Canadian Wood’s Hold Webinar on ‘Architecture with Wood in India’

FII-India, popularly known as Canadian Wood has been actively promoting building with wood in India using wood legally sourced from the sustainably managed forests of B.C., Canada. In case of structural applications of wood it works closely with architects, developers, contractors, and hospitality professionals and extends technical support by suggesting appropriate species and grades most suitable to the type of construction chosen or preferred, i.e. T&G (Tongue & Groove), WFC (Wood Frame Construction), posts-and-beams or even hybrid in tandem with local stone/bricks. It also conducts educational seminars and training workshops that help create awareness about its wood species, specific applications, and appropriate methods of use.

As a part of this continued effort during the COVID19 period, Canadian Wood introduced webinars on topics of interest to the wood working industry at large. Its third webinar titled ‘Architecture with wood in India’ conducted on July 24, 2020, was a part of the continuing series and a first-of-its-kind virtual panel discussion, presented by Indo-Canadian Business Chamber (ICBC) and sponsored by Artius Interior Products Pvt. Ltd.

The webinar began with a warm welcome by Ms. Nadira Hamid, CEO, ICBC and opening remarks by Hon. Andrew Smith, Minister (Commercial), High Commission of Canada. This was followed by an introduction of the event curator & moderator Prof. Gurdev Singh by Mr. Pranesh Chhibber, Country Director, FII India. Prof. Gurdev Singh is an industry icon and the Ex-Dean of the School of Environmental Design and Architecture, Navrachana University. With over 40 years of invaluable experience in the field of architecture and several awards at national and international levels to his credit, his portfolio includes Teaching, Design (Architecture, Interior and Urban), Project Management and Construction Coordination, Quality Control and Site Management, as well as experience on projects as an Owner/Builder.

As the webinar progressed exciting sections began to slowly unfold itself in the form of extensive, informative presentations by eminent Indian architects namely Ar. N Mahesh from Iyer & Mahesh, Ar. Gurpreet Singh from Aakar Design Consultants and Ar. Kamal Malik from Malik Architecture. Each glorified through their unique pieces of work the various features, strengths, and possibilities in the world of architecture with wood.

Ar. N Mahesh is known for his decades of experience in reviving traditional timber architecture in India using ‘Green’ reforested timber. He presented beautiful pieces of work that drew inspiration from heritage architecture in Kerala and merged it with the technological prowess of changing times. His presentation showcased rich examples of wooden buildings and captivating visuals of projects spanning across premium hotels and resorts like the Ananta spa & resort - Rajasthan, the Lalit resort & spa, Bekal – Kerala and the Zuri Kumarakom resort & spa - Kerala to name a few. Besides these, he also showcased an eye-catching structure, his prized possession called the ‘Bell Museum’ located in Trivandrum. The building’s interiors featured successful use of Canadian manufactured Tongue and Groove panelling made with western hemlock, one of the five Canadian wood species available across India.

This was followed with a presentation by Ar. Gurpreet Singh who unveiled some truly exemplary work. His projects included well-recognized and awarded ventures like the Royal Academy of Bhutan and large scale in-making projects like the Dining hall for the World School of Environment in Coorg. He also showcased Aakar Villa; a luxury private villa displayed at 1970 sq. ft. in Himachal Pradesh. The villa exhibited how Canadian Wood specie Douglas-fir was optimally used to build posts-and-beams, multiple doors and windows that created a beautiful open space in oneness with nature.

The final presentation was made by Ar. Kamal Malik. His slides were iconic in their representation of his love for nature and the inspiration drawn from it. He defined architecture as a synthesis of ‘Ecology’ and ‘Spirit’. ‘Ecology’ implying a seamless, cohesive, and integrated approach to design and ‘Spirit’ implying balance, understanding and tranquility. His pieces of work included a luxury resort in Morgiri in Lonavala and in Alibaug where he elaborated upon how nature united with the applied contemporary architectural elements.

The three presentations were followed by a very engaging panel discussion, innovatively curated by Prof. Gurdev Singh. The event finally concluded with an insightful Q&A session of the panelists with the well-informed audience. The queries raised by the enthusiastic audience to the panelists clearly indicated the rising positive sentiment and trend towards use of wood in structural applications – we see an emerging trend of country homes, farm houses and resorts especially in hills and coastal areas being designed with wood (from sustainably managed forests) as the most ecofriendly building material.

