Novell has provided its channel partners with a Year 2000 solutions and training package that will enable resellers to actively address their customers` network-readiness concerns. Central to this initiative is the Novell Year 2000 Information Ferret, a free software tool located at the Novell Web site that can easily and efficiently assess customers` network software status.
According to Novell channel and distribution manager, Martin Bawden, Novell first began preparing its reseller community to deal actively with customer concerns about being Year 2000-ready in 1997. Training and support has been ongoing since, with the latest training initiative due to begin in April 1999. This initiative will focus on three key educational aspects:
Free Year 2000 solutions training for resellers with Novell`s PowerSell Academy
Free technical training on Y2K-ready products with Novell`s one day `College on Tour`.
Free, hands-on, NetWare 5 technical training sessions to guide Certified Novell Engineers (CNEs) about the key components of directory-enabled networking
"With more than 81 million users and 4 million servers world-wide, Novell will be taking more networks into the 21st century than any other company. Being Year 2000 ready isn`t an option, it`s a requirement," said Bawden.
"The market for our products is growing. In addition to having moved to open Internet standards with NetWare 5, our customers are now looking to Novell`s new directory-enabled applications to create a platform for their businesses. Business in Europe, Middle East, and Africa was up 21 per cent to $302 million (about R1,7-billion) in fiscal 1998 over fiscal year 1997. This represented 28 percent of total Novell revenue for the year," added Bawden.
The Year 2000 Information Ferret is a Windows 95/98/NT client-based downloadable tool that checks servers for Novell products and identifies the Year 2000 status of Novell products. The resulting report, provided by Novell and sent to the customer, will include the status of Novell products, as well as update and upgrade recommendations if Novell products are not Year 2000 ready.
"The Year 2000 Information Ferret and Web site resources are the latest available tools in the integrated campaign to supporting our partners playing an active role in addressing Year 2000 requirements," explained Bawden.
"Our partners should be able to both advise and implement necessary changes because this is also an opportunity for companies to audit their technology needs for computing in the next millennium," he added.
With NetWare and Novell Directory Services, Novell`s directory-enabled products provide resellers and customers with a solution to quickly administer Year 2000 assessments from a single workstation.
To address Y2K problems at the server and client level, Novell offers both the Year 2000 Information Ferret tool and Greenwich Mean TimeCheck 2000 software from its range of Year 2000 solutions. These solutions include more than 90 products and Year 2000 updates and tools available from Novell`s Web site.
The combination of these two products provides a powerful resource that will help businesses assess their networks for Year 2000 issues, deploy Year 2000-ready products and apply appropriate fixes to ease the transition into the next millennium.
"It is clear that our customers expect us, their partner, to help them prepare their networks for the next millennium. Novell`s solutions help us to provide the services our customers require", said Bawden. "Overall, the Year 2000 Information Ferret is simple and easy to use. It sets our minds at rest that our customers` Novell servers are Year 2000 compliant, because then they can concentrate on the more important business of running their companies."
Novell also bundles Greenwich Mean Time`s Check2000, a Windows product that checks PCs for Year 2000 risks. It works with Novell Z.E.N.works to identify and alert network administrators to potential Year 2000-related issues at the desktop and assists them in repairing problems.
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