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Microsoft previews Surface tablet

The company unveiled tablets running Windows 8 and Windows RT at a press conference in Los Angeles

June 18, 2012

By Martyn Williams

IDG News Service/San Francisco Bureau

Microsoft took a bold step into the tablet market on Monday with the unveiling of a computer aimed squarely at bettering Apple's market-leading iPad.

The computer, called Surface, will be available in two versions. One will run the Windows 8 Pro operating system and the other will be based on Windows RT, a new version of Windows designed to run on the ARM family of processors that are predominant in the tablet market.

"It's something new, something different, a whole new family of computing devices from Microsoft," said Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, at a Los Angeles news conference.

The machine has a 10.6-inch, widescreen, high-definition display and comes with a 3-millimeter-thick, pressure-sensitive cover that doubles as a keyboard.

Walk Through Earthquake Rubble Online

A screenshot from Google’s Street View showing damage from the tsunami that hit Japan. (Google)

December 13, 2011
By HIROKO TABUCHI
The New York Times

A toppled building; mangled cars and miles and miles of debris:

Google has uploaded scenes from the Japanese tsunami’s aftermath to its Street View service, offering a unique if heart-wrenching virtual peek into the destruction along Japan’s Pacific coast.

Google intends to send its camera-laden cars periodically to the disaster zone to create a digital archive of the destruction, as well as the progress made in reconstruction, Kei Kawai, Street View senior project manager, said in a blog post.

The project is part of a response by Google after the March quake and tsunami that has helped it win new friends in Japan.

Sam Rainsy On The Campaign Trail Delivering A Typical Campaign Speech

Opposition Leader Sam Rainsy in a teleconference with party supporters in Cambodia

25 June 2011

SAM RAINSY ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL DELIVERING A TYPICAL CAMPAIGN SPEECH

Even though being forced into exile, opposition leader Sam Rainsy is on the campaign trail. With the January 2012 senatorial election looming, he is travelling from one province to another to meet with the 2,660 SRP elected commune councillors who, with some other 10,000 commune councillors from the dominant CPP and two small “royalist” parties, will be the only few privileged citizens allowed to cast their votes to elect Cambodia’s 61 senators early next year.

By clicking at http://tinyurl.com/6hhr2sw you can hear Sam Rainsy addressing a group of voters in Kampot province in a typical campaign speech. In only 15 minutes, Sam Rainsy concisely elaborated on the main issues facing Cambodia: land grabbing, deforestation, overfishing, depletion of natural resources, poverty, corruption, border delineation, illegal immigration, attempt by the ruling CPP to buy votes and to manipulate some other parties. He called for national unity around the SRP in order to prevent Cambodia from vanishing.

Actually, Sam Rainsy is “travelling” and “meeting” with people all over Cambodia only through the Internet, by means of videoconferences. Thanks to modern technologies, physical presence is not as important and cost-effective as virtual presence.

In Thailand, where national elections will be held in coming July, opposition leader tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra, who has also been forced into exile, has also been using the same modern technologies to address the electorate, on a much larger scale and with a much more sophisticated and expensive equipment.

SRP Cabinet

Online gaming spreads to Asia's poorer nations

Sun, Mar 20, 2011
AFP

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - With his eyes fixed on the screen and his fingers flying over the keyboard, Cambodian teenager An Sopheak is lost in a world of ancient Chinese fighter heroes.

All around him, dozens of other, mostly male, faces are equally engrossed in their online fantasy game in this dark Internet cafe in the Cambodian capital.

The scene is a familiar one across Asia, but it's a relatively new sight in Cambodia, one of the region's poorest nations with one of the lowest rates of Internet usage.

"I feel so cool when my hero gets stronger," said 16-year-old An Sopheak, taking a short break from Justice X Wars II, known as JXII, the country's most popular game.

