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17th May 2011

Softchoice Appoints Employees To Lead Charitable Giving Strategy

softchoiceIT solutions and services provider Softchoice Corporation has announced that a group of 15 employees will take responsibility for directing the Company’s fundraising and charitable giving activities over the next 18-months. As members of the Softchoice Cares Board, their role will be to guide and support employee-led activities aimed at raising money for access to technology and computer literacy programs across North America and around the world.

“I would like to welcome our new board and give heartfelt thanks for the hard work and dedication of our outgoing members,” said Karly Pierce, a Technical Architect for Softchoice and the new Chairman of the Softchoice Cares Board. “With our new board in place, I look forward to continuing to inspire and engage the Softchoice community in a mission that goes beyond the day-to-day management of our business.”

Softchoice Cares’ mission is to use technology to create opportunities for education and personal advancement to help people of all walks achieve their potential. In 2010, Softchoice employees raised $250,000 dollars through trivia nights, a curling bonspiel, raffles, bake sales and more. This money has been used to support a number of technology-related causes, including the creation of a computer lab for 150 children at a local primary school in Tangalle, Sri Lanka. Softchoice Cares also undertook a joint partnership with Habitat for Humanity to provide home computers to 563 families across the United States.

“I am constantly inspired by the leadership and commitment of our people,” said David MacDonald, President and CEO of Softchoice. “Through Softchoice Cares, we continue to broaden our impact as a company by helping help those in need in our local communities and around the world.”

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17th May 2011

Yellow Pages Group Launches API Dev Program

yellow pages groupWith digital development forming the next frontier of local search, Yellow Pages Group (YPG), Canada’s leading performance media and marketing solutions company, launched today a program devoted to supporting Canadian application developers and aspiring entrepreneurs in building location-based services they can take to market.

YPG’s YellowAPI Developer Program will help web and mobile application developers, across all platforms including iOS, Blackberry and Android, in producing their apps through BETA funding as well as access to internal YPG resources such as consultation on design, quality assurance, legal guidance and technical assistance.

“Entrepreneurship in Canada has long been a focus of ours as we’ve been helping small and medium-sized business grow through our marketing solutions. With the YellowAPI Developer Program, we continue to foster small businesses and also help drive forward local search innovation,” said Stéphane Marceau, Chief Marketing Officer at Yellow Pages Group. “It’s also a natural extension of our existing business model to extend the reach of our advertisers by feeding our listings to up-and-coming apps developed using our public platform.”

The program marks the latest step in the company’s commitment to fostering home-grown mobile and web-based innovation. YellowAPI.com, the open and public API (application programming interface) of YPG was launched last year, providing developers access to 1.5 million verified and regularly updated Canadian business listings, forming the most accurate source of local business information in the country.

Over the last year, YPG has sponsored and hosted a series of “hack-a-thons” across Canada under the banner of YellowAPI.com. These events saw developers gather and compete to produce a viable web or mobile application using a given API within a set period of time.

“It was from these events that the idea for a developer program was born,” continued Marceau. “We were seeing so many incredibly original and really cool apps being created in a matter of hours by local developers. However, these guys have day jobs and obligations. Often because of time or resource constraints, these amazing apps weren’t making it out of the event and into the app stores. With this program, we’re hoping more home-grown apps will make it into the hands of users.”

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Five participants in these hack events have already been accepted into the YellowAPI Developer Program, with application concepts devoted to original search methods for restaurants, contractor and renovation services as well as location-planning for social events. The first four participants in the program, will push their applications live over the coming weeks:

  • Reservely: An automated text to voice (speech) restaurant reservation system
  • MoodFood: A restaurant discovery app based on users’ moods of the moment
  • Rendezview: A social meet up and recommendation app which suggests convenient meeting locations for friends
  • FinishMyBasement: A home improvement tool guiding users through the steps of renovation and provides contractor recommendations
  • DealScanr: A shopping app devoted to locating the best deals near a given location

YPG expects to be accepting more developers into the program over the coming months.

