NEWS IN BRIEF
For the record 9 May
09-05-2007
by Ciara O'Brien
RTE.ie hosts live web debate on ICT issues | Northgate in partnership with Fronter
RTE.ie on Wednesday hosted a live web debate between the communications spokespeople of four of the political parties in the run up to the Irish General Election. Debating the issues of broadband access, the technology job sector and other high tech issues were Minister Noel Dempsey, Fianna Fail; Bernard Durkan, Fine Gael; Tommy Broughan, Labour; and Eamon Ryan, Green Party. The live debate received 8,000 hits and was moderated by Joe Zefran, news editor of RTE.ie.
Three MobileAware customers have been shortlisted as finalists in Computerworld magazine's "Best Practices in Mobile & Wireless 2007" awards program. Atlas Air, maintenance firm Gaz Metro Plus and transportation company CSX Corporation have been selected as finalists for the award, which identifies and acknowledges excellence among users of mobile technology. The awards also rank wireless solutions according to certain criteria, including the strategic importance of the solution to the business, impact on customer, financial return on investment (ROI) and the ability of the solution to accommodate future mobile initiatives. The winners in each category will be announced at Mobile & Wireless World, which takes place in Florida from 21-23 May.
Microsoft and Novell have signed up 12 new customers for their collaborative services. The companies taking advantage of the mixed-source environment of Microsoft and Novell now include Fujitsu Services Oy, Gulfstream Aerospace, hi5 Networks, Nationwide, and the state of California, Department of Fish and Game. "This impressive list of customers across a wide range of industry groups and geographies is a further proof point of the value of interoperability," said Susan Heystee, vice president and general manager of global strategic alliances for Novell." The collaboration between Microsoft Windows and SUSE Linux Enterprise offers a number of benefits, including cost savings and intellectual property assurances. Under the agreement Microsoft delivers SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscription certificates to each company, under separate customer agreements.
Lenovo has added two new products to its ThinkPad range of notebooks, including its first widescreen R Series model. The ThinkPad T61 14.1-inch widescreen notebook and the ThinkPad R61 14.1-inch widescreen notebook come with a new Top Cover Roll Cage for durability, and Lenovo has also improved the cooling system and wireless connectivity with Ultra Connect II. The ThinkPads feature Intel Centrino Pro and Intel Centrino Duo mobile technology.
UK ICT firm Northgate Education has teamed up with European company Fronter to bring virtual learning environments to teachers and students in the UK. Under the deal, Northgate will offer Fronter's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) to primary and secondary school customers, in a platform that is fully integrated into Northgate's Managed Learning Environment (MLE). More than 2 million people already use the Fronter VLE throughout Europe, and it has recently been selected by London Grid for Learning for all schools in London. The VLE offers an online personal work space, with customised learning resources, assignments, etc; collaboration and communication between students and teachers; and allows parents to monitor a child's progress. The first MLE launch, with the fully integrated Fronter VLE platform, will take place in Bristol.
Sony Ericsson has launched a number of new handsets, including its fifth generation P-Series smartphone, the P1. The pocket-sized smartphone offers a complete mobile office, including push corporate and consumer e-mail, and is enabled for WLAN and voice over IP. It also includes a 3.2 megapixel camera with business card scanner. Meanwhile, the mobile maker also launched the T650, which comes with a stainless steel finish and scratch-proof mineral glass; the slim slider S500 with desktop and menu themes that change over time; and the sophisticated T250, which has a metal finish and aims to "bring style to the masses".
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 