Commenting on the response to the webinar, Mr. Pranesh Chhibber, Country Director, FII India said, “Canadian Wood is delighted to have the three stalwarts of architecture together as panelists on this platform along with Prof. Gurdev as the curator and moderator. It has been an enriching experience for us to listen and see them share their experience and expertise with the audience on the topic of “Architecture with Wood in India”.

It has been highly satisfying, encouraging and inspiring for us have had such an illustrious team of panelists on the Canadian Wood webinar – Ion behalf of Canadian Wood, thank Architects Mahesh, Gurpreet and Kamal from the bottom of my heart to having spared time for not just today but for having put in many hours preparing their presentations with their respective teams in their offices. Needless to mention that we are also thankful to Prof. Gurdev for being a great sport and taking on the mantle of being the curator and moderator for this webinar.

I must acknowledge the support and encouragement from Hon. Andrew Smith – Minister (Commercial), High Commission of Canada in India and thank him for taking time out for the webinar to further strengthen Indo-Canadian business ties. Needless to mention that without the support and collaboration of ICBC this webinar would not have been possible – so thank you Nadira for being such a sport. I also thank Ms. Bhawna Sharma – Director of Artius Interior products, Gurgaon for sponsoring the webinar and sharing with the audience the great work that Artius is doing with the Canadian Wood species.

Last but not the least, this webinar would not have been a success without the registration and participation of such an enlightened audience. There is a lot for us to take from this webinar and be encouraged to keep such conversations alive on the Canadian Wood forum. I assure our stakeholders that we intend continuing to organize more such sessions with eminent personalities connected with wood from India and abroad.

About FII India

FII is a crown agency of the government of British Columbia (B.C.), the western most province of Canada. Its mandate is to promote wood products from B.C. Canada in the offshore markets and to position it as a global supplier of quality, environmentally responsible wood products from sustainably managed forests by creating awareness and spreading education through information on the wide variety of timber products available from B.C. Canada and the technical support. Its brand/logo Canadian Wood was established in 2013 to reach out to and facilitate the understanding of its activities to its target audience.

Green battery gives non-stop energy for years

Scientists at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have developed a new, environmentally friendly silicon-air battery capable of supplying non-stop power for thousands of hours without needing to be replaced.

Created from oxygen and silicon, such batteries would be lightweight, have an unlimited shelf life, and have a high tolerance for both humid and extremely dry conditions.

Potential uses include medical applications (example, powering diabetic pumps), sensors and microelectronics structured from silicon. “Silicon-air batteries will be used like the ones already in use today,” said lead researcher Yair Ein-Eli. “But by using silicon – a safe, non-toxic, stable and more common material – we can create batteries with infinite shelf life and high energy capacity,” he added.

Silicon-air batteries would be able to provide savings in cost, weight as they lack the built-in cathode used in conventional batteries.

Agencies

Canada Ford plant to shutdown in 2011, layoff 1,400 jobs

US automaker Ford Motor Co. will shutter one of its manufacturing plants in Canada in 2011, a move that will cut 1,400 jobs, the Canadian Auto Workers said Friday.

As part of a cost-reduction agreement between the company's US headquarters and the CAW, the plant in St. Thomas, Ontario, will close in the third quarter of 2011, the powerful union said in a statement.

Some 1,400 employees will be dismissed, CAW spokeswoman Shannon Devine told AFP. Canadian media put the number of jobs eliminated at 1,600.

As part of the tentative agreement the union said it obtained a commitment by the US automaker to keep at least 10 percent of its North American production in Canada.

"During the negotiations, Ford threatened that if we didn't come to an agreement, the company would begin shifting investment out of Canada," said Ken Lewenza, president of the CAW.

"In today's globalized economy where companies attempt to bypass community commitments, it's crucial that we don't allow this to happen."

The agreement, which expires in September 2012, is expected to be voted on and approved Sunday by the CAW's 7,000 Ford workers in Canada.

The St. Thomas plant produces the Ford Crown Victoria -- a model routinely chosen by US police forces and New York taxis -- as well as the Mercury Grand Marquis.

Although Ford did not accept bailout money from the US government like Chrysler and General Motors did, the CAW said Ford followed the pattern set out earlier in the year by its US rivals to cut significant portions of their Canada operations as part of restructuring.