Submissions to the YellowAPI Developer Program are accepted on a rolling basis and evaluated by a YPG selection committee based on criteria such as:

  • Originality of concept
  • Addressing a user need
  • Ability to generate local search traffic
  • Integration of YellowAPI
  • Commercial viability
  • Developer commitment to application support for a minimum 12-month period

The program also provides developers the opportunity to monetize their applications. If their app is successful in driving significant amounts of quality traffic, they can be compensated by YPG.

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17th May 2011

E-Debit Global Corporation Initiates Transition To Digital

edebit globalCalgary-based electronic payment processor E-Debit Global Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary Westsphere Systems Inc. has commenced transition of its communication network for its financial switching operations from analog to digital.

“Over the past 14 months WSI, our electronic payment processing unit has been working with our communication partner Shaw Communications to transition our switching communication from analog to digital (copper telephone lines to fiber broadband).

Our WSI business unit offers debit and credit payment processing solutions and connectivity to the Canadian Interac Network and Credit Facilitators. Our initial introduction of our ATM network to our fiber communication system has been exceptional. Our experience to date has met the challenge of the new requirements related to chip based card product processing and EMV protocols and at the same time has increase speed of transaction processing by a minimum of 25%,” advised WSI Chief Operating Officer Sonja Dreyer.

“Once we transition over our ATM and POS estates we will be able to expand our focus towards our custom payment solutions across a wide range of communication protocols including private-label, travel & entertainment and fleet cards as well as expanding our reach within the Canadian ATM and POS marketplace with contracted switching services to the Canadian ISO (“Independent Sales Organizations”).

With this transition we are now in total control of our communication protocols and significantly reduced our reliance on non affiliated contracted managed services to connect, operated and service our switching platform and to give our guarantee of the best of industry transaction processing in the most secure, stable, reliable and high performance environment to our existing client base and our future ISO potentials which we are going to aggressively pursue,” Ms. Dreyer stated.

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17th May 2011

On-Board Data Systems Aviation Docs Cleared For Take-Off

on-board data systemsOn-Board Data Systems has announced the release of Aviation Docs™, a paperless flight deck solution for business jet fleet operators to securely and selectively route all documents, emails and flight plans to pilots’ Apple iPads. Pilots can now capitalize on electronic features, such as search, hyperlink and annotation support. This new release provides fleets with a new standard in document delivery that is economical, reliable and compliant with regulations for paperless operation.

Pilots around the world have discovered that the Apple iPad is an ideal device to replace traditional flight bags as an “Electronic Flight Bag” (EFB). Aviation Docs™ is a suite of tools and services offered by On-Board Data Aviation Docs Program FlowSystems (OBDS), leveraging advanced cloud technology to provide fast, reliable and secure delivery of documents to Apple iPads and traditional Windows-based EFBs anywhere in the world.

The system simplifies the task of ensuring that all electronic documents, flight manuals, training manuals, revisions and flight plans are in the pilots’ hands, up-to-date, well organized and that the process is compliant with FAA, Transport Canada and other jurisdictional regulations regarding paperless operation.

“I’ve been looking for something like this for 3 years. I can’t thank you enough for this tool”, says Joseph Mann, Manager of Flight Technology at XOJET a busy Silicon Valley Part 135 jet fleet, who recently began using Aviation Docs.

The software is intuitive and adapts to the unique requirements of fleet management. Fleet managers, jet librarians and flight dispatchers are provided with the Aviation Docs™ Ground Console that allows them to drag-and drop electronic copies of their manuals, documents, and notices into online routing folders that transfer the correct documents to the correct aircraft. Documents can be routed to one plane, all planes of the same type, the entire fleet, or to special libraries customized for the fleet. Another feature allows email to be similarly routed in this targeted manner. Pilots are automatically notified documents are waiting for them. By simply pressing one button, all documents are retrieved, organized in the appropriate folder, and an audit trail is generated.

Many fleets employ pilots to fly several aircraft. An “instant aircraft switch” feature allows the pilot to select the aircraft they’re flying from a list, and the document library switches instantly to that aircraft, thus allowing one iPad to serve several aircraft. Read the rest of this entry »

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17th May 2011

Digital Journal Assignments Technology Manages Blogosphere Like A Newsroom

digital journalDigital Journal has reported a strong response to its updated content assignment and tracking technology, launched earlier this month across the Digital Journal media network. The technology allows Digital Journal to effectively manage and measure content assignments among its global group of freelance writers and bloggers, known as Digital Journalists.

