Past Meetings of CPCUG's Entrepreneurs and Consultants SIG

August 2008--Free Tools To Protect and Maintain Your Windows Vista (and XP) PCs; Speaker: Dennis Courtney, President, CPCUG

July 2008--A Little PC Cleaning Pays Off; Speaker: Gabriel Goldberg, President, Computers and Publishing, Inc.

June 2008--Financial Strategies for the Business Owner; Speaker: Brian Thoms, CFP, Advanced Financial Advisor, Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.

May 2008--How We Are Smarter Than Me: An In-Depth Look Into Mass Collaboration and a Review of Don Tapscott's Book Wikinomics; Speaker: Julia Loughran, President, ThoughtLink, Inc.

April 2008--Inventing Basics: Getting Started As an Independent Inventor; Speaker: David Whiteis, Microsoft Certified Networking Engineer, BubbleRings.com

March 2008--Certification: New Product Development Professional (NPDP); Speaker: Cynthia Gilmer, President, Opus Plus, Inc., and Certified NPDP

February 2008--Baking a Podcast—Easy As Pie; Speaker: Mike Weiner, President/CEO, The Image Generators, Inc.

January 2008--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Speaker: Jina Etienne, CPA 

December 2007--Not All Wikis Are Encyclopedias: Other Types of Wikis and How Your Company Could Use One; Speaker: Leslie O'Flahavan, Partner, E-WRITE

November 2007--Windows Networking and Wi-Fi Security: Installation and Setup For Small Office and Home Office Users; Speakers: Luis Garcia, CPCUG Virginia SIG Chair, and Mark Mabee, IT Network Pro

October 2007--Strategies for Web Sourcing; Speaker: Miles Fawcett, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Bridgeline Software Inc.

September 2007--The Tangible Benefits of Blogging; Speaker: Nancy McCord, President, McCord Web Design

August 2007--Building a Scalable Back Office; Speaker: Doug Smith, CIO, DigitalBridge Communications

July 2007--Intellectual Property and Licensing: How To Avoid Being Sued; Speaker: Joy R. Butler, Attorney, Author, and Principal, Sashay Communications

June 2007--Smartphones (Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and PalmOS): Increasing Your Productivity and Having More Fun; Speaker: Derek M. Meyer, Wireless Consultant and Trainer

May 2007--Organize Your Business Life; Speaker: Susan Kousek, Balanced Spaces, LLC

April 2007--Virtualization: Not Just for the Big Guys Anymore; Speaker: Dennis Courtney, CPCUG President

March 2007--The Craft of Writing for Blogs: Building a Business, Promoting a Cause; Speaker: Merry Bruns, Principal, ScienceSites Communications

February 2007--Creating Effective Searchable Databases for the Web; Speaker: Dave Gallerizzo, Vice President, Consulting, Fig Leaf Software

January 2007--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Speaker: Jina Etienne, CPA 

December 2006--Walk the Talk: Coaching for the Entrepreneur or Would-Be Entrepreneur; Workshop Leader: Cliff Bailey, Life Coach and Computer Doctor

November 2006--Interactive Web: Creating Forms and PDFs With Video and Sound; Speaker: Steve Drucker, CEO, Fig Leaf Software

October 2006--Keeping Your Business Safe and Secure: What Small Businesses Need To Know About Computer Security; Speakers: Chad Laibly, President, and Matt Zeppa, Lead Technician, CNS-Metzia, LLC

September 2006--Successful E-Mail Marketing Strategies for Entrepreneurs; Speaker: Raj Khera, President, Khera Communications, Inc., owner of MoreBusiness.com and MailerMailer.com

August 2006--Panel: Marketing Strategies for Small Business. Marketing Your Home-Based Business, Rick Holton, Freelance Writer; Factors For Successful Web Projects, Miles Fawcett, President, iapps; How To Get Your Company Web Site Noticed, Nancy Kramer, New Media Consultant

July 2006--Free and Low-Cost Internet Resources for Small Businesses: Collaboration and Web Site Development Tools, Templates for Business Plans, and More; Speaker: Julia Loughran, President, ThoughtLink, Inc.

