The News Review:
- A different kind of office
- Down on the farm: Computer servers have become a cash crop
- Associate Producer Trainee
- eGov monitor – A Policy Dialogue Platform | Promoting Better Governanc…
A different kind of office
Jakarta Post – May 19, 2008
org — in other words some guys took the source code and decided to develop it in a different direction. I think these products work with a certain kind of person: Someone who hates spending lots of money on software most of whose features lie unused. If you’re a heavy Word or Excel or PowerPoint user then you probably should stick with Microsoft. If you’re using these things for letters basic spreadsheets and the occasional presentation or you’re knitting out a new office company or organization and don’t have a big software budget (and don’t fancy a visit from the police for using pirate software) then penffice. org is definitely worth a try. Jeremy Wagstaff writes for The Wall Street Journal Asia and the BBC World Service. His guide to technology Loose Wire is available in bookshops or on Amazon.
Down on the farm: Computer servers have become a cash crop
Columbus Dispatch – May 19, 2008
Even the Microsoft of Bill Gates — who said just a year ago that “we’re making the (personalcomputer) the place where it all comes together” — has just launched a data storage and Websoftware system called Live Mesh. It’s the company’s late entry into cloud computing. AlreadyGoogle offers word-processing spread-sheet and slide-show programs for free that compete withMicrosoft products (Word Excel and PowerPoint). That consolidation of data processing power is becoming a powerful industry trend. Last yearSun Microsystems unveiled modular units designed for cloud computing and fitted into 20-footshipping containers. This month IBM introduced the iDataPlex with claims that it squeezes twice asmany computers in the same space as other systems and runs on 40 percent less power. Server farms can grow huge consuming up to 100 megawatts of electricity enough to power morethan 20000 American homes.
Associate Producer Trainee
abc13.com – May 19, 2008
National Sales Assistant KTRK-TV an ABC owned TV station located in Houston TX is seeking a team player ready to help our sales team reach their goals. Candidate must be detail-oriented professional and able to work on multiple projects under tight deadlines. Candidate must be proficient in Microsoft Word PowerPoint and Excel. Prefer candidate with strong computer skills college degree and experience as a television sales assistant. A positive attitude and willingness to learn is essential to the success of this candidate. Candidate should enjoy working in a fast-paced environment.
eGov monitor – A Policy Dialogue Platform | Promoting Better Governanc…
eGov monitor – May 19, 2008
Tom rmerod Learning Portal Development Manager at the council explains how his team have achieved this vision for the area?s young learners and gives advice to other Local Authorities on the huge cost savings they can make if they purchase ICT authority-wide. The visionver the past two years Rotherham MBC has been busy creating its own learning platform in line with the Government?s recommendations to provide schools with an easy way to access work anytime anywhere. Part-funded by the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) the ?Rotherham Learning Portal? based on Microsoft SharePoint Server 2007 went live this April. The next big step for this forward-thinking authority is to populate its platform with engaging media-rich curriculum content to make the learning experience truly interactive for teachers and students. Tom rmerod comments: ?ur learning platform is a great collaborative tool but without curriculum content it cannot provide a well-rounded platform for learning which is what our schools need. To make sure that teachers and students alike get the most from our portal we needed to fill it with exciting materials that can be used to meet specific learning objectives in the classroom and ultimately make learning fun. ? Selecting the right content providerTo select their content provider the council firstly called upon its teaching community for feedback on resources they currently used and liked… Tom comments: ?Local authorities should be aware and use their immense bargaining power to negotiate a good deal with a content provider. By purchasing in bulk they are relieving companies of hours spent selling in to individual schools so authorities should ensure that their contract reflects this. ?Birchfield?s content is prepared by practising teachers but illustrated by professional animators and filmmakers which has resulted in content that is a world away from the static Word and PowerPoint content that teachers would usually have the time to put together. Tom comments: ?Apart from the select few the vast majority of teachers across the country simply don?t have the time or necessary skills to create high-quality animated content. We want our teachers to have this at their fingertips so they are free to spend their time doing what they do best ? teach!?A vision of collaboration across Rotherham?s schoolsThe council works closely with its schools on The RaisE Project; an initiative which encourages teachers to create and share content across the authority. Twenty two secondary school ?innovators? meet twice per term to share best practice and the authority anticipates that the learning platform content will further help and encourage more teachers to get involved. The council has negotiated a deal with Birchfield to include its Lesson Builder for VLE application due to launch in the autumn.