Monday, February 18, 2002		Latest in IT world

Participatory Research In Asia (PRIA), a Delhi-based non-government organisation, released a CD ROM containing comprehensive data on occupational health-related issues. The CD ROM titled 'Data Bank on Occupational and Environmental Health' contains detailed research studies on working and living conditions of the organised and unorganised sector of labour, occupational health hazards and information on legal safeguards and social security net for workers. The CD ROM prepared by the Centre for Environmentally Sustainable Industrial Development (ESID) of PRIA contains information about all studies conducted over the last 20 years. "The lack of user-friendly information on occupational health has resulted in neglect of the issue," Rajesh Tandon, president, PRIA, said.

A new IDC study has discovered that governments across the Asia-Pacific region are launching ambitious e-government initiatives, using electronic technologies to improve both internal operations and public service delivery. Over the coming years, IDC forecasts governments around the world will increase their spending on e-government initiatives as they devote more resources to e-enabling government business functions and providing electronic services. IDC's 2001-2003 e-government forecast illustrates that spending on e-government initiatives will claim a growing portion of public sector IT spending in the years ahead. "By embracing technology, governments are finding they can reap the same type of rewards as e-businesses," Lisa Shishido, Senior Analyst eBusiness and eGovernment, IDC Australia, said. Of the five governments profiled, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Korea and Singapore, e-government spending will grow the fastest in China at a compound annual growth rate of nearly 40 per cent.

The Boston Software Consultants India Pvt Ltd., Hyderabad, had bagged a major e-learning order from Asia's first and the largest computer University, AMA Computer University in Manila, Philippines. Boston Software Consultants will implement their flagship product Intralearn XE for this university. This is the largest e-learning order for Boston Software in Asia as far as the number of users. AMA University has a student population of around 1,50,000 users and 200 campuses in the Philippines and other parts of the world. Vinod K Samantula, Country Manager, said "this is the largest e-learning order for us in Asia. This breaks all barriers through technology. We are implementing our Intralearn XE with 20 ports with a population of 1,50,000 students.

A Silicon Valley start-up has claimed it has invented a computer chip that enables digital cameras to produce images rivaling those made on 35-mm film, AFP reports.The company, Foveon, said it has accomplished that milestone by using digital image sensors that have pixels that capture red, green and blue light, the major spectrum colours. A pixel - short for picture element - is the smallest element capable of being displayed by digital video and still photographs. Current pixels capture only one major colour and computer chips within the camera must "guess" at the saturation of the other colours. Foveon X3 technology, as its inventors are dubbing it, allows each pixel to display all spectrum colours without computer assistance.