A simple wireless network? Not likely

September 1, 2010, 9:20am

When one of the first instructions a popular wireless Internet router from Netgear gives its owner is a choice between the security protocols known as WPA-PSK (TKIP) and WPA-PSK (TKIP) + WPA2-PSK (AES), you know the home networking industry has problems.

The technology industry would like us all to believe that vast numbers of Americans are happily streaming feature films, Twitter feeds, photos and home movies from the Internet to every TV in the house.

The reality is that setting up a home network to make all that happen is still a more daunting task than most home improvement projects. And it may be even harder getting one to work reliably when every family member is on his or her own computer or smartphone, simultaneously streaming, posting and surfing.

While the idea of accessing content while roaming untethered from room to room is appealing, there is only so much bandwidth in the house available to handle all that traffic simultaneously.

Popping popcorn in the kitchen microwave for the Netflix movie you were expecting to stream from your Wii can disable the network. Or your spouse’s desire to watch YouTube videos of babies on in-line skates could slow down your ability to download that spreadsheet your boss is waiting for you to revise from home.

Everyone loves the idea of wireless — and that’s the problem. Most wireless traffic travels on the 2.4 gigahertz band, including cordless phones. A microwave oven operates at the same frequency. Put a wireless router too close to either and you can easily knock the router off line or slow the response rate to a crawl.

Your neighbor’s network can do the same thing. “The 2.4 gigahertz band is unlicensed, so all the neighbors using that frequency interfere with your bandwidth, and it’s happening more and more,” said Chris Geiser, a product line manager for Netgear, a maker of networking products.

The newest routers use the 802.11N standard, which allows a wireless signal to travel farther than the older 802.11G standard, which is good for getting the signal to your upstairs bedroom — but it can also send it to your neighbor’s upstairs bedroom.

Where you put your router can drastically alter the distance the signal can travel. A wireless router’s signal strength can be cut short when it hits walls at an oblique angle or tries to travel through a kitchen’s ceramic tile or a bedroom full of mirrors.

You can extend the signal range of a wireless router with a device called a wireless bridge or range extender. (NYT)

An ultra-compact camera that offers creative freedom

By Eugene Araneta

Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines—Anybody can easily be charmed with the finely contoured and ultra compact steel chassis of the new NEX-5—the latest addition to Sony’s Alpha lineup of professional-grade cameras.

Given the ultra compact size and mirror-less design, the NEX-5 only weighs approximately 229 grams and measures 10.8 mm x 58.8 mm x 38.2 mm (width, height and breadth).

This makes the NEX-5 the smallest and lightest camera system that may be placed inside a pocket or a handbag.

Everyday shutterbugs, or even professional photographers who want backup cameras with them at all times, will have no problem with the NEX-5.

This 14.6-megapixel interchangeable lens camera system is equipped with an APS-C type (23.4x15.6mm) “Exmor” CMOS sensor that can deliver high quality still photo images with exceptional rich color and tonal gradation comparable to any well-known DSLR brands available today.

It features an interchangeable lens body that can accommodate various E-mount lenses from wide angle, ultra wide angle and fisheye converters to standard zoom and high power zoom.

And with the right lens mount adapter, this camera can accommodate the full range of Sony Alpha System A-mount lenses.

Aside from having a higher sensitivity of up to 12800 ISO, this Alpha camera also has a Handheld Twilight Mode feature, which allows users to easily capture high quality images even in low light conditions without having to use a tripod or flash.

The NEX-5 can also record videos in 1920X1080 full HD AVCHD format at 25 frames per second, and HD videos supported by MP4 format can easily be uploaded to any social networking websites such as Blogs or Facebook.

Furthermore, it is fitted with a 3-inch LCD monitor that can be tilted 80° up and 45° down to allow any user a view of their subjects and shoot even at awkward angles.

The screen features a high 920,000 dot resolution and integrates TruBlack technology, which allows sharper subject details to be displayed with deep blacks and high contrast, making it easy to focus on subjects accurately.

