Companies are faced with increasing demands on their information management capabilities, and the available data storage tools and technologies are evolving rapidly. A Storage Networking User Group (SNUG) is taking shape in Silicon Valley to help educate information technology professionals and enable them to exchange information with their peers and other knowledge experts. "Storage Networking User Groups are a great way for IT professionals to find out what others are doing with storage in their respective organizations," said Marc Farley, one of the six Silicon Valley SNUG founders and president of Building Storage Inc. "The informal tone of the meetings encourages attendees and presenters to relax and engage each other openly. Like other user groups, SNUGs are great for professional networking and for staying informed on the latest industry trends." The Silicon Valley SNUG is one of twenty-three SNUGs in North America. These SNUGs are supported by StorageNetworking.org, a university-based, non-profit initiative whose mission is to address the educational needs of data storage technology users. The initiative stimulates the creation of SNUGs, manages an online resource portal, and advocates the expansion of university-based educational offerings focused on data storage topics. "We are very excited that so many data storage users have stepped forward and embraced the SNUG concept," said Elizabeth Hickman, marketing manager for StorageNetworking.org. "Through the more than ninety meetings that have taken place thus far in SNUG communities, participants have discussed issues ranging from backup and restore to security to virtualization. We are excited to launch a SNUG in Silicon Valley, the epicenter of the IT industry." The Silicon Valley SNUG's first meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, June 29th from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Library in downtown San Jose. David Deming, founder, president and CTO of Solution Technology, will present "New Trends in Storage Networking Technology." For details visit its Website. StorageNetworking.org is managed by the Information Storage Industry Center at the University of California San Diego. The initiative is funded through foundation grants and charitable gifts. Current sponsors include the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA), Hewlett-Packard, McDATA, Computer Associates, EMC Corporation, Engenio Information Technologies, Inc., Trainer Communications, Rainfinity, NeoScale Systems, Inc., Servergraph, Storage magazine, InfoStor magazine, and Byte and Switch.