2012 Blog sosAssociates

Date Range Between
Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

@ClevelandArt #GalleryOne Crash Party

Tech testers attended a sneak preview at the Cleveland Museum Art. Cleveland now has the most advanced digital gallery display in the USA.

This event was the perfect combination of my interests:

  • Cutting Edge Technology
  • Art
  • Cleveland Events - our city leading the nation!
Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

News Channel 5 Meet & Tweet

Thank you News Channel 5 (@WEWS) and Hodge's restaurant for  #MeetAndTweet5 we attended on December 17, 2012. We had a great time. 

We wanted to share with those that attended, and those that could not, the good times in Cleveland!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are this week's Cleveland tech and social media meetings! For the week before Christmas still a lot happening early this week.

This looks like it will be the last Cleveland tech and social media meetings i track for 2012. I am looking forward to more great things happening in 2013!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings!

This week, there are at least four meetings each weeknight, plus my WebSigCleveland.org on Saturday. Have fun, Cleveland!

Meeting topics for this week include: Blogging, Python, UX, Drupal, ​Security, ​Astronomy, ​Graphics, InDesign, and much more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings! 

Also, the 19th Annual Holiday CircleFest is this week, on Sunday, December 2, 2012.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Bootstrap: Powerful & Easy HTML/CSS Templates

At the October 20, 2012, WebSigCleveland.org meeting, attendees were given an in-depth introduction to a collection of HTML/CSS components, as well as JavaScript extensions, that make the creation of websites easier -- Bootstrap. After I saw a May 15, 2012, presentation on Bootstrap from Twitter by the Cleveland Adobe Users Group leader, Dan Vega, I asked him to do his presentation at a WebSigCleveland.org meeting. Dan did a great job sharing his knowledge of the subject, and prepared an incredible set of slides that will be a resource for WebSigCleveland.org members going forward.

Here is a summary from my notes of some of the key points learned that day, along with a list of other related resources. I hope you find these as useful as I did.
Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Medwish serving the world!

 

On Saturday, November 3rd, we had a fascinating time learning about MedWish International with several other Cleveland Bloggers.  For the past 20 years, MedWish has been collecting surplus medical supplies to send to developing countries who greatly need them. MedWish began as an idea of Dr. Lee Ponsky. Dr. Ponsky, who was an undergraduate college student at the time, was working with volunteers in Africa, and saw the great need for medical supplies. He learned that these supplies could literally mean the difference between life and death.
Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Enjoy this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, & social media meetings!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

It is a very busy week in Cleveland! Many events are happening each day. I hope you enjoy this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, & social media meetings! 

Special Notice: General admission tickets for CodeMash 2013 will go on sale at 2:00 PM EST on Wednesday. There are 500 tickets in the general pool for the conference, which will take place January 8-11, 2013, at Kalahari Resort, Sandusky, Ohio. Last year, all tickets sold out in 20 minutes, so don't delay if you want to go! The CodeMash Google Group is the best place to get up-to-date information. 

Author(s):
Jim Evans - @geekclean, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
BlueBridge Network Customer Appreciation Series: Economic Growth in Cleveland

As part of the BlueBridge Network Customer Appreciation Series, the Economic Growth in Cleveland event took place on Thursday, September 13, 2012. This annual event, hosted by BlueBridge Network's Kevin and John Goodman, was the annual get-together of tech and business people on the tarmac at Burke Lakefront Airport. While delicious hors d'oeuvres and cocktails on a pleasant September evening were the lure, the real hooks were the networking opportunities and the great speaker lineup.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Enjoy this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, & social media meetings! 

Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Cleveland West Side Market Centennial Festival

We had a such a great time at the June 2, 2012, Centennial Celebration kickoff for the West Side Market, that decided to visit the October 7th Cleveland West Side Market Centennial Festival before attending the play Anything Goes at Playhouse Square.

View our photos of food at the West Side Market in addition to the Centennial Festival activities and artwork creation at Cleveland's Glass Bubble Project. There are also photos of the incredible rainbow we saw while walking from the Playhouse Square Broadway Buzz to the Palace Theatre to see Anything Goes.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Enjoy this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, & social media meetings! Meeting topics this week include: Blogging, InDesign, HTML, Startup, Photography, JavaScript., and more.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Tweet! Tweet! Celebrating Three Years!

How did I get started promoting technology meetings and other events in Cleveland? It all started with my announcements at the beginning of my WebSigCleveland.org meetings. Over time, the number of meetings grew and grew, so that there were too many to announce. Then, Jim Evans (@GeekClean) asked, "Have you ever heard of Twitter?" And the rest is history...

