July 2010 Meetup
Greetings Columbia web peeps! We’re nearing the end of July which means it’s almost time for another informative Refresh Columbia meetup. Accessibility is one of those topics our clients often ask about and a key benefit we point to when promoting web standards; but how much do we really know about it? We’re sure to know a lot more after Will McCain’s talk this month. Also, we’ve covered content management systems in the past, but we’ve never been given the CMS lowdown by an honorary superhero. Kris Black is sure to save the day with his stories of suspense, site design and Squarespace.
I’m excited to announce that we now have over 150 people subscribed to our email list and 128 fans of our Facebook page, but we typically only have 20-30 people show up at our monthly meetups. While we work hard to line up interesting and relevant talks each month, the main purpose of Refresh is to build a community of local web designers, developers, freelancers, project managers, business owners, animators, videographers, photographers and anyone else whose personal and professional endeavors focus on the web. If you’ve never made it out to one of our meetups before or if it’s been a while, we hope you can make it out this month. Since our meetups start at 6, we like to pick a place to hang out afterwards for dinner and drinks. This month we’ll be headed to Thirsty Fellow for some great local pizza and nerdy conversation. Even if you can’t make it to the meetup, feel free to join us at Thirsty Fellow around 7:30pm.
This Month’s Talks:
Access Denied
Will McCain (@aisyrn) – SC Assistive Technology Program
We all want the world to appreciate the work we do, but not everybody is able to get around the Internet with the same ease. That’s where Assistive Technology comes in. Will is going to give a brief overview of the primary standards for Internet accessibility. Next, he’ll give a demonstration of common problems that users with disabilities have to overcome along with examples of some of the technology that they use to deal with them. He’ll wrap up with suggestions on how to avoid common accessibility and usability problems.
Squarespace Superhero
Kris Black (@krisblack) – krisblack.com
When it comes to content management systems, there is no shortage of options to choose from. Kris has been using Squarespace to build websites for his clients since 2004, long before he was hired by the company as a customer support architect. He’ll be talking about what Squarespace is, how it differs from all the other CMS options out there & why you should give it a try for your next website project.
Featured Book:
Thanks to the user group partnerships advertised in the sidebar, we give away a free book at each of our meetups. This month we’ll be giving away a copy of Rework by Jason Freid & David Heinemeier Hansson. We’ll choose a random attendee from the sign-in list, so be sure to show up and sign-in for a chance to win.
When: July 28th, 2010 at 6pm
Where: USC Swearingen Faculty Lounge – 301 Main Street (map)
Topic: Accessibility & Squarespace
RSVP: On Facebook
ConvergeSE Wrap-Up
Thanks to everyone who came out to ConvergeSE this year. We had a great time organizing the conference, but we wouldn’t have able to put on such an awesome event without your participation. If you missed it, be sure to check out the pictures on Flickr. Also, follow @ConvergeSE on Twitter to find out when we post the videos from Saturday’s talks.
Reminder: There’s no meetup this week! We’re taking the month of June off, since Converge was last weekend. We’ll be picking back up again with our regular monthly meetups on July 28th. Seeya then!
AIGA Summer Film Series
Join AIGA South Carolina and The Nickeldeon Theater for their upcoming summer film series. These four films, Art & Copy: June 10th, Handmade Nation: June 24th, Typeface: July 8th, and Died Young, Stayed Pretty: July 22nd, are guaranteed to delight and inspire the creative in you. Each show begins at 6:00 pm.
Tickets for each film are $5.50 for AIGA members and $8.50 for non-members and can be purchased from the box office at The Nickelodeon (present your AIGA member card to receive the member discount) or online at www.nickelodeon.org.
For more details, visit http://southcarolina.aiga.org/
Position at LoudDoor
Graphic Designer
We are looking for a highly creative graphic designer to
immediately join our team in Columbia, SC.
As a team member at LoudDoor, you will enjoy our work hard/play hard environment. We are looking for a team player that is creative, articulate, and able to multi-task. This position will be under the guidance of our Art director, but can eventually take on more individual responsibilities. Must have extensive knowledge Photoshop and proficient in Dreamweaver, HTML, CSS, Flash and Illustrator. This position mainly involves web projects but does occasionally involve print.
About LoudDoor: We strive to solve complex problems with simple solutions through the development of web applications and services with a focus on social media and emerging technologies.
Requirements:
- Strong portfolio of web design work
- Experience: 1-2 years designing for web related projects
- Education: B.S./B.A. degree in an appropriate technology or business related field or any formal training
Location: This is a fulltime position in our Columbia, SC office.
Compensation: Very competitive salary according to experience plus health, dental, and other benefits.
To apply, send us an email (jobs@louddoor.com) and tell us about yourself and your work. Include a link to your resume and up-to-date portfolio.
May 2010 Meetup
The end of May is fast approaching, and this will be the last meetup before ConvergeSE. The 20% early bird discount expires on this Thursday (May 20th), but if you come to the next Refresh meeting we still have a handful of cards with the special 30% coupon code. This will be a huge event for the web design, development, and marketing community here in the Southeast and we hope all you can make it out.
This Month’s Talks:
IP Basics & the Knowledge Economy
Calhoun “Reb” Thomas – Thomas Law Firm & KnowledgeEconomy.com
If you have any questions about intellectual property, you won’t want to miss this talk. Reb will give a brief summary of Patent, Trademark, and Copyright law in the context of software and the Internet. He’ll also invite the audience to consider how they can get more involved in the Knowledge Economy, and answer as many questions as time allows.
Scaling your Site
James Martin – SouthernSavers.com
Over the last 2 1/2 years, James & Jenny Martin’s Southern Savers website has grown from a simple Wordpress.com hosted blog about using coupons to a thriving web community with thousands of daily visitors. So what do you do when the traffic starts pouring in? James will be giving a technical talk about how to keep your load low, your data safe and visitors happy as you scale your website.
Featured Book:
Thanks to the user group partnerships advertised in the sidebar, we give away a free book at each of our meetups. This month we’ll be giving away a copy of Rocket Surgery Made Easy by Steve Krug. We’ll choose a random attendee from the sign-in sheet, so be sure to show up and sign-in for a chance to win.
When: May 26th, 2010 at 6pm
Where: USC Swearingen Faculty Lounge – 301 Main Street (map)
Topic: Intellectual Property & Site Scaling
RSVP: On Facebook