Chrysler and GM both filed for bankruptcy and received billions of dollars in US government aid. Canada's government also pumped billions of dollars into the companies as part of packages to keep their auto manufacturing operations here afloat.

As part of the new deal, the CAW agreed to a reduction in holidays and a requirement for workers to contribute to the company's pension fund at the rate of one dollar for every hour worked, Devine said.

Ford for its part made new production and investment commitments in several manufacturing locations in Canada, including production of "at least two new-generation vehicles in the next product cycle" at its Oakville plant outside Toronto.

"This footprint commitment was an important achievement for the union," Lewenza said.

But Ford stood firm on closure of the St. Thomas plant.

"Nothing was harder... than coming to the realization that regardless of whatever suggestions the union came up with to save the St. Thomas facility, Ford would be closing the plant," said Mike Vince, chairman of the CAW-Ford bargaining committee and president of CAW Local 200.

Ford committed to funding and opening a center to assist workers unemployed after the plant closure.

Agencies

Will HP merge its PC, print divisions?

Hewlett-Packard Co is considering a plan to reorganize the company and combine its printer and personal computer units, the Wall Street Journal reported.

A plan is being finalized that would put Todd Bradley, who leads HP's PC group, in charge of the combined division, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.

An HP spokeswoman declined to comment on what she called "rumor and speculation."

PCs made up around 30 percent of HP's revenue in the July quarter, with the printing group accounting for roughly 20 percent.

The printing group boasted an operating margin of 17 percent, making it HP's most profitable division.

For fiscal 2010, HP forecast revenue growth of 3-5 percent in its PC business and zero to 2 percent in its printing group.

HP is the world's No. 1 PC maker, holding a roughly 20 percent share of the global market.

The Journal report said Vyomesh Joshi, a longtime HP veteran who leads the printing division, could potentially leave the company in the coming months.

He has been approached in recent years by other technology companies looking for a new chief executive, the report said, citing people familiar with Joshi's discussions.

Agencies

New smart card technology by 2014, says MTA

Bus and subway riders will be able to abandon the MetroCard and use debit or credit cards to ride anywhere in the city by 2014, according to the MTA.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority for the first time set a target date for a no-swipe smart-card system to be in full use after years of studies and pilot programs.

With smart-card technology, riders simply waive or tap their credit or debit cards on readers when entering a subway station or bus.

Not having to swipe at turnstiles or dip a MetroCard into a fare box reader should speed travel and reduce MTA expenses, experts have said.

"I think it's great," Bill Henderson, executive director of the MTA's Permanent Citizens Advisory Council. "The technology is going help out the riders and the system."

The 2014 date is included in an MTA document detailing some of the major initiatives in the five-year capital plan recently approved by the authority's governing board.

If fully funded, the capital plan will allocate $220 million for a smart-card system, which also would include prepaid cards not linked to bank or credit accounts.

Agencies

500+ BPO jobs to move from Australia to India: Vodafone

Vodafone Hutchison has announced that it will be offshoring 450 call center jobs from Australia to Tasmania and India. A spokesman for Vodafone Hutchison Australia said that company would transfer an unspecified number of positions to a call centre in Mumbai and about 100 jobs to Kingston, Tasmania.

Service Stream, the company that was running Vodafone contract confirmed the telecom operator's plans to end the contract employing 450 in customer service and support roles starting in October to February. Michael Doery, Managing Director of Service Stream says that the company would try to find new roles for the affected employees, but was unlikely to accommodate them. "We're trying to do the right thing for our staff but not give them false expectations. Call centre people are unlikely to suit the other sort of work we do, which is technically-based or based on outdoor civil activities. If a company we're providing services to makes a decision to in-source call centre jobs to Tasmania and India, that's not our decision," Doery said.

The decision to transfer call center jobs out of Australia comes three months after Vodafone Australia and Hutchison 3G Australia formed a 50:50 joint venture. Speaking on the current development Nigel Dews, Australia Chief of Vodafone Hutchison said, "The opportunity to use our combined scale to enhance our customer service capabilities is an important outcome for the Vodafone Hutchison Australia merger."

Agencies

Co-founder of Netscape, Andreessen now joins HP board

Two years after selling his software company to Hewlett-Packard, Marc Andreessen has joined the PC giant's board of directors.