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Guitarmania 2012 has returned to the Rock Hall!
 

 

Guitarmania 2012 has returned to the Rock Hall! Yes, after having the guitars spread out through the city of Cleveland all summer, they have now returned to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. If you have not been down to the Rock Hall to see them, now is the time! 
 
The United Way of Greater Cleveland Guitarmania Gala Auction will take place on Saturday, October 20, 2012. After that, you will never see the 2012 guitars together in one place again!
Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Enjoy this week's Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, & social media meetings! Meeting this week include: .NET, C#/VB.Net, SharePoint, R Group, Ruby, Startups and more.

Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

IngenuityFest: Cleveland's Festival of Art & Technology

Another exciting IngenuityFest took place in Cleveland over the weekend of September 14-16!  In its great, new location at the Port of Cleveland Docks 30 & 32, attendees were treated to, and took part in, innovative examples of visual and performing arts, technology, and entrepreneurship. Throw in great food and spectacular views of our lakefront, and it all added up to a unique and very special event in Cleveland!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
Cleveland Museum of Art Chalk Festival 2012

Every fall, the Cleveland Museum of Art's Fine Arts Garden's stone pathways become a colorful canvas for our community. People of all ages are invited to contribute to the creation of a tapestry of Cleveland art. This was my first visit to the Cleveland Museum of Art since they opened the new atrium. What struck me was, how after seeing artists' renditions of the atrium for the past couple of years, seeing it in the real world felt unreal. Join me in enjoying this Cleveland celebration of creativity by viewing my photos and interactive views of the festival.

 

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

 

There are so many great Cleveland technology meetings happening this week! Since last week was so busy, I expected things to slow down -- they didn't! Enjoy! 

Meeting topics this week include: Bloggers, Startups, Game Development, Social Media, Drupal, Vim, Cocoa and more.

Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

PechaKucha Night Cleveland Volume 16

What is PechaKucha Night? "Drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of conversation ("chit chat"), it rests on a presentation format that is based on a simple idea: 20 images x 20 seconds. It's a format that makes presentations concise, and keeps things moving at a rapid pace."

On Wednesday, September 12, 2012, PechaKucha Night Cleveland had the following presenters (in no particular order): Barbara Tannenbaum, Curator of Photography, Cleveland Museum of Art (photography); Mike Polk (comedy); Devin Vandermaas, The Factory 2.0 (fashion); Kristen Baumlier, Food Fonts (design); Mark Schatz, Unstable Geographies (sculpture); Kim Jenkins, Rising Star Coffee (coffee); Justin Markert, Cellar Door CLE (music); Margaret Mann, Tuscany Wines (wine); Mary Fagans, City Year CLE (community); Valerie Grossman (ceramics artist); Chris Ronayne, Port of Cleveland; Lennie Stover, Rotary, Trains and Bikes, Oh My! (amazing new public space).

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

 

Cleveland Business Connects Magazine’s September 2012 issue has the overall theme of information technology and social media in Cleveland. An article, "Networking 2.0: Techies Harness the Power of Continual Education," was written about WebSigCleveland.org and its partner organizations, the Greater Cleveland PC Users Group and the Cleveland Digital Publishing Users Group. These groups are headed by Jim Evans and Remington Phillips, respectively.

The article focuses on how these three Cleveland organizations provide face-to-face technology education. I love the title of the article, since I am a big supporter of continual education. This has led me to not only become the administrator of WebSigCleveland.org, but also to create my sosAssociates.com blog, which supports technology education groups in our community.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

As we leave the Labor Day holiday weekend and enter the fall season, it is great to see how many events will be happening in September. This week starts slowly, but watch as this month proceeds for many more meetings and events.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings in Cleveland that I announce each week. 

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings in Cleveland that I announce each week. 

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings in Cleveland that I announce each week. I have been using Twitter since October 2009 to announce these meetings. I think it is great that in Cleveland we have so many valuable resources to learn more about the technology and social media fields.

