Are there any good tech companies in Chicago?

[TotallyIgnored]

Hello everyone, I have been happily employed for a nice family owned business for several years, but at this point I would like to move on to a position that pays a little more. I like to create new products, software development, electronics, etc. However, it seems like my quest for a job in my field might be in vain. Someone said Chicago is mainly a working class city, and when I search for ads on CareerBuilder, it seems like most tech jobs are in finance, or some other abstract field, but I rarely see tech jobs offered by a tech firm. I like to actually create things, otherwise I feel weird when money just flows in and it's not the result of having actually built anything -- I'm weird that way. Also, I do not want to move because my g/f lives here, and I'm not going to just up and leave her for money. Does anyone have any suggestions? Does Chicago have any companies for (for lack of a better term) nerds like myself?