are not required, and highlight some of the actual code. He will also show some other websites he's developed using this technique.


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16 companies are looking for experienced developers, DBAs, sysadmins (unix/windows), enterprise/security architects, etc at the KC IT job fair on 1/18/2011 from 10am to 5:30pm at JCCC’s Capitol Federal Conference Center. Registration is required http://kcitjobfair.eventbrite.com

More details: http://www.kcitp.com/2011/01/02/kc-it-job-fair/

List of companies: AdvantageTech, CivicPlus, Cerner, Digital Evolution Group, DST, Garmin, Koch Industries, LRS Consulting, MultiService, PCM Resources, Popstar Networks, Service Management Group, UMB, Walmart and YRC Worldwide


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Time: January 27, 2011 from 11am to 1pm
Location: Enterprise Center of Johnson County
Organized By: Kerstin Burns
Event Description:
NOTE: You will need to register for this paid workshop here: http://bit.ly/hFWz32. Cost is $25 (includes lunch)

Register: Online by following registration link above or email: jvehlewald at ecjc.com or call 913-438-2282

You’ve learned the Twitter basics – what it is and how it works. Now learn how to make Twitter an effective and efficient business tool for you. Whether your business goal is brand promotion, buzz creation, lead generation, sales, customer service or, more likely, all of the above, Twitter can be used to achieve your objectives. This workshop is designed to show you how to use desktop and web-based management tools, Twitter lists, Twitter searches, URL shorteners, communication scheduling tools and analytics programs to make meaningful business connections in an increasingly crowded online space. Learn about the importance of online listening/monitoring, Twitter etiquette and more.

This workshop will be presented by members of the Social Media Club of Kansas City, Brooke Beason and Kate McKinney.


See more details and RSVP on Social Media Club KC:
http://socialmediaclubkc.ning.com/events/event/show?id=2292144%3AEvent%3A25630&xgi=22izGYW200u4w4&xg_source=msg_invite_event


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The next Agile KC meeting will be Thursday January 27, 2011 at the
Pizza Shoppe at 6:30 PM. For directions and a map, please visit
www.agilekc.org

The meeting topic will be: Story Sizing, an honest conversation about
what works and more importantly what doesn’t.

Bob Hartman will lead the group in a discussion of sizing; considering
questions like:
- How does sizing stories work in the real world?
- Should we always size stories?
- What should we do when we find that our direction has shifted and
our sizes are off?
- How should we start sizing stories?
- What are some pitfalls to success when sizing?

This will be an informal presentation and your questions are needed to
make the evening relevant to you and your projects. If you have run
into some challenges in your work when it comes to sizing and
measuring velocity, this is a good session for you. If you want to get
better predictability from sprint to sprint, this is a good session
for you. Since sizing touches on a lot of different areas of agile
development, this is probably a good session for you. So grab some
coworkers and join us on the 27th.!

Bob Hartman (Agile Bob) is a Certified Scrum Trainer and Certified
Scrum Coach who founded Agile For All and the Agile Cooperative. He
has helped organizations including HP, Western Union, Pearson
Education, University of Iowa, Siemens Medical Diagnostics and
Standard & Poors implement or significantly improve their Agile and
Scrum use. After serving in every position in development from tester
to Vice President, he believes in a holistic approach to product
development where every team member is treated as a valuable person
not a resource. This is particularly important during estimation and
planning which is why this topic is so important.

Bob trains or coaches over 700 people per year and reaches several
hundred more through speaking engagements with user groups and
conferences. He hopes to leave each person with a passion to keep
improving their Agile/Scrum knowledge, experience and execution.


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KC JUG meeting on Wednesday January 12th at 6:30pm

Scott Nameth will be presenting on Google labs, Google
sites development tools, Google voice and many other exciting
developments that will make your life easier, more productive, and
are just plain cool. This will be a presentation that can benefit
everyone even if you are not a developer. And did I mention there
will be FREE FOOD?

Centriq Training
8700 State Line Rd, Suite 200
Leawood, KS 66206
(913) 322-7000


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Are you an *experienced* IT Professional in one of the following categories: developer, DBA, Systems Administrator/Engineer, Business Analyst, QA Analyst, Project Manager or Support Analyst? Frustrated with job boards?

Want DIRECT access to IT opportunities at 8 GREAT companies? We’ve got IT recruiters that want to talk to you: AdvantageTech, Cerner, Digital Evolution Group, DST, LRS Consulting, MultiService, Service Management Group and Walmart.

For more details, please see: http://www.kcitp.com/?p=995

Please note: more companies/opportunities may be added between now and January 18th...so keep checking back! If you're not looking for a new job, but know people that fit the above description, please let them know!

KC IT Professionals received coverage in the Kansas City Business Journal about this exciting event!!
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2011/01/04/kansas-city-area-technology-companies.html


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The January 19th Access SIG meeting will be a level 1 presentation by Lisa Friedrichsen and a Level 2 presentation "Document Management using Access"


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Larry Gordon will be giving a presentation during Windows/Freeware meeting about how to create a web site in one day with no cost. New Horizons Learning Center on ground floor of Metcalf South Shopping Center at 6:30 pm.


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Strategy and Direction of the Share Point Group for 2011. Jan 11th at 7 pm JCCC, Regnier 2nd Floor. What does the User Group have in store for 2011. This will be an informal meeting where SharePoint enthusiasts can share their thoughts and desires. This will help us address the meetings to what is most important to HUG SharePoint Users. Bring your thinking caps, wish list, and knowledge to help us plan the future of HUG SharePoint 2011 Users Group.


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Twitter for Beginners
Learn how to get started with Twitter and use it successfully in your business. Kerstin Burns (@kayhaswings) and Patrick Padley (@ppadley) will talk about the tools you need to manage your Twitter identity and build your online reputation. You’ll also hear firsthand how a well-known local brand used social media to launch two franchises in Kansas City. The cost is $25 and lunch will be provided.
The workshop will be held on Jan 13th from 11am to 1pm at The Enterprise Center of Johnson County. Register at http://www.ecjc.com


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