Third BarCamp Tech Conference Sees Attendance Rise

An attendee views VOA Khmer Facebook Page at Puthisastra University in Phnom Penh, where more than 800 computer enthusiasts gathered last week to exchange Information Technology knowledge. (Photo: Bun Tharum, VOA Khmer)

Tharum Bun, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Monday, 04 October 2010

“The social media of this Internet generation is modern and enables us to publicizie information about human rights. Old media like radio, TV or print newspapers can be controlled by someone in power, or not aired or broadcast freely. But over the Internet, we can publish news for the public. So that's the best means to advocacy and to post breaking news on human rights issues, in particular.”

Technology is playing a much greater role in the lives and businesses of Cambodians. In response, some 800 tech enthusiasts gathered at a conference in September in an event that has grown steadily over the years.

The two-day event, called BarCamp, brought togehter experts and novices alike, who shared information on a range of topics, from information on applications for computers and mobile devices to access of human rights information.

“The social media of this Internet generation is modern and enables us to publicizie information about human rights,” Chor Chanthida, a project officer for the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, told VOA Khmer at the conference. “Old media like radio, TV or print newspapers can be controlled by someone in power, or not aired or broadcast freely. But over the Internet, we can publish news for the public. So that's the best means to advocacy and to post breaking news on human rights issues, in particular.”

This BarCamp was Cambodia's third annual gathering, but it has seen a doubling in attendance since 2008. The idea, a free exchange of information, originated with tech fans in Palo Alto, Calif., in 2005 and has since become an international network of events.

“There are many participants and they are keen to share,” said Dara Saoyuth, a student at the Royal University of Phnom Penh. “Our break-out session rooms are not enough to accomodate them.”

Dara Saoyuth attended a session on time management, which, though short, was informative.

“What I'm impressed by is that the presenters are willing to share and are open,” he said. “They are experts, and they can actually make money offering training, but they want to share their skills with young people for free. And even though it's free, they do their best to explain and help answer questions from the audience.”

Be Chantra, a lead organizer for this year's BarCamp, said he hoped partipants learned something new from presenters and more about Cambodia's software industry.

A Technology Boom in Cambodia?

Internet access in Cambodia ... albeit Chinese
Fixing CRT TV sets
Yahoo-Cambodia billboard
Fake iPhone

September 18, 2010
Andrew Froehlich
Technorati

I had the opportunity to visit several cities within Cambodia last week. Being a network engineer and interested in technology advancements in emerging countries, I decided to spend some time investigating the current economic and technological environment. I came away fairly optimistic that Cambodia might be the next Asian country to experience a technology boom.

As far as current technology in Cambodia, it's a bit of a mixed bag. The country as whole is still very poor compared to many other SE Asian countries including Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. In fact, the only other country that has a lower per capita GDP is Myanmar (Burma).

In one market, I saw a shop that was gutting and repairing 10 year old tube televisions. This is a trade that I have not seen for at least 15 years. Also, there seem to be frequent power outages throughout the region. The outages did not last long but could prove to be disruptive for prospective businesses looking to invest in the area.

That being said, when I further explored Phnom Penh, the capitol city of Cambodia, I was surprised with the amount of signage that promoted Internet technologies. It would seem that in the capitol and other large cities that I visited, high-speed Internet was readily available at many hotels, coffee shops and even gas stations.

In addition, the cellular network within Cambodia is well developed, at least in the locations I visited. A company called Cellcard has built-out a 3G network in Cambodia's "key cities". When outside these cities, 2G Edge service blankets the country in most cases. In this regard, Cambodia is ahead of providing 3G services compared to neighboring Thailand who have been stuck in a political battle for years regarding the licensing of 3G frequencies.

Economically, while the vast majority of Cambodians are very poor, there has been recent investments from neighboring countries including China to develop factories for the manufacturing of electronics. I saw this first hand when looking at a iPhone 4G look-alike for sale at one of the local markets.

The phone's manual was written in Cambodian as opposed to Chinese or Laos. This typically means that the device was designed and made in Cambodia. It was a fairly sophisticated piece of technology so expect to see more and more electronics stamped with "Made in Cambodia" in the coming years.