This camera features an easy-to-use control wheel and soft keys, letting you control the camera quickly and intuitively.

Pressing and rotating the control wheel lets you access shooting, drive and flash modes, as well as exposure compensation and other camera settings.

One interesting feature about this camera is its built-in shooting tips feature that provides some useful information on different photographic techniques.

Another interesting feature is the camera’s 3D capability. It can take 3D sweep panoramic images that can be viewed with a BRAVIA HDTV with 3D imaging support feature.

This camera is also equipped with Speed Priority Continuous mode that can capture 7 frames per second.

With this enhanced burst shooting feature, this camera can capture fast moving objects without missing any key shot in a sequence.

Other notable features include dual memory card slots that enable the use of both Memory Stick and SD media. This camera is compatible with the latest Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo HX media, enabling the fastest transfer speeds of up to 4 times that of the Memory Stick PRO Duo Mark 2, and maximizing continuous shooting with its large data capacity of up to 32GB.

With its unique and sleek design and excellent image quality, the lightweight Sony NEX-5 can surely stimulate the creative juices of amateur and even professional photographers.

Published in Philippine Daily Inquirer August 30, 2010.

Paperless business registration to start this year—DTI exec

By Judy Quiros
Inquirer Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The government’s paperless business registration system will finally roll out this year, four years after its inception, a Department of Trade and Industry official said.

Whilner Morales, program manager of the DTI’s Philippine Business Registry (PBR), said the paperless registration system would be implemented at the local and national levels.

Morales said a live test would be conducted in Caloocan City in September.

“Anybody can register a business anywhere using the power of the Internet,” Morales said during Wednesday’s Kapehan sa PIA here.

He said the idea was to streamline the business registration process and subsequently reduce the cost of doing business, cut down red tape, and promote paperless environment in the government.

PBR was conceptualized in 2006 by virtue of Executive Order 587. The order mandates the DTI and other government agencies and local government units to implement the paperless business registration system.

Morales said that the PBR, being paperless, would eliminate the "face-to-face" factor, promote server-to-server integration, and eliminate geographical boundaries.

“At its minimum, the PBR will address the repetitive submission with multiple copies of the same documents to different agencies. It will facilitate a seamless transactional environment for business registration and development across the application systems of various government agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, DTI, Cooperative Development Agency, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Social Security Sytem, Pag-IBIG, PhilHealth, and the local government units,” he said.

Morales said under the project, the online filing of applications for business permits and licenses will need only a single data entry facility, with links to the systems of national government agencies and LGUs.

Citing a World Bank report, Morales said businessregistration in the Philippines takes 50 days going through 11 processes.

But under the paperless concept, he said, an individual or corporation could save 26 days in business registration and processes.

“We have targets but for now we can only say that with PBR, saving 26 days from the usual 50 days of registration and processes can be guaranteed. But the rock bottom of PBR is significant speed,” Morales said.

In battle of projector technology, 3LCD seeks to gain upper-hand

In the realm of projectors, a quiet war is being waged between two competing technologies in a scale perhaps similar, but not as high-profile, to the legendary tiff between Betamax and VHS or Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.

On one corner of the table is DLP, short for digital light processing, a technology pioneered by American semiconductor firm Texas Instruments (TI). The single-chip DLP is used by a number of projector manufacturers such as Infocus and BenQ. A newer technology, the three-chip DLP, has also been introduced by TI but the single-chip is more widespread, primarily due to cost.

On the other end of the table is 3LCD, a technology invented by Japan-based Epson Corp. Interestingly, it was imaging company Kodak which first adopted the technology before Epson launched its own 3LCD projector, the VPJ-700, in 1989. A host of other projector makers like tech giants Sony and Panasonic have since acquired the license to use 3LCD projectors.

As opposed in the 1-chip DLP which uses a spinning color wheel to project the red, green, and blue lights, the 3LCD technology employs three chips for each color which are then recombined by a prism to project the image onto the screen.

