End Users: Should We Put Them In Padded Cells?

If you’re an I&O professional, what comes to mind when you say “end user”? If you’re like most of us, your mind has a conjured-up impression of a cosmically clueless person who actually gave you a hard time once, and the picture is now your mind’s own avatar for everyone you support. It’s not usually a positive image, is it? I used to picture a middle-aged, BMW-driving executive with his hair parted on one side wearing an LL Bean sweater, probably an Ivy-league grad, who couldn’t be bothered to actually take responsibility for his own personal computing destiny…he always had servants to take care of trivialities…and hence he was ruining my day with his incompetence. Let’s call him Ascot Rothschild III.

An image like that is a powerful thing, and the painful memory of this individual’s willful, arrogant ignorance then pervades our future thinking about what we’re up against when we set IT policy like BYOC. Ascot becomes the poster child - in our minds anyway - for every garden-variety corporate doofus that we’ll have to deal with if we give people any more rope than we already do. They also give us plenty of reasons to take more rope away. In my case, I used to sit on a helpdesk for Remedy customers, and my team had a collection of “special” customers we wondered how they managed to get dressed and find their car keys in the morning. As I later designed Remedy and Peregrine applications, I did so with these “edge cases” in mind.

In other words, we tend to calibrate our thinking and design infrastructures for the worst case scenarios. We gear our decisions and prioritize our spending toward those who are least likely to truly benefit from the investment, in the hope that they won’t run into trouble and bother us. It’s a peculiar thing really, because it causes us to spend most of our time thinking about problem avoidance and not enough on opportunity creation. Worse…our understanding of these people and their true needs is usually dead wrong.

The interactions with the people we support paint a skewed picture. We hear from people when things aren’t going well, and they’re probably at their worst. We don’t get to see the real Ascot Rothschild III, father of 2 beautiful kids, and loving husband who paid his own way through college, and discovered oil reserves for your company last year worth $500M. These details are lost, along with our willingness to think about what he needs to find the next $500M opportunity. It may be better to dispense with the term “end user” altogether and use the term “internal customer” instead.

So I would like to lay down a challenge to you: As you execute your plans for your BYOC and client virtualization initiatives in 2012, and make critical decisions, such as whether to lock down desktops or not - which Ascot Rothschild III do you really know? Which potential are you designing your infrastructure for: the potential for problems or the potential for innovation and out-sized business results? Can you achieve both? I’d love to hear from those of you who have.

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Superman is Dead : Punk rock with an attitude

Superman is Dead : Punk rock with an attitude

Felix Dass, Contributor, Jakarta | Sun, 04/08/2012 11:01 AM

A | A | A |

After nearly 20 years on the road, for them, punk rock is still about saying no and being true to themselves.

Have you ever dug the life of Indonesia’s biggest punk rock outfit? What is it like on a daily basis? Are they still true to what they believe in? Do they really have a good understanding about what punk rock is?

Ask whatever you want, at the end of the day you will still get a positive image of Superman is Dead.

This 100 percent Bali-resident band have been around since the 1990s with their debut album Case 15, a milestone in our local punk rock scene’s history, recorded back in 1997. The members are still the same old dudes who swung around the happy-go-lucky life back in the day — charismatic drummer JRX, flamboyant bassist EkaRock and super good frontman Bobby Kool.

Let us take you back to 2001, 11 years ago. Sometime that year, all of a sudden, Sony Music Indonesia announced they were going to release their first punk rock album produced by a local act.

Jan D. Djuhana — the legendary Sony Music Indonesia icon who discovered Dewa 19, Padi, Glenn Fredly and many other top-notch artists here in Indonesia — thought that this band had the X factor that would shake up the industry.

It was controversial — industry insiders rolled their eyes, thinking that Sony Music Indonesia was making a big mistake by investing money in a punk rock band, while the punk rock scene criticized Superman is Dead for selling out, signing a deal with the capitalist music industry for six albums. But both parties went ahead.

Over the years, this collaboration has managed to silence their critics and provided positive evidence to those who believe that change could be made possible through punk rock.

