Get ready to focus on innovation, not infrastructure, at Tour de Force. Come learn how to tap the power of Platform-as-a-Service to build, run, and market a new generation of business applications entirely on demand.

Don't miss this unique opportunity to get free expert training on the technologies rapidly transforming the world of business applications.

:: Get hands-on with Force.com and Visualforce technologies
:: Watch Force.com experts build apps in real time
:: Consult 1:1 with Force.com engineers
:: Attend breakout sessions in three targeted tracks

Shearwater Solutions and SANS Institute partner once again to bring seven outstanding courses to SANS Sydney 2008, 27 October -1 November. Enhance your skills by taking advantage of this hands-on training loaded with practical tools and cutting-edge information.

Trent Hunt of DND says, "SANS is so in-depth, has knowledgeable instructors, and provided an ideal environment for taking in up-to-date information and techniques!"

We'll be offering the following hands-on courses for security professionals at all levels. Take special note of SEC504, which sold out in Canberra. We know you won't want to miss that course or SEC 560, which has sold out in most of SANS' events this year.

* SEC401: SANS Security Essentials - 6 days with evening Bootcamp
* SEC502: Perimeter Protection In-Depth - 6 days
* SEC504: Hacker Techniques, Exploits, and Incident Handling - 6 days
* SEC560: Network Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking - 6 days New Course
* AUD521: Meeting the Minimum: PCI/DSS 1.1: Becoming and Staying Compliant - 2 days
* SEC542: Web Application Pen Testing In-Depth - 4 days New Course
* SEC334: SANS Training for the CompTIA Security+ Certification

Microsoft, in conjunction with Girl Geek Dinners Sydney is holding a Women in IT luncheon at Tech Ed 2008 in Sydney. Register now using the ticket code wit08, as places are limited. Ticket Code: wit08

Topic: Women in IT - an International Perspective (Keynote & Panel Discussion) Date: Wednesday 3rd September, 2008 Time: 1.15pm - 2.05pm (lunch available in foyer from 12.45pm

Cost: complimentary for Tech Ed Delegates and Geek Girl Dinner members (limited seats available)

The highlight will be a panel discussing women in IT in an international context.

Panelists include:

Software Freedom Day (SFD) is a worldwide celebration of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). Our goal in this celebration is to educate the worldwide public about of the benefits of using high quality FOSS in education, in government, at home, and in business -- in short, everywhere! The non-profit company Software Freedom International coordinates SFD at a global level, providing support, giveaways and a point of collaboration, but volunteer teams around the world organize the local SFD events to impact their own communities.

30 sessions, 10 international speakers, 3 tracks, 5 workshops, 4 very full days covering the technologies, techniques and strategies you need to build the best possible web sites and applications.

A HUGE Sydney web standards group meeting coming up on Tuesday 19 August. We have three great presentations and four great presenters!

To be held: Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th of December 2008. The location is yet to be revealed.

Building on the success of WordCamp Melbourne in 2007, a small group of
WordPress users and professionals are embarking on the wobbly path to the
inaugural WordCamp Australia.

The first WordCamp Australia will be held in Sydney with an intention to alternate the host city annually with
at least Melbourne and possibly other cities in the future.

At this stage we have a small but enthusiastic organising team consisting
of:

* Anthony Cole - Fresh Pacific

Using IA to enhance the use and effectiveness of your information system - Masterclass.

Is your MySQL database secure? Do your users have the correct privileges and access rights? Is your MySQL database operating at optimal efficiency?

Course Title: Information Security Incident Management (AUS-ISIM-01)