Monthly Archives: July 2009

Special science recognition The first female Thai scientist is awarded honorary recognition for her outstanding research by L’Oreal

As part of L’Oreal’s 100th anniversary celebration, the company created the Special Science Recognition in Sustainable Development, an activity to honour a senior Thai female scientist whose research has yielded sustainable benefits for the Thai people. The winner of this honourable award, held for the first time, is Professor Dr Nateetip Krishnamra, head of the Consortium for Calcium and Bone Research at the Faculty of Science, Mahidol University.

Professor Dr Nateetip Krishnamra recognised by L’Oreal.
She has devoted 30 hard-working years to a multidisciplinary research approach into calcium and bone metabolism. The holder of a PhD in physiology said at the award reception, which was held at Two Pacific Place on July 22, “I am very glad and honoured to be the recipient of this prestigious award. I had always heard of L’Oreal’s contribution and support for scientific achievements, as two of my colleagues have received awards from L’Oreal before. I hope to see the private sector giving more importance to researches in the future.”

Prof Dr Nateetip also said that she hopes the research will be beneficial to the public, and that it is her ultimate goal. “No matter what research we conduct we should have public and social responsibility in mind from the start.” She hopes that her research on calcium and bone metabolism will lead to further applications for the optimum benefits of Thailand’s medical and public health society, the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic bone disorders that are posing socio-economic impacts.

Sduppin Kamnuanthip, corporate communication and public relations director of L’Oreal Thailand, said that scientific innovation has always been behind L’Oreal’s success throughout its long history. “Science and beauty have always been inseparable for us. At L’Oreal, we invest 30 billion baht per year in research, employing more than 3,000 researchers worldwide. Fifty-five percent of our researchers are women, so we can fully say that women contribute largely to our success, as end consumers, innovators and supporters.” – Napamon Roongwitoo

Newly appointed dance director After having represented the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) in Thailand for 34 years, Thanpuying Varaporn Pramoj na Ayudhya has finally handed over the “ballet shoes” to Glenn van der Hoff. The task of the RAD representative is to accommodate all the registered teachers and dance schools in Thailand who follow the curriculum of the RAD in Britain.

The process was not just a matter of picking a name out of a hat. The vacancy was actually advertised in a national newspaper, and over 80 candidates applied for the job. With his experience as a dancer, dance teacher, choreographer and arts manager – both in his native Netherlands (he was actually born in Indonesia) and here in his adopted Thailand – Glenn was shortlisted for a final interview with RAD’s head of Human Resources, Debbie Bolton.

Glenn van der Hoff takes baby Maitree ‘Mighty Mouse’ for a twirl on the beach.
For the record, Glenn was the former artistic director of the dance company Djazzex Modern Dance in the Netherlands, and is currently the director of a non-profit organisation, Child in Motion, which makes him qualified on both artistic management and financial levels.

He has already completed his first major task in his new capacity – organising RAD ballet examinations for ballet schools nationwide, a process that lasts weeks, with months of advance preparation in terms of management and logistics – putting together the schedule for the ballet students, RAD examiner and pianist among other things.

“When I started, there were only about 60 dance students to handle,” said Thanpuying Varaporn, “today there are hundreds!”

It’s going to require a lot of time-management for Glenn to adapt to his own private life. Since taking the position, he has had to put his personal life on hold – his role as choreographer and artistic director of Sangdao Performing Arts School in Chiang Mai where he lives, working for Child in Motion, and, most importantly being the father of a 13-month-old son Maitree with dancer-teacher, Sophatai Kanthatham.

“For sure he is the most important person in my life right now!”

He has lots of plans for his tenure as RAD representative in Thailand. “Within the many tasks and responsibilities I would like to develop the quality of dance education in general, and promote RAD as a solid foundation for dance education. Furthermore, I would like to initiate more events in which all dance lovers could participate and appreciate the ‘art of dance’ in a broader sense.”

Glenn hosted a farewell and thank-you party for Thanpuying Varaporn at the Siam City Hotel, which was attended by Thailand’s ballet family, including her colleagues ML Suchira Visitkul, Pornpimiol Kanthatham, Kanchana Jalavicharana as well as her male ballet students Suteesak “Jo” Pakdeeteva and Bancha Suvannanon.

Jo sang a touching song, Khru, which drew a few tears among the guests. Others shared their memories of Khru Jim, as Thanpuying Varaporn is known.