April 2006--Avoiding a Sparrow's Nest in the Mailbox: Managing Contributed and Collaborative Projects; Speaker: Gabe Goldberg, President, Computers and Publishing, Inc.

March 2006--Telling Your Multimedia Story Using Free Software Tools; Speaker: Phil Shapiro, Trainer, Takoma Park, Maryland, Public Library, and Chair, CPCUG Software Tutorials SIG

February 2006--Introduction to Linux; Speaker: Cliff Bailey, The Computer Doctor and CPCUG DC Vice President

January 2006--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Speaker: Jina Etienne, CPA, Etienne & Associates, LLC 

December 2005--What's Happening in Robotics: Robotics, Invention, and Engineering at a DC Public High School; Speaker: John F. Mahoney, Math Teacher, Benjamin Banneker Academic High School, Washington, DC

November 2005--Strategies for Building Your Business; Speaker: Michael Smith, President, TeraTech, Inc.

October 2005--How To Become a Great Presenter: Being Dynamically Engaging and Interactively Funny; Speaker: Mark Gorkin, LICSW, Therapist, Motivational Psychohumorist, Founder of "Stress Doc" Enterprises

September 2005--Accounting Using QuickBooks; Speakers: Jina Etienne, CPA, Etienne & Associates, LLC, and Rosa Hernandez, BookkeepingWorks, LLC

August 2005--RSS Feeds and Blogs for Business; Speaker: Bob Bailey, Message Builders

July 2005--Marketing: The 22 Immutable Laws of Al Ries and Jack Trout; Speaker: Dwight Barbour, .NET Community Builder

June 2005--When, Where, and How To Network! Moderator: Andy Forbes, Netpreneur; Panelists: Melinda Sigal; JD Kathuria, Co-Founder, ExecutiveBiz; Sid Smith, Partner, Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP; and Stephanie Bauer, Product Manager, Merchant Link

May 2005--Author Talk: A Whole New Mind: Moving From the Information Age to the Conceptual Age; Speaker: Daniel H. Pink, also author of Free Agent Nation

March 2005--Creating Home Page Content With Impact; Speaker: Merry Bruns, ScienceSites Communications   

February 2005--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Speaker: Jina Etienne, CPA, Etienne & Associates, LLC 

January 2005--Creating a Search Engine Friendly Web Site; Speaker: Nancy Kramer, Search Engine Optimization Consultant

December 2004--What Shape Is Your Work/Life Balance Sheet In? Completing a Year-End Review of Personal and Business Goals; Speakers: Jina Etienne, CPA, Etienne & Associates, LLC; Geoff Galster, American Express Financial Advisors;  Bob Greene, Berthoud/Greene Consultants LLC; Taren Coleman, West Financial Group 

November 2004--Be an Independent Consultant--The Easy Way;  Speaker: Dwight Barbour, .NET Community Builder, Section 508 and ASP.NET Educator and Developer 

October 2004--Publishing Old and New: One Man's Ventures in Bookworld; Speaker: Jeff Peters, Program Manager, Web Developer, and Consultant, Operational Technologies Services, Inc. 

September 2004--Re-Engineer Your Sales Process; Speaker: Ken Smith, Principal, Sandler Sales Institute; Founder, Professional Achievement Group Inc.   

August 2004--Creating and Managing a Virtual Office: An IT Entrepreneur Shares His Secrets to Success; Speaker: Naseem Saab, President, Results Software 
 
July 2004--Finding Business Opportunities in Local Business Publications; Speaker: Terry Nicholetti, Washington Business Journal  

June 2004--The Health Insurance and Healthcare Marketplace: Fending for Yourself; Speaker: Lloyd Brodsky, Ph.D. 