“In a traditional newsroom, you have editors who work with teams of journalists to assign content and map out the content flow for the day,” said Digital Journal CEO, Chris Hogg. “But if you work with thousands of freelancers and bloggers, managing that workflow is far more difficult. Our Assignments technology improves the efficiency of a virtual newsroom and assists in executing on virtually any content goal.”

Digital Journal Assignments are editor-created content assignments that are pushed out to a network of Digital Journalists who file stories and complete assignments based on particular geography, content verticals or trending topics. Assignments can range from editorial to photographic to video. Digital Journalists who fulfill Assignments before their deadline are paid a bonus for their work, and Assignments can scale from individual to group reports around particular subjects. Read the rest of this entry »

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17th May 2011

Karta Mobile Launches Viira 3.0

Karta MobileKarta Mobile has announced the immediate availability of version 3.0 of its popular BlackBerry GTD software application Viira™. Designed for busy people who want to stay organized and get things done with their BlackBerry smartphone, Viira™ provides an easy-to-use yet powerful organizational system that makes staying on top of one’s to-dos, commitments, projects, communications and priorities a cinch.

Based on the principles of David Allen’s Getting Things Done® (GTD®) (great book, I recommend it), Viira empowers people to leverage the principles of GTD with a BlackBerry smartphone and helps them achieve an organized and productive life. viira 3.0Version 3.0 adds significant additions and enhancements to Viira’s feature set including an In-Basket for new or unassigned tasks, fast iterative search, task reminders, BlackBerry tasks integration and the option to quickly hide completed tasks, among many others. An In-Basket is a pivotal tool for the collection phase of GTD and enables the quick and effective gathering of all outstanding tasks and “loose ends” for their subsequent organization and classification.

The development team behind Viira has a long track record of pushing the limits of what is possible on a mobile device in order to bring the most comprehensive and intuitive portable solution for GTD on the BlackBerry platform. In addition to tasks, to-dos and reminders, Viira’s organizational system is the only one to incorporate appointments, events as well as email and SMS messages. The Viira product family is also the first to provide an integrated BlackBerry-Outlook solution for Getting Things Done. The Viira Outlook Suite is the first GTD Outlook software application to wirelessly synchronize Microsoft Outlook with a BlackBerry smartphone to provide one unified, accessible-from-anywhere organizational system for Getting Things Done.

“Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” is a best-selling time management book by David Allen that shows readers how to organize their tasks, information and commitments in an intuitive and effective way. The principles of the book have received global media attention and have been embraced by millions of professionals, entrepreneurs and executives around the world. BlackBerry smartphones are the productivity and communication platforms of choice for many busy professionals and fans of Getting Things Done.

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17th May 2011

New Version of Support Express From BeAnywhere

cad crowdCAD Crowd, an online matching service that helps companies hire global CAD workers, is pleased to announce a partnership with CADENAS GmbH. With CADENAS’ innovative new design catalogue technology, the CAD Crowd Part Community has successfully been launched. Pre-existing designs will allow companies to use the library of pre-constructed CAD models for reduced costs, reduced lead time as well as enhanced productivity for engineers and technologies. The CAD Crowd Part Community now allows CAD Crowd clients access to over 300 catalogues of 3D CAD standard design parts. Best of all, these drawings are provided free to engineers, architects, drafters and CAD technologists.

BeAnywhereToronto’s BeAnywhere Inc. a remote access and remote support technologies provider for SMB and Domestic Users, has launched its most recent version of Support Express, the Windows remote support solution for companies of all sizes.

With BeAnywhere Support Express, companies can deliver instant, on-demand remote support to any computer in the world, even through firewalls or non-standard Internet configurations. Support providers or internal helpdesk departments can manage, maintain and control unattended computers, as well as assisting several Support Expressmachines simultaneously to increase productivity. Support Express uses a blazing fast, proprietary peer-to-peer network protocol that is up to 30% faster than similar technologies. It is fully compatible with Microsoft’s User Account Control and Active Directory technologies, supporting every Windows operating system from 2000 up to Windows 7. It supports detailed reporting and video recording of the sessions in the cloud, as well as several methods of connection.