Finally, as a token of deep appreciation for Khru Jim’s dedication, the RAD teachers presented her with a special plaque of honour. – Krissie Na Klongtoey

http://www.bangkokpost.com/leisure/leisurescoop/21069/special-science-recognition

The Asian Women’s Shelter: A Refuge for the Unseen

Over one-third of homicides stemming from domestic violence in San Francisco involve Asian women. Clearly, the belief that domestic abuse is uncommon in Asian families is a myth. Compounding the problem, a third of the city’s residents living in poverty are Asian. Many Asian domestic violence victims are not only poor, but are immigrants who speak no English and hold no employment. As recent as the 1980s, these women would have had nowhere to turn, forced to continue living in fear and misery largely unseen.

Beckie Masaki, a third generation Japanese American from Sacramento, California, noticed this failure at her first job out of UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare and was spurred to action. She worked at a domestic violence shelter where she was the only Asian employee, and where no Asian clients sought out the shelter’s services. Several years later, Masaki and a group of like-minded Asian American women involved in advocacy and activism joined together to found the Asian Women’s Shelter.

When AWS opened in 1988, it was the first of its kind in northern California, and one of only three shelters in the nation which offered culture- and language-appropriate services geared toward Asian women and children. Since then it has become a model for serving minorities to a wide variety of social service agencies.

In addition to domestic violence victims, AWS also works with victims of sex trafficking who are lured to the United States on false pretenses and wind up enslaved in brothels. Once a client is accepted into the shelter, AWS staff devise a safe plan to receive her, sometimes relying on police support or a covert rendezvous. The shelter, a cozy 18-bed house in a confidential location, offers safety, counseling, parenting consultation, health services, transportation, and child daycare. AWS also works with more than 20 community organizations to meet other needs such as mental health care, job training, and legal advocacy. In 2003, it partnered with Luna Kids Dance to provide a creative dance curriculum for mother-child bonding and therapy, later on expanding its creative arts program.

When Deni, an Indonesian woman, contacted AWS, she was imprisoned after escaping from her husband, who then accused her of attempting international kidnapping of their children. AWS collaborated with Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach and the South Asian advocacy group Narika to provide Deni with legal representation versed in international law as well as Muslim sharia law. Deni was released from jail and reunited with her children at the AWS house, eventually winning child custody and moving out of state to establish her own life.

Though it is San Francisco’s smallest shelter, it fills a unique need in the city. In 2004 to 2005, AWS provided almost 4,000 shelter bed nights to women and children, and responded to over 700 crisis hotline calls, 82% of them in languages other than English. Almost all of the residents spoke little English, if at all. Most were immigrants faced with social isolation: only 9% of the women were employed and almost 70% had no means of supporting themselves. Because of AWS’ specialized services, it fields crisis calls from throughout the country, and has housed residents who traveled from outside of the state and even the country to stay at the shelter.

An overwhelming majority of the residents improve their lives after AWS: 88% of residents successfully move on to transitional or permanent housing free of domestic violence and 90% of the women increase their income when they leave, most by more than 75%.

Currently, AWS is focused on expanding its public advocacy, community education and other violence prevention work. The organization conducts workshops and trainings on relationships and how to respond to domestic violence, working with partners such as the high school group Young Asian Women Against Violence, and monks from a local Thai temple interested in providing support to the women in their community. AWS has also collaborated on projects internationally, in countries such as Japan, Indonesia and Thailand.

As a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, AWS relies on government, corporate, foundation and individual donors. Tight federal and state funding limits its ability to serve all who need help. Because of limited space and resources, AWS was forced to turn down 75% of its shelter requests in 2003. In 2004, they had to deny 83% of requests.

City-wide, San Francisco shelters had to turn away 25% of domestic violence victims seeking refuge in 2009. Clients most frequently turned away are LGBT survivors and Asian/Pacific Islander survivors due to language constraints. Still, the Asian community’s needs are overwhelming: one-third of domestic violence victims housed in emergency shelters in 2009 were Asian. Despite the enormity of the problem of domestic violence among Asian families in the Bay Area and beyond, the small but dogged Asian Women’s Shelter consistently makes in-roads into innovative advocacy and violence prevention work. Meanwhile, AWS continues healing and rebuilding lives. “You women are a precious gift to me,” a former resident said. “Your faces are like a mirror reflecting myself saying ‘I believe in you. You can make it. You do not deserve to live in fear and violence.’”

http://www.asianweek.com/2009/07/28/the-asian-womens-shelter-a-refuge-for-the-unseen/

Mother says

My mother loves reading books. Before she would read a variety of books from Totto Chan _ The Little Girl at the Window to Maxim Gorki’s Mother and Jose DeVasconcelos’ My Sweet Orange Tree. Now she has turned to detective stories, the likes of Agatha Christie, Sidney Sheldon and Sherlock Holmes, saying they help exercise her brain as she tries to look for the clues. She also enjoys translations of women’s fictions, those that highlight the roles of brilliant women. It’s because she knows that women are indeed very smart.

