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User Groups in Silicon Valley

Geeks love to meet up and do coding together or share their knowledge of computing devices. Join one or more users group to learn and share about your area of interest.

Coders, Software Developers

Code for San Jose
Code for San José is a volunteer organization made up of makers, designers, developers, and subject matter experts who come together to use tech to solve civic problems. Location – we are meeting at Action Spot co-working studio space.

IMUG: The Original Multilingual Computing User Group
The International Multilingual User Group has been a forum for GILT* professionals and language technology users since 1987. We meet regularly in Silicon Valley. If you work with or work on computers, smartphones, software, websites or other projects in more than one human language, please join us!

Silicon Valley Java User Group
This Java User Group (JUG) is for anyone interested in learning more about JEE web application development. We meet at Google in Mountain View, California, on the third Wednesday of the month.

Silicon Valley .NET User Group
The Silicon Valley .NET User Group exists to bring together people interested in developing software using the Microsoft Stack. Meets in Mountain View.

Internet

Google Developer Group Silicon Valley
Meets on the first Wednesday of the month at the GooglePlex in Mountain View. Our meetings will always be free and open to the general public.

Linux

East Bay Linux Users Group
EBLUG meets at Hurricane Electric, 760 Mission Court, Fremont. For Linux enthusisasts who live between San Francisco and Silicon Valley who wish to participate once a month with other people who are also Linux and open source enthusiasts. All meetings are free and food and refreshments are provided by our host Hurricane Electric.

Silicon Valley Linux Users Group
Meets at Cisco, just over the Tasman Bridge, first Wednesday of every month, 7-9 p.m. Meetup announcement of meetings.

Professions

Society for Technical Communication
The Silicon Valley Chapter of the STC is a dynamic, exciting chapter with much to offer its members and the members of chapters around Northern California.

Grant Writing-Seven Deadly Sins of Grant Writing

Too often grant writers fall into these traps when applying for community grants. My thanks to the The Peninsula Community Foundation for allowing me to reproduce this information from one of their seminars.

Using “grant-speak.”

Avoid acronyms
Avoid trite phrases “outcomes,” “cultural diversity.”
Avoid big words
Avoid complex sentences

Not doing your homework before applying to a foundation.

Make sure you fit the type of grant. 50% of applicants often are not eligible.
Don’t ask for too much money.
Include correct attachments

Using the “Grants-R-Us” approach to seeking grants.

Don’t use canned, “one size fits all” grants
Pick your 5 best donors per year
Be consistent: donors talk to each other.

Writing in generalities and emotional terms rather than being specific and factual.

General: We want to make an impact on young people.
Specific: We seek to improve the ability of 700 children attending ABC school to work collaboratively through a series of interactive theatre workshops.

Providing qualitative rather than quantitative goals and/or evaluation methods, or no goals or evaluations methods at all.

Think it through
Provide hard numbers that can be measured.

Lack of planning for the project, for the organization and/or the future of either or both.

Budget should accurately reflect the project.
Budget should accurately reflect the goals of the organization.

Inflating the value, uniqueness and/or affect of the project or your organization.

Bad Example: We will enrich the cultural life of all the people in the Bay Area.
Another Bad Example: We are the only organization [fill in the blank] … providing this service … doing this kind of work … serving this community … etc.
Be realistic!

Related page: Grant Writing Help
A list of organizations that provide technical assistance, consulting, classes and research materials in the San Francisco Bay Area.

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