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Ottawa – The Honourable Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women), today announced federal support for a project entitled Supporting Women’s Leadership in the Advanced Technology Sectors. Run by the Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance, Women in Technology (CATA WIT), the project will encourage more women to consider the advanced technology field, and help those women already working in the field to improve the skills, knowledge and expertise they need for success.

CATA WIT will receive $405,000 over two fiscal years for the project entitled Supporting Women’s Leadership in the Advanced Technology Sectors. It will use mentoring and other tools to help break down barriers facing women. During the project:

• 135 women will participate in development and mentorship workshops on networking
and improved leadership skills;
• 75 women will help identify leading practices for women in the sector;
• 60 women will help develop the tools that support and promote the participation of
women; and
• 25,000 men and women business leaders will increase their knowledge of best practices
with respect to growth-oriented, women-owned firms.

“This industry is growing by leaps and bounds – estimates are that up to 89,000 new information
and communications technology jobs will be created over the next three to five years,” said
Minister Guergis. “There are thousands of women ready to explore and expand the opportunities
available to them in this exciting sector of our economy. Through partnerships with organizations
like CATA WIT, our Government is working to ensure that those women have the tools they need to succeed in this field – for when women prosper, Canada prospers.”

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A Good Life for Youth with Disabilities Beyond High School

Toronto – PLAN Institute for Caring Citizenship and TakingITGlobal announced today the launch of a new online community to support young people with disabilities. BeyondGraduation.ca is a facilitated online community focusing on employment and ensuring opportunities for contribution and community engagement beyond high school.

“Beyond Graduation is about providing a safe and comfortable environment for young people to share inspiring stories and plan for a bright future” says Jennifer Corriero, co-Founder and Executive Director of TakingITGlobal. “It provides youth and their families networking tools and resources, enabling access to the available opportunities that can help them reach their goals.”

Community building is an important component of the new social networking site. Connecting members to each other creates a support network of friends who share their experiences. TakingITGlobal used its expertise in managing a global online community for social change to inform the development of BeyondGraduation.ca.

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Ottawa – In 1999, David Skoll founded a one-man Linux consulting shop and called it Roaring Penguin Software.  In 2002, David left his solo consulting practice behind and decided to concentrate his company’s efforts exclusively on solving the then relatively new problem of spam.  Roaring Penguin was re-focused with a vision of a world without spam.  Ten years later spam is still here, but Roaring Penguin’s customers wouldn’t know it.  Since 1999, Roaring Penguin has achieved consistent revenue growth to become a small, privately held, profitable, software development company based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

“I am truly humbled by this anniversary,” said David Skoll, President and CTO of Roaring Penguin Software.  “I set out ten years ago to promote Linux as a solution to the networking and computing needs of businesses and government agencies in Ottawa.  Shortly after I started I decided to take on the problem of spam.  It has been ten great years of both personal and professional growth.  I want to say thank you to the many friends of Roaring Penguin who have helped us on our way with advice and encouragement.  I want to say thank you to all the employees, both past and present, who have helped me to achieve my dream.  And most of all, I want to thank our customers who have helped us design the best anti-spam solutions in the world.”
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Vancouver – The British Columbia Innovation Council is pleased to welcome PMC-Sierra founder Greg Aasen as Chair of its Board of Directors. “The council has accomplished much in the way of fostering both technical and business talent,” Aasen said. “I look forward to continuing this work in my role as chair, and unleashing the full economic potential of innovation in British Columbia.”

Aasen was chief strategy officer at PMC-Sierra until June 2007 and has over 20 years of experience with the semiconductor industry. He has served on the BC Innovation Council board since 2006 and has been appointed to a one-year term as chair.

“Greg Aasen is highly qualified and will continue to build on what the council has already achieved under the leadership of Hector MacKay-Dunn,” said Ida Chong, Minister of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development “I look forward to celebrating the council’s continued success in supporting innovation and commercialization to provide a high standard of living for British Columbians.”

Two new members have also been appointed to serve three-year terms on the board:

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Sault STE. Marie – The annual Future Play Conference on the future of game development has become an event that gets circled on the calendars of the gaming world’s top scholars, students and industry leaders. With 2009 keynote speakers that include games pioneer and guru Don Daglow and Ben Sawyer of Digitalmill, this year promises to be no exception.

With the 2009 Future Play Conference now partnered with the Game Developers Conference® (GDC Canada), there will now be even more opportunities for participants to benefit from influential speakers, thought-provoking panel discussions and valuable networking opportunities.