”In her seventies, Mother has been suffering from several health problems. After all, she has spent her life working hard to bring up eight children as well as taking care of people around her, all at her own expense. She has received treatment from about six to seven different doctors _ from cardiologist and lung specialists to bones and blood pressure, a dentist and another one for the brain. But after she turned 75, she started an alternative healing practice called Nature Cure. She took a course and read books on the subject. She is the type who can be self-disciplined in trying good ideas on herself.

”At about this time, Mother has also turned to reading books on dharma, philosophy and health issues. Due to her eye problems, I have to take some of her favourite books to a photocopy shop, have the pages enlarged and then bound together, and give the remake volumes back to her. She just loves these

[large-print] copies and would spend time poring over them. She takes good care of these books, doesn’t mind if someone wants to borrow them, but he or she has to return them to her eventually.

”Here are some of the titles of the books my mother reads:

- Opening the Door of Your Heart _ And other Buddhist tales of Happiness by Ajahn Brahm (translated into Thai as Chuan Muan Suen)

- Thich Nhat Hanh’s The Miracles of Being Awake and A Guide to Walking Meditation

- Luang Por Khamkhian Suwanno’s Ta Wiset (Magic Eye)

- Luang Por Thian Jittasupho’s Arom Karn Patibat (The State of Practice) and Roo Yang-rai Mai Roo Roo Yang Phu Roo (To Know and Not to Know)

- The Art of Happiness by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, MD.

”From reading those books, Mother has gained new insight into her own life. For example, with regard to her relentless problem of constant coughing, in which she has tried both modern medicine and Nature Cure methods but to no avail (the latter could only lessen some of the symptoms), hence she finally decided to sign a pact of peace with it. So when the coughing occurs, she just accepts it as it comes, looks impartially as the symptom arises, but not to let her mind be entangled with it. Mother said she has since felt much more relaxed and is no longer bothered by the coughing nor the anxiety if it will ever come back again or not.

”On the weekend mornings, Mother will go for a walk at the SRT Railway Park with me and my husband. Each of us will walk at our own pace: my husband is a fast walker; I am a moderate type, while Mother walks quite slowly, putting her mind at each step she takes. It’s like she is doing vipassana

[insight] meditation at the same time. By then, my husband will have disappeared into the woods while I will be walking back and forth and keeping watch on my mother taking small but regular steps a stone’s throw away.

”After the walking exercise, Mother will then take out the money she has prepared for the buskers who play the violin, saxophone, or guitar along the way. Sometimes she gives money to people asking for help in their kidney dialysis. She says she always feels pleased to give money to others, even though the amount may be small but as long as it can be of use to them.

”Mother is a typical rural woman who likes to share things with others. When she cooks something delicious, and remembers that so-and-so might enjoy it, she will try to bring the dish to that person. Again, she says it gives her a lot of happiness to give the food to the person who may enjoy it. Giving always brings happiness to the giver first and foremost.

”From the books she read, Mother has put together a few axioms for herself:

Suffering is due to our own thinking. No thinking will bring no suffering.

Optimism will bring joy to both oneself and people around us.

Whatever you think will happen to you, so one’d better think a good thought.

Mother tries to apply these to her daily life. Her sleeping pattern is quite erratic. Sometimes she wakes up at about two or three. On a lucky day, she could stay in bed until four or five, by then she will say ‘sathu’

[May all be well]. But otherwise, she says the

[premature wake-up] is also beneficial because then we will have more time to do meditation, make a prayer and do yoga exercises. She does not feel agitated at all by the way her body functions.

”At dawn break, Mother will hum some old tunes, it’s her way of exercising her voice and memories, as she picks up the different flowers to take to the Buddha statues and to decorate her own hair. I myself have had the good fortune of receiving some of the flowers to put in my office and to decorate my hair as well.

”Mother’s happiness comes from her optimism. She thanks the person who takes care of and cooks for her now. The atmosphere at our home is thus always fresh and bright. Her health has improved and her children and grandchildren are always impressed by ‘Grandma’s good moods and happy look.’