HP announced the appointment, effective immediately, on Thursday. In a statement, HP's chairman and CEO Mark Hurd described Andreessen as "a software pioneer whose leadership has helped shape the Internet...Marc's entrepreneurial background and industry expertise will be a welcome addition to the HP board of directors."

Andreessen and HP's relationship goes back several years, culminating with HP's purchase of Opsware for $1.6 billion in 2007. Since then, Andreessen, best known as the co-founder of Netscape, has helmed social network creation service Ning, and a new venture capital firm Andreessen-Horowitz. He also sits on the boards of eBay and Facebook.

Agencies

$1.5 billion investments from EMC in India

EMC said it will invest an incremental $1.5 billion in India over the next five years. The plans include for a new campus in Begalaru which will be one of EMC's largest R&D centers outside the US.

This investment plan represents a nearly threefold increase to investments made by EMC in India over the previous five years.

"India offers tremendous opportunities in innovation and market potential," said David Goulden, EVP and CFO of EMC. "EMC's commitment of $1.5 billion over the next five years illustrates the important role India will play in the company's long-term strategic APJ and global growth plans. The India COE will be responsible in helping EMC deliver more innovative, industry-leading products and services in the hottest technology areas in IT that meet our customers' most pressing needs."

Agencies

Have IT cos skipped campus recruitment for 2009-10?

With Nasscom, the software industry's apex body advising its members not to go to campuses for recruitment, the placements at engineering colleges has dried up. However, although 2008-09 was a difficult year for training and placement officers (TPO) at engineering colleges, 2009-10 could be the most critical year for campus placements, reports Economic Times.

JN Pitambare, Dean of Sinhagad Institute says, "Normally, 75-80 percent of the placements used to take place by mid-August. However, this year I will be happy if I am able to place even 10-15 percent of our students by December."

SV Dravid, TPO, DY Patil College of Engineering at Akurdi, near Pune said, "Last year, we had placed 150 students by this time. This year, not a single student has been placed. I hope the situation improves by December." Normally the big software companies finish recruitment by mid-August, placing around 75 percent of the college students.The core sector companies used to come from August, but this year they are non-committal.

Companies have been telling TPOs that their placement requirements are yet to be firmed up since things are not planned yet or they do not know how many projects they will get. "Most of the core companies are in a dilemma. They have promised to come for placements by December," said TPO Federation President Professor Shital Rawandale. Not only are there fewer jobs on offer for 2009-10 but the companies are adopting various techniques to defer the joining dates of candidates recruited last year or even to reject them.

Top colleges like the College of Engineering Pune (COEP) are also facing problems. "Of the 576 students placed last year, only 150 have joined till now. For the rest of them, joining has been deferred from July to December," said Assistant TPO, COEP, SA Meshram.

Some of the selected candidates are being asked to take more tests. With the recession, singing of bonds has also returned. "Some small and medium-sized software companies now want the candidates whom they had already selected to enter into two-year bonds," said a TPO.

Economic Times

Major slice of Web ads goes to social networking sites

About one of every five Internet display ads in the United States is viewed on a social networking Web site like MySpace and Facebook, according to a new report.

The report by analytics firm comScore underscores the increasing prominence of social media sites in the Internet landscape and broadening acceptance of the sites by brand advertisers.

It also illustrates the increasing competition between social media sites and established Internet companies like Yahoo Inc and Time Warner Inc's AOL which have long billed themselves as the top online destinations for brand advertisers.

The study by comScore, released on Tuesday, said social media sites represented 21.1 per cent of US Internet display ads in July, with MySpace and Facebook accounting for more than 80 per cent of those ads.

"Because the top social media sites can deliver high reach and frequency against target segments at a low cost, it appears that some advertisers are eager to use social networking sites as a new advertising delivery vehicle," said Jeff Hackett, senior vice president of comScore.

According to comScore, AT&T Inc, Experian Interactive and IAC/Interactive Corp's Ask Network were the top three advertisers on social networking sites in July.

While social media sites have enjoyed a surge in popularity in recent years -- Facebook is now the world's fourth-most visited Web site -- some observers have questioned whether the sites can be effectively monetized.

Because the content on social media sites is created by users, and could therefore prove racy or offensive, some have questioned the willingness of marketers to place their brands alongside that content.

