Technology

Wonders of Windows 7

Microsoft Sri Lanka announced the local launch of the highly anticipated Windows 7, the latest version of its flagship desktop operating system. The event was presided by Ken Wye Saw, Vice-President (Sales and Marketing), Asia Pacific Microsoft and Akther Ahmed, President, New Emerging Markets Microsoft South East Asia.

Windows 7 has already enjoyed worldwide success following its international launch last week, as the operating system received rave reviews across the globe from industry experts, media and consumers alike. Hailed as the operating system users have been waiting for, Windows 7 works on a simple premise: making it easier for people to do the things they want on a PC.

Speaking at the launch event, Ken Wye Saw, Vice-President (Sales and Marketing), Asia Pacific Microsoft enthused about the new operating system saying "I am honoured to be a part of the Windows 7 launch in Sri Lanka. Building Windows 7 has been a collaborative process from the beginning, with Microsoft's engineers and designers working with customers and partners to build an Operating System that delivers on the vision 'Your PC, simplified'. The new OS provides users with an experience that is above and beyond anything they have used before. The product is a result of bridging customers and technology. We believe that customers will reap a range of benefits, be it an individual consumer or a business".

Media at the launch event were taken through a dynamic product tour by Imran Vilcassim, Enterprise Accounts Manager, Microsoft Sri Lanka, which provided an insight into the unique capabilities of Windows 7. Commenting on the benefits Windows 7 offers customers, Akther Ahmed, President, New Emerging Markets Microsoft South East Asia, "The additional features and benefits of Windows 7 is a major development on existing software, allowing users to explore features such as simplified task bars and connectivity options that were previously too complicated for the average user. Overall it is a smoother experience, built to make working on a PC an easier and more rewarding for users".

In his address Sriyan de Silva Wijeyeratne, Country Manager, Microsoft Sri Lanka, emphasized the impact the new operating system would have on the local business community.

"Our country will be able to experience Windows 7, which combines a great degree of functionality, features and simplicity. Windows 7 steering way ahead of its previous versions, is fully compatible with more applications and hardware that users will already have installed on their PCs. The upgrade is both simple and cost effective making things easier, not only for our businesses to seamlessly adopt this latest technology, but also for every individual in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka can now enjoy an innovation that simplifies the PC, with more choices and more options, delivering better value than ever before".

e-Society that connects the unconnected shines in USA

Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) e-Society Programme that connects the unconnected rural and disadvantaged communities to the world of information and communication through new technologies drew plaudits at the recent Innovation Fair held at the World Bank in Washington, D.C., U.S.A. The Innovation Fair was organised to draw attention of the top Management of the World Bank to creative and fresh approaches in global development programmes.

The e-Society programme was one of six most distinctive projects from the South Asia region showcased at this inauguration at tha World Bank Innovation fair. The programme initiated and implemented under the e-Sri Lanka project by (ICTA) stood out for its community driven use of ICT for Development (ICT4D).

Encouraging local expertise, the e-society programme showed how it has adroitly used ICT to develop programmes that helped rural farmers to access agricultural market information, provide social services and education opportunities to individuals and assist the disabled.

In addition, the programme demonstrated how new digital content products developed through e-society grants have harnessed local expertise to provide easier access to knowledge and learning for the vision and hearing impaired persons.

The e-Society Programme was also presented at the 'Ideas Market' a forum which presented emerging opportunities in ICTs and social Media that would augment the Bank's development work. 'Many Senior Managers from a number of regions expressed much interest in learning more and replicating the e-Society concept and resulting projects and suggested that workshops be held for Task Managers of the World Bank.', said Sandra Sargent, Operations Officer at the World Bank.

Suggestions were also made to establish further cross-country and cross-regional collaboration between the ICTA and agencies implementing similar initiatives in other countries.

Two decades of success for Debug

At a time when Sri Lanka's burgeoning IT industry began making inroads into the everyday workings of both the corporate world and individual homes, Debug Computer Peripherals was birthed in 1989 to support the demand for computer peripherals of reputed quality. Over the next two decades, Debug continued to play a major role in shaping the facet of responsible distribution of high quality ICT products, introducing best practices and standards in the sale and service of these products which was supported by a highly trained team whose sole objectives continue to be the maintenance of high levels of competitiveness and quality.

As Debug's Managing Director Moiz Najmudeen explains, 'Within a matter of a few years, Debug was representing a group of reputed international ICT brands including EPSON for which we are the sole authorized distributor in Sri Lanka, MGE UPS systems, D-Link Network products, DCP UPS systems, HP server and storage, Bluecoat appliances, Sophos security solutions, AI-Phone Security phone systems, Kenwood Radio communications, JBL, Crown, Soundcraft, Kinoton, Nakamichi and Dolby Digital. And I'm extremely proud that today we could be rated among the top five ICT companies in the country, having maintained a consistent market share across the board.' He adds that with diversification and emphasis on service, the Debug Group today touches the diverse markets of ICT Infrastructure, Power Conversion and Protection Services, Professional Audio Visual Solutions, Software Development for Export, Radio Communication, High tech automobile workshops, Wynns engine treatment car care products and machinery and Sea-doo water crafts sport boats.

The Debug Group currently comprises nine other subsidiaries in addition to Debug Computer Peripherals. Duplex Trade and Manufacturers, Debug Computer Software, Debug Epson Digital Center, Debug Auto Exclusive, Equipment Trades, ONVI Debug Solutions, The Hi-Fi Center and AKLO Information Technologies a specialised software company which was recently awarded Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) certification, one of the highest internationally recognised standards for assessing and evaluating software development practices, come under the Debug umbrella.

The company is amply supported with eleven strategically positioned regional branches in Anuradhapura, Batticaloa, Kandy, Kurunegala, Liberty Plaza, Matara, Negombo, Ratnapura, Bandarawela and Peliyagoda as well as the Head Office and an islandwide dealer network. Najmudeen states that with the north and east of the country now opening up for regular business, Debug too will join the fray and will soon enter the north, a fitting tribute to its twenty year landmark.

'While it is certainly a sense of achievement to have see Debug grow into a strong and stable Group over these two decades, what is also noteworthy is that we have been mindful of industry and macro changes and thus, transformed ourselves to be aligned with those paradigm shifts, he states.