”An originally provincial woman who has to move in to live with the children in the city in her old age, Mother has brought with her the friendliness and generosity of the rural folks. She has thus become the representative of our family as she establishes her friendship with every neighbour in our alley _ with the smile, the greetings, and other occasional gifts. The children have thus benefited greatly from having her with us.

”Mother is a kind of an elderly whom children want to show their gratitude by bowing to her a few times a day. She takes excellent care of herself, in both physical and mental senses, with the discipline and belief that she does not want to cause trouble to any of her children so she’d better keep herself strong.

One thing that she would like, but I have yet to find a suitable time to arrange for her is to enrol her in a course led by Phra Paisal Visalo on the topic of peaceful preparation for death. Mother says such a course must be nourishing for her mind.

”I have already promised her that by the end of this year, I will try to find an opportunity to take her to the course

http://www.bangkokpost.com/leisure/leisurescoop/21066/mother-says

IBM presents 3 Innovations for Education at National Science and Technology Fair 2009

Students, teachers, educators and interested parties are invited to visit IBM’s showcase during 8-23 August 2009 at Impact Hall, Muang Thong Thani.

“One of IBM’s major missions is to help Thailand creating smarter education, especially introducing Thai students to science and information technology which is essential for quality development,” said Mr. Thanwa Laohasiriwong, Country General Manager of IBM Thailand Co.,Ltd. “At the National Science and Technology Fair 2009, IBM is bringing their educational programs that have been promoted across the world to students, teachers and interested parties, supporting IBM’s global policy to use technology to increase children’s learning skills worldwide.”

Activities at IBM’s Showcase are divided into 3 zones. The first one is “PowerUp”, a new 3D virtual online game that is fun and filled with knowledge. The game encourages children to learn about science and engineering principles through the interactive game. Players can solve environmental issues on a virtual planet by generating ‘clean energy’ such as solar energy, wind power and hydropower. Players will learn the causes of environmental problems and search for solutions to complete the mission. The game characters can interact with players to give science and engineering information which allow the players to gain knowledge about energy conservation and restoring the environment in a virtual world with fun through a 3D technology.

The next zone is “TryScience”, the world’s first global science and technology museum that will make science fun for students. In collaboration with more than 500 science institutions and science museums around the world, IBM created a knowledge database through the internet in the form of a multimedia game that allows students to run science experiments through a computer, providing experimental instructions in many scientific fields for students and teachers to run in classrooms.

The last zone is “Virtual Forbidden City”, a first, fully immersive virtual world under the collaboration of IBM and the Palace Museum, Beijing, China. The Virtual Forbidden City is a 3D virtual world for anyone with access to the Internet to visit the Palace Museum, well known as “The Forbidden City”. Visitors from around the world can experience Chinese heritage and cultural treasures without being limited by time and place.

In addition, IBM Thailand Co.,Ltd. has been continuously involved in a variety of social projects, especially supporting children’s education such as the IBM KidSmart Early Learning Program, TryScience Solution Kiosk, Thai Text-to-Speech and donating software to educational institutions to enhance software development skills for Thai students through the IBM Software Academic Program.

The National Science and Technology Fair 2009 is an exciting science and technology exhibition that is being held in cooperation with the Ministry of Science and Technology and National Science Museum organization, from 8-23 August 2009 at Impact Hall (2-8), Muang Thong Thani. Students, teachers and interested parties can explore all of the three of IBM’s innovations at this event. For group visits, please contact IBM Thailand Co.,Ltd., Tel. 02-273-4633.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/worldhotnews/30108511/IBM-presents-3-Innovations-for-Education-at-National-Science-and-Technology-Fair-2009

Special science recognition The first female Thai scientist is awarded honorary recognition for her outstanding research by L’Oreal

As part of L’Oreal’s 100th anniversary celebration, the company created the Special Science Recognition in Sustainable Development, an activity to honour a senior Thai female scientist whose research has yielded sustainable benefits for the Thai people. The winner of this honourable award, held for the first time, is Professor Dr Nateetip Krishnamra, head of the Consortium for Calcium and Bone Research at the Faculty of Science, Mahidol University.

 
Professor Dr Nateetip Krishnamra recognised by L’Oreal.
She has devoted 30 hard-working years to a multidisciplinary research approach into calcium and bone metabolism. The holder of a PhD in physiology said at the award reception, which was held at Two Pacific Place on July 22, "I am very glad and honoured to be the recipient of this prestigious award. I had always heard of L’Oreal’s contribution and support for scientific achievements, as two of my colleagues have received awards from L’Oreal before. I hope to see the private sector giving more importance to researches in the future."

