Here are some reminders for you of some upcoming Wisconsin VMUG events as well as some other VMUG related news items.
** vBeers **
On Wednesday, March 20th we are having a WI-VMUG vBeers event at the Miller Time Pub in Milwaukee. This is a casual, networking/socializing event but is being sponsored by F5 and Pure Storage. If you are interested in joining us or knowing more about what a vBeers is, check out the event blog post: http://www.wivmug.org/2013/03/milwaukee-vbeers-march-20th/
** March 2013 WI-VMUG Meeting **
Thursday, March 21st is our WI-VMUG Meeting in Milwaukee on the MATC campus. This meeting is sponsored by Netech who has a couple of great presentations lined up. Scott Herold will be making the first official public appearance for his new startup, UmbraWorks and our new VMware Liaison, Daniel Klemz will be giving a technical presentation on VMware vCOps. Throw in what should be a strong “Ask The Experts Roundtable” and really good collection of giveaways and you have the makings for one of our best meetings yet. I have also heard that there’s a good chance of a Melvin The Monster VM sighting as well.
Speaking of giveaways, some of the items include: TrainSignal course, VMware Press books, iPad Mini, Roku2XS/AppleTV, VMUG Advantage and an ITNET-157 Emerging Network Technologies course at MATC. What is an ITNET-157 course? That is the official VMware VCP Certification class. The MATC version is one class a week for a semester at a cost of about $400 plus books.
There are over 178 people already registered for this meeting. Registration will be closed at the end of the day on Tuesday, 3/19. However, walk-in registrations are welcome the day of the meeting. If you haven’t yet registered for this meeting or want more information, visit the meeting blog post: http://www.wivmug.org/2013/02/march-2013-meeting-in-milwaukee-registration-is-now-open/
** 2013 WI-VMUG User Conference **
Thursday, May 2nd is our 4th Annual User Conference. This all-day event is being held at the Marriott Madison West. We will once again have a day full of outstanding presentations, 25+ exhibitors and great networking opportunities. We are working on having labs again but that is not yet confirmed.
We are very excited to have VMware’s Nick Weaver (@Lynxbat) as our keynote speaker. His keynote topic is “Automation Generation: Or why skill is the answer to scale”. I heard rave reviews of his keynote at last month’s Toronto VMUG User Conference and now that some of the things he has been working on have been released I expect this will be even better. Nick has been doing some amazing stuff the last few years with EMC and now VMware. His latest involves automation, much of it with Puppet Labs. Here’s a couple of links to some blog posts for more background:
- VMware & Puppet: One More Step Forward: http://nickapedia.com/2013/02/27/vmware-puppet-one-more-step-forward/
- Introducing the Latest VMware and Puppet Labs Integration: https://puppetlabs.com/blog/introducing-the-latest-vmware-and-puppet-labs-integration/
- VMware & Puppet Labs – Redefining Management for the Software-Defined Datacenter: http://blogs.vmware.com/console/2013/01/vmware-puppet-labs-redefining-management-for-the-software-defined-datacenter.html
Conference registration is now open. We expect to have the agenda finalized in the next few weeks. Here is the link for registration and more information about the User Conference: http://www.vmug.com/p/cm/ld/fid=821
** User Conference vBeers **
There is nothing finalized yet, but we are the process of trying to arrange a vBeers event in Madison for night before the User Conference (Wednesday, May 1st). Mark it on your calendar and watch more details in the coming weeks.
** June 2013 VMUG Meeting **
Mark your calendars for an Appleton WI-VMUG meeting on Tuesday, June 11th. The venue is Fox Valley Tech in Appleton. One of our meeting sponsors will be 2012 Storage Magazine enterprise storage winner Tegile. Check them out at: http://www.tegile.com. Let us know if you are interested in becoming a co-sponsor for this meeting. Watch for more details in the next month.
** VMworld call for papers **
The VMworld 2013 Call for Papers is now open. If you are interested in presenting at VMworld be sure to stop by the VMworld Call for Papers page for details. The deadline for submissions is Friday, April 12th. http://www.vmworld.com/community/conference/cfp
** VMUG Member Survey **
The deadline for the VMUG member survey has been extended, which gives you another opportunity to participate! It only takes a few minutes, so please be sure to complete the member survey! Here’s the survey link: http://svy.mk/Xo3Bq7
Don’t miss this opportunity to share your feedback and help strengthen the VMUG community. We have extended our deadline to Friday, March 29, 2013.
Did you know that anyone who completes the contact information at the end of the survey will be automatically entered into a drawing? We are giving away some great prizes including an iPad mini or Jambox speakers.
** VMUG Advantage Updates **
We are continuing to improve the offerings that are part of the VMUG Advantage membership. Among the new offerings:
— Limited time promotion! Free VCP Certification Exam Voucher (a $225 to $400 value, depending on the exam) – Promotion valid through May 15, 2013
–Increased savings! Now 50% discounts (previously 30%) on Fusion 5 Professional and VMware Workstation 9
–Find out more about VMUG Advantage: http://www.vmug.com/p/cm/ld/fid=10