Another key economic factor that may be in Cambodia's favor is the fact they they rely heavily on the US dollar. While the country has their own currency, the Riel, it very much is tied to the dollar and is actually the preferred currency all over the country. Because the dollar is weak compared to other Asian currencies, investments in Cambodia are becoming highly attractive.

Cambodia still has a long way to go to become a technological powerhouse. The good news is that they have many things going for them both technologically and economically. But don't just take my word for it. Cisco Systems also sees Cambodia as a growth market for technology. Just last month Cisco announced that they will be starting the Cisco Network Academy Program at a Technical University. Clearly, Cisco sees the future need for highly skilled network engineers in the very near future.

Ada Lovelace Day: Celebrating Sopheap Chak of Cambodia

Sopheap Chak, with the computer notebook on her lap, at Cambodia's first Blogger Summit at Pannasastra University (Photo courtesy of David Sasaki)

Ada Lovelace Day: Celebrating Women in Technology and Transparency Worldwide

Thursday, March 25th, 2010
By David Sasaki Global Voices Online

In celebration of Ada Lovelace Day we profile several women based around the world who use technology to to make government more transparent and accountable.

Sopheap Chak is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. Meanwhile, she is also running the Cambodian Youth Network for Change, which mobilizes young activists around the country. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) where she helped lead the “Black Box Campaign” to fight against police corruption in Cambodia. Twitter: @jusminesophia.

Inspired by Ellen Miller's post on the Sunlight Foundation blog, which profiles the work of women who use technology to promote transparency in the United States, we decided to add to the list by profiling several women from around the world involved in the use of technology to make government more transparent and accountable. The following profiles were written and researched by Renata Avila, the lead of Creative Commons Guatemala, the Director of Primer Palabra, and our researcher for Spanish-language Latin America on the Technology for Transparency Network.

In Mexico, Irma Eréndida Sandoval heads up a laboratory to document corruption and research the best transparency policies. “Laboratorio de Documentación y Análisis de la Corrupción y la Transparencia” at UNAM, the Autonomous National Mexican University, is one of the most prestigious institutions in Latin America.

In Iceland, parliamentarian Birgitta Jónsdóttir is promoting the Icelandic Modern Media Initiative, a proposal to create a global safe haven for investigative journalism in Iceland that would improve freedom of expression and transparency worldwide by protecting watchdog groups and whistleblowers from libel censorship.

It is important not only approve good laws to promote transparency and openness but also protect a free country from becoming less transparent. An activist from Germany, Franziska Heine, initiated the most successful e-petition in German history, aimed to prevent a law which would give the German police the right to create and maintain censorship lists with websites to be blocked by German ISPs. It was signed more than 134,000 times. Franziska is part of the anti-censorship movement and is engaged in several activities and organizations which fight against surveillance, data mining, censorship and other threats to civil rights.

But good laws and proactive citizens are not enough; tools are also important to enable women around the world to take action and promote transparency. Margarita Padilla, an IT engineer and the former director of the magazine Mundo Linux is making a difference. She creates and maintains systems with a social approach and also promotes openness with her website Sin Dominio.

Mercedes de Freitas from Venezuela is the Executive Director of Transparencia Venezuela, the local chapter of Transparency International and is former Ashoka Changemaker Fellow for her work in promoting civic participation to increase government accountability.

These are surely just a few examples of women around the world who are using technology to challenge corruption, improve the performance of institutions, and create better policy to engage citizens and hold public officials accountable. As a recent article by Alexandra Starr notes, both the fields of technology and government have long excluded women from participation despite their impressive track record for approaching both policy and technology with more realism and tact than their male counterparts.

Software companies and parliamentary buildings around the world are still mostly dominated by men, but this is changing quickly thanks to a new generation of women technologists, activists, and politicians. I would be remiss to not highlight the work of our female researchers and research reviewers who, it must be said, have proven themselves to be the hardest working members of our team on the Technology for Transparency Network.

Renata Avila, who wrote the profiles of all of the women above, is a lawyer, human rights activist, the country lead of Creative Commons Guatemala, and the director of Primer Palabra. She has worked with the Rigoberta Menchu Tum Foundation, Harvard University, the Public Voice, and Women in International Security. Twitter: @avilarenata.

