I recently sat down with some other community evangelists in the Chandler / Phoenix area to talk about some of the events that I plan to put on in the coming year.
To get updates on these events follow me on Twitter @jguadagno and the Southeast Valley .NET User Group @SEVDNUG and continue to watch this blog.
Putting on an event is time consuming, any help I receive is appreciated. If you are interest let me know… jguadagno @ sevdnug.org
Here is the list, please note that the dates are not set in stone yet.
Weekly Events
Tech Lunch South
A weekly technology agnostic lunch meeting open to all.
http://www.techlunchsouth.com
Every Tuesday.
Hacknight *
A weekly technology agnostic event open to all.
http://gangplankhq.com/collaborative/
Every Wednesday night.
Monthly Events
Southeast Valley .NET User Group
http://www.sevdnug.org
Monthly on the 4th Thursday of the month.
Gangplank Jr.
A monthly meeting dedicated to kids from 4 – 18 years of age. Topics include, development, robotics, drawing, photography, cooking and more.
http://www.gankplankjr.com
Monthly (the day has not been determined yet)
The Rest of Year
Phoenix Bar Camp
BarCamp is an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants who are the main actors of the event.
http://www.barcampphoenix.com
February and August
Desert Code Camp
http://www.desertcodecamp.com
May and November
AZGiveCamp *
AZGiveCamp is a massive weekend event where the software development community comes together to support charities and non-profits by developing or improving their web sites and applications. It's fun, it's agile, it's geeky, and it's good for the community.
If you are interested in helping out as a volunteer, organizer, or sponsor, we would like to hear from you! Please check out our FAQs, and then drop them an email through our Contact Us page.
http://www.azgivecamp.org
March or April.
Gangplank Jr. Code Camp
A code camp style event for kids from the ages of 4 – 18.
no URL yet
Quarterly or semi annual
Startup Weekend **
http://phoenix.startupweekend.org
Spring
Legend:
* indicates an event that is taking place in the area that I am not running but I am part of.
** this event might need someone to organize it the area again.
And no it is not because the Yankees won the World Series (although congrats to them) it is because it has been an awesome month for me personally and professionally.
On the personal front…
My son’s baseball team, which I am an assistant coach, finished the season undefeated in regular season games (end of year tournament in next week). My son hit his first over the fence homerun which was a Grand Slam (technically not November but pretty awesome). My daughter's softball team, which I am an assistant coach, finished the season undefeated in regular season games (end of year tournament in next week).
I get to go to fly back to NY in a few days to see family and friends and wish my mother a happy 60th birthday.
On the professional front…
I was elected to the North American INETA board of directors.
I was elected to the AZGiveCamp executive committee, VP of Operations. As the VP I will oversee the activities of the Logistics, Sponsorship, Technology and Publicity teams.
I put together my first Code Camp, Desert Code Camp.
I am presenting a Bird of Feather session at PDC with Chris Woodruff on “How to Build and Enrich Your Technical and Local Community” on Tuesday Nov 17 from 11a – 12p. Stop by if you want to see how to build your community.
That’s it for now. Hopefully I can relax a bit in December.
My first Code Camp is done and I wanted to jot down some of the lessons I learned.
Bring EXTRA equipment! You will never now what people will want or need. Here’s a list of items that are good to have.
- Adapters
- DVI to VGA (those MACs)
- HDMI to VGA
- Multiple video to VGA
- Mice
- CAT5 cables
- USB Cables
- USB Flash drive
Speakers
- Speakers will cancel. It is an unfortunate fact.
- Don’t allow one speaker to speak at more than 3 sessions. This reduces your risk in case of cancelation and prevents speaker fatigue.
Schedule. Printed schedules are good to have and good to hang. Also add speaker names to the presentations.
Name Tags. People like and want them.
Venue
- WIFI is key. A reliable and unobtrusive WiFi connection is best.
- You need to be able handle last minute room changes
Food
- Make sure you provide the person(s) that are ordering the food explicit instructions on the food.
- Try to have more than just pizza.
- You should have vegetarian and vegan options.
And remember you are not going to be able to make EVERYONE happy.
Got a kid interested in Technology? Bring them to the Gankplank Jr track at Code Camp Jr. taking place at Desert Code Camp.
Schedule for the day
| Time | Event |
| 9:00 | Registration |
| 9:30 | Programming with Scratch |
| 9:45 | Free time with Scratch |
| 10:15 | Kid free play time |
| 10:45 | Lego Mindstorm NXT |
| 11:30 | Lego Mindstorm NXT free play time |
| 12:00 | Lunch provided by Gangplank Jr.
Bakugan Tournament |
| 1:00 | Circuits |
| 1:45 | Free time with circuits and electronics |
| 3:00 | Wrap up |
| 3:15 | Free time with the computers |
Computers will be provided, feel free to bring a laptop if you have.
Lunch will be provided by Gangplank Jr.
If you have any Ardunio sets or Lego Mindstorm NXT sets feel free to bring them.
Register to attend: codecampjr2009.eventbrite.com
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.
Joseph Guadagno
jguadagno@sevdnug.org
Recommended for kids from 4-18 years of age.
It is recommended that the kids are at reading age.
* Schedule is subject to change.
Phoenix Geek Tag was a minor success so I decided to put together another Geek outing in October. Most likely October 20th starting around 6pm. I have narrowed it down to two places.
Option 1: Bowling in Gilbert at Brunswick Lanes
What’s included…
- Bowling with bowling shoes for two hours.
- Drinks (alcoholic and non) are not included.
- Food is not included.
Approximate cost: $15 / person plus food.
Option 2: GameWorks in Tempe
What’s included…
- One or two hour game card (depending on package)
- Private room for socializing and networking
- Choice of 7 different meal options
- Unlimited fountain drinks
- Each person can pay separately for their own extra food / drink.
Approximate cost: $15 - $25 a person
Leave your comments as to which you prefer. I would like to book the place on Monday.