NEWS: More doors open for graduate

KUALA LUMPUR: The demand for open-source software in the ­country and the expertise required in this area is rising, according to the Multimedia Development Corp (MDeC) which spearheads the MSC Malaysia initiative.

Open-source software, said networking systems giant Sun Microsystems, is gaining popularity mainly because the advantages of user malleable programs are becoming more apparent.

Since the source code is ­accessible to users, a company could tweak open-source software to better meet its needs, compared to proprietary software which arguably has to be used as is.

In view of this increasing ­interest in open-source ­applications, MDeC and Sun have banded together to offer local university graduates the ­opportunity to master open-source skills.

Under the partnership, Sun will provide the graduates with industry-recognised technology training and certification tools, through MDeC’s network of institutions of higher learning.

The training will include ­teaching the students to master Java, a programming language developed by Sun Microsystems that has been in use since 1995.

In addition to that, they will learn about OpenSolaris, Sun’s open-source operating system, around which the vendor has built developer and user ­communities.

Also on the cards is to make the graduates experts in MySQL, a relational database management system that ­reportedly has more than 11 million installations worldwide.

“The students will gain ­relevant IT skills which will improve their employability, and the initiative will also help meet the local industry’s demand for competent IT professionals,” said MDeC chief executive Datuk Badlisham Ghazali.

He was speaking at a press conference in the capital last week to announce the ­partnership.

C.P. Loo, managing director of Sun Microsystems Malaysia, emphasised the importance of obtaining certification in open-source software.

“Our programmes are designed to enable IT ­professionals to better harness Sun’s leading open-source ­technologies,” he said, “as well as improve their communication and interaction skills.

The graduates will also be more productive once their ­technical and problem-solving skills are honed, Loo added.

Candidates who complete the course may be awarded a three-month apprenticeship at an MSC Malaysia-status company.

The MSC Malaysia initiative is aimed at developing the ­country’s knowledge-based economy, as well as boosting its information and communications technology industry.

NEWS: Forge smart partnerships, Kong advises inventors

KUALA LUMPUR: It is often said that inventors and scientists do not make good businessmen.

Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Kong Cho Ha has a suggestion for them – forge smart partnerships with the business community.

“They need to trust business people and not hold on to their inventions for dear life.

“If big businesses can offer them 5% to 10% of their profits, they would make a few million ringgit instead of having to set up their own business and struggle for 10 years, he said.

The MCA vice-president said four years ago he took the initiative to establish the MCA ICT Resource Centre (MIRC), tasked with empowering small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) to use improved technology.

“We not only had the SMEs transformed but we too were transformed,” he said at the second Technopreneur Development Semi-nar and Study Tour yesterday.

MIRC has set up two incubator centres for ICT in Kuala Lumpur and Penang and is discussing with parties involved in the Iskandar Development Region and the Perak technocrat centre for more incubators to be set up.

NEWS: Students send e-mails to Obama to end Palestinian conflict

KUANTAN: In light of the recent bombings in Palestine, Mercy Malaysia initiated a programme called E-mails From Pahang Students to President Obama.

The event saw students from various schools in Pahang gathering at the Pahang Foundation hall to protest against the violence affecting Palestinians.

They shouted “Save Palestine” to express their disapproval of the bombings.

Anti-violence: (From left) Students Alisson, Hannah, Darsyanah and Ira Izzura displaying a Palestinian flag at the event in Kuantan recently.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob was present to lend support.

He also launched the programme, which encourages students across Pahang to send e-mails to the newly-elected US President Barack Obama.

From the e-mails, several would be selected by Adnan to be sent directly to Obama.

Friends Alisson Wong Wy Qin and Hannah Leong Wai San, both 16, were among those selected for the programme recently.

Hannah said: “I think it is a good method to get President Obama’s attention on the war. The victims are innocent. Seeing their pain makes me want to make a difference. If we unite in our efforts, we can.

Another student, Ira Izzura Ahmad Norhalim, 16, said: “I think it’s a great idea for us to e-mail messages to Obama. In this way, he can see how serious we are in fighting for peace in Palestine.”

Darsyanah Nadarajan’s message to the world was: Save Palestine, save the world.

Adnan later handed over funds collected to help Mercy Malaysia in its mission.

NEWS: Undergrad helps lovers say it with roses

OHOR BARU: A second-year civil engineering student is cashing in on Valentine’s Day by selling roses on the Internet for extra pocket money.

Wen Siau Kit, 23, who posted his advertisement last month, said business has been encouraging, with enquiries from not only people in Johor Baru but also in Kuala Lumpur.

Flowers for sale: Wen showing the advertisement he put online to sell roses for Valentine’s Day.

Wen, who is from Cameron High­lands, said he started the business last year together with three friends.

“Since I can get the flowers at a low price from a friend who has a rose farm, we decided to try out the business,” he said.

“The response was good and we sold 300 roses last year. We expect to double that this year.”

Besides the Internet, Wen and his friends rely on word of mouth to publicise his business.

Asked whether he would get anything special for his girlfriend for Valentine’s Day, he smiled and said that he was still unattached.

“We will deliver the roses today and tomorrow. Each wrapped rose is priced between RM6 and RM10,” he said, adding that they had also obtained a temporary licence to market their flowers at Danga Bay.

Wen said red roses were the most popular, followed by pink ones.

All his customers are men.

Wen, who is the third of four siblings and who used to help his father on their vegetable farm, aspires to be an entrepreneur.

NEWS: Sabah and Sarawak to get RM21mil under government stimulus package

KUCHING: Mission schools in Sabah and Sarawak will receive RM21.4mil under the government’s economic stimulus package to carry out upgrading work and other projects.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the allocation would be channelled directly to the schools’ board of directors.