"They are sensitive to some extent, but nowhere near to the extent you might think," Sanford Bernstein analyst Jeff Lindsay said of advertisers.

The price of placing ads on social networking sites is significantly less than on a Web portal like Yahoo or AOL, said Lindsay. The vast amount of Web pages available on social networks means that advertisers can purchase a massive volume of ad impressions at bargain prices.

The strategy may not be ideally suited to smaller marketers, or advertisers seeking a direct response from their ads, said Lindsay.

"For big, national brands it works just fine, just like TV," said Lindsay. "It's a huge, huge volume game."

Agencies

Google continues to lead against Bing

Microsoft's Bing search market share in the US grew by just 0.23 percent in August to 9.64 percent, the slowest monthly growth rate since its launch, according to analysis conducted by web analytics firm StatCounter.

The firm's research arm StatCounter Global Stats also finds that Bing and Yahoo! combined declined slightly in August to 20.14 percent from 20.36 percent in July.

"Perhaps a little worrying for Microsoft is that when you analyse the weekly data, Bing peaked for the week 10th - 16th August at 10.98 percent and has declined since then," commented Aodhan Cullen, CEO, StatCounter. Google increased its search market share slightly in the US in August from 77.54 percent to 77.83 percent.

Globally Microsoft and Yahoo! combined took 8.42 percent of the search market in August, a decline of 0.35 percent on July's figure (8.77 percent). Google remains the dominant force in the global search market with 89.57 percent in August (89.23 percent in July).

Data is based on an analysis of 1.073 billion search engine referring clicks (272 million from the US) which were collected in July and August from the StatCounter network of over three million websites.

StatCounter, which provides free website traffic analysis, is one of the largest web analytics companies in the world monitoring in excess of ten billion pageloads per month.

Agencies

Does Huawei eye for stake in Alcatel-Lucent?

China's Huawei Technologies said on Friday it had no plans to buy a stake in Alcatel-Lucent, two days after the French-American telecoms equipment maker's stock jumped on market talk a Chinese rival could acquire it.

"Our customer-centric innovation strategy is driving Huawei's growth and that remains our strategy," Ross Gan, global head of corporate communications at Huawei told Reuters. "Huawei has no plans to take a stake in Alcatel-Lucent," he said.

Alcatel-Lucent's shares rose 16 percent on Wednesday on the market chatter and a rating upgrade by Natixis. By 0820 GMT on Friday, the stock had gained 3.1 percent in a broader market .FCHI up 1.3 percent.

A public relations official at Huawei's domestic rival, ZTE Corp, also said she had no information on any upcoming deal. "I think it is just a rumour," she said.

Huawei and ZTE have been expanding their operations aggressively in overseas markets, but those efforts are being driven mostly by organic growth. Analysts said any acquisitions would face stern regulatory scrutiny.

That scrutiny derailed an attempt by Huawei and partner Bain Capital to buy U.S.-based 3Com in 2007.

"Huawei is keen to expand internationally, so I'm not surprised that this has come up, but I would be surprised if it went ahead," said Damien Bailey, a telecoms specialist at law firm Simmons & Simmons.

"There will undoubtedly be consolidation in the telecoms equipment manufacturing sector, and I think there will probably only be three or four left, with Huawei and ZTE being two of those," he said.

Besides the regulatory concerns, any deal for Alcatel-Lucent would mark a major acquisition as the 2006 merger between France's Alcatel and U.S.-based Lucent Technologies has a current market value of about $9 billion.

For a related analysis on rival Nokia Siemens Networks

Alcatel-Lucent has been struggling to turn a profit since its 2006 merger, which was supposed to help it cut costs and better compete with Chinese gear makers including Huawei and ZTE. ($ = 6.83 yuan)

Agencies

Check out the latest update of SaaS studies

Software-as-a-service (SaaS) is playing an important role in changing the fundamentals of business for user companies and for SaaS providers themselves. These changes are part of a multi-year 'loop' cycle that reciprocates between users and providers, with each side influencing the other in unforeseen ways.

Mismanaging this 'endless loop of innovation' will prevent user firms from being able to derive real competitive advantage from SaaS, prevent SaaS providers from competing on an increasingly global stage and trap ISVs (Independent software vendors) from growing along with the global user IT market.

