Featured News

Newsroom

Michael SiddallAustralian IT professionals are campaigning for Microsoft to reverse its decision to retire the popular TechNet Program, which is widely used to get in-depth technical knowledge of Microsoft products.

On July 1, 2013, Microsoft announced it would discontinue the TechNet subscription program. The last day to purchase a subscription through the TechNet Subscriptions website is August 31, 2013.

IT professionals have launched a campaign to request Microsoft to reconsider its decision or to provide an alternate, low-cost/high quality program to meet the needs of IT Pros worldwide. An online petition at http://savetechnet.com/ has already attracted more than 9000 signatures.

Adelaide-based IT Support Professional Michael Siddall said shutting down TechNet had the potential to adversely affect many IT professionals or people considering a career in IT. “TechNet is very affordable for the many IT professionals who are required to self-train and certify and for those getting into the IT industry,” he said.

 

Paul WoodsEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software specialist EBS (Evolution Business Systems) has strengthened its success in the Not For Profit sector by winning Australian Drug Foundation as a Microsoft Dynamics NAV customer.

The Melbourne-based Australian Drug Foundation is one of Australia’s leading bodies committed to preventing alcohol and other drug problems in communities around the nation.

Celebrating 50 years of service to the community, Australian Drug Foundation reaches more than a million Australians through community sporting clubs and also works with people in governments, workplaces, healthcare settings and schools, offering educational information and health campaigns.

For EBS, its success with Australian Drug Foundation adds to the company’s presence in the Not For Profit sector, joining existing customers including CentraCare Ballarat and Melba Support Services.

David Boag with his rare pearAshbourne Valley Orchards continue to wow the crowds at Willunga Farmers Market with their world-first rare pears. 

The only known commercial grower of the Durondeau pear in the world and the only commercial grower of a number of other varieties in Australia, the Boag family manage 30,000 fruit trees in Ashbourne Valley on the Fleurieu Peninsula.

David Boag, family patriarch, rescued a number of rare fruit trees from a research farm that closed down in the Adelaide Hills in the 80s. Keeping the best performing rare varieties the family have been able to carve a niche in the market.

‘The rare varieties we grow came simply out of my Dad’s experimentation,’ David’s son Ross says. 

Australian software developer Alltraders has appointed Eli Burford as the new manager of its web team, which designs and hosts websites using the Joomla! and WordPress content management systems.

Eli, who will retain his current senior designer duties, will lead a well-established department that consists of Web Developer Michael Garratt and Search Engine Optimisation expert August Boehm.

Jared Green, who previously led the web team, has joined the Alltraders Custom Software Division, where he plans to take full advantage of his software engineering skills.

Alltraders Chief Information Officer Michael O’Loughlin said this redeployment of resources aimed to meet demand for the company’s Custom Software development services. “The web division is a mature part of our revenue stream, whereas demand for our custom software is growing strongly,” he said.