Despite the economic slowdown, investment in information technology continues to help business. Viet Nam News reporter Hoang Nam spoke to Hoang Cat Hai, director of the HCM City branch of the Viet Nam Datacommunications Co (VDC), about solutions to assist enterprises during the current economic slump.This year is expected to be a difficult year because busineses are cutting expenditures and reducing services. How do the cutbacks affect VDC’s operations in the southern region?While the economy faces many difficulties, the growth of the IT sector is considered a good sign. However, it is clear that 2009 is a hard year for VDC because most of our important customers are financial, banking and joint-stock companies. These enterprises are hit by the crisis and certainly VDC faces a challenge.Some experts believe that it’s time for enterprises to rearrange and promote investment into key factors, especially for IT. As an infrastructure provider, what are some of the solutions VDC can offer to help customers cut costs and increase competitiveness?This year, IT is still considered a key element of the economy, and if IT develops, it will greatly support other economic sectors. While many big companies must postpone their huge projects, other small and medium-sized enterprises have found IT an effective method to help restructure their companies.In 2009, VDC will reduce internet fees, especially for remote, rural and impoverished areas. Additionally, southern customers will receive more promotions from VDC, such as more volume with the same price, lower monthly fees for new customers and free equipment. For customers from the education and training sector, we will have different preferential policies.Furthermore, VDC will establish an IT one-stop shop system for customers that provides all services, solutions and products on IT and telecommunications.What’s your prediction for VDC’s growth this year?We plan to be a telecommunications and IT infrastructure service provider. With strength in infrastructure distribution, VDC will spend more money on research and development and other new services based on the internet, such as e-learning, online games and films, online selling and payments and online offices.In particular we will set up service packages including both telecommunications and IT. The cheaper service packages will allow enterprises to use IT more effectively in their restructuring plans.Despite the recession, the demand for infrastructure development, especially for telecommunications, is still high from many enterprises. What will VDC do to meet the demand?This year we will continue to invest into infrastructure by increasing the total capacity of the nation’s internet to 32 Gbps. With this capacity, more value-added services will be created, such as online film and data sharing. We will also provide better infrastructure for economic centres, such as bringing cable systems to industrial and processing zones and business complexes. — VNS

Thirty-year-old Nguyen Khanh Hang’s face lights up with joy when she peels the wrapping paper from her husband’s birthday gift to reveal a brand new laptop. Now she can surf the net whenever and wherever she wants.Working as a business journalist at a daily newspaper requires her to have access to a constant stream of up-to-date information. The internet has been a useful tool for both work and play."Surfing the net to chat with my friends while I gather news has turned out to be an important part of my daily routine," Hang says.She is among an increasing number of urban Vietnamese women under-35 who gather most of their information from the internet, according to a recent survey by a market research group from Ha Noi’s Tinh Van Media Joint Stock Company (JSC).The survey, which compiled information from nearly 500 Hanoian women over 18 years old, shows that women are most often searching for information about politics (51.3 per cent), economics (35.4 per cent), literature and arts (32.7 per cent), professional skills (29.2 per cent), family tips (26.5 per cent), market prices (22.1 per cent) and entertainment (13.3 per cent).Electronic newspapers are the most highly visited websites, followed by blogs, forums, video and music websites and online shopping pages."Though their computer skills are not as fluent as men’s, the number of women using the internet is increasing," IT expert Tran Quang Thanh from Ha Noi University of Technology’s Information Network and Library Centre, told Viet Nam News. "A recent survey in the UK shows that women from 18-34 are the most internet savvy. Vietnamese women are following the same trend."Of the women surveyed by Tinh Van Media JSC, 92 per cent said they used the internet as their main news source, 64.6 per cent watch television, 52 per cent get information from friends, 46 per cent from newspapers and magazines, and 15 per cent from other sources."Surfing the net is one of modern women’s favourite activities, especially those between 18-35, in addition to traditional hobbies like travelling and shopping," says psychologist Nguyen Thi Tam, who is research specialist in women’s psychology.Though the number of web entries on websites geared towards women, ikewww.webtretho.com and www.phununet.com, are often less than those at sites geared towards men, like www.ddth.com, visitors to women’s sites outnumber those to men’s."Obviously, a community of female internet-users is forming with special features and are considered a more loyal audience to the websites than men," Thanh says.Women’s websites get the greatest number of hits between 2 and 4pm from members, who are usually 23-35 years old. They often exchange information on health, nutrition, goods, children and education. The internet has been affecting the whole world and our women are starting to be a part of that world, Thanh says. — VNS

HCM CITY — The Department of Information and Communications of HCM City will fine One Connection Internet Inc (OCI) VND20 million (US$1,120) for providing a telecom service without permission.All the company’s equipment for providing the service will also be seized.The department said OCI provided an illegal internet connection for calls originating from abroad.OCI has provided the service since December. Established in 2001, the HCM City-based firm holds 50 per cent of the internet telephone market share in Viet Nam and has more than 600,000 customers.Internet telephony is a technology that converts analogue speech signals into digital signals and routes them through the internet.The signals bypass the traditional circuit-switched networks used for telephone calls and thus escape long-distance phone charges. — VNS

HA NOI — The Viet Nam Software Association and Singapore Information Technology Association held a seminar in Ha Noi focusing on the application of e-government technology. The two associations signed a co-operative memorandum of understanding at the event towards promoting e-government in Viet Nam.An official of the Viet Nam IT Application Department told the seminar that the Government was launching several programmes and projects to develop e-government capacity, with the goal to digitise all administrative functions by 2010 and launch a series of web-based public services by 2015.

