Kiwi Manager * the evolving student project

MEDIA RELEASE

1 December 2006

Kiwi Manager * the evolving student project

A new piece of software that can detect computer network faults is being given away to schools, thanks to the ingenuity and hard work of several Wellington Institute of Technology (WelTec) degree and software engineering students.

WelTec Information Technology Team Leader, Ian Hunter, "says that similar packages that are available commercially can cost up to $10,000.

"Kiwi Manager can keep an eye on the common network issues that cause about 90% of problems; things like overloading and loss of connection." says Ian. "It will then signal the severity of the problem, so any issues that are indicated can be quickly rectified."

A demonstration at the recent U-Learn Education Conference in Christchurch aroused interest from schools around the country who will receive free copies of the software.

Ian says that the simple network health check was a project suggested by networking equipment manufacturer Allied Telesis. Kiwi Manager was developed over several years by generations of WelTec students working with Allied Telesis.

It was finally prepared for release by Diploma in Software Engineering student Bo Li, working with WelTec's Centre for Smart Product and Allied Telesis. Bo not only gained straight A grades for his study and received an award for top student, but was also awarded a prize for top project of the year for Kiwi Manager.

"Working on Kiwi Manager gave me the chance to put my knowledge into practice and more importantly delve much deeper into the networking and programming world," says Bo.

Bo has gone on to secure a job with Allied Telesis as a network engineer. He says his work on Kiwi Manager definitely gave him a foot in the door.

ENDS

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