“I have a high regard for the role of Future Play in the game research and development vista in Canada,” says University of Calgary Professor Jim Parker, a long-time Future Play participant. “I was an early participant in Future Play, since 2004 in fact, when it was still named the Game Technology Conference, and I have been enthusiastic ever since. It has been the home of many innovations, such as the game contest in 2007 and in acting as host for the Canadian Game Studies Association in its early stages.”
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Vancouver – Tritone is proud to introduce “Javakeys“, the latest advanced feature for its online music education systems. “Javakeys” is a virtual keyboard interface, enhancing the design of Tritone’s e-learning tools, and expanding the interaction between the computer and “Javatrax” – Tritone’s music performance evaluation engine.

Javatrax provides web based performance evaluations for music played into the system via a music keyboard interface. Javatrax threading technology creates three evaluations simultaneously and immediately provides a graphic display of note, timing and expressional errors made. Virtual Performance recordings and evaluations are saved in CourseWatch 2.0 – Tritone’s web based data management system – for later review and playback by both teacher and student. Javatrax is an integral part of the overall Tritone Music Series online education system used to teach such musical elements as note reading, ear training, rhythm, and more.

“Javakeys” was designed as part of a solution to a number of Tritone’s original goals. The Tritone Music Series was designed and is best used with an electronic music keyboard. Ideally every student in every class using our system should have access an electronic keyboard. For distant learning situations or virtual school activities, they should also have one at home. We know this is not always possible and “Javakeys” overcomes the obstacle.

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Application Deadline Extended To March 16 2009

Banff – The Global Writers Apprentice Programme offers emerging Canadian writers with the unprecedented opportunity to gain significant experience by completing a four-week internship in the story department of a prime-time series. The winners will be selected by a three person jury. Successful applicants will be invited to attend the Banff World Television Festival on a full access pass. The program is open to individual writers as well as to established writing teams who have a track record together.

Before attending BANFF, they will work on their series pitches and pitching techniques in one-on-one sessions with the Program Director.

Qualifications

Successful applicants must be able to demonstrate an expertise in dramatic screenwriting. Preference will be given to those individuals who have at least a half hour of produced drama.

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AdviceScene.com is the first fully moderated, social networking community linking Lawyers and the Public, providing a free and democratic exchange of legal resources in Canada

Victoria BC – AdviceScene.com launches the first Canadian website delivering free law information from lawyers to the public. AdviceScene.com is a fully moderated, social networking community linking lawyers and the public providing a free and democratic exchange of legal resources in Canada.

“AdviceScene.com is where Canadians go to get legal questions answered,” said Kinney who writes a legal blog in Canada. “I believe that an effective legal system includes an open, transparent and public discussion of how laws affect our lives and how the law may be applied. Democratizing the law system means making the laws we all have to answer to more accessible for everyone.”

Kinney went on to say that having lawyers participate on the site is a key component. Many people search online for legal information that is readily available; though much information is either incorrect or does not apply.

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With the highest sales growth in North America, Annex Pro Is Named As The Top Autodesk M+E Dealer in Canada

Vancouver/Las Vegas – At its annual channel partner conference, One Team Conference (OTC), Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) honored Annex Pro for the second year in a row, by inducting them into Platinum Club 2009, an elite group recognized for top sales performance and outstanding customer service in fiscal year 2009.

“The Autodesk Platinum Club comprises a talented group of professionals dedicated to our customers,” said Steve Blum, Autodesk senior vice president of Americas Sales.

Annex Pro, a Vancouver-based value-added reseller, was recognized for having the highest sales growth in North America for Autodesk Media and Entertainment, and also has the highest sales volume in Canada. “There is no team like the Annex Pro team!” said Kerry Corlett, President and founder of Annex Pro. “Without false modesty, I have to say we’ve earned this. Annex Pro works hard towards the success of our customers, and to be recognized in this way by Autodesk is a genuine honor.”
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Vancouver – Panoramic Software Inc., a software development company, announces the launch of Panoramic Phone Genius. Comprised of three applications, Contacts Genius, Call Genius and Area Code Genius, together with a customizable Today Screen plug-in, Panoramic Phone Genius has been developed to give you all of the calling features a modern Smartphone should have while making the experience intuitive and easy.

Call Genius displays the location of the number calling you and allows you to set custom calling rules or to block unwanted callers. A Today Screen plug-in allows the user to quickly set their phone to different profiles.

Contacts Genius gives you the freedom to easily manage your Windows Mobile contacts with your finger tips.  Flip between two customizable favorite screens for quick access to your most frequently used contacts. An easy to use touch kinetic scroll menu allows you to find the person you are looking for in seconds. Check and sort your phone contacts call/SMS history with ease.
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