Project Phoenix

Project Phoenix, started by SQL Server MVP Arnie Rowland, is a program which awards software, tools and training materials to under/unemployed developers who propose a software project for a non-profit agency, school or church. In Arnie’s own words …

The idea is to provide the recipient access to all of the tools needed to improve his/her skills, an opportunity to gain practical experience, the potential to earn a recommendation and/or referral –and to positively contribute to society as a form of ‘give-back’. No free lunch, just sweat equity –the kind that makes us all feel good for the effort

With Arnie’s support, Rod Colledge is proud to run the Australian and New Zealand arm of the program.

All selected developers will receive a Microsoft Visual Studio Ultimate with MSDN subscription (~ $12,000 USD value), and some or all of the following;

• Telerik Ultimate Collection for .NET,
• Prometric exam voucher, redeemable for any 070-xxx exam,
• Additional details to follow shortly …

Project Criteria:

• Client is an Australian or New Zealand non-profit, school or church,
• Solves a problem or satisfies a need for the client,
• Client desires the project and is supportive,
• Uses any combination of .NET 4.0, Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008, or Windows Phone 7,
• May be a new software solution, or an upgrade to an existing software solution,
• Additional consideration given projects that will be posted on Codeplex with a GPL license

An eligible developer may submit project proposal information here.

An eligible non-profit may submit a project proposal here. Eligible developers without a project proposal may select from one of the available projects listed below:

• Victorian Caravan Parks Association

The Victorian Caravan Parks Association exists to represent the body of individual caravan park operators in legislative lobbying and to assist / provide advice to members on a whole range of operational issues associated with running a caravan park (www.vicparks.com.au). We have a small staff of 3 people servicing over 400 member parks. We are currently using a customized Access database to manage members and membership data. The author of the application is no longer available and the functionality is insufficient in this day and age. We need a system to manage our membership data, billing / aged debtors, CRM, Conference management and website integration. Although there are a number of high end systems available, these are designed for organisations with hundreds of employees and are priced way outside our budget

• Australian Volunteer Coastguard

The Australian Volunteer Coastguard requires a system to record and manage vessel trip information including vessel type and registration number, number of passengers, departure time and location, destination location, estimated time of arrival, etc.

Supporting MVPs;

• Greg Low, Melbourne, Australia
• Arnie Rowland, Portland, Oregon, USA
• Darren Gosbell, Melbourne, Australia
• Rod Colledge, Brisbane, Australia

For more information on this project, email me or read this post and this one.