Prof Dr Nateetip also said that she hopes the research will be beneficial to the public, and that it is her ultimate goal. "No matter what research we conduct we should have public and social responsibility in mind from the start." She hopes that her research on calcium and bone metabolism will lead to further applications for the optimum benefits of Thailand’s medical and public health society, the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic bone disorders that are posing socio-economic impacts.

Sduppin Kamnuanthip, corporate communication and public relations director of L’Oreal Thailand, said that scientific innovation has always been behind L’Oreal’s success throughout its long history. "Science and beauty have always been inseparable for us. At L’Oreal, we invest 30 billion baht per year in research, employing more than 3,000 researchers worldwide. Fifty-five percent of our researchers are women, so we can fully say that women contribute largely to our success, as end consumers, innovators and supporters." – Napamon Roongwitoo

Newly appointed dance director After having represented the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) in Thailand for 34 years, Thanpuying Varaporn Pramoj na Ayudhya has finally handed over the "ballet shoes" to Glenn van der Hoff. The task of the RAD representative is to accommodate all the registered teachers and dance schools in Thailand who follow the curriculum of the RAD in Britain.

The process was not just a matter of picking a name out of a hat. The vacancy was actually advertised in a national newspaper, and over 80 candidates applied for the job. With his experience as a dancer, dance teacher, choreographer and arts manager – both in his native Netherlands (he was actually born in Indonesia) and here in his adopted Thailand – Glenn was shortlisted for a final interview with RAD’s head of Human Resources, Debbie Bolton.

 
Glenn van der Hoff takes baby Maitree ‘Mighty Mouse’ for a twirl on the beach.
For the record, Glenn was the former artistic director of the dance company Djazzex Modern Dance in the Netherlands, and is currently the director of a non-profit organisation, Child in Motion, which makes him qualified on both artistic management and financial levels.

He has already completed his first major task in his new capacity – organising RAD ballet examinations for ballet schools nationwide, a process that lasts weeks, with months of advance preparation in terms of management and logistics – putting together the schedule for the ballet students, RAD examiner and pianist among other things.

"When I started, there were only about 60 dance students to handle," said Thanpuying Varaporn, "today there are hundreds!"

It’s going to require a lot of time-management for Glenn to adapt to his own private life. Since taking the position, he has had to put his personal life on hold – his role as choreographer and artistic director of Sangdao Performing Arts School in Chiang Mai where he lives, working for Child in Motion, and, most importantly being the father of a 13-month-old son Maitree with dancer-teacher, Sophatai Kanthatham.

"For sure he is the most important person in my life right now!"

He has lots of plans for his tenure as RAD representative in Thailand. "Within the many tasks and responsibilities I would like to develop the quality of dance education in general, and promote RAD as a solid foundation for dance education. Furthermore, I would like to initiate more events in which all dance lovers could participate and appreciate the ‘art of dance’ in a broader sense."

Glenn hosted a farewell and thank-you party for Thanpuying Varaporn at the Siam City Hotel, which was attended by Thailand’s ballet family, including her colleagues ML Suchira Visitkul, Pornpimiol Kanthatham, Kanchana Jalavicharana as well as her male ballet students Suteesak "Jo" Pakdeeteva and Bancha Suvannanon.

Jo sang a touching song, Khru, which drew a few tears among the guests. Others shared their memories of Khru Jim, as Thanpuying Varaporn is known.

Finally, as a token of deep appreciation for Khru Jim’s dedication, the RAD teachers presented her with a special plaque of honour. – Krissie Na Klongtoey

Vostro all in one helps small businesses reclaim their desks

Cramped spaces and overcrowded desks are a headache for business owners. That is the conclusion from a Dell online poll of small businesses in China, India, France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom and United States about their desk space challenges. In response, Dell today announced the Vostro All In One, Dell’s first all-in-one desktop computer designed exclusively for small businesses.

“Small businesses around the world are constantly looking to do more with less, and IDC predicts that by 2013 small form factor, all-in-one and ultra-small form factor desktops will make up nearly 38 percent of the overall desktop market,?” said Richard Shim, research manager for IDC’s Personal Computing program. “Solutions that help organizations migrate to space-saving desktops are well positioned to benefit from this trend.”

The Vostro All In One’s clutter-free design minimizes the amount of space the computer takes up on the desk to provide business buyers with a powerful, stylish and affordable desktop computer. What’s more, the computer’s full desktop processing power is backed with Dell’s worry-free small business support.