 
During summers in Cleveland, I also add to my weekly sos_jr tech tweets some special Cleveland cultural events. This week check out the free WOW concert.
Author(s):
Julie Smith, Michael N. Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Cleveland GiveCamp: Coding for Charity

One of the best Cleveland tech events each year is Cleveland GiveCamp. It is so great on so many levels that this blog post can’t truly express the feelings of the attendees. It is a weekend with a lot of very hard work, but this work yields benefits not only for the charities it serves, but also to those who attend. From the fact that it provides major support for Cleveland charities, to the fun environment and talented people, the third year of Cleveland GiveCamp, held on July 20-22, 2012, was an experience we recommend that all participate in and support. We (Michael N. Smith and Stuart O Smith, Jr.) have participated all three years, and are pleased to be able to share our insights about this great new Cleveland tradition.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

During summers in Cleveland, I add to my weekly sos_jr tech tweets some special Cleveland cultural events (free concerts, free Shakespeare). As we leave July and enter August, it seems that these have outnumbered the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings that I announce each week. This week, I have also added some upcoming events of interest, and a discount code for a training opportunity.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Fun, free, outdoor cultural events! Yes, it is summer in Cleveland and I am adding to my weekly promotional sos_jr tweets special Cleveland cultural events (free concerts, free Shakespeare). This is in addition to the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings that I announce each week. Enjoy!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Here are my weekly promotional tweets of Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings, plus the special Cleveland cultural events (free concert, free Shakespeare) that I promote over the summer. Follow me on Twitter at sos_jr for more.

This is Cleveland Give Camp week! Follow on Twitter @CleGiveCamp and Facebook for more announcements about Cleveland nonprofits receiving technical support! The Twitter hash tag of #CleGC will yield some interesting tweets to follow over the weekend.

Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Ohio Blogging Association Theatre Tour with Playhouse Square Partners

On Wednesday, July 11, 2012, we were very fortunate to be able to participate in a private tour of Playhouse Square sponsored by the Ohio Blogging Association - Cleveland and Playhouse Square Partners. We saw parts of several theatres that the public normally does not see. It was a fun and memorable evening!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Slow week due to the 4th of July holiday, but still has some fun happenings. Did add two more events that I learned about on July 3rd.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

For the last two years, I have added some special Cleveland summer cultural events to my weekly promotional tweets of Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings. Well I missed one event last week, but luckily it continues this week!

I also want to make special mention of this week's @ClevelandDotCom @Indians #CleTweetUp on Wednesday, June 20th. 

Meeting topics this week include: Vim, Games, #CLEtweetup, Security, Ruby, Appcelerator, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
"Our" Cleveland Guitarmania #CleTweetUp Guitar

On May 26, 2012, I had the good fortune to see the final version of designer Garrett Weider's (@GarrettWeider) guitar at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum (RockHall.com - @rock_hall), along with other Cleveland #GuitarMania guitars displayed on Memorial Day Weekend. Garrett's design is special this year for those active on Twitter in Cleveland, since we were able to add our Twitter names to the art piece at a March 21st TweetUp sponsored by Cleveland.com (@ClevelandDotCom) and the United Way of Greater Cleveland (@UnitedWayCLE) at the Cleveland House of Blues (@HOBCleveland). As I said in my earlier blog post, it is "our" #CleTweetUp guitar!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

As I mentioned last week, for the last two years, I have added some special Cleveland summer cultural events to my weekly promotional tweets of Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings. One of the main events I have promoted on Twitter starts this week!  

Although it's summer in Cleveland, with lots of other things to do, this week's technology, entrepreneur, and social media meetings are heating up for a very busy week. Most of these meetings are free or low cost, so there are no barriers for all of us to further our tech education and enhance our networking.

Meeting topics this week include: Hadoop, Python, Blogging, .NET, Linux, Java, Security, and more!

Author(s):
Julie Smith, Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
 
Fireworks at West Side Market for centennial celebration

We had a great time at the June 2nd centennial celebration kickoff for the West Side Market, and decided to share these photos of the fireworks with you. Suggestion: Click through the photos really fast and make your own sound effects :-)

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

In Summer, for the past two years, I have added some Cleveland special cultural events to my weekly promotional tweets on Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings. This week continues the tradition with some of Cleveland's best summer events.

Meeting topics this week include: Blogging, MVC, SQL Server, Adobe Creative Suite, Startups, RStudio, Game Developers, Cloud, Hadoop, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

 

This week, in addition to my weekly tweets on Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings I track, I have added one national event and continued my promotion of the Open Mic Shakespeare events. The national event is the American Hiking Society (@AmericanHiking) National Trails Day, which here in Cleveland takes place in our own Cuyahoga Valley National Park. 
 
Meeting topics this week include: MySQL, Blogging, Twitter, MVC, and more! As we go into the new month, I will update my calendar with more meetings, so watch for more on Twitter and on this blog. 
Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.
CDPUG Presentation Skills for the Graphic Designer

When attending the April 26, 2012, Cleveland Digital Publishing Users Group meeting led by Spike Radway on Presentation Skills for the Graphic Designer, who would have thought I would be truly surprised . . . but I am getting ahead of myself . . .

