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, I’m 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 leglislative 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 db 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, read this post and this one.

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Hi Rod
I want to help promote. I have already published in my blog a notice about this amazing project.
Alessandro Cardoso
Microsoft MVP : Virtual Machine
http://virtualizationandmanagement.wordpress.com
Posted by: Alessandro Cardoso | October 06, 2010 at 09:19 AM
Thanks Alessandro :-)
Cheers
Posted by: Rod Colledge | October 06, 2010 at 11:12 AM
Hi Rod
I'll look into some possible projects in the ACT where I work closely with some not for profits. Will let their CEOs and CIOs know about your project.
Cheers
Judy Gleeson
MVP Outlook
m: 0417485327
judy@pragmatix.com.au
Posted by: Judy Gleeson | October 15, 2010 at 08:41 AM
Thanks Judy, much appreciated :-)
Posted by: Rod Colledge | October 15, 2010 at 08:50 AM