The system is easy to set up, going from box to business in less than four minutes, and, when using the optional VESA mount, saves customers as much as 79 percent of their desk space versus a traditional desktop and monitor set-up. When combined with optional integrated Wi-Fi? and a wireless mouse and keyboard, the result is a wire-free desk. The new Vostro also offers Intel? Core? 2 Duo processors and an integrated webcam that enables businesses to enjoy remote collaboration.

“Small businesses are waking up to the fact that saving space is a critical requirement for their desktops and the Vostro All In One is the first-of-its-kind solution for small businesses wanting a cleaner, more productive workspace at an amazing value,” said Sam Burd, global vice president, Dell Small and Medium Business. “This is a perfect example of how Dell is expanding the Vostro line to bring customers innovative design and productivity based on their unique needs and business environments.”

Vostro All In One: Stylish, Scalable, Secure

Push for information technology in tourism

In a bid to strengthen Thailand’s flagship tourism industry, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Tourism Technology Association (TTA) are urging local tourism businesses to adopt the latest technologies, ranging from use of the Internet to Web 2.0, social networking and digital marketing.

The two organisations believe technology could give tourism businesses greater capabilities and competitiveness in the current challenging situation brought about by the economic downturn and the type-A (H1N1) influenza pandemic.

Within the next two months, TAT plans to launch a new tourism industry website, which is expected to become the leading marketing and sales channel for Thai tourism businesses. The authority has been developing the one-stop tourism-online service so that tourists around the world – as well as those within Thailand – can develop their own trips via the website.

The concept is a tourism community website, based on web 2.0 architecture, which is an online marketplace for Thai tourism products and services. The website will offer tourist destinations with more than 100,000 points of interest and will design trips for individual tourists.

TAT chairman Weerasak Kowsurat said that initially, the new website would be part of TAT’s main website – http://thai.tourismthailand.org. However, within three to five years, it will be spun off.

It will be embedded with a business-intelligence software engine capable of designing and developing tour packages specific to the requirements of individual tourists.

Would-be visitors need only enter details such as destination zones, type of travel, the number of days for the trip, the number of tourists and a total budget. The website’s system will process the details automatically, drawing on TAT’s large database of tourism information. In this way, it is expected that tourists will enjoy a wider range of choices when planning a trip.

“TAT is in the process of receiving this website from a private company, which has already developed it and created the template. We are partners and will co-operate in using the website,” Weerasak said.

At the “back office” end of the website, TAT will allow local tourism businesses to easily plug in to the online tourism market. About 95 per cent of the organisations involved in Thai tourism are small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have never adopted information technology. However, with their participation and the integration of TAT’s official tourism information, the website will soon become the country’s largest source of information about the products and services of Thai tourism.

The website will also offer information on related services such as travel and tour reviews, a travel Web board, and trip recommendations from members of the public and a call-centre service using machine-generated translations for people not familiar with the languages of the website.

Weerasak said that in the future the website would be enhanced and turned into one of Thailand’s largest social networks, catering for the country’s tourism community. To achieve this step forward, the website will need a lot of applications to add on and many participating partners. Nevertheless, it is expected to be achieved within three years.

“In the second phase, the Software Industry Promotion Agency (Sipa) will join us to develop second-tier websites containing a lot of add-on applications and services, allowing local tourism companies to become involved easily. It will also encourage local software companies to develop applications and solutions according to the specific needs of tourism companies.

“This time – during the economic downturn, when tourism is subdued – is the right time to encourage SMEs in the tourism industry to improve their competitiveness and strengthen themselves,” Weerasak said.

He said that within three years, TAT planned to increase its information-technology spending from the present 1 per cent of its total annual budget – averaging between Bt3 billion and Bt5 billion – to 10 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Tourism Technology Association (TTA) – which was officially launched last week after operating for one and a half years – will play a supporting role in the TAT project.

Association president Apichai Sakulsureeyadej said the TTA would recruit members from both the tourism and technology industries, and was expecting to get around 100 members by the end of this year, in a 70:30 ratio between tourism and technology companies.

The association will work to create an awareness of technology among tourism operators, train people and encourage the deployment of technology to enhance the competitiveness of local firms.

He said the tourism industry normally contributed about 7 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product and employed between 1 million and 2 million people. As well, related industries employed about 2 million people. Therefore, when tourism was subdued it immediately impacted on the lives of large numbers of people.

Technology can help to challenge the current downturn, he said.

“The TTA has trained 3,500 tourism operators throughout the country. Training is important because once tourism businesses understand how technologies can benefit their businesses and which technologies to use, then adoptions will be rapid and widespread,” Apichai said.