Understanding how each side influences the others and how to manage it effectively through changing market scenarios, is the key theme of 'An Endless Cycle of Innovation: Saugatuck SaaS Scenarios Through 2014', the latest global research program developed and published by Saugatuck Technology.

On the launch of new study, Bruce Guptill, Managing Director of Research, Saugatuck Technology said, "The research shows us a combination of changing SaaS acquisition and adoption, both as a result of the global recession and as a result of the changing nature of SaaS itself. How users do business with SaaS is changing how providers develop and deliver SaaS and is changing how ISVs and other players will need to compete over the next several years. Failure to recognize and adapt to these changes will make it extremely difficult, and much more costly than it should be, for anyone to benefit from SaaS."

As the demand of SaaS is growing globally, the analysts expect that by year 2012, SaaS solutions is likely to become the de facto choice for the majority of user organizations that are replacing legacy applications or business systems as they reach the end of their useful lives or when driven by other important business considerations.

According to Guptill, by year 2014, SaaS and Cloud Computing will become an integral to infrastructure, business systems, operations and development within all aspects of user firms with variations in status and roles based on region and business culture. Prior to this time period, SaaS is likely to act as an important 'agent of change'.

Agencies

ManTech bags cyber security order for US Dept of Agriculture

ManTech International Corporation, is one of six companies awarded a blanket purchase agreement (BPA) from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide cyber security support. The BPA has a one-year base period, four one-year options and an initial ceiling value of $30 million for all six firms.

ManTech was also recently awarded its first two task orders under this BPA, a press release adds. The first, to provide a vulnerability assessment of several USDA applications, is valued at $41,000. The second is a four-year contract to provide computer forensic support to the Agriculture Security Operations Center valued at $1.3 million.

It will continue to compete to assist the USDA in implementing new cyber security measures to ensure the proactive protection and security of its networks, applications and hardware. These measures will include identifying security vulnerabilities, responding to attacks against agency resources and implementing corrective action accordingly.

"ManTech has been providing cyber security solutions to the Intelligence Community, DOD and other federal agencies for more than 17 years," said Larry Prior, President and COO, ManTech International Corporation.

Agencies

Does US lag in internet speed over other countries?

The US is lagging far behind other industrial nations in the availability and high speed internet broadband connection, according to the Communications Workers of America (CWA) report.

The report states that the average download speed in South Korea is 20.4 mbps, four times faster than the US average of 5.1 mbps. Japan, Sweden and the Netherlands follow South Korea with an average of 15.8 mbps, 12.8 mbps and 11.0 mbps respectively.

The new research indicates that between 2007 and 2009, the average download internet speed in the US has increased by only 1.6 mbps, from 3.5 mbps in 2007 to 5.1 mbps in 2009. At this rate, it is likely to take the US 15 years to catch up with current internet speed in South Korea, the country with the fastest average internet connection.

The report says, "Our nation continues to fall far behind other countries. People in Japan can upload a high-definition video in 12 minutes, compared to a grueling 2.5 hours at the US average upload speed." The 2009 speed test done by speedmaters.org shows that only 20 percent of those who took the test have internet speed in the range of the top three ranked countries - South Korea, Japan and Sweden. Even more alarming, 18 percent do not even meet the FCC (Federal Communication Commission) definition for current - generation broadband as an always-on internet connection of at least 768 kbps downstream.

Continued job growth, innovation and rural development require high-speed, universal networks. Data shows that for every $5 billion invested in broadband infrastructure to create these networks, 97,500 new jobs in the telecommunications, computer and IT sectors will be created.

Larry Cohen, President, CWA said, "Every American should have affordable access to high-speed internet, no matter where they live. Unfortunately, fragmented government programs and uneven private sector responses to build out internet access have left a digital divide across the country."

The US President Barack Obama has pledged to put broadband in every home and the FCC has embarked on an ambitious project to bring high-speed internet access to every corner of the country.

According to the CWA report, the fastest download speed in the US is in the northeastern parts of the country while the slowest is in states such as Alaska, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

Agencies

New tablet may replace keyboard with touch-screen

Apple is shrinking its Mac computer and bringing out a tablet that is small enough to be carried in a handbag but big enough for comfortable web surfing, newspaper reading and watching movies. The computer will revolutionize laptops as we know them because it is one flat touch-screen device without a keyboard.