At a recent press tour of its 3LCD facilities in Japan, Epson said the company and its licensees have shipped a total of 60 million 3LCD chips in the last 20 years. The company operates two major 3LCD plants in Japan – the main R&D center in Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture and the main factory in Chitose in the northern island of Hokkaido.

Epson has cited a survey of electronics research firm FutureSource Consulting which said that Epson has held the top share of 16.1 percent in the global projector market in the last ten years (2000 to 2009). In the Philippines, company officials cited the same report which showed that Epson held a commanding 20.2 percent share in the local projector market. The subsidiary, however, is expecting this figure to rise to 24 percent this year because of the company’s renewed focus on the corporate segment.

Eisuke Shimoyama, manager of visual instruments at Seiko Epson Corp., said during the press briefing that 3LCD projectors are 25-percent more light efficient because of its use of three-chip light engine.

“In DLP technology, the chip makes use of the white segment to boost lumens. However, this reduces color performance and clarity,” said Shimoyama.

The Japanese executive said TI has done a “brilliant” job of marketing DLP but said there is “nothing brilliant” about the technology. “DLP is actually very inefficient in using energy and projecting colors as it has spinning mechanism that can fail,” he said.

Koichi Kubota, chief executive of the visual instruments operations division of Seiko Epson Corp., said the projector market is expected to grow despite the growing popularity of widescreen LCD television.

“These two markets are different because of the size factor,” said Kubota, implying that LCD TVs can never attain the large screen size of projectors.

The official said the company has scrapped plans of producing a palm-size projector that it previewed it the past. “We decided not to roll out because of the brightness factor,” he said.

There are still many areas of growth for Epson’s projector business, said Kubota, adding that the company is currently “studying” a 3D projector although no timetable has been set for this yet. “One factor that is making its development difficult is the fact that there are different standards for 3D technology as of now,” he said.

One new product that Epson is excited to launch, however, is a “short-throw” projector that is expected to give an entirely new meaning to “interactive” white boards.

The BrightLink 450Wi, which has been pilot-tested in different parts of the globe, is an intelligent and interactive projector that allows educators to turn any standard whiteboard or smooth wall into an interactive learning area.

Epson V11H317020-1 BRIGHTLINK 450WI LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY (LCD) PROJECTION WXGA 2500 LUMEN WIRELESS SHRT THRW/PEN/ NO SW

Because the projector is connected to a Window-powered PC, the lectures written in the interactive white board can be saved in a file.

Published in Manila Bulletin August 11, 2010

Business outsourcing reshaping Philippine society

By Cecil Morella
Agence France-Press

MANILA – Daybreak is happy hour in a world turned upside down at a trendy bar in the Philippines' financial district, the clientele young and loud and with a vague California accent.

Vodka cruisers and beer fly by the bucketful as good friends Cici, Pau and Jels go off duty along with the rest of the night shift in the nation's half-million strong business process outsourcing (BPO) workforce.

Even the hors d'oeuvres are edgy -- "drunken" shrimp and green mango soaked in pale pilsen -- reflecting the punishing lifestyles of the partygoers.

"I used to drink eight bottles of Red Horse at a time and still find my way home," said 28-year-old Cici, discussing a local brew known for its high alcohol content and often called "The Devil's Own Juice."

The group of young women really let their hair down on Saturdays, hitting bars, beaches or shopping malls all day so they can socialise with friends outside the industry and sleep at least for one night like a normal person.

Life in many ways is a blast for the young, single and educated in the outsourcing industry.

Entry-level jobs bring salaries of $300 a month with the promise of triple that after a few years' experience – good wages in a country where a third of the population live on a dollar a day.

Jobs are plentiful and can come with generous perks such as 13th and 14th-month pay, performance bonuses and free medical insurance.

And the outsourcing industry -- which has soaked up millions of call centre, accounting and other back-office jobs from the developed world -- is becoming an increasingly vital part of the nation's economy.