May 2004--Taking the Road Less Traveled: Succeeding As Your Own Boss; Speaker: Margarita Rozenfeld, Success Coach, of Essence, and Chief Visionary, Yes!Circle  

April 2004--Giving Web Site Readers Targeted Content; Speaker: Merry Bruns, ScienceSites Communications  

March 2004--Strategic Planning: A Simple Planning Process To Achieve Your Goals; Speaker: Jim Whelan, The Vision Architect, ProActive Corporation 

February 2004--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Speaker: Jina Etienne, CPA 

January 2004--Solving Programming Project Communication Problems; Speaker: Michael Smith, President, TeraTech, Inc.   

December 2003--Spin To Win! 10 Ways Public Relations Can Help Build Your Business; Speaker: Linda Dickerhoof, President, Signature Strategy, Inc. 

November 2003--Cost Effective Content  Management; Speaker: Steve Drucker, CEO, Fig Leaf Software 

October  2003--When Venture Capitalists Say "No": Creative Financing Strategies & Resources; Speaker: Ron Peterson, President, Three Arrows Capital Corp.   

September 2003--Is Open Source Software (OSS) in Your Future? Status, Trends, and  Expectations; Speaker: Frank Hum, Manager, Networks and x Series Servers, Computer Applications Specialists 

August 2003--Take Back Your Time! Time Management Techniques and Tips; Speaker: Susan Kousek, Owner, Balanced Spaces, LLC 

July 2003--Mindmaps: A Different, Effective Approach for Better Listening and Presenting; Speaker: Bill Olsen, Certified Professional Facilitator (C.P.F.), President, Olsen Innovations, Inc. 

June 2003--Forming Joint Ventures and Strategic Relationships; Joy Butler, attorney, author, and principal, Sashay Communications 

May 2003--Web Logs (Blogs) and XML: Toys or Tools for Business? Jerry Lawson, lawyer and author 

April 2003--Staying Out of Trouble With IRS: Tips on Preventing IRS Problems for Yourself and your Business, and Tips on Resolving IRS Problems When They Occur; Richard S. Chisholm, JD, CPA, Robert E. Ward & Associates, P.C. 

March 2003--How To Start and Grow a Business Without Venture Funding: The World of a Multimedia and Internet Development Company; John Redmon, President, Redmon Group Inc. 

February 2003--Taxes: What Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Jina Etienne, CPA 

January 2003--Increasing Productivity and Having Fun With Your PDA; The PDA Guys--Ray Wiley, Chair, CPCUG Pocket PC SIG, and Shawn Googins, Chair, CPCUG PalmOS SIG  

December 2002--Elevator Speech Workshop: How To Disseminate a Compelling Message in 30 Seconds; Bob Bailey, ebiz 

November 2002--Developing an Enduring Brand: The Five Elements of a Successful Brand; Janine Carey, President, The Mkt. Group, Inc.  

October 2002--Using Print on Demand and e-Publishing To Build Your Business; Speaker: Ken Chaletzky, President, Copy General Corp.; Panelists: Heidi Swenson, Digital Division, Inc., President, and Dirk Johnson, ROIWebsites, Owner  

September 2002--Selling to the Federal Government: Getting Your Share of This Huge Market; Larry Lavely, Business Consultant and SCORE Counselor 

August 2002--Artificial Intelligence Through Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming: Is It "The Next Big Thing"? Telling Computers What Needs To Be Done Instead of How To Do It; Toby Perkins, Software Engineer and Complex Systems Analyst  

July 2002--Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs): Selecting, Setting Up, Increasing Productivity, and Having Fun With Your PDA; Ray Wiley, Chair, CPCUG Pocket PC SIG, and Shawn Googins, Chair, CPCUG PalmOS SIG 

June 2002--10 Product Development Pitfalls of Emerging Companies and How To Avoid Them; Cynthia Gilmer, Opus Plus, Inc. 

May 2002--Virtual Teams: Tools, Processes, and Lessons Learned; Julia Loughran, ThoughtLink, Inc. 

