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Intense PC now available

We finally have approval to sell the Intense PC in Australia! Yay!

The Intense PC Pro is a tiny, fanless, powerful, energy-efficient desktop PC, able to handle any desktop environment.

Developed with a focus on miniaturization, energy-efficiency and performance, the compact Intense PC Pro uses less than 10W when idle, and up to 27W under full load, while providing blazing fast performance with its powerful 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 CPU.

The Intense PC offers an extremely rich interactive experience, with dual-head HDMI display, DisplayPort technology, digital and analogue audio, and up to 16GB of RAM.

This small low-power PC also has remarkable connectivity, with dual gigabit ethernet, wireless ethernet, Bluetooth and up to 8 USB ports, and can run either Windows or Linux.

The Intense PC is ideal for high-performance applications such as graphic design, office desktops, classroom computers, point-of-sale (POS) systems and home entertainment and can even function as a specialised router.

The Intense PC is easily the most powerful miniature fanless PC ever!

We have stock ordered, and it will be in our hot little hands very soon.

Order yours today.

Get a free LEGO® minifigure with any Intense PC purchase

Our LEGO® minifigures have been so popular with the purchase of our fit-PC3s, that we've decided to extend the offer to include the new Intense PC.

So for a limited time, receive a LEGO minifigure with the purchase of any Intense PC!

(While stocks last. One minifigure per Intense PC purchased. Minifigure is randomly selected from LEGO minifigure Series 3.)

Which one will you get?

New! Extra accessories for the fit-PC3 and Intense PC

Extend the features of your fit-PC3 or Intense PC with one of these fantastic accessories:

• fit-PC3 / Intense PC VESA mounting bracket - Quickly and easily mount your fit-PC3 or Intense PC on the back of a monitor
• DisplayPort to DVI adapter - Plug in your DVI monitor to the DisplayPort output on your fit-PC3 or Intense PC
• Ultra-mini serial to DB9 adapter - Turn the ultra-mini serial port on the fit-PC3 and Intense PC into a standard serial port

New! 4-port Gigabit ethernet adapter

Also new this month is the LAN1841 PCI Express 4-port Gigabit ethernet adapter from Soekris Engineering.

The LAN1841 is a short standard profile PCI Express board with four independent Gigabit auto-sensing (MDI/X) ethernet controllers, ideal for compact embedded systems and rack mount servers.

Turn your net6501 or any PC into a multi-port router with this multiport ethernet adapter.

Or create multiple, simultaneous internet and/or LAN connections to ensure internet continuity.

Or segment your network for increased LAN security.

The possibilities are endless.

pfSense book being updated

Thank you to everyone who took up our offer of a free pfSense book with the purchase of any pfSense server.

All of our books are now gone.

We've heard on the grapevine that there's a new version of the book underway.

But as to when it will be ready, who knows?

Are you following us on Facebook or Twitter?

Did you know that you can follow us on Facebook or Twitter?

We regularly share all kinds of cool stuff about technology, business and sustainability, plus occasional news items and announcements.

If you've been missing the fun, here's a selection of interesting links we've shared recently.

If you want to catch these updates and more, please head over to Facebook and/or Twitter and join in the fun.

pfSense 2.0.3 now available

pfSense have released a minor upgrade to their open-source firewall/router software.

The latest version is 2.0.3, which is a maintenance release, and we're now offering this on all of our pfSense boxes.

If you're currently using pfSense 2.0, you can upgrade to the latest version from within the pfSense interface (please back up your installation first!)

Updated prebuilt images are also available for the ALIX and net servers from our O/S images page.

For more information on the changes in the latest version, please visit the pfSense blog.

m0n0wall 1.3.4 released

monowall has also released a new version of their embedded firewall software package.

We're now offering this latest version on all of our monowall boxes or you can download a prebuilt image and do-it-yourself.

For more information on the latest release, please visit the m0n0wall website.

Free pfSense book with any pfSense server

Get a free pfSense book when you purchase any of our servers with pfSense pre-installed.

To claim this special offer, enter the code 'FREEBOOK' on your way through the checkout.

Make sure you've actually got a pfSense server in your cart as well ;)

Available while stocks last, so get in quick.

New! 8GB Lexar Platinum II CF card

We've added the 8GB Lexar Platinum II Compact Flash card to our range.

