Category: Announcements

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Tweets in Space – NASA Promotes the Final Shuttle Launch Online!

Final NASA shuttle launch

This Friday July 8th marks a historic moment in both U.S. History and the story of Humanity when the Space Shuttle Atlantis launches to carry supplies to the ISS-Station in orbit around Earth. NASA’s space shuttle program will conclude with mission STS-135.

I am super excited to have the opportunity to view the launch from Kennedy Space Center Friday morning. For those of you who cannot make the trip – there are a number of awesome online outlets including twitter, NASA TV, Facebook and more to hear updates, watch the countdown and launch, and hear directly from the astronauts as they prepare to launch into space.

Follow the launch on Twitter!

First, if you are relatively new to twitter or want a quick refresher course, check out Schipul’s Twitter Speak Help File.

Next, here are just a few of the official NASA twitter accounts to follow:
@NASA – official NASA twitter account
@NASAtweetup – official “tweetup” account for NASA
@NASA_Astronauts – NASA twitter account that retweets all of the astronauts tweets

The four Astronauts that will be flying Atlantis for STS-135 each have twitter accounts as well and have been tweeting actively about their mission preparations and thoughts. You can follow them in the “Twitter-verse” here:
Christopher Ferguson: @Astro_Ferg
Douglas Hurley: @Astro_Doug
Sandy Magnus: @Astro_Sandy
Rex J Walheim: @Astro_Rex

Hashtags to follow on twitter: #NASATweetup and #STS135

Other NASA-friendly social networks to follow

If you want more than just 140 character updates, you can head to NASA Connect to find dozens of other official NASA social networking sites including the official NASA Facebook Page, and NASA Headquarters Flickr account including a collection devoted to the Space Shuttle program as well as many other social sites.

Then, on Friday morning watch the shuttle launch live online on NASA TV. The launch is currently scheduled for 11:28 AM EST. That’s 10:28 AM CST for those of you in Houston and 8:28 AM PST for all of you in California.

Finally, I want to include a couple of great non-NASA organizations that will be tweeting and uploading photos and video from the launch site in Florida too. Both of these organizations are focused on sharing the excitement of space exploration and all things space with others and are extremely active on the web.

The Space Tweep Society is an organization whose mission is to connect those inside the space industry with those on the outside looking in and generate enthusiasm for all things space. You can find the Space Tweep’s on twitter, Facebook, and Flickr.

SpaceUp is a new organization that hosts “un-conferences” focused on space-related topics all over the country including Houston, Los Angeles, San Diego, Washington DC and Minneapolis. You will find a number of organizers and volunteers from the different SpaceUp cities in Florida this week for STS-135.

Want a play-by-play?   You can follow me on twitter: @SarahMWorthy as I tweet throughout the events leading up to the launch with all the other Space Geeks.

Before the launch, I urge you to go check out TEDxNASA in Silicon Valley and register for FREE if you can attend. This official TEDx event will be August 17th, 2011 in San Francisco, California. I was honored to attend the recent TEDx Houston event last month and definitely want to see all of you at TEDxNASA if you can make the trip to San Francisco next month!

Great launch photo up top thanks to Flickr user Stuck in Customs

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JJ is leaving Schipul… but not going too far away.

“Parting is such sweet sorrow” ~ Romeo & Juliet

Hello World… Good-Bye Schipul…

I am writing this post to let you know I have made the decision to leave my position here in Schipul-land. It has been an absolutely amazing ride and I am grateful and privileged to have gotten to work and play alongside these fabulously talented folks the last 2 ½ years.

I am not leaving to seek position in another company’ instead I am leaving to seek more time in the company of 2 very special little men in my life, AK & The Z-Man.

With much soul searching and thought I have decided that for this very brief time in my life and in theirs it is incredibly important that I be there in a more hands on way to guide them, encourage them, and support them in being as successfully as they chose to be.

Not to worry… I won’t be too far away. You can always find me at www.jjlassberg.com

I am truly blessed to have gotten the opportunity to work with such brilliant folks. I am a former student and always Aggie – maybe the same is true of Schipulites.

Much Love and Light,

~ JJ

Former Employee, Forever Schipulite

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Come meet us in our new California office!

Schipul opens web design office in San Jose Bay Area

The Schipul and Tendenci support crew are pleased to announce the opening of our second office location in the San Jose Bay Area!

