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Tech-neighborhood Newsletter
February 2007

The New Year is always a good time to review where you have been, where you are now, and where you are headed in the future. This is no different for BluegrassNet: we go through the same self-assessments every year, and this year we would like to share them with you.

2007 is already off to a blazing start for BluegrassNet. There are several major initiatives that are already underway. We have started a major power upgrade to the collocation facilities. We have doubled our electrical capacity to the data rooms. This includes the installation of a second enterprise-grade battery backup system.

We are also re-engineering our entire core network as well as introducing gigarouters and gigaswitches to the infrastructure. This will accommodate the changing usages of the Internet.

BluegrassNet is now in the initial steps of deploying our commercial-grade wireless data network in regional Louisville; expanding our service capabilities for our customers. We are now offering residential wireless broadband to selected areas as well. If you have customers that are interested in learning more about BGN wireless give us a call to confirm that they are in our coverage area.

Our VOIP operation has already been proven as a viable alternative to other brand-name commercial systems in 2006. This year, we plan to further expand this service for an even more robust solution.

Most know BGN is also extensively involved in software development projects. Our flagship project is a complete enterprise application that we developed for Regional Youth Services, a foster care agency in Jeffersonville, Indiana. This new product allowed us to successfully take a 12-year-old application that was developed in Visual Basic with a Microsft Access database, and convert it into a Web-browser based, Unix/SQL system. Not only did this rewrite solve problems that were increasing with the old application, but it also allowed us to deliver a product that is open to many enhancements.

The one big change we see happening in BGND software development is working with a .NET environment. In the past, BGN has strictly focused on open source development platforms. Today, our customers are using these platforms, and to better service them we will be working on both open source and Microsoft development platforms.

We are very optimistic that 2007 will be the best year yet for BluegrassNet. We have alwasys believed in building a strong relationship within the industry to support it. It is a resolution of ours to continue to grow the relationship we have with all of our resellers.

Norman Schippert
CEO/President

BGN New Recommendation

Is your company or a customer considering switching over to a Voice over the Internet system in the near future? If so, the engineers of BGN would recommend the Dell 3424P. This is a 24 port PoE switch. We also recommend the TrendNet 16 port switch with 8 PoE ports. Both are excellent for small to medium sized businesses that are looking to grow and can easily fit into any IT budget.

Dell3424P Switch

TrendNet 16 port Switch

Abbott and Costello Buying a Computer

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?
COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den, and I'm thinking about buying a computer.
ABBOTT: Mac?
COSTELLO: No, the names Lou.
ABBOTT: Your computer?
COSTELLO: I don't own a computer. I want to buy one.
ABBOTT: Mac?
COSTELLO: I told you, my names Lou.
ABBOTT: What about Windows?
COSTELLO: Why? Will it get stuffy in here?
ABBOTT: Do you want a computer with Windows?
COSTELLO: I don't know. What will I see when I look in the windows?
ABBOTT: Wallpaper.
COSTELLO: Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.
ABBOTT: Software for windows?
COSTELLO: No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write proposals, track expenses and run my business. What have you got?
ABBOTT: Office.
COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?
ABBOTT: I just did.
COSTELLO: You just did what?
ABBOTT: Recommend something.
COSTELLO: You recommended something?
ABBOTT: Yes.
COSTELLO: For my office?
ABBOTT: Yes.
COSTELLO: OK, what did you recommend for my office?
ABBOTT: Office.....

502-589-4638
502-589-5278 fax
www.bluegrass.net

Even if your business already has a PBX, there are good reasons to switch to Asterisk.

There are already a lot of good lists for reasons why you might want to try out Asterisk. But not all the good reasons are the obvious ones. Here are five more that are just a little bit different (apart from the first one...)
1. Lower Costs. Asterisk users report up to 90 percent savings over proprietary IP-PBX technologies, including the elimination of per-phone license fees. Costs are also cut by the software's ability to run on standard, off-the-shelf hardware rather than high-end, proprietary systems.

2.Flexible Features and Power Functions. New functions can be created by writing scripts in Asterisk's language, by writing modules in C, and by writing scripts in Perl or other languages. As a result, adopters can easily create powerful, programmable PBXes, incorporating features that otherwise would cost many tens of thousands of dollars.

3. Compatibility With a Wide Range of Platforms. Users aren't locked into vendor-mandated systems. Asterisk users can choose between Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, OpenBSD, FreeBSD and Sun Solaris.

4. Free and Abundant Support: The vibrant Asterisk user community provides no cost support via the Internet.

5. Continuity. While telecom vendors vanish, merge, change focus and terminate product lines in a flash, the Asterisk community and support infrastructure will endure as long as a substantial user base exists.