These are ideal for use with pfSense, to avoid the warning messages that may appear on the console when using a SanDisk card (refer to the pfsense documentation for more information).

4GB SanDisk CF is end of life

The 4GB SanDisk Ultra Compact Flash cards have been discontinued by the manufacturer.

We have limited stock of these and we won't be able to get any more.

Bummer.

8 dBi antennas on special

Our 8 dBi antennas are on special at the moment.

Normally $65, now you can get them for only $45. While stocks last.

Bargain!

External PSU rackmount cases reduced

We've dropped the price on all of our external PSU rackmount products by a massive $90.

We'll be converting all of our products to our internal rackmount design once we sell out of these, so now's your chance to get one of our awesome rackmount solutions at a bargain price.

Go get 'em.

Intense PC update

We've heard that the Intense PC has passed FCC (USA) compliance testing.

This is great news, because it means that the Intense PC regulatory compliance is progressing.

However, we'll need to wait for it to achieve European compliance, which we expect in the next month or so.

Then we'll be able to get some stock for all of you who are hanging out for this awesome little beastie to arrive.

Not long now!

Have you seen Elastix PBX?

Elastix describes itself as an "Open Source Unified Communications Server", and looks like a very cool piece of software.

It's great for integrated VoIP, faxing, email, video conferencing, instant messaging and more.

We successfully installed it on our dual rackmount nuxV 1600 server, and it would probably go really well on our net5501's and net6501's, and maybe even the fit-PC's.

Learn more about it on the Elastix website.

The net6501 has landed!

The net6501 combines a powerful 1.0GHz or 1.6GHz Intel ATOM CPU with four Gigabit ethernet ports and up to 2GB of RAM.

Designed for use as a firewall, VPN router, internet gateway or application server, the net6501 also has the power and flexibility to function in any capacity as a dedicated network appliance.

And with four GigE ports, the net6501 is NBN-ready!

You can add mSATA, 2.5" SATA and USB flash drives for storage, plus miniPCI-Express cards and/or low-power standard PCI-Express cards, for even greater functionality.

Build an impressive appliance

The net6501 is available in our double height "XL" case, which has space for a full-height PCIe card and a hard drive, plus access to both serial ports.

Create an awesome rackmounted solution

If you're looking for a rack mounted solution, we also offer the net6501 in a dual board 1RU 19" rack mount case.

Exclusive to Yawarra, this dual-board rack mount server is the ideal way to utilise net6501 boards in a server rack.

Internal power supplies are included, with standard IEC power connectors ideal for hosting environments.

The net6501 is professional, flexible and powerful!

Our range of net6501 products offers professional solutions with amazing flexibility.

Choose from a great range of options, including storage, pre-installed operating systems, power supplies and more.

All net6501 products come with a 3 year warranty as standard and up to 5 year extended warranties are available.

Compact and energy-efficient, the net6501 is silent, fanless and built to last.

Order yours today!

MicroSVR - A new miniature fanless server from CompuLab

CompuLab have announced a new high-performance server in their range - the MicroSVR!

The MicroSVR builds on CompuLab's reputation for quality and excellence in design, and is extremely small, incredibly powerful and totally silent.

Consuming anywhere from 8 to 35W, the fluted case design ensures optimal heat dissipation.

With a 3rd Generation Intel Core i7 processor, up to 32GB of RAM and space for 4 internal 2.5" RAID-controlled hard drives, we're pretty excited about taking this one for a test drive.

Check out CompuLab's brochure on the MicroSVR to learn more.

As for the name? Well it kind of reminds us of this scene from "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" ;)

New biodegradable ziplock bags

We're always looking for ways to improve our sustainability, so we were super pleased to discover BagCo, a local supplier of biodegradable ziplock bags.

We'll be using these new, oxo-biodegradable bags as much as we can, making even more of our packaging recyclable and biodegradable.

If you're looking for biodegradable plastic bags, please check out www.bagco.com.au and support our sustainable suppliers!

