You may be wondering what the current status of the Meet The Geeks Board of Directors is and what we are working on. There have been a number of changes this year, Brian Beaudet has taken over as the President, with Adam Reich serving as Vice President. Cindy Ireland joined the board this year as Secretary, and Bradley Cain serves as Treasurer. Other members of the board include Hunter Goosman, Jason Lee, and Jenny Manner, past President.
 

This year we said goodbye to Alice Briggs and Mary Lynn Manns who served a number of years to progress the goals of the organization. Fortunately, Mary Lynn has agreed to continue as liaison with UNCA so we can continue to hold our Geek Classes at that facility. Other members of the board who have served our community include Dan Stryker and Jeff Foreman who are pursuing other activities. We thank all these contributors who have helped make us a stronger and better organization.
 

Our focus for the rest of this year will include a sponsorship of a Robotics competition for middle school and high school students. This is a great opportunity for us to introduce some exciting technology to a new generation of students. We are actively seeking corporate sponsors for the teams to support their ability to compete both locally and at the state level.
 

Your board is actively working with a number of organizations for classes, seminars, and community showcase events to continue to highlight the rich and diverse technology in our area. Organizations that are currently working with the board for potential events include: Dell, Microsoft, AVL Technology, Lenoir-Rhyne University, Immedion (Netriplex), and others. Additionally, we are working on a new and improved web site, speaking at an upcoming Asheville Green Drinks event, supporting the WNC Web Technologies Meetup, and improving our financial position with additional sponsorships.
 

Don’t forget to join the Linkedin group to stay connected with local tech events and happenings.
 

Lastly, our next bi-monthly Get Together is coming up on November 30, followed by a Geek Class on December 6 on the topic of a “Primer on Mobile Development” with Jonathan Ross. There is always a lot going on. Please continue to attend our events, bring a colleague next time, and if you know of a potential organization sponsor, let us know. See you soon!

November 14 11:30 am - 1 pm Loretta's Cafe , Asheville

You've heard of "cloud computing" but what exactly is it, and what does it mean for you? 

AAF Asheville is proud to present Jason Lee (a Meet the Geeks board member) and Lindsay Galloway of Epsilon Inc., an Asheville IT consulting firm specializing in network system engineering, cybersecurity, and VoIP and video Teleconferencing, who will explain the benefits and show you how computing in the cloud can help your business grow!

Registration is $15 for members and first-time guests, $30 for returning guest. Lunch is included. Please register online by 11/10. RSVP is required. For more information, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

When you were a kid, did you love to play with Legos? Did you dream of designing robots? Maybe your first programming gig was even a Lego robot? If so, we want you!  Meet the Geeks is working in partnership with the Robotics Opportunity Committee of WNC to bring robotics programs to K-12 students in our area. We currently have six newly formed FIRST Lego League® (FLL) teams working to complete in this year’s Food Factor challenge. Not sure what that means?

Teams are learning to build and program robots to compete in a theme-based robot game. They also complete a research project and propose innovative solutions to a current challenge related to their research. Through all of this, teams must embrace the core values of the FIRST® program, including teamwork, fun, Gracious Professionalism, fun, “coopertition”, and… did we mention fun? Teams will compete in a regional tournament to be held at UNCA on November 19th.

So, if you ever dreamed of being the first 9-year old to design a robot, if you think programming a robot sounds like WAY more fun than playing a video game someone else designed, or even if you just want to be amazed and inspired by what kids in our community can accomplish, we have a great opportunity for you.

We need volunteers! Tournament day is a busy day and we need your help. If you’re interested in volunteering, sign up now at http://www.rocwnc.org/html/get_involved.html

We also need sponsors and mentors for the high school level FRC teams. If you want to get involved or just learn more, please let us know at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

November 5 9:30 am - 1 pm AB Tech Enka Campus, Candler

Asheville SCORE and Sassy's Computers present How to Develop your Business Website where you will learn how to launch a highly effective and visually attractive web site in a short time frame.  This seminar, by fellow Meet the Geeks member and volunteer Steffi Rausch from EVOLV, is aimed specifically at new start ups that think or know they need to have a presence on the internet either for marketing or branding purposes.  Topics covered will include:

• How to set up a business website or choose a good web designer
• How to buy a domain name and choose a good webhost
• Learn what works best for website content and how to update your own website with a good CMS (Content Management System) that is right for you
• How e-newsletters can help your marketing efforts
• Code behind the website, and what marketing and management information it can provide
• Learn what works best for website content and how to update your own website with a good CMS (Content Management System) that is right for you
• What should you know about web design and Maintenance

Register early to save $5.  To register or for more details, please visit the seminar web page.