To celebrate, we are offering a discount on moving your website from the Tendenci platform to our great new T5 platform.  Find out more here and be sure to drop by and say hi to April as she works to serve our West Coast clients!

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Decide the Fate of the Houston Astrodome

Photo thanks to Flickr user @cybertoad

Want to help decide the fate of a Houston landmark? Owners of the Reliant Astrodome are considering three possible options for one of Houston’s icons and are asking the public for feedback.

The Astrodome is the first Houston monument I remember seeing in a movie. I was watching   The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training, which had been re-released in technicolor several hundred years prior to the first time I watched it, (I kid…a little) and thought more movies should be made in the Dome.     Then last year the idea of using   the Dome for movie-filming came around again, but the latest ideas include:

  1. Green Space Plaza – Demolish the dome. Build a park-like setting.
  2. Multi-Use Venue – Keep the dome. Gut the inside. Raise the floor.
  3. Nerdtopia! – Keep the dome. Build a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Institute. Include a planetarium. And more.

I’m 100 percent for “NERDTOPIA.” However, that’s not the official name. In fact, nothing’s set in stone just yet. Right now, the Reliant folks are really interested in hearing ideas on the three options they’re considering for the Houston landmark.   They’re asking for feedback, and have dedicated a space on the Reliant site for visitors to send their own ideas or comment on the current ideas. (Remember: there’s no such thing as a dome idea.)

Astrodome History: The Wonder Years

Houston is a city prone to 80 degree weather at 6am, on any given day of any season. And that’s just no bueno, especially for baseball.   The Astrodome,   the world’s first air conditioned, indoor baseball stadium became the solution to   protect Houston fans and players from sweltering   heat and rained out games.

It   was initially called The Harris County Domed Stadium, and nicknamed The Eighth Wonder of the World. The doors opened   Apr. 9, 1965, and   the Houston Astros played their last game on Oct. 9, 1999. Since then, the Dome has been used for a number of functions including The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

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Wordcamp Houston – calling all WordPress lovers!

Schipul is sponsoring Wordcamp Houston

Schipul is proud to be a part of the Wordcamp Houston Conference organizing team – along with design and PR heroes colab and Primer Grey Studios.   We love those guys, we love WordPress…   we’re happy campers.

Wordcamp Houston is the city’s very first WordPress conference – a time for growing your WordPress brain power, connecting with other WordPress fanatics and getting some solid WordPress strategy under your belt.

What: Wordcamp Houston – a day of fantastical WordPress geekiness
When: Saturday, August 7th 2010   8:30am – 4pm (with a fun after party to follow)
Where: The fabulous Houston Museum of Natural Science

There are three different tracks to jump onto, depending on your interest and strategy:   Business / Blogger / Developer

Just getting started?   Have a few years experience to your name?   Sleep, eat and breathe WordPress code?   No problem – we dig each and every last one of you.

And if the great content and camaraderie isn’t enough, we even have Matt Mullenweg keynoting our little WordPress shindig.   That’s right – THE Matt of WordPress founding fame and glory.   Yeah, we’re pretty excited too.

Tickets are on sale now and we still have some exciting sponsorship opportunities available.   Send your team, send your friends and send yourself.   We can’t wait to geek out with you!

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Join our Schipul Get Satisfaction community!

This week the Schipul team launched our new Get Satisfaction client community:   www.getsatisfaction.com/schipul

Think opposite the Rolling Stones song, we are ALL about finding new ways to get you satisfaction (and we try… and we try!!!).

While you hear from US all the time, we want to hear more from YOU!!   and, even more importantly, want to provide a space to contribute your own ideas and requests – as well as connect and collaborate with other Schipul clients.

Our Schipul Get Satisfaction community provides you with an extra spot to stay connected to software updates (and a place to provide feedback on them), a handy FAQ section and other goodies.

This will not replace our Support service (support AT schipul DOT com), but WILL provide you an additional spot to pose + answer questions for each other, share best practices and find like-minded organizations that (we think, at least) are pretty AMAZING.

Want to ease into the process a bit?   No problem.   You can always visit our www.schipul.com/ideas page and submit your ideas.   Think big – anything we should be thinking about, offering client training on or building into our service offerings?   We’re all ears!