Background and Mission
Since 1994, customers worldwide have used InfoQuest Hosted Internet Business Solutions to communicate on-line, manage computers, and safeguard mission critical information. From the beginning, InfoQuest has proven to be a nimble, responsive, resilient company. Characteristics that provide our customers with innovative business solutions, dependable support and a trusted business partner. Today, just as in 1994, we're committed to the philosophy of growth as a company through the service of one customer at a time.
Learn how InfoQuest was started.
History
1994
InfoQuest was founded in 1994 by Norm Dallago and Luke Melhorn as a Pennsylvania Corporation. Luke and Norm had spent the previous 10 years employed at Electronic Data Systems Corporation "EDS" and believed that business services could be delivered to small and medium sized business with the same courtesy, care, and professionalism reserved mainly for large corporations. At the time, Internet services were in their infancy. Luke and Norm set out with a singular ambition to create a company dedicated to delivering business solutions over the Internet.
1995
In 1995 InfoQuest installed a fractional T1, several web and email servers, and began creating custom websites for businesses and organizations in Central Pennsylvania. Our first customers were McNaughton Homes and the Capital Region Economic Development Corporation "CREDC". These were some of the first businesses in Central Pennsylvania to have websites. It became clear that businesses would soon be using the Internet as a primary means to deliver information to customers. That said, the Internet was still an unknown to most businesses. The early days, saw us spending much of our time helping customers understand the Internet and realize its potential. It was also in 1995 that we created the "Pennsylvania Internet Yellow Pages", a listing of over 1,000,000 Pennsylvania businesses that was featured in the Patriot News. Now there was an idea that was slightly ahead of its time.
1996
An exciting year for InfoQuest. In addition to hosting websites built for our customers, we began hosting websites built by others. Utilizing our strengths in data center management, we laid the groundwork and infrastructure for the hosting services you see today. In December our 100th customer signed up. Many of those same customers are with us today. Other highlights from 1996 include one of the first real time Internet scorings of a professional golf tournament. InfoQuest attended the CoreState Betsy King Classic, scoring the event from the media tent, broadcasting player interviews and live event coverage real-time via the Internet.
1997
A busy year for InfoQuest that started with the introduction of Net+Catalog. Many of our customers sought the means to sell their products online and at the time very few e-commerce applications existed. We wrote Net+Catalog using Cold Fusion and offered it as a free service to our hosting customers. Other milestones in 1997 were the first InfoQuest employee (who we're happy to say is still with us), the addition of a 2nd T1 communications circuit, toll free telephone support, full employee health and dental coverage, and an automated billing system. As a note of trivia, we also were the web host of choice for the official Three Stooges website as well as host for the website of the rock band Creed.
1998
Another milestone for InfoQuest. In 1998, customers in every US state now use InfoQuest hosted Internet business solutions. A testament to the commitment of customer service, we reach this milestone solely by the word of mouth advertising from existing InfoQuest customers. Customers appreciate prompt courteous support and sound advice, and thats just what they get with InfoQuest.
1999
In 1999, while everyone was preparing for the feared Y2K date change, InfoQuest was busy building its first data center. A much needed upgrade from our startup facilities, the new data center improved power, cooling and infrastructure. Continuing our commitment to use Tier-1 network providers we increased our bandwidth from two T1's to two DS3's (54 T1's). Our new generator was battle tested just minutes after installation when a nearby construction crew inadvertently cut a power line. The new generator worked like a champ. As for Y2K, it came and and went without a hitch.
2000
With the new data center in place InfoQuest began offering equipment co-location services. Building on our past data-center and data migration experience companies like US Bank and Fujitsu Asia became InfoQuest Co-location customers. Co-location customers are very satisfied with their accessibility to equipment, the uptime of our networks, and our commitment to customer service. Customers know us by name and place trust in our ability to support their on-line operations. The year 2000 also marked the beginning of InfoQuest's employee 401K program.
2001
After years of manual account setup, customers were thrilled with the ability to automatically activate services through newly deployed provisioning and billing systems. Written by InfoQuest and based on the Windows 2000 Operating system, customers could now open accounts and begin uploading data in a matter of minutes. In addition to the improvements in automation and provisioning, InfoQuest ventured back into the world of golf as it conducted a live "wireless" Internet video broadcast from the 18th hole of the 2001 Buy.com Hershey Open. Camera signals were captured, encoded, and using a wireless signal transmitted back to the InfoQuest data center where video feeds were picked up both regionally and nationally for tournament coverage.