Speculations have reached a feverish pitch that by 2010, the revolutionary touch-screen gadget will be in a store near you. Blogs are alive with rumours that the tablet’s launch will be announced in September by Steve Jobs, Apple founder and CEO, and launched in time for the Christmas market, reports the Telegraph.

The product is believed to have been in development for the past six years, with Jobs personally involved over the last two. If the speculation is true, it could be the next technological breakthrough for Apple, which has sold more than 200 million iPods since its launch in 2001. The tablet will be billed as the solution for people who work a lot on the move, but don’t want to be burdened with a laptop.

Pundits are predicting that our lives will never be the same. “People expect it to be the ultimate Apple surprise. This thing will knock people’s socks off,”Leander Kahney, a blogger and author of The Cult of Mac, told the Observer.

“Apple will totally rejig the computing experience. You won’t manipulate a keyboard and mouse any more but rather use an intuitive touch-screen. It will very tactile. It will be a whole new paradigm.”

Gene Munster, a technology research analyst, estimated that the tablet, with an onscreen keyboard like the iPhone, would cost around $600, putting it between the high-end iPod Touch at $399 and the Mac-Book, which starts at $999.

Agencies

Is Intel set to acquire two software firms?

Intel has quietly snapped up two software companies in the last 30 days with aim of boosting development of applications that take better advantage of chips with more than one processing core.

In a company blog, the chipmaker indicated the acquisition of Cilk at the end of last month and then Rapidmind earlier this week. Both are small companies that employ under than 50 people. The acquisitions follow the purchase of software company Wind River Systems in June.

"Over the last few years, there has been a gradual emergence of multicore microprocessors. It's put parallelism in more and more machines," James Reinders, chief evangelist and director of marketing and sales at Intel, said in a phone interview Friday, explaining why Intel bought the two firms.

"If you look at traditional applications, ones that we use everyday, it's fair to say that most are not exploiting parallelism--at least not to the full extent," Reinders said.

A multicore processor is defined as any chip with more than one processing core. Today, almost all Intel chips that go into laptops, desktops, and servers have at least two cores. The challenge for Intel is to make sure that applications take advantage of all the cores--so-called parallelism. This has historically presented a challenge for software programmers.

"The operating system does stuff for applications in parallel," Reinders said, referring to operating systems such as Windows. "But considering that we can produce more and more cores every year, to truly get the benefit of what the future holds, applications need to change. And most applications haven't changed," he said.

The goal is to facilitate the development of parallel programming. "How do we help software developers tackle parallel programming? Both companies had teams of experts that had been focused on this problem. So, they're kindred spirits," he said.

Writing about Cilk in a blog, Reinders said Intel sees "great opportunities for Cilk to integrate with our parallel tools...including Intel Parallel Studio." The firm's technology enables "mainstream programmers to develop multithreaded (or parallel) applications...Providing a smooth path to multicore for legacy (older) applications that otherwise cannot easily leverage the performance capabilities of multicore processors," according to Cilk's Web site. Original Cilk research was done at MIT.

Rapidmind was founded five years ago as Serious Hack and grew out of work at the University of Waterloo. It boasts advanced technology for helping software developers with data parallel programming for multicore processors and accelerators.

The cost of the two acquisitions was not disclosed.

CNET.com

Open Source projects dominated by IT vendors

More vendors are getting involved in open source project despite the economic slowdown. Gartner has reported many key findings related to open source in Predicts 2009: The Evolving Open-Source Software Model report. Gartner reports that 50 percent of direct commercial revenue attributed to open-source products or services will come from projects under a single vendor's patronage. Many new projects are being commercialized early in their maturity phases - often by a dot-com startup and before a broad community "network effect" is firmly established. These projects are often under the patronage of a single vendor that employs nearly all key code contributors.

According to Gartner's key findings, driven by expanding mainstream IT adoption, open-source usage profiles are shifting to more-conservative, risk-versus-reward dynamics. As a result, new adopters now place an increasing premium on commercial support channels to establish service-level agreements on par with closed-source alternatives. Gartner recommends that companies should understand the role that a broad and vendor-independent community plays in mature open-source projects. More specifically, keep in mind that intellectual-property warrants and indemnities are strongest when vendors maintain more control over the source code pedigree.