The purpose of this meeting was to have Spike provide the tools to those attending to be prepared to do an Ignite presentation. CDPUG has a great practice of starting their meetings with a member sharing their design work using the Ignite presentation method at their monthly meetings, but for this meeting, the focus was the upcoming 8th Annual CDPUG Showcase on May 31, 2012.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Cleveland Clinic’s First Usability Study NEOUPA Meeting with Kaitlan Chu

I was very fortunate to be able to attend the  April 25, 2012, NEOUPA meeting on Clinical Trial: Challenges Faced & Lessons Learned Conducting Cleveland Clinic's First UX Study with Kaitlan Chu. This is the same presentation that Kaitlan will be presenting at the Usability Professionals Association International 21st Annual Conference.

Before Kaitlan Chu started her presentation, we were given a quick tour of The Cleveland Clinic, which I share information about in this blog post. 

Thank you to Kaitlan Chu for sharing her vast knowledge at this NEOUPA meeting. Be sure to look for her presentation at the Usability Professionals Association International Conference at 11:00 am on Thursday, June 07, 2012.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Due to the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, this will be a slow week for the Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings I track. I shared twelve technology and community events this week. Meeting topics include: LinkedIn, SharePoint, PHP, Blogging, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

This week is very busy for Cleveland tech, entrepreneur, and social media meetings. Meeting topics this week include: GIMP, Bloggers, Bootstrap, Python, WordPress, Silverlight, Games, Node.js, Haskell, Facebook, Entrepreneurs, Joomla!, and more!

Please read this week's blog on meetings I track to learn more about all these Cleveland happenings this week.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Meeting topics this week include:  GIMP, WordPress, Cloud, SEO, Security, Facebook, Python, Ruby, Bloggers, Bootstrap, and more!

In addtion to this week's social media and tech meetings, I also promote Open Mic Shakespeare and PechaKucha Night Cleveland.

I want to also remind everyone that Cleveland GiveCamp started taking applications from Cleveland charities last week! 

Please read this week's meetings I track blog to learn more about all these Cleveland happenings this week.

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

I thought this was going to be a slow week in Cleveland for tech meetings and other events I track, but then I updated my calendar! I promoted more than 18 meetings/events tonight! Go to this week's blog post to see the full list. 

Meeting topics this week include:  SQL Server, Coding Dojo, SEO, GIMP, Drupal, WordPress, and more!

Also, it is exciting that Cleveland Give Camp will start taking applications from Cleveland charities this week!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

You Too Social Media Conference

The Akron Area Public Relations Society of America and the Kent State PRSSA Chapter sponsored the fifth annual YouToo Social Media conference on Friday, April 13, 2012, at Kent State University. 

The conference sessions I attended included:

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Please look over this list of 17 tech meetings happening in Cleveland this week, and feel free to share with others. You can send others link to this blog or, if on Twitter re-tweet those tweets listed that you find interesting. Thank you for sharing the #HappyInCle experience!

Meeting topics this week include: Security, SharePoint, UX, F#, ExtJS, Sencha Touch, WordPress, Startups, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Twenty-nine meetings/events that I track in Cleveland are happening this week. Please share these with others by sending them a link to this blog or, if on Twitter, by re-tweeting those tweets listed that you find interesting. Thank you for sharing the #HappyInCle experience!

Meeting topics this week include:  NEOSA Tech Week events, Windows Phone, bloggers, Arts Network, WordPress, TEDxCLE 2012, Game Developers, Shakespeare birthday party, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.


Cleveland Digital Publishing Users Group (CDPUG)
WEB / FONT / DESIGN You Don’t Have To Be Angry Any More: Part 2
Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should
March 29, 2012

Highlights of Jan Dregalia's presentation about web fonts including:

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

 

A lot is happening in Cleveland this week! There are thirty tech/social media meetings I track happening this week!

Meeting topics this week include: Java, .NET, GIMP, Python, Blogging, WordPress, Muse, security, startups, Notacon 9, social media, Windows 8, and more!

Author(s):
Stuart O. Smith, Jr.

Cleveland.com TweetUp with United Way

Cleveland.com TweetUp with United Way

This #CleTweetUp was such a #HappyInCle event that I just had to share the experience on my blog! Members of the #Cleveland Twitterverse became part of GuitarMania by adding their names to a guitar.