Bethsalem Care, an aged care facility in Adelaide, suffered years of poor WiFi and IP telecommunications before learning that faulty configuration was to blame.

IT plays an important role for people behind the mixing desks at Australia's largest festivals and concerts. Just like musicians have their preferred choice of guitar, Devitt works exclusively with one networking partner, Allied Telesis. According to Devitt, the equipment has stood up to wear and tear since 2004.

Fiber networks built expressly for economic development pioneer new technologies and new business models.

Asking "What if?" made a huge difference for Allied Telesis, which supplies communications for the U.S. Air Force base in Yokota, Japan, about 190 miles from Fukushima, where much of the local infrastructure was destroyed. Despite massive problems and power outages, the Yokota base never lost communications.

IT pros everywhere watched this week as IPv6 Day unfolded on the Web, exposing how ready the online world really is -- or isn't -- to implement the technological underpinnings that will ensure its future.

"Without a doubt, it's time for integrators and resellers to be looking at the issue," said Vince Ricco, senior network consultant at IP networking vendor Allied Telesis.

When the March earthquake knocked out cell connections in Japan, Allied Telesis at the Yokota Air Force Base never missed a beat.