SXSW Interactive launched its Panel Picker.  That means it’s time to let them know what you want to learn from Rackers.   Here’s the list of the 11 potential Rackspace panel topics.

• My Workplace is Better Than Yours – Creating Workplace Pride
• Managing a Crisis in a Hyper-Communicative World
• Can you run a “Serverless” Business?
• Building and Creating New Business Models in the Cloud
• How To Pick the Right Cloud Infrastructure For Your Business
• Stop Whining and Put IT In the Cloud
• OMG My Customer Has a Megaphone
• Customer Support for Cloud Computing? Yes? No? Maybe So?
• Using Hadoop to Manage a Ton of Data
• Startup 2.0: Let Your Company Fund It!
• Navigating Cloud Application Development Challenges

Now that you’ve familiarized yourself with the panels, go here to vote for the ones you want to see at SXSW Interactive. You’ll need to create an account to vote, but it’s not a big painful deal. You can vote more than once but not on one particular panel.  You can also vote for other Interactive Panels, Music and Film Events:  Interactive, Film, Music

For more information about SXSW, visit http://sxsw.com/interactive/

Voting closes Sept. 4.

Looks like quite a few people are digging what we’re doing here @Rackcloud.

Recently, the web research shop InfiniBase wanted to know who the leader of the pack was in cloud providers.  The numbers hadn’t been run yet, so they examined more than 500,000 sites to discern what companies are in the cloud and which companies host them.   We are stoked that Rackspace is a “dominant” force in the cloud market.  The full article can be found here.

Earlier this week, Patrick Walravens, on-demand and enterprise software analyst at JMP Securities, interviewed Lew Moorman surrounding Rackspace’s cloud strategy. The conversation covered Rackspace’s evolution as a leader in cloud computing, including the company’s current service offerings and its strategy going forward.  What differentiates Rackspace’s Cloud offering? What are some opportunities for growth?

Check out the video below to see Lew give the scoop on the Rackspace Cloud Suite.

Cloud Computing: JMP Securities Interviews Rackspace Hosting from Rackspace Hosting on Vimeo.

This past weekend over 100 Rackers gathered at 8am on Saturday morning to transform Walzem Elementary School. Walzem Elementary is one of the schools that Rackspace has dubbed the “Magnificent Seven” – the seven schools that are a part of the Roosevelt Cluster. Walzem Elementary is the second school Rackspace has adopted with our partner, North East Independent School District, since moving to the company’s new office off Walzem Road. Rackspace Chairman, Graham Weston, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Alicia Thomas, and Principal Laura Huggins were all there to provide words of gratitude before the project began.

In just over four hours, Rackers pulled together and produced an outstanding project:

• Beautiful core value posters throughout the school
• New artwork and Walzem Elementary Logos on two stairwells
• Upgrades to both teacher lounges with new furniture, paint, and art!
• A new mediation room for teachers to relax!
• A new HUGE banner welcoming people into the school
• A stage full of supplies for the entire school!
• Upgrades to both computer labs with beautiful art work
• An new outdoor classroom that includes:
o A sensory garden for the kids with 10 planter beds
o A new mulched pathway
o A new landscaped stone garden
o Outdoor seating
o New trees and flowers
• An amazing mural that was hand drawn for Walzem Elementary!

Principal Laura Huggins couldn’t believe the change that had occurred in one day! According to Laura, “I can’t wait to show my students all the learning opportunities that are available in the new outdoor classroom!”

See below for a video of the project:

Pens and paper in hand, the future Rackers’ eyes scoured the enormous wall for words.
The Girls Inc.ers had 16 minutes to find at least 30 out of 3000+ words hidden in the world’s largest word search that’s painted on the wall in the Castle – Rackspace’s Windsor Park Mall offices.

The rules: Write down what you find. Yes, “lol” counts.

Looks like the team building exercise from earlier paid off.

"Building Some Sweet Structures"

Haley teamed up and found 148 words, breaking the previous day’s record of 100 words in 30 minutes.

"148 words in 16 minutes - a new Girls Inc record."

For rockin’ like Rackers, they took home some major bragging rights, a goodie bag, and hopefully an understanding of what it feels like to be a woman in a corporate environment. Rackers Adrianna Bustamante and Jamie Waltman chatted with the girls about their personal experiences on their career path as well as what they wished people had told them when they were 10. (Thanks ladies!)

After some big hugs goodbye, they cheered for us out front. See below for the video:

Do you want to deploy some form of ‘Rich Media’ online? With so many things to consider, first and foremost on your mind is probably HOW: host it yourself or outsource it? How much will this cost? Do you have the right people to make it successful?

Asking and answering the right questions sets you up to succeed; because a failed or broken media campaign can be far more damaging than no campaign at all.

Three key factors to a successful online campaign of any kind are delivery, availability and performance. Learn more about how to launch your rich media campaign here.

In this ongoing series, we will help you ask and answer these and many other questions.

In the early hours of Saturday morning when most San Antonians were sleeping off their Friday, more than 30 Rackers transformed the Respite Care Center of San Antonio. They overhauled their computer hardware by setting up new desktops which were donated by Dell and ramped up their offsite storage support a la Rackspace. NPower made over their website and Respite Care’s hosting is now deep in the heart of Rackspace. Rackers brought their “Rack Power” to the yard, trimming some unruly shrubs and yanking out weeds. Respite Care’s Najim and Davidson Homes now have a fresh coat of paint. Afterwards, the Rack Gives Back team put some burgers and hot dogs on the grill and hung out with the kids. Check out photos from Saturday on our Facebook page.