Look at them now — five albums, hundreds of gigs, thousands of good times along the road and, this is the most important thing, millions of fans from cities all across Indonesia and a significant amount of international acclaim that has kept their connection with the world’s punk rock scene alive.

“The relationship level is still at the green stage,” chuckles EkaRock. “If we meet, Pak Jan still takes us out for a meal. He knows us well, we still need his love,” adds JRX, also in the same humorous tone.

Well, don’t believe it all until you see how big they are on the Internet. Google anything about them and you will be overwhelmed by the facts you will find.

“We’re still the old Superman is Dead, still playing punk rock. Only our ages have moved forward,” says Bobby Kool. “And we now have a bigger responsibility,” continues EkaRock. The band carries a heavy mission to make the world a better place.

 “We want to spread positivity and bring changes, well, big or small we all need to do that. That’s always the motivation behind Superman is Dead,” tells EkaRock.

 “In every smart band’s dream there is always a smart gang of fans. We want to have that and we want them to realize they’re smart. That’s what we want to deliver through our music,” JRX adds.

So far, Superman is Dead has been a massive agent of change where they have made small-but-beautiful gestures on a daily basis. For example, in almost every city they visit, they encourage people to have an afternoon stroll with them to clean the environment by picking up any trash they see.

Their contribution to the community can be considered real. What they stand for is a true representation of how people are willing to opt for a better life under the big roof called punk rock.

Of course, they have been supported by their legions of fanatic fans that have fallen in love with the free spirit the band have been expressing for years. They are a good example of how warm the relationship between a punk rock act and their followers can be.

“We’re trying hard not to project ourselves as a perfect idol figure for those kids; we just show them what we are. You can have so many followers if you’re natural and honest with people,” says full-of-wisdom-punk rocker JRX.

At the moment, their flags are flying high, literally.

“My point of view now has changed. I used to have a short term point of view, two or three years only. Now I have a bigger picture, not focusing on minor details. Clarity,” JRX says.

Looking back, they admit that what they have now on their hands was not even in their minds in day one.

“I never thought of this. I was so busy thinking about the good things in life; how to have wild nights out and a never ending alcohol adventure,” jokes JRX.

As would be expected of happy-go-lucky young punk rockers, life in the early stages of their career was always about having some fun and going wild 24/7. The old saying “everything big starts small” is really appropriate in their case. Don’t think big at the very start.

Small gigs were the best while big stadium or arena gigs were not even on their horizon back then. Well, nowadays, small gigs are still on their agenda but it needs to be discreetly done.

“Police will monitor your behavior while you’re doing big stadium gigs, while a sweet girl will wait for you in the corner in a small gig,” again, jokes JRX. “Raw and devilish energy plus the audience’s sweat are the basic ingredients of chaos.”

“We love the wild energy which actually is the fuel that drives our engine. We want to explode it all without a single fake emotion. That’s how a small gig feels to us,” adds EkaRock.

From any of the anecdotes you read, it’s easy to sense how they have kept their feet on the ground, living their enjoyable life to the fullest. The band still call Bali home despite the major effort to go on tour or promote their work.

“We want to say go on forever by writing as many songs as we can, we want to see places we’ve never been to before and do many things in the future,” says Bobby Kool.

The band is now promoting their newly released vinyl record consisting of eight of their best tracks. The vinyl is the first product from Sony Music Indonesia in this old fashioned but sexy format. The band managed to push yet another boundary by getting their label to fulfill their dream of having a release in vinyl format.

“You cannot call yourself a musician if you don’t have vinyl in your catalogue. We’re fortunate that at this time our label is on crazy mode,” says JRX. This, of course, is a joke, maybe.

Keep watching, because Superman is Dead will probably make another big break while surfing the mainstream industry with their bold punk rock attitude.

*) More info about Superman is Dead can be found at supermanisdead.net.