Christmas & New Years hours

What a year! I think we'll all breathe a huge sigh of relief when Christmas arrives this year :)

End-of-year closure

To help you plan ahead, here are the important dates for our end-of-year period:

Date	Details
Thursday, 20 Dec, 12:00PM	The absolute latest you'll need to place and pay for your order by, if you want it to arrive before Christmas. You'll need to order even earlier if you're outside of the Express Post area, or if it's a large order. Ask us if you're not sure. Of course we'll happily process your last minute order, but we just can't guarantee it will arrive in time. So get in early, OK?
Thursday, 20 Dec, 5:00PM	When we close for our Christmas break.
Monday, 14 Jan, 9:00AM	When we reopen after our Christmas break.

You're more than welcome to place orders via the website while we're closed, but we won't be answering the phones, shipping orders, or responding to emails until we reopen.

All the best for an awesome Christmas break!

Melbourne Cup Day Closure

We just wanted to let you know that we'll be closed on Monday, 5 November and Tuesday, 6 November 2012, which is Melbourne Cup Day here in Victoria.

So if you have an urgent need for our hardware, please contact us ASAP to avoid delays.

Can you help us improve our website?

We're redesigning our website and we'd love your input.

We want to update our website so it's easier to maintain, and even more useful for you, so please take a moment to tell us how you use our website and how we could improve it.

There's only ten quick questions, so the survey should take you less than 5 minutes in total to complete. And your response is completely anonymous.

Here's the link to the survey:

http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/1071024/website-redesign

Thank you for your time!

Fast, sexy, fit-PC3!

The fit-PC3 has finally arrived!

We're kind of doing the happy dance around here :)

The fit-PC3 is truly an energy-efficient desktop computer with the performance you need.

What is the fit-PC3?

The fit-PC3 is a powerful, rugged, energy-efficient desktop PC, able to handle any typical desktop environment.

It's also one of the toughest computers on the market, easily withstanding industrial, automotive and outdoor installations.

Developed with a focus on miniaturization, robustness, reliability and silent operation, the fit-PC3 is the most power efficient desktop PC in its category, using a mere 15-24W under full load.

The fit-PC3 also has extremely powerful graphics capabilities, with dual-head graphics output, and runs a wide range of operating systems, including Windows and Linux.

This miniature fanless computer also has remarkable connectivity, with Gigabit networking and eight USB ports so you can connect your existing peripherals with a minimum of fuss.

It is ideal for applications such as office desktops, classroom computers, point-of-sale (POS) systems and home entertainment and can even function as a specialised router.

The enclosure for the fit-PC3 is made from aluminium, and is stylish and durable as well as splash and dust resistant, and it also doubles as a heat sink for the fit-PC3.

Want to know more?

• Read more about the fit-PC3 features
• Check them out in our shop
• fit-PC3 Eco
• fit-PC3 Pro
• Or maybe just watch our mini-workers having some fun with the new hardware...

And for a limited time, receive a free LEGO minifigure with any fit-PC3 purchase!*

Get yours today!

* While stocks last. One minifigure per purchase. Purchase must include one or more fit-PC3s. Minifigure is randomly selected from LEGO minifigure Series 3.

Want to vehicle-mount your ALIX 2?

Have you ever wanted to create a mobile embedded computer for a car or truck, but couldn't figure out how to mount it securely?

Now you can easily and securely mount an ALIX 2-2 or an ALIX 6 in a vehicle or on any surface, with our new vehicle-mount ALIX enclosure.

Our new vehicle-mount case incorporates surface-mount wings with keyhole mounts that allow you to attach the unit to cars, boats, trucks, buses or walls.

It also includes an integrated cable tray that ensures your connections won't come loose in high-vibration environments, and the durable textured black powdercoat finish easily hides dust and fingerprints.

The extruded design of the case body is designed specifically for the ALIX 2 and ALIX 6 boards, and allows you to slide the board in and out with ease, providing ready access to the Compact Flash card.

At the same time, the internal threaded channels and high-tensile steel screws hold the case together firmly, while allowing easy assembly and disassembly.

This enclosure is completely fanless and made from aluminium so it's light yet durable, with excellent heat dissipation qualities, and includes punchouts for ethernet, serial and USB ports, plus SMA (with blanking plug) and power.

Available as both a complete unit and a case, the new vehicle-mount solution makes your ALIX truly mobile!

Need a solution with integrated 3G?

If you're after a solution with integrated 3G, you might want to take a look at the ALIX 6.

The ALIX 6 includes a miniPCI express slot, ideal for adding a 3G wireless modem (such as the Sierra Wireless MC series), and two integrated SIM slots, allowing you to have multiple or redundant 3G providers.