April 2002--Choosing a Server-Side Technology; Mike Snyder, WestLake Internet Training 

March 2002--7 Steps to Powerful Presentations: Saying More With Fewer Words; Bob Bailey, ebiz 

February 2002--10 Tax Return Mistakes That Can Cost Entrepreneurs and Consultants Big Bucks: How To Save Money Legally and Ethically; Jina Etienne, CPA  

January 2002--Make Your Web Site Work:The Return on Investment (ROI) Method; Dirk Johnson, Owner, ROIWebsites 

December 2001--How To Create a Web Site,Book Talk, Audience Discussion, and Q&A (BOOK: Webmaster Boot Camp® by Heidi Swenson); Speaker and Discussion Leader: Amanda Mitchell, Web Project Manager, Digital Division, Inc. 

November 2001--Information Architecture: What It Is and How Good Information Architecture Can Save Time and Improve the Bottom Line; 
Thom Haller, Information Architect and Owner, Info.Design, Inc.  

October 2001--Meeting Doubleheader:(1) Establishing Sound Financial Information Management Practices; Jina Etienne, CPA. (2) Handling Intellectual Property Issues in Business Transactions: Software; Panel: Leigh Ann Lindquist, associate, trademark attorney; Miku Mehta, associate, patent attorney; Mark A. Mais, associate; Billy C. Raulerson, associate; Sughrue, Mion, Zinn, Macpeak & Seas, PLLC   September 2001--Meeting rescheduled, following the events of September 11, 2001, to become part of the

October 2001 meeting doubleheader 

August 2001--The Emerging Peer-to-Peer Model, Book Review and Audience Discussion; Toby Perkins, Software Engineer  

July 2001--Marketing Smart With E-Mail: Building Your Business With E-Mail Marketing and Newsletters; Raj Khera, President, Khera Communications, Inc., publisher of MoreBusiness.com and MailerMailer.com 

June 2001--Making Web Sites Accessible: Implementing Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act; Walter Houser, Webmaster for the Department of Veterans Affairs and Co-Chair, Federal Webmasters Working Group, Federal CIO Council 

May 2001--Web Site Development Software: What's Hot in 2001! Comparing Macromedia Dreamweaver, Allaire HomeSite, and Allaire ColdFusion Studio; Heidi Swenson, President, Digital Division, Inc.  

April 2001--Writing for the Web (special 3-hour seminar); Leslie O'Flahavan, partner, E-WRITE  

March 2001--How To Start a Business Without Venture Funding; Greg Eoyang, President, WestLake Consulting Group  

February 2001--Organizing Your Computer Files and Outlook E-Mail Messages;  Susan Kousek, Owner, Balanced Spaces, LLC  

January 2001--Building the Visibility of Your Business by Maximizing Your Standings in the Search Engines;Steve Heckler, President, WestLake Internet Training 

December 2000--From Vision to Product: Technical Architecture and  Building Your Core Technology Team; Vince Sabio, Chief Technology Officer of Return Path, Inc., and technical advisor to Topica.com, NetCreations.com, and Lyris Technologies, Inc. 

November 2000--Know When To Hold, Know When To Fold: Year-End Financial Planning for Entrepreneurs and Consultants; Len Cohen, Financial Advisor, CF Services Group, Inc., Jina Etienne, CPA, Paul Van Akkeren, Computer Consultant, Akorn Komputing  

October 2000--Internet Appliances and Embedded Systems; 
Frank Hum, Technical Account Manager, East Coast, Linuxcare 

September 2000--Staying in Balance: Accounting Concerns for the Small Business; Jina-Michele M. Etienne, CPA  

August 2000--Intellectual Property (IP) Law: An Overview of Trade Secret, Patent, Copyright, and Trademark Law; John Caracappa, Esq., Paul J. Wilson, Esq., Jay Lytle, Esq., Jody Haller Drake, Esq., Sughrue, Mion, Zinn, Macpeak & Seas, PLLC 

July 2000--Setting Up a Web Server for Your Business; Frank Hum, Technical Account Manager, East Coast, Linuxcare 

June 2000--Organize Your Office To Maximize Your Time and Space;  Susan Kousek, Owner, Balanced Spaces, LLC 

May 2000--Building and Selling an Internet Company: Lessons From Our First Completed Dot-Com Business; Raj Khera, President, Khera Communications, Inc.  