BeAnywhere Support Express 2 is the result of several months of development and beta testing in close contact with BeAnywhere’s community of users. “Over the last months, the response of our users has been amazing, with hundreds of comments, suggestions and requests arriving after each new beta version we published,” said Ruben Dias, CEO of BeAnywhere, Inc. “This new version combines the performance of our network with dozens of new features and enhancements that bring the remote support experience to a whole new level.”

The last version of Support Express adds several features and refinements like:

• Immediate support request notification with exclusive InstaConnect technology and a new applet, 20% faster.
• Enhanced Reboot & Reconnect with autologon allows the remote technician to perform unattended reboots and log back into Windows without knowing the system credentials or requiring a local user to log in locally, even from the support applet and without administrator permissions.
• New full screen mode, perfected with the feedback from the community of users.
• Revamped disconnect procedures now make locking the remote machine optional.

Support Express is available in four plans, including one free edition, and can also be purchased on a pay-as-you-go basis.

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17th May 2011

Social Media Connects Family Literacy Programs in Alberta

On Friday, May 20, family literacy practitioners in Alberta will roll up their sleeves and build their social media capacity. They’ll learn how to leverage the power of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to get connected in a digital age to other non-profit organizations and to the community.

Dr. Sarah Elaine Eaton, a specialist in marketing of language and literacy programs will present at the Food for Thought conference, organized by the Centre for Family Literacy. (note: registration is now closed for this event)

Eaton will deliver a hands-on workshop designed to teach program directors, administrators, practitioners and volunteers how to leverage the power of social media in a literacy program. Participants will bring their laptops and spend time registering for and using Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.Dr. Sarah Eaton

“Typically, literacy experts have deep knowledge about teaching learners to read and write, and are somewhat hesitant to delve into the world of new media literacy,” says Eaton, who has presented internationally on the topic of social media in the education and non-profit sectors. “By getting them to open an account, create a Facebook page and try their first Tweet in a collaborative environment, we can engage in meaningful conversations about how to use social media constructively to promote the good work they do in literacy to help our local communities.”

Eaton, who holds a PhD in Educational Leadership,  is one of the world’s top experts on marketing and promotion of second language and literacy programs. She founded Eaton International Consulting Inc. in 2001 to help educational and non-profit organizations. She is the author of 101 Ways to Market Your Language Program and is an international speaker, who has presented on her work in seven countries.

The conference happens in Edmonton on May 19 and 20, 2011 at the FantasyLand Hotel.

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17th May 2011

Canadian Execs Drowning In Information

sasAlmost half of Canadian executives still say the amount of information they have overwhelms them, showing no statistical improvement from last year, though there has been some change at the provincial and industry level, with some showing improvement while others are facing an uphill challenge. These are just some of the findings from a SAS/Leger Marketing survey released yesterday. Overall, 45 per cent of executives in 2011 said they are overwhelmed by information, compared with 47 per cent last year.

This year, executives from Ontario and British Columbia are far less likely to say they suffer from information overload. In 2010, 52 per cent of B.C. and Ontario-based executives said they faced information overload, versus 38 and 44 per cent (respectively) this year.

While most provinces and business sectors showed little change, there were a few that saw things deteriorate. Those in the academic and education sectors were far more likely to say things have gotten worse – 42 per cent in 2010 versus 61 per cent in 2011 saying they suffer from information overload.

“Organizations often need to make significant procedural changes to effectively address information overload,” said Kathryn Brohman, Professor, Management Information Systems, School of Business, Queen’s University. “For organizations to be successful combating information overload they need both the right technology and the right procedures.”

Canadian executives understand that in today’s information age it is not about having all information, rather having the right information. Eighty per cent said they’d make better informed business decisions if they had the right tools in place to analyze information more effectively, yet 1 in 4 (24 per cent) say they do not have the right information to make effective business decisions about their business performance. Read the rest of this entry »

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