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Successful software development is characterized by the ability of the software to optimize user productivity; increase business efficiency; reduce overheads; facilitate seamless functioning of business processes; and achieve exemplary business results.

Our Custom Software Development Services include, but are not limited to:

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Where we stay we do not have access to any Telkom infrastructure, and were forced to make use of 3G products. We happily paid the over inflated 3G prices, seeing that the quality of service was quite acceptable. Last year October however our connectivity took a serious dip. At present we have no connectivity. We are paying almost R900/mo for an uncapped service that cannot open email or even a local news site.

We at first thought it must be our equipmeTNnt. We were using a Planet 3G router for almost 1 year then, and thought it might be time to replace it. We then opted for a very expensive Mikrotik solution. Still no improvement. We then purchased a booster aerial. Still no luck. R5k poorer and still nothing!

Our service has now gone from bad to worse and is impacting on our work, and we are forced to work longer hours. When the problem started, we found that from 7PM every evening we have little to no connectivity. Today, if we are able to establish a connection, the speed is much worse than a 56k dial-up. Our voice quality has also dropped significantly, and most of our calls are being dropped. Last week I had to call a customer back 9 times on a 3 minute call.

Most of the time it is a battle getting through to competent technical support staff, when you call the mobile operators. We have spent countless hours on the phone with clueless technicians.

After lodging two complaints on http://www.hellopeter.com we finally got a response. This is the final result:

We have done drive tests in the area, and found that the signal levels are very low, especially on 3G. As per attached correspondence , it does not look like we can improve coverage in this area.

Complaint #1 : http://www.hellopeter.com/autopage/complaints-to-compliments/non-existant-tec...
Complaint #2 : http://www.hellopeter.com/autopage/complaints/service-degradation-734813

Our reality is that we rely on connectivity to earn a living, and without no connectivity, there is no income.

We are not being unreasonable here: We did not go out and buy all this stuff to use in some area where there wasn't any signal and now supposedly sit with buyers remorse. No, we were actually happy customers until the MTN tower broke in Paarl. We know this, because a consultant from a company called Bytes, was hired by MTN to investigate the issue, and he told us there is a problem. We also have the Google Latitude logs to prove it.

Just to make matters much much worse, my family suffered a terrible personal loss because of this. Last week (and now if this was America I would have sued) Thursday, we were forced to drive out to our office after hours, due to the lack of internet once-again. We went home just after 5PM to check on our pets. Left about 15mins later. We came back 3 hours later to a heart-breaking sight. Our boston terrier, Pogo was bitten by a snake, and by the time we found him it was too late. We rushed him to the vet, but he sadly passed away in my arms on our way to the vet. Struggling to get a call through with 3 phones, all on a bad MTN signal - imagine the words I have for these people.
If we had the same connectivity as we did last year October, then we would have stayed home - because it was only emails we needed to respond to. And even if our dog found a snake in the garden, we might have been in a position to save his life.

I am slowly getting fed up with the poor technology service in this country. Large profit hungry foreign corporations bleed us dry, while they do not accept the responsibility for providing the service - which only they are licensed for.
With the privilege comes a responsibility. I have now seen first hand what happens when these careless operators are allowed to run wild without consequence.

SOURCE : http://mybroadband.co.za/news/telecoms/35656-seacom-downtime-may-last-for-days.html

Summary: SEACOM downtime which started on 8 October may take as long as a week to resolve.

SEACOM is experiencing downtime again.  The cable system went down on Saturday 8 October 2011, and initial feedback suggests that the downtime may last for a few days.

SEACOM said that their Mediterranean backhaul service provider is experiencing a service affecting outage between Abu Talat and Marseilles. This is affecting all SEACOM traffic to Europe.

“SEACOM is working at restoring our customers on alternative routes and will continue to monitor the situation closely,” the SEACOM website states.

MWEB informed their subscribers on Sunday 9 October MWEB said that they were still waiting for an expected time when the problem will be resolved.

“At present we are running at just over 60% of our full international requirement. Seacom is arranging additional capacity for us on alternative routes and we expect to be back up to full capacity by the end of today,” said MWEB ISP CEO Derek Hershaw.