Its 500,000 Filipino employees are the world's second biggest outsourcing workforce behind India.

Its revenues, which already account for 5.0 percent of the country's gross domestic product, are growing at double digit rates annually, according to the industry group Business Processing Association Philippines.

On a more micro-level, entire 24/7 service industries -- including convenience stores, bars and fast-food restaurants – have sprung up around the new office towers to serve the needs of the booming sector.

However there are concerns about the way the industry is reshaping young adult society, as well as the pressures the workers face as they remotely help customers and clients on the other side of the world.

The odd hours, irate clients, tedious workloads and performance demands often drive staff – particularly call centre workers – to early burnout.

Cici, Pau and Jels -- who spoke to AFP on condition their surnames were not used -- are castaways from earlier call centre jobs.

"Sometimes you would be handling 300 calls at once and 150 others would be on hold. You don't have a moment's rest," said Pau, 32, who graduated to a higher-paying job handling office equipment procurement for US companies.

She said call center staff typically got only two 15-minute cigarette breaks either side of a 30-minute meal break every eight-hour shift.

Cici said one of the hardest parts of call centre work was simply dealing with customers angry at having to speak with someone on the other side of the world.

"One customer said: 'I don't wanna talk to you. I want to talk to an American'... I cried," Cici said.

And while Filipino BPO workers earn 53 percent more than same-age workers in other industries, one in three quit every year, according to an International Labor Organization study released last month.

The turnover rate is four times the national average.

"Five years in one job is a long time in this industry," Cici said.

The arrival of the BPO industry a decade ago also brought about changes in values, diets, and sexual practices, according to Josefina Natividad, a professor with the University of the Philippines' Population Institute.

"What shocked us most was that for both call-centre and non call-centre workers the level of premarital sex was very high," she said, citing a health and lifestyle survey on young Filipinos completed by her team this year.

Heavy drinking and smoking, rising childbirths out of wedlock, and high consumption of junk food also stood out.

Highly Recommended         Amazon's Kindle 2 Amazon's 6" Wireless Reading Device (Latest Generation). 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle, anytime, anywhere; no monthly fees, service plans. Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds. Reads like real paper. "The world is different now, and the single thing driving this I'm sure is technology," Natividad said.

Both Cici and Pau said they had heard similar stories in the call centre office they used to work at, which have beds in rest areas for exhausted staff.

"Our sleeping quarters were for both sexes. Some of my friends told me that there were certain things that happened there," Cici said.

The trend has worrying implications on public health, said Teresita Marie Bagasao, the country official for the United Nations Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS.

Most new HIV infections now occur among young Filipinos, compared with the 1990s when the country's large overseas-based work force including sailors were the main risk group, she said.

Despite the stresses and risks, those in the industry see few other options in a country where the only way they would earn that kind of money would be to join the exodus of Filipinos working abroad.

Jels said she had earned enough in five years in the industry to pay a deposit on a condominium unit, and said her priority now was to hopefully start a family.

"I want a boyfriend. And I want a family and a baby in two or three years' time," the 29-year-old-said

Published in Philippine Daily Inquirer August 8, 2010

Multimedia PC offers rich touch experience

Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines--Apple’s new touch-enabled iPad may have received all the hype, but HP’s TouchSmart 600 definitely has the edge.

The TouchSmart 600 is a touch-enabled all-in-one desktop PC that is a tad better than the iPad when it comes to touchable screen size and performance in handling multimedia tasks, which only takes a mere swipe of a finger.

Although it is not a tablet PC like iPad, TouchSmart still has notable features like a user interface that is sensitive to touch. Its multimedia applications, such as music player, video or even photo editing software, respond immediately to finger drags, snaps and twirls.

Intuitive

Called “TouchSmart” apps, these touch-enabled applications allow the user to experience music, video, and photos with finger gestures such as pinch, rotate, arc, flick, or press.