April 2000--Web Site Development Software: What's Hot! Heidi Goldstein, Digital Division, Inc. 

March 2000--10 More Things Entrepreneurs and Consultants Should Know--About Taxes; Jina Etienne, CPA, Heymann, Suissa & Stone  

February 2000--7 Things Every Entrepreneur and Consultant Needs To Know; Len Cohen, Financial Advisor, CF Services Group, Inc.; Jina Etienne, CPA, Heymann, Suissa & Stone  

January 2000--Enhancing Business Productivity With Speech Recognition and Translation Products; Chuck Runquist, Lernout & Hauspie 

December 1999--Getting and Fulfilling a Book Contract on a Hot Computer Topic; Speaker: Robert E. Simanski, owner, Your Publications Pro!, and author; Discussion: Jerry Lawson, lawyer and author; Bob Hershey, engineering and management consultant, and author 

November 1999--Fatbrain.com and Other Web Site Affiliates Programs; Speaker: Danielle Golacinski, FatBrain.com; Panelists: Brandon White, WorldWideAngler.com; Scott Mendenhall, kolina.com; Jerry Lawson, netlawtools.com  

October 1999--Sales Strategies for Non-Selling Professionals;  Jack Hauber, Sandler Training Institute  

September 1999--The Attack on and Death of Traditional Retailing:  Opportunity for Computer Consultants and Entrepreneurs; Michael Pendrak, Independent Handtech.com Technology Consultant  August 1999--Wednesday, September 1, 4:15pm--Informal Gathering, to network, socialize, dine, critique the show, and discuss technology trends (following first day of the Greater Washington Technology Showcase), Tony Cheng's Mongolian Restaurant, 619 H St NW, Washington, DC (Phone: 202-842-8669) 

June 1999--E-Commerce Book Talk: Striking It Rich on the Web; Toby Perkins  (A presentation and discussion of Jaclyn Easton's book StrikingItRich.com) 

May 1999--The Dangers of Technomonopolies; Edwn Black 

April 1999--actually held May 1--Brainstorming Session: E-Commerce and CPCUG, Ann Dorsey 

March 1999--Linux Seminar; Frank Hum, Phil Harp, Chris Rogers, Michael Martin, and Richard Morgan 

February 1999--Survival While Writing--Establishing and Nourishing Multiple Revenue Streams, and Survival Tips for Entrepreneurs and Consultants, Edwin Black, award-winning author, journalist, and editor  

January 1999--Is Your Net Working? Ellen Wilson, Cooper Training Associates  

October 1998--Getting Started as a Trainer; Susan Kousek 

September 1998--Adobe Acrobat 3.01; Bob DiIorio, Owner, Desktop Publishing Services 

July 1998--The Contract: Writing and/or Negotiating a Contract That Works for You and Your Customers; Steve Workings, Computer Consultant and Leader of CPCUG's Alpha 4/5 Database SIG  

June 1998--Sales Force Automation for Computer Consultants,  Entrepreneurs, and Small Businesses; Brian Astle, Vice President, Oakhurst Systems 

May 1998--How To Think With Numbers; Bob Hershey  April 1998--Discussion and networking 

March 1998--How SCORE Can Help Your Small Business; Ken Yancey, National Director of the Senior Core of Retired Executives (SCORE) 

February 1998--Phase 1: A Business Startup Incubator for Internet-Related Businesses; Lisa Losito, Executive Director and Board Member, Phase 1 

January 1998--What Makes a Good Consultant; Paul Van Akkeren 

November 1997--An Overview of Computer Consulting; Paul Van Akkeren 

October 1997--Business Startup and Operation; Scott Mohnkern, President, Millkern Communications, Inc. 

September 1997--Experiences As a Consultant and Small Business Owner; Rich Schinnell, Past President of CPCUG and current First Vice President 

June and July 1997--Organizational meetings 2 and 3. Summary. 

May 1997--Organizational meeting following HTML SIG meeting. 

August 18, 2008