2002
The year of the network as we re-engineer to improve redundancy and fail-over capabilities. Secondary routers, switches, and firewalls were brought on-line to provide real-time hot swap protection in the event of a primary device failure. Route redundancy was improved with real time traffic analysis and carrier load balancing to compliment the existing border gateway protocol (BGP) services already in use. These upgrades, coupled with the addition of a third DS3 and our continued policy of utilizing Tier-1 network providers for bandwidth, provide fast and dependable access worldwide to information housed in the InfoQuest data center.
2003
High definition TV bring clarity to the services of InfoQuest. Three HDTV television commercials are created showing the benefits of hosting with InfoQuest. The commercials are upbeat and humorous showing the simplicity of using InfoQuest rather than the complexities, geek-speak, and run-around cusotmers often experienced with other providers. Our favorite commercial shows a customer calling a competitor for support only to be transfered several times until finally reaching the buildings maintenance man who with a puzzled look says, "you want me to fix your what?"
2004
InfoQuest re-launched its corporate website, introduced the web hosting wizard, and began offering automated site creation tools. The web hosting wizard simplified the complexity of selecting service plans. After receiving customer input, the wizard would recommend, then automatically create the appropriate plan. Site creation tools were introduced to assist customers in the creation of web sites. In addition to the new tools, InfoQuest teamed up with the American Hockey League (AHL) Hershey Bears to send 4 fans on an all expense paid trip to the AHL all-star game, and game one of the Calder Cup Championships. Construction of a new data center begins.
2005
Another expansion for InfoQuest as we move into the new hosting facility constructed in 2004. The new facility provides expanded floor space, additional power, and greater access to Tier-1 fiber networks and bandwidth. New customers include Armstrong World Industries, Diakon Services, Harrisburg University, NAICIR, JPL Productions, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Sage Schools, and United Yellow Pages. The new facility makes it easier for customers to stage, access and maintain the equipment they co-locate at InfoQuest.
2006
The year begins with the deployment of a new and improved account automation and provisioning system. The new system provides customers with advanced options for hosting, application and email support. Excitement continues as Virtual Private Server (VPS) plans for the Windows and Linux Operating Systems make it possible for InfoQuest to provide customers with VPSs for a fraction of the cost of a traditional dedicated server. The introduction of Storasphere Enterprise Recovery Solutions provide customers with Enterprise level remote off-site backup, local data restore, and storage discovery capabilities. New co-location customers include ProSanos and Versatile Systens, Inc.
2007
Improved hosting automation and the introduction of new business services were the focus of 2007. We began the process of installing business automation systems that provide customers with advanced hosted solutions and considerable savings. A migration from traditional coper DS3's to Ethernet wide area networks was started and two new fiber paths were activated in our facility. Managed services were introduced allowing InfoQuest to remotely monitor and manage computers located in customer facilities. New customers include the Hershey Harrisburg Visitors Bureau, Journal Publications, Powell, Rodgers & Speaks, and Probity.
2008
We experienced great things in 2008. The roll-out of new business services provide customers with exciting new options to communicate with their customers and manage the deployment of online business applications. Hosted Microsoft Exchange 2007 Server and SharePoint Services 3.0, along with new account provisioning and customer care systems provide customers with choice, flexibility, and savings. Storasphere Lite was introduced and offers SMBs, SoHos, and home users with many of the features found in our Storasphere Enterprise Edition. New customers include Double Dog Communications, Med-Media, Roland Homes, The Phillips Group, the state of Pennsylvania, and Residential Warranty Corporation.
2009
The year starts with an emphasis on value and a renewed comittment to providing our customers with Internet business solutions that keep their business running, keep them communicating online, managing computers and safeguarding mission critical information. We introduce eMarketing Suite, an advanced communications tool that makes it easy for customers to create, send and manage email campaigns. On the network side, we replace DS3 circuits (that are limited to 45 Mbps per circuit) to Ethernet over fibre circuits with the capability to scale to 1,024 Mpbs.