Financial scheme: Najib (right) chatting with Alfred Jabu in Kuching yesterday. Looking on are Ong and Dr Wee (left).

He said it was the first time the Government had given such a large allocation to mission schools.

“I am confident that by giving the money to the board of directors, we will get value for money because they are responsible people and will use the money wisely,” he said.

He urged the schools to spend all the funds this year to help stimulate the domestic economy.

The funds are part of a RM50mil allocation for mission schools nationwide.

Najib paid tribute to mission schools, saying that they contributed to Malaysia’s development by producing well-educated students.

He noted that many political leaders and corporate figures were products of mission schools, including himself, a former student of St John’s Institution in Kuala Lumpur.

“It is most appropriate for mission schools to be given financial assistance as they are schools of excellence and well-known for their ethos and spirit,” he said when presenting the funds to representatives of mission schools at SMK St Thomas here.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan and Sarawak Deputy Chief Ministers Tan Sri Alfred Jabu and Tan Sri Dr George Chan were also present.

Deputy Education Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong, representing Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, said there were 410 mission schools nationwide, including 128 in Sarawak and 75 in Sabah.

He said the ministry was committed to assisting the board of directors of mission schools which needed help in carrying out projects such as improving facilities.

Najib also advised the Bidayuh community not to put their trust in politicians who were powerless and running for office.

“I want the Bidayuh people to be with Barisan Nasional and to continue to have faith in Barisan,” he told some 1,500 Bidayuhs at the Dayak Bidayuh National Association (DBNA) headquarters.

Bidayuhs make up about 8% of the state’s 2.4 million people. They live mostly in the Bau, Lundu and Serian districts in southern Sarawak. They have three Barisan MPs and six assemblymen.

Najib later announced a Federal Government contribution of RM4mil to the DBNA to fund the construction of its proposed multi-purpose centre.

NEWS: MDeC to tackle retrenchments

KUALA LUMPUR: The Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) is ­helping retrenched workers to get employment in the over 2,000 MSC Malaysia-status ­companies through its re-skilling programmes.

TRAINING PROGRAMME: According to MDeC, callcentres are an example of an ICT sector that re-skilled workers can find a job in.

MDeC, which is the guardian for MSC Malaysia, said it is co-operating with the Human Resources Ministry in this effort.

A total of 33,451 workers lost their jobs last year, according to the Labour Department. From last October to January 20, 13,040 people had been retrenched, according to The Labour Department’s department director-general Datuk Ismail Abdul Rahim (The Star, Jan 21).

MDeC chief executive officer Datuk Badlisham Ghazali said that MSC Malaysia will be a key referral centre in terms of looking for ­placement of the retrenched ­workers in ICT-based companies.

“We will assist the retrenched workers by encouraging them to take part in the existing MSC Malaysia programmes, which has been enhanced to accommodate them,” said Badlisham.

There are currently four re-skilling programmes that were ­originally targeted at unemployed graduates — the Graduate Trainee Programme, Undergraduate Skills Programme, Undergraduate Apprenticeship Development Programme and Job Camp.

These programmes, which began three years ago are specifically tailored towards different ­competencies.

“Based on the database provided by the ministry, we will match the skills of the retrenched workers to the sectors which have these ­shortages,” he said.

Badlisham said the Shared Services and Outsourcing (SSO) industry, the Creative Multimedia Content and callcentres are ­examples of ICT sectors that the re-skilled workers can find jobs in.

“There are job opportunities within the MSC. It’s not true that you have to have an ICT background to work within the MSC as it needs people do to sales, human resource, finance and others,” he said.

Muhammad Imran Kunalan, general manager of the K-Workers Development Department said MSC Malaysia will have its first training programme in mid February.

About 50 unemployed and retrenched people (mostly from the manufacturing sector) will undergo training at the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank (HSBC) Electronic Data Processing centre in Cyberjaya.

“After the training, HSBC Electronic Data Processing is expected to absorb most of them,” Muhammad Imran said.

He added that MSC Malaysia is looking to re-skill people not just for basic callcentre duties but for Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) activities, such as finance and human resources.

“There’s a common ­misconception that BPO is just about callcentre staff. For instance, a bank needs people to research a prospective client’s credit history when he applies for a loan. That requires some financial experience, and not just answering phones,” he said.

NEWS: A Good Start

THe new, technology-enabled Taylor’s College Sri Hartamas campus recently opened its doors to about 350 pre-university students, all enrolled in either the Cambridge A-Levels or South Australian Matriculation programme.

The contemporary furnishings, coupled with lots of open spaces, zesty colours and free wi-fi access seem to have scored points for the students who lauded the “high tech” study environment.

Students at the new Taylor’s College Sri Hartamas campus were in high spirits.

“Today’s students are more attuned to technology. For this reason, we place greater emphasis on the use of ICT for teaching and learning here. Our teaching revolves around student-centred learning,” said Taylor’s College Sri Hartamas’ Cambridge A-Levels programme director Ananda Kumaresh.

“We integrate our teaching and learning framework with extensive use of technology,” said Cambridge A-Levels academic department head Hariandra Muthu.

“This means our students have easier access to our teaching resources. For example, lecture notes are given out in soft copy, revision lessons are offered in audio and video recordings, and downloads are enabled using Bluetooth — all made available on Blackboard 7, a web-based course management software,” he added.

Located close to Mont Kiara, Damansara and Kuala Lumpur, Taylor’s College Sri Hartamas offers time- and money-saving solutions for students who no longer need to travel to Subang Jaya, Selangor, for their pre-university education.

“Besides, this new campus is much nearer to my house, so I managed to convince my dad to let me study here.”