The report also says that through 2011, less than 50 percent of Global 2000 IT organizations would have implemented a formal open-source adoption and management policy as part of an enterprise software asset management strategy. Open Source Software (OSS) has become unavoidable for most IT organizations. Open source is leveraged in virtually all mainstream enterprises. A comprehensive enterprise open-source adoption policy is the most important critical path towards establishing an optimal balance between risk and reward; however, less than 30 percent of IT organizations have such a policy in place.

Agencies

Does US lead among spam nations?

The US leads the world in the sending of spam, according to a study.

The study by IT security solutions provider Sophos showed that spam originating in Russia has dropped significantly. It also claimed that some 16.5 per cent of all spam mails sent in the second quarter of this year came from the United States.

Russian spammers - previously a highly active bunch - were only responsible for 3.2 per cent of all spam sent, which puts them in ninth place on the list.

Second place went to Brazil (11.1 per cent), followed by Turkey (5.2) and India (5.0).

Agencies

Apple,Palm battle it for the smartphone market

Palm Inc has fired another volley at Apple Inc in their smartphone war, as the two rivals tussle over whether iTunes should be compatible with Palm's new Pre smartphone.

Palm, whose executive ranks include former Apple brass, released a software update for the Pre this week that allows it to sync again with Apple's iTunes media management software.

The move comes after Apple last week issued its own software update to close a loophole in iTunes that had allowed it to sync with the Pre. ITunes is designed to work with Apple's iPod and iPhone products.

Palm mimicks Steve Jobs

Palm announced the software update in a blog post that mimicked Steve Jobs' signature catchphrase "Oh, and one more thing," which the Apple chief executive has often used to announce a brand new product.

"Oh, and one more thing: Palm webOS 1.1 re-enables Palm media sync. That's right -- you once again can have seamless access to your music, photos and videos from the current version of iTunes (8.2.1)," said Palm's blog posted late on Thursday.

It was not immediately clear when Apple may issue another software patch to counter Palm's move. When asked for comment, an Apple spokesman said, "As we've said before, newer versions of Apple's iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with unsupported digital media players.

$200 Pre was launched in June

The $200 Pre launched in early June as a competitor to Apple Inc.'s iPhone, became the first non-Apple device that could connect directly to iTunes. Palm launched the Pre to good reviews, seeking to win a slice of the touch screen smartphone market now dominated by Apple's iPhone. Prior to the launch, Palm had touted that the Pre "synchronizes seamlessly with iTunes."

RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky estimates Palm has sold 325,000 to 375,000 Pre phones so far, ahead of expectations. In comparison, Apple sold more than a million iPhone 3GS units in the first three days on the market.

While analysts and the Pre's carrier, Sprint Nextel Corp, have said it's too soon to know if the phone will be a real hit, it has already sparked a huge rally in Palm shares this year.

War with Apple generating plenty of drama

Avian Securities analyst Matthew Thornton said the war with Apple is generating plenty of drama, even though few Pre users bought their phone with the intention of syncing with iTunes.

"There's a lot of hype around it," he said, noting that some senior Palm personnel formerly worked at Apple, making the rivalry between the two companies seem that much sharper even if the dispute will likely have a limited economic impact.

Palm Chief Executive Jon Rubinstein had helped create the iPod, and senior vice president of product development Mike Bell also used to work at Apple.

Rubinstein was brought in as Palm's executive chairman from Apple

Rubinstein was brought in as Palm's executive chairman when private equity firm Elevation Partners bought a stake in the company in 2007, and he was named CEO last month. Elevation's co-founders include tech investor Roger McNamee, former Apple Chief Financial Officer Fred Anderson and singer Bono.

Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu called Palm's move a "modest negative" for the company.

"While we acknowledge this is a short-term fix, frankly, we would have preferred Palm respond in a more professional and mature fashion," he wrote in a research note. "We do not believe hacking third-party software to work with one's hardware is a viable long-term business model, especially for a publicly traded company."

Palm was a pioneer of handheld devices

Palm was a pioneer of handheld devices, but has fallen well behind competitors like Apple and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd.

"Palm believes that openness and interoperability offer better experiences for users by allowing them the freedom to use the content that they own without interference across devices and services," Palm spokeswoman Leslie Letts said.

Indiatimes