Filnet Connects Rain Forests, Teachers, Students; Awarding-Winning IT Firm Provides Technology for Distance Learning and Virtual Field Trips.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Today Filnet, an award winning information technology firm, announces the launch of the Prince William Network Rain Forest website. Located on the Web at http://rainforests.pwnet.org, the distance learning site allows teachers and students to register for and become active participants in an interactive, virtual fieldtrip. Dubbed "America's Rain Forests: A Distance Learning Adventure," the online fieldtrip will feature a webcast from rain forests in Puerto Rico and Alaska on Friday, October 14 at 1 p.m. EDT. Sponsors of "America's Rain Forests" include the USDA Forest Service, the Prince William Network (PWNet) and the National Forest Foundation among others.

"Filnet is once again proud to assist in connecting teachers and students to technology tools that were unavailable when I was in public schools," said Chris J. Baltazar CEO/president of Filnet, Inc. "We are providing e-learning and web solutions that make education fun and more interactive than ever before."

The webcast is free. During the webcast, students will be able to call in or e-mail questions to the experts. Additionally, the new Rain Forest site will have English and Spanish lesson plans and resources for classrooms.

To make the entire website functional and media-ready, Filnet handled all programming using Perl, PHP, and xHTML. Filnet also used programming elements such as CSS, DHTML, and Tango webpage editor to enhance the website.

The Prince William Network, the distance learning arm of the Prince William County Public Schools (PWCPS), is the recipient of many national distance learning awards. PWNet and Filnet have collaborated on a number of initiatives. Notable programs include the Teen Smart Driver website for which Filnet garnered an IABC Silver Inkwell for Web Design, and the Happenin' Habitats which won the "Distinguished Achievement Award for Best Science Website" from the Association of Educational Publishers (AEP) earlier this year.

Filnet is a certified SBA 8(a) business that provides distance learning, software development, data integration, and web development services for government and private enterprises. In 2004 Filnet ranked 14th in Deloitte & Touche's Virginia Fast 50 and ranked nationally in the Fast 500. Filnet is on the web at www.filnetinc.com.