SMEs in the tourism industry cannot ignore the power of technology, especially the Internet and web 2.0, because more than half of tourists around the world search for travel and tourist information on the World Wide Web. They are reluctant to accept information provided by tourism operators, but will believe the comments and recommendations of tourists who have already visited interesting destinations, he said.

“So it is a challenge for local tourism businesses to attract these customers. It is beyond the development of websites for information and bookings, but how may local tourism operators realise this?” Apichai asked.

This year, TAT expects the total number of tourists visiting Thailand will fall short of its target of 12 million people, because the first half of the year saw about 20-per-cent fewer visitors.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07/28/technology/technology_30108504.php

Web 2.0 woe – Sophos threat report reveals cybercrime in first half of 2009

IT security and data protection firm Sophos has published new research into the first six months of cybercrime in 2009. The Sophos Security Threat Report examines existing and emerging security trends and has identified that criminals have increased the focus of attacks on social networking sites. At the same time, the first half of 2009 has seen an explosion in hackers exploiting scareware tactics to con computer users in to paying for bogus anti-virus protection.

Time for social networks to take security seriously

The Sophos Security Threat Report examines existing and emerging security trends and has identified that criminals are doubly exploiting social networks, using them first to identify potential victims and then to attack them, both at home and at work. In Sophos’s opinion, Web 2.0 companies are concentrating on growing their usersbase at the expense of properly defending their existing customers from internet threats.

The report reveals that IT teams are worried that employees share too much personal information via social networking sites, putting their corporate infrastructure – and the sensitive data stored on it – at risk. The findings also indicate that a quarter of organizations have been exposed to spam, phishing or malware attacks via sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace.

“What’s needed is a period of introspection – for the big Web 2.0 companies to examine their systems and determine how, now they have gathered a huge number of members, they are going to protect them from virus writers, identity thieves, spammers and scammers,” said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. “The honeymoon period of these sites is over, and personally identifiable information is at risk as a result of by constant attacks that the websites are simply not mature enough to protect against.”

The rise of scareware

Another worrying finding of the report is the huge increase in scareware being encountered online. Cybercriminals are creating scam websites, offering fake, paid-for anti-virus protection, at an alarming rate. Sophos now discovers fifteen such sites each day, a three-fold increase over the same period in 2008.

“Novice computer users are clearly falling foul of this under-handed tactic to capitalise on their fear from infection,” continued Cluley. “Your aunt Mabel may be aware that viruses and malware exist and that they’re bad, but probably won’t be savvy enough to distinguish between legitimate and phony anti-virus protection.”

USA is the number one country hosting malware on the web (Jan-June 2009)

In 2007, China was responsible for hosting over 50 percent of all web-based malware. However, this position has been stolen by the USA.

The top ten list of malware-hosting countries in 2009 reads as follows:

Security Threat Report stats and findings at a glance

Lithuania squash Thai women’s hopes

The women lost 89-34 to Lithuania in their Group B match at the Thai-Japan Youth Welfare Centre yesterday.

It was a clash between two sides who had lost their opening games, which meant an early elimination for the team that ended up losing again.

Lithuania, whose world ranking was 12th, predictably made light work of the home side to record their first win following the loss to Czech Republic, keeping alive their qualification hopes in the process.

Given their physical disadvantage, the Thai girls, who were at the wrong end of the thrashing by the South America champions Brazil, were unable to penetrate into the painted area. They had to resort to the shooting from the outside but lacked of accuracy.

The hosts trailed as far as 51-13 when the game reached the interval before the European side eventually coasted to the comfortable victory.

Thai team manager Pipat Larbprathana was satisfied with the girls’ efforts and he opted to take the positives from the match.

Thailand face the Czech Republic in their final group game today. The Thais still have to play the classification round to determine 13th to 16th places. – The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/07/25/sport/sport_30108309.php

Oracle Sees Strong Customer Adoption of Oracle Fusion Middleware in Asia Pacific

More than 90,000 organizations worldwide have adopted Oracle Fusion Middleware to lower IT costs, streamline critical processes and IT management, mitigate risk, secure corporate information and boost productivity while empowering users.

Oracle has completed the integration of BEA Systems in Asia Pacific and continues to see customer momentum post the integration.

“APAC has been one of the fastest growth regions for Oracle Fusion Middleware. Oracle continues to be #1 in middleware in APAC and has increased the number of middleware representatives to keep the #1 position and increase market share at the same time,” Oracle Fusion Middleware Asia Pacific Group Vice President Roger Li said.