New to our shop this month is a bundled ALIX 6 product, which includes an ALIX-6 board and our professional-grade "bookshelf" case, ready for you to add your choice of accessories.

Our extruded bookshelf case is designed specifically for the ALIX 6 board, allowing you to slide the board in and out with ease and providing ready access to the Compact Flash card.

Case Study: Creating a Music-on-Hold appliance

If you've ever wanted to create your own music-on-hold solution, you might be interested in this month's case study.

One of our customers took an ALIX 3 box and created an inexpensive, reliable, and easy-to-manage music-on-hold appliance for his company.

He chose to use an ALIX 3 with VGA because it comes with audio in and audio out, and is running OpenBSD with mpg123, plus Samba and a small amount of scripting.

The unit has now been playing music endlessly for over a year, and is easy to manage, even remotely!

Read all about it on our case studies page.

Learn how to use pfSense on an ALIX

If you'd like to discover how to get your ALIX box to do all kinds of cool stuff using pfSense, then check out the growing collection of articles at [interspective].

It starts with the basics, and covers a broad range of topics, including more advanced configuration:

• Installing pfSense on an ALIX 2-3
• Configuring pfSense as a gateway / firewall
• How to set up wireless networking in pfSense
• Setting up your devices to use NTP
• Configuring Squid proxy

and I'm sure there'll be even more to come, so keep watching [interspective].

How to install FreeBSD on an ALIX

Ever wanted to install FreeBSD on an ALIX board?

Well the guys at FreeBSD Online have created a very handy tutorial on installing FreeBSD onto an ALIX 2-2 board.

To make it happen, they used a Compact Flash card, a PC and an external USB CF card reader.

This tutorial takes you step-by-step through installing and configuring FreeBSD to work seamlessly on an ALIX 2-2 board.

It also includes some handy tips and traps to avoid, and pointers to other useful resources.

To learn more about FreeBSD, and why you might want to use it, visit the FreeBSD website.

Create kiosks, signage and thin clients with Linutop OS

If you're creating digital signage solutions, information kiosks or thin clients, you might be interested in Linutop OS.

Designed to run on PCs, and ideal for use on a fit-PC2, Linutop OS is based on Ubuntu Linux and is:

• energy-efficient
• secure
• easily configured for specific applications
• able to be backed-up and deployed via USB key

It includes Linutop's Kiosk software, for information display or internet access, plus Firefox, VLC Media Player and Open Office pre-installed, as well as easy access to add software via Synaptic.

A free trial is available on their website, and the full version is currently being offered for 79EUR.

pfSense 2.0.1 now available

pfSense have released a minor upgrade to their open-source firewall/router software.

The latest version is 2.0.1, which is a maintenance release, and we're now offering this on all of our pfSense boxes.

If you're currently using pfSense 2.0, you can upgrade to the latest version from within the pfSense interface (please back up your installation first!)

Updated prebuilt images are also available for the ALIX and net5501 from our O/S images page.

For more information on the changes in the latest version, please visit the pfSense blog.

Voyage Linux 0.8.5 released

Voyage Linux has also released a new version of their operating system.

We're now offering this latest version on all of our Voyage boxes or you can download a prebuilt image and do-it-yourself.

And Voyage now also supports 802.11n.

For more information on the latest release, please visit the Voyage website.

Get paid to educate your clients about energy-efficiency

If you're in the business of helping other businesses become more energy-efficient, you might be interested in the Government's "Energy Efficiency Information Grants" program.

This program offers grants to businesses to help them provide information and education to small business and community groups to help them improve their energy-efficiency.

Our range of computers is an ideal way to help organisations lower their electricity bills, so why not let the Government pay you to educate your clients about their options for more sustainable computing?

Our entire range of computers is now fully deductible!

Hey, it's the start of another new financial year!

And with that comes a change to the instant asset write-off tax laws.

Ah! Tax! Run away!

Well, you may be interested to know that small businesses can now instantly write-off in full any assets purchased that are valued under $6500, a significant increase from the previous limit of $1000.

What does this mean for you?

Well, it now means that our entire range of servers, can be deducted in full, with no need for depreciation!

Exciting news, I know...

For more information, visit the ATO website or ask your accountant.

News Archive