Sopheap Chak is a graduate student of peace studies at the International University of Japan. Meanwhile, she is also running the Cambodian Youth Network for Change, which mobilizes young activists around the country. She was previously advocacy officer of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) where she helped lead the “Black Box Campaign” to fight against police corruption in Cambodia. Twitter: @jusminesophia.

Rebekah Heacock is currently a master's candidate at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, where she studies the intersection of ICT and development and edits SIPA’s blog, The Morningside Post. She previously lived and worked in Uganda, where she co-developed and directed a series of conferences on post-conflict development for American and African college students. Twitter: @rebekahredux.

Manuella Maia Ribeiro is a recent graduate of Public Policy Management from the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Since 2007 she has been researching how governments can promote transparency, accountability and participation through the use of information and communication technologies. Twitter: @manuellamr.

Namita Singh is a researcher and consultant focused on participatory media. She studied mass media and mass communication at Delhi University and has a Master of Arts in Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai. Namita will soon begin her Ph.D. research in the UK on the processes and impact of participatory video. Twitter: @namitasingh.

Carrie Yang is a a postgraduate student studying new media at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The focus of her research is on citizen journalism and new media product development. She studied English at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies in Guangzhou, China. Twitter: @Carrie_Young.

Sylwia Presley is a blogger, photographer and activist who is passionate about social media marketing for the non-profit sector and social media for social change. She has organized numerous events including Barcamp Transparency UK last summer in Oxford, which she hopes will be replicated in other European countries this year. Twitter: @presleysylwia.

Aparna Ray is an independent qualitative research consultant by profession who is keenly interested in people, cultures, communities and social media/software. She writes both in English and Bangla, (the latter being her mother-tongue), and covers the Bangla blog world on Global Voices. Twitter: @aparnaray.

Laura Vidal is a Venezuelan studying Science Education in Paris, France. She blogs at Sacando la Lengua about languages, literature and interactions in society, and deeply believes in the uniqueness and importance of every culture, and in the study of them as a mirror to our own.

Cambodian prime minister invites Indian investment

Sat, 08 Dec 2007
DPA

New Delhi - Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen on Saturday invited Indian investment for "economic take-off and transformation in Cambodia". Addressing leaders of Indian chambers and industries Hun Sen said, "The Royal Government of Cambodia is supportive of the private sector, and has created a favourable environment for this sector to protect their investments and business activities in Cambodia."

The prime minister, who is on a four-day visit to India, said there was potential for Indian foreign direct investment in agriculture, labour intensive industries, processing, tourism, mining, and some other sections of manufacturing and services.

The investment from India can enable "economic take-off and transformation in Cambodia", said Hun Sen, who is accompanied by a 12-member delegation including five ministers.

India's Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Dr Shakeel Ahmed, said that, "India and Cambodia have young population who can contribute to the technological development and growth of the two countries."

"Indian IT companies have significant presence in Cambodia and can further initiate the ICT (Information Communication Telecommunication) programmes of the Royal Government of Cambodia," said Ahmed.

The balance of trade between the two countries is 16.5 million dollars, with India exporting goods and services worth 16.7 million dollars and importing goods and services worth 20,000 dollars in 2005-06.

New products and services should be identified to enhance bilateral trade ties, said Chairman, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, D Datta.

Indian business leaders supported co-operation in biotechnology, bio-informatics, broadcasting, communication, education, human resources and skill development.

Hun Sen, who arrived in India on Friday, was given a ceremonial reception on Saturday, which was followed by a meeting with India's Minister of External Affairs, Pranab Mukherjee, President Pratibha Patil and Vice President Hamid Ansari.

The Cambodian prime minister is scheduled to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today and the two sides are expected to sign several agreements aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation.

He is scheduled to leave for the southern city of Hyderabad on Sunday where he will visit the National Institute of Rural Development and an information technology centre.

Hun Sen's earlier visit to India in July was abruptly terminated when the country went into state mourning after the death of former prime minister Chandra Shekhar.