A May 2009 report by analyst firm IDC showed that Oracle strengthened its #1 position in the application deployment software market in 2008, with 30 percent market share in the Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) region .

Oracle was the only vendor amongst the top three to gain market share in the $790M application deployment software market in 2008, according to IDC. Of the top five vendors, Oracle grew the fastest while its closest competitor showed negative growth and lost market share.

“According to IDC AP Software Research, the application deployment software market in Asia Pacific excluding Japan was not spared from the recent economic turmoil. Despite that, Oracle has managed to improve its market share growth. Its commitment to invest more R&D resources into its Fusion Middleware portfolio paid off well as Oracle was able to further consolidate its #1 position in the region,” said Adren Lim, Market Analyst, System Infrastructure and Middleware Software Research, IDC, Asia/Pacific.

Daelim Industrial Company Limited, one of Korea’s top engineering and construction companies, optimized its return on investment with its flexible and scalable business portal based on Oracle Fusion Middleware, said “By successfully building an internal portal system using Oracle WebCenter, Daelim achieved huge success in terms of expanding information access and utilization through collaboration of users’ My Page. This allowed Daelim to reduce project costs by roughly US$1.5M annually.” – Jong-Sun Kim, Manager, IT Center Infrastructure Operation Team, Daelim Industrial Company Limited

Haier, the world’s fourth largest white goods manufacturer, adopted Oracle SOA Suite to integrate its core SAP external system platform.

“Initially, we were looking at SAP, Oracle and Microsoft solutions. Finally, after serious evaluation and third-party expert opinion, we selected Oracle SOA Suite as the preferred solution,” said Hu Jun, Director IT Operation, Haier Group

Orient Overseas Container Line, one of the world’s leading container transport and logistics service providers, deployed Oracle Fusion Middleware in its next generation enterprise system project to foster greater productivity, operational efficiency and innovation.

“We are moving forward to a new architecture which is based on SOA and we selected Oracle SOA Suite because of the high performance that we can get from the technology,” said Steve Siu, Director and Chief Information Officer, Orient Overseas Container Line.

PT Indosat Tbk, one of the largest telecommunications providers in Indonesia, deployed Oracle Identity Management across its 55 business and telecommunications applications, including billing, enterprise resource planning, human resources, customer relationship management and telco management products.

“Oracle Identity and Access Management offers fast deployment, easy configuration, and minimal scripting and coding. This meant we could build and integrate the identity management solution quickly, reduce risk and ensure compliance across the organization while enhancing customer and data protection,” said Roy Kannan, Director, Information Technology, PT Indosat Tbk.

Stanwell Corporation Limited, an electricity supplier to the industrial and residential end users in Queensland and other Australian states, uses a range of Oracle Fusion Middleware solutions to provide generation supply and trading system information continuously, 24×7.

“Using Oracle Fusion Middleware, we’ve been able to increase the reliability of our data by knowing that we have a single source of truth and that all of the data we have in various systems is correct and up to date,” siad Greg Behrendt, Enterprise Solution Architect, Stanwell Corporation.

The Lawrence & Hanson Group (formerly Hagemeyer Australia), part of the Sonepar Group of Companies, a global player in electrical material distribution, deployed Oracle Identity Management to secure access to its extranet applications and enhance sales and customer service.

“Extending applications to our customers and partners provides a huge boon to us in terms of process efficiency and customer service. At the same time, this translates to a significant increase in the risk of sensitive information falling into the wrong hands. Oracle Identity Management enables us to mitigate these security risks and achieve peace of mind,” said Andy Wild, I.C.T. Manager, Lawrence & Hanson Group.

PT Astra Graphia Information Technology (AGIT) is a systems integrator in Indonesia.

“From the #1 Java application server to SOA to identity management to portals, Oracle provides middleware products that are unbeatable in terms of their breath and depth. The Oracle Fusion Middleware portfolio has opened up new business opportunities for us,” siad Satyo Lumaksono Hadisaputro, President Director, AGIT.

SYSTIME Computers is an existing Oracle JD Edwards partner.

“Oracle Fusion Middleware provides a robust foundation for building our solutions. The comprehensive, best-in-class and standards-based product roadmap promotes our ability to extend our application development on Oracle Fusion Middleware and boosts our confidence in providing business value to our respective customers,” said Advait Waghmare, Associate Vice President – Products & Technology, SYSTIME Computers.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/worldhotnews/30108319/Oracle-Sees-Strong-Customer-Adoption-of-Oracle-Fusion-Middleware-in-Asia-Pacific