These apps or widgets can also be drag to access information, entertainment and social networks in an intuitive way.

The HP TouchSmart 600 is a wireless all-in-one desktop solution that features a 23-inch high definition (1080p Full HD) widescreen display where the TouchSmart applications may be accessed.

Slim and pretty with piano-black finish and chrome accents, the TouchSmart is targeting home PC users looking for an elegant device with which to adorn their living rooms.

Extremely responsive

The TouchSmart operates on Windows 7 and boasts of Intel Core Duo processor T6600 (2.2 Ghz, 2 MB L2 Cache, and 800 MHz Front Side Bus), 4 GB DDR 3 memory module, and a 750-GB hard disk drive, which may be more than enough to contain all the family’s games, movies, photos, and song collections.

It also features a 1 GB NVIDIA N10 GT230 discrete graphics, which allows the touchscreen interface to be extremely responsive.

As a full HD capable PC, it features HDMI and DVI connectivity, as well as a built-in TV tuner.

Anther notable feature of the HP TouchSmart 600 is its TouchSmart Link, which allows for fast transfers of files via Bluetooth.

Handwriting recognition

The device also features game console connectivity, handwriting recognition (for doing file searches or notetaking that can be saved right onto the screen), photo editing using the finger for resizing or twirling of photos, camera with face recognition capability, and a great photo gallery slide show.

Priced at a whopping P84, 990, the HP TouchSmart 600 comes with wireless mouse and keyboard.

Is $99 too much for Office 2010?

Posted by Christopher Dawson @ 8:52 pm

Have you used the beta of Office 2010? I have. It’s incredibly slick, well-done software. I really like Office 2007, but 2010, even in beta form (much as Windows 7 beta was to Vista) is a real leap ahead. The interface is polished and it has everything a power user could want, from Access to Word. Microsoft announced pricing for it today and, while volume licensing hasn’t been hammered out, the academic version of Office 2010 Professional looks to be running $99 a pop. Upgrade pricing won’t be available for current Office 2007 users.

I’ve asked before if Office is good enough to pay for.

    …even I can’t deny that Office 2007 is worth the money, at least for a subset of users, as I look over at the document I was creating when I started this post, not in OpenOffice, not in Google Docs, but on a spare PC using Office 2007 because it was the right tool for the job.

This will remain true for Office 2010…for a small subset of users. However, if those users already have 2007 licenses, is it worth the upgrade? For $99 (or even $79, if we assume volume academic licensing will be cheaper), I can buy a toner cartridge. Or a bunch of e-books. Or send a user to a conference. Or buy a digital camera for a class. A few licenses will get a classroom a slick new device or two coming out of CES.

I spent the day in brutal budget meetings. My business manager joked, noting that a few of us happened to be wearing red, that people wouldn’t notice the blood stains from a first difficult pass through budget lines that we slashed to save money. With staff and programs as our top priorities, it becomes very difficult to justify any expenses that don’t directly contribute to teaching and learning. Does Office 2010 help us educate kids better? If secretaries and other power users are already adeptly doing their jobs with the excellent 2007 version of Office, does an upgrade help them do their jobs better?

And more importantly, is there any reason not to phase out Office altogether for the average user and leverage Google Apps? OpenOffice would do the trick, too. I know that Microsoft is rolling lots of technology into their 2010 products (SharePoint and Office especially) and will be upping the value proposition for their Live@Edu and other educational offerings. However, no matter how much I like Office 2010, there won’t be any upgrades happening this year (or the next, for that matter). I just can’t rationalize it, whether 2007 keeps doing the job or my users embrace the free Google Edu Apps for their document creation needs.

I can’t expect Microsoft to give away Office to schools - this is a cash cow for them. However, deep upgrade discounts for educational institutions or drastically lower volume academic pricing would go a long ways towards keeping their desktop productivity software alive in budget-strapped schools as their own cloud implementations mature and competitors crank out the feature improvements.