Openweb also informed their subscribers that the SEACOM cable is down again. “Faithfully known as the phantom cable, the SA internet will be suffering dearly again this week due to its failure,” Openweb founderKeoma Wright told subscribers.

TENET Weekly Graph

TENET CTO Andrew Alston said that they have had confirmation that SEACOM is offline and is unlikely to come back online for a few days.

The SEACOM downtime seems to be related to a failure on the Telecom Egypt North (TE North) submarine telecommunications cable linking France and Egypt.

Early indications suggest that it may take around a week to repair the problem. SEACOM may however be down for 10 days or longer.

SEACOM could not immediately be reached for comment.

This morning when opening my email, the first email that caught my eye was Cory Watilo's latest post : How to charge clients: flat fee vs. hourly rate?

This is a real issue that we have to battle with every day. Just last week I had a customer requesting a change to a PHP / Web project (flat fee) that have been closed off 4 months ago. It was only 1 hour's work, and the amount truly insignificant - but the client decided that he will not pay me for this work but instead he "blew his gasket" that we had the audacity to bill him for this. We provided him with this software and of course updates and maintenance should be free for life :P.

This specific piece of work was to just add a simple category to a selection box, but still, all the options currently available was checked and double checked and signed off by the client. 

What would you do in this case? Just grin and bear it and spend the time going in via FTP, making your back-ups, corresponding with the customer about the change, implementing and testing ... 

The reality is that in South Africa we are forced to keep relatively low hourly rates, while operating costs of a business is through the roof.

Some say it is a Cape Town / Jo'burg thing. With us operating Cape Town, having customers that are battling with strained budgets versus Jo'burg customers who know what they want, and they want it NOW. Whichever the weather - the customer is always right. And then of course I also want to be proud of my work and hope others come to hear of it.

How can we keep our customers happy but still manage to keep food on the table? This is the question which eludes me.

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INTRODUCING

Location 

2 Dorp Street, corner Dorp and Adam Tas Road Stellenbosch.
 
Anchor Tenants
Cure Day Clinics – 3 theatre/30 bed
day hospital.
Fresenius Medical Care –­ Dialysis Unit.
 
Completion Date
1 October 2012
 
For further information on how to secure a medical suite in this prime development contact us:

--

Lyall Johnson
T. 021 465 7780 F. 021 465 7798
C. 082 446 3362  Email: lyall@annenberg.co.za

Barbara Lindenberg
T. 021 88 00 88 0 F. 021 88 00 88 3
C. 082 564 8430  Email: barbara.lindenberg@seeff.co.za

 A veritable ground breaking and prime industrial development.

Firgrove Industrial Estate is a private estate developed by Annenberg Property Group.  Strategically positioned just off the N2 with easy access to Cape Town International Airport, Cape Town CBD and the Helderberg Basin, It is the only industrial node in the Western Capethat currently offers prime sizeable areas of land suitable for big box warehousing and large scale manufacturing factory facilities, for under R 1000 per sqm in a 24 hour security environment. Along with a progressive architectural aesthetic and green landscape philosop

hy, Firgrove Industrial Estate is destined to be a vital and important industrial hub in the Western Cape. What makes Firgrove such an attractive option?

1.  Strategically positioned with easy access to Cape Town International airport, Cape Town CBD, R300 interchange, Cape Winelands and Helderberg Basin.
2, The best industrial land pricing in the Western Cape, starting at R 750 per sqm and peaking at under R 1000 per sqm.
3. The only development development in the Western Cape to accommodate big box warehousing and large scale manufacturing facilities at a low entry cost in a 24/7 security park development.
4. State-of-the-art architectural design guide by leading firm of architects as well as a green code governing landscape aesthetics that will enhance the value of the properties.
5. Position and security. A single manned entry point and electrified perimeter fencing.
6.A vibrant and abundant labour pool situated in close proximity.
7.A specialised design and construct service on hand for occupiers.
8.  Prefer to rent? Annenberg will develop to suit requirements.
9.  A variety of stands available: smaller sites from 1900 sqm to 5000 sqm, and larger ones from 2.4 ha to 6.6 ha.
10. For 40 years Annenberg Property Groupis a trusted and household name in the industrial, commercial and property development arena.

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