HA NOI — Microsoft Corp is now selling Windows Internet Explorer 8, a new Web browser. It can be downloaded at http://www.microsoft.com/ie8.Internet Explorer 8 is said to be easier and faster to use and has leading-edge security features. A recent study commissioned by Microsoft showed that 91 per cent of adults in the US were concerned about online threats and were more likely to choose a Web browser with built-in security."Customers have made clear what they want in a Web browser – safety, speed and greater ease of use," said Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft.

HA NOI — Da Nang Telecoms has introduced cbill, a service that allows customers to monitor their fixed-line and mobile telephone charges and internet charges through a single, on-line account at www.vienthongdanang.com.vn/cbill.

VietNamNet Bridge – Teacher Phan Van Thong doesn’t worry about bad behaviour during the computer science lesson at Kon Tum Orphanage because of the respect he commands from his students.Betty Tisdale visits the computer lab she helped set up at Kon Tum Orphanage.Thong has an intimate relationship with Kon Tum Social Assistance Centre, home to 70 orphans and 75 disabled children. Of that number there are 117 school-aged children at the orphanage, of which 33 per cent are good and excellent students.As an orphan himself, Thong came to the school in second grade. He went on to study at the College of General Economy and on graduation, returned to the orphanage to teach his young contemporaries."Now that computer science is on the school curriculum, it’s good the centre have a computer lab for our kids to get some practice, says director of the orphanage Pham Chau Tue."Having a computer to practice on at home is just a dream for many of the kids here, 80 per cent of them from poor minority groups," says Tue.Sponsors  But the dream came true for the orphanage with a visit from Betty Tisdale, founder of HALO (Helping and Loving Orphans), a charity dedicated to making life better for orphans in developing countries."I still remember when I first realised how a computer could change my life and I was already over 70 back then," says Betty Tisdale, now 86. "It’s now the 21st century, and everybody needs a computer. I don’t want these children to be left behind."Tisdale has been actively helping orphanages in the central and southern parts of Viet Nam since 1961 and came to Kon Tum in 2003. Her charitable repertoire is long – she’s adopted five Vietnamese daughters, helped the centre build a new bathroom and toilet compound, a vegetable garden, a library and the computer lab. She also bought a van, books and toys for the children.After her first visit, she came back to the orphanage every two years to see what else the centre needs."Her help is always very practical," says Tue. "She cares most about the development of the children, their education and their spiritual life."Tisdale came back to the orphanage last week to check up on the kids. "These children are so well-behaved and lovely," she says. "I could only hope for the best for them."Spreading their wings HALO also supports a similar project in Vinh Son, where 206 kids are looked after at the local orphanage, run by director Sister Imelda, a nun, and volunteers Y Bil and Y Him."What’s special about Vinh Son is that it is just behind the wooden church, one of the most famous tourism spots in Kon Tum, so we get a lot of tourists visiting," says Sister Imelda."A lot of them stay and spend some time with the children, talking to them and teaching them English songs. The children learn them by heart, and that helps improve their English," she says.Victoria Warkander, a Swedish tourist who found Vinh Son in the Lonely Planet, spent five hours of her second afternoon in Kon Tum playing with the children."I’ve always loved children," she says. "When I found Vinh Son Orphanage in the book, I thought it’d be really nice to have a chance to see a different side to Viet Nam, away from all the resorts."Betty Tisdale was treated to a special performance by the children at Vinh Son, which ended with all the children singing a chorus of the most popular English children songs."Look at these children," she says. "They have so much potential.""Every time I look at my daughters, I believe more strongly that every child, no matter who they are or what situation they are in, has the right to reach their fullest potential."It’s an ambition both she and teacher Phan Van Thong are determined to realise.

THUA THIEN-HUE — A hospital for computers, the first of its kind in the country’s postal service, has been opened in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, the province’s post office director Vo Hoai Tan said.The hospital offered support for all computer ailments including data recovery, virus removal, computer maintenance and hardware problems, he said.It also provided education and information on how to get the best use of computers and how to repair simple errors.

HA NOI — An agreement on a digital healthcare programme was signed yesterday to boost performance and administrative reform in the health sector.The agreement was signed between representatives of the Ministry of Health (MoH), the Viet Nam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) and the Intel Semiconductor Ltd Representative in Ha Noi. Under the scheme, Intel and the VNPT intend to establish training curricula to provide IT skills and communication services to at least 1,000 health workers in provinces and cities nationwide. Medical workers will also be able to access the companies’ special promotion packages.

HCM CITY — Lenovo announced that it was designing rugged ThinkPad laptops for use in field and vehicle computing environments such as in search and rescue, construction and the military.Baked, battered, blistered and blown with sand, Lenovo laptops survived a barrage of military tests with durability features such as an airbag-like protection system and a roll cage in some models.Because field computing presents viewing problems, Lenovo added an optional high brightness panel to its most popular laptop, the ThinkPad T400 laptop.

HA NOI — IBM has unveiled plans to help businesses build a smarter workforce by providing software services to help people work together across the enterprise.Unveiled at its recent annual Lotusphere Conference in Viet Nam, the service helps clients on the move to leverage on tools to help them work smarter.IBM plans to make key business collaboration tools faster, easier and readily available through the help of its partners Samsung, Red Hat, RIM on Blackberry, salesforce.com, Skype and LinkedIn. — VNS