— Photos Courtesy of Superman is Dead

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Hope fading for missing teachers

Hope fading for missing teachers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 04/11/2012 1:58 PM

A | A | A |

Evy Maya Stefany, 21, is waiting for news of her brother, Heru Fendi Angga Akhmadi, 22, who went missing along with another teacher, Rizki Susdiasto, 25, during a school holiday at Tanjung Mas Beach in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, last Wednesday.

“Isn’t there anything else anyone can do to find my brother?” Evy said on Tuesday.

Heru, Rizki and a student named Mundus Mutaebenu, 17, were reportedly carried away by currents while swimming. Mundus’ body was found by a fisherman on Monday, 30 kilometers away from the beach.

Reports said that on the day of the incident, Heru, Rizki and 20 students from state senior high school SMAN 1 in Amfoang Barat Daya were enjoying their Easter holidays. Heru went to cool himself off in the water after playing soccer and was swept away.

Hearing Heru’s cry for help, Mundus and Rizki quickly went to rescue him, but were carried away as well.

The Kupang administration is ending its search today, seven days after the incident, even though Heru and Rizki are still missing,

“The search and rescue team has had difficulties with the bad weather, high waves and strong tides,” Wayan Sukrawarpala from the Ganesha Education University in Singaraja, Bali, told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

Wayan is Ganesha’s coordinator for the Sarjana Mendidik (Graduates Teaching) program, of which Heru and Rizki were members.

The program was launched by the Education Ministry in 2011 to give an opportunity to people with Bachelor degrees in education to teach in remote and underdeveloped regions for one year.

Heru, along with 67 other teachers, were sent by Ganesha Education University to Kupang, while Rizki was sent by the Jakarta State University to the same regency with 123 other teachers.

So far, the ministry has assigned 2,479 Bachelor-degree holders to 21 regencies and cities throughout Indonesia, including Kupang, Raja Ampat in West Papua and Aceh Besar in Aceh.

The ministry’s spokesman, Sukemi, said that before leaving for their assignments, the teachers underwent training so that they would be able to adapt to the local way of life.

“We invited locals to share their knowledge. We also organized two weeks' physical training for the teachers. They did not go unprepared,” Sukemi added.

According to Heru’s sister, Evy, her parents were reluctant to let her only sibling join the program.

“My parents wanted him to stay at home, mostly because at that time, my father had just undergone cancer treatment. He suffers from pancreatic cancer,” she told the Post via telephone from her home in Jembrana, Bali.

However, seeing how excited Heru was after being admitted to the program, their parents finally gave him their blessing. “My brother has always been passionate about teaching,” she added.

Heru left for Kupang on Jan. 4.

Evy said that her brother was ecstatic when he arrived in Amfoang Barat Daya the area to which he was assigned. She added that he loved it there and continuously sent pictures to his family.

They received news about his disappearance from a friend of his last Thursday. His mother didn’t believe it at first and tried to call him on his cell phone but a Kupang Police officer answered the call.

Evy told the Post that her family had been devastated by the news. Her mother is so incapacitated by grief that she cannot leave her bed.

Evy turned down Ganesha Education University’s offer to send her to Kupang to oversee the search process because she felt obliged to take care of her parents.

“My parents and I can only wait. I hope the Kupang administration will extend the search because my brother is still out there somewhere,” she said. (tas)

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Kemenangan Barca untuk Abidal

Beritabola.com Barcelona - Barcelona
mengalahkan Getafe pada hari yang sama dengan jadwal operasi Eric
Abidal. Los Cules pun mempersembahkan kemenangan mereka kepada salah
satu pemainnya tersebut.

Abidal dijadwalkan naik ke meja
operasi pada Selasa (10/4/2012) waktu setempat. Bek asal Prancis itu
akan menjalani transplantasi hati untuk mengatasi efek samping pasca
operasi pengangkatan tumor pada tahun lalu.

Tepat di hari
operasi Abidal, Barca bertemu Getafe dalam lanjutan Liga Spanyol. The
Catalans menang telak 4-0 dan kini memepet Real Madrid di klasemen
sementara.

"Kami sangat senang untuk mendedikasikan kemenangan
ini untuk Abidal dan sepupunya Gerard (yang mendonorkan hatinya),"
ungkap pelatih Barca, Pep Guardiola, di situs resmi klub.

"Ini
adalah hari yang spesial karena kami tahu dia sedang dioperasi,"
katanya.

Dua pemain Barca, Andres Iniesta dan Pedro Rodriguez,
juga mengungkapkan hal serupa.

"Saya senang untuk
mendedikasikan kemenangan ini untuk Abi. Ini untukmu," seru
Iniesta.

"Ini untuk teman kami, Abidal," ujar
Pedro.
(dtc/mfi) Sumber: detiksport

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Grab your Nokia N8, Microsoft rolls out native Office applications

Last September I wrote about the announcement that Microsoft apps were coming to Symbian Belle devices and today Nokia announced a software update for several devices that provides Microsoft Office in a native application.

It looks like it is time to pull out my orange Nokia N8 and give it a test run. I am especially interested in trying out Excel with my N8 connected via HDMI to a larger display. I mentioned several innovations still present in Symbian devices and there is still a place for such powerful devices.

Over the years, I have used various 3rd party Office clients and they do a good job for mobile use. Over on the Nokia Conversations site Dinesh Subramaniam mentions a bit about two modules of Office for Symbian Belle:

If you’re a Word user, you’ll appreciate the fact that with Word mobile, you can save or send documents while preserving tables, SmartArt and charts, or the pinch/zoom functionality to easily view and edit documents.

In PowerPoint mobile, you can edit presentation texts and speaker notes, or use the Outline view to quickly browse through slides. With Excel mobile, you can create charts, or insert formulae and view rich data and charts from anywhere.

With the upcoming Nokia PureView device with 41 megapixel camera, it is nice to see Symbian still being supported on some level by Nokia.

Related ZDNet coverage

• Full Microsoft Office Mobile now available on select Nokia Symbian phones
• Some of us care that Nokia is taking Symbian away
• Microsoft Apps coming to Nokia Symbian Belle devices
• MWC 2012: Nokia announces 808 PureView with 41 megapixel Carl Zeiss camera

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Lescott: City Tak Akan Biarkan MU Menang di Etihad

Beritabola.com Manchester - Derby
Manchester diprediksi akan jadi penentu gelar juara Liga Inggris musim
ini. Tak ingin malu di depan pendukungnya, Joleon Lescott menegaskan
Manchester City tak akan membiarkan Manchester United menang di
Etihad.

Tiga pekan tak meraih hasil maksimal membuat The
Citizens harus tertinggal delapan poin dari 'Setan Merah' yang ada di
puncak klasemen. Dengan liga yang masih menyisakan enam pekan lagi,
secara matematis peluang City belum sepenuhnya
tertutup.

Sebelum saling berhadapan di laga derby yang akan
digelar pada Senin (30/4/2012) malam waktu setempat, kedua tim akan
menjalani tiga laga. Jika City tak mampu memaksimalkan tiap
pertandingan sebelum derby, bisa jadi tim arahan Sir Alex Ferguson
yang akan mengunci gelar di Etihad.

"Kami tidak ingin
membiarkan mereka memenanginya di Etihad Stadium. Kami akan melakukan
apapun dalam kekuatan kami untuk tidak membiarkannya terjadi," ujar
Lescott seperti dilansir oleh Sky Sports.

Laga ini bisa jadi
akan menjadi laga terpenting untuk Sergio Aguero dkk. Meski demikian,
Lescott menilai memenangi pertandingan ini tak akan berarti banyak
jika City gagal menjadi juara liga.

"Ini tidak akan berarti
banyak jika kami memenangi dua laga atas United dan tidak memenangi
liga," sambung bek berusia 29 tahun itu.

"Tapi saya yakin bahwa
ketika laga itu datang setiap orang akan senang menyambutnya,"
tutupnya.
(dtc/roz) Sumber: detiksport

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TNI-AU could rival China, US by 2045, expert says

TNI-AU could rival China, US by 2045, expert says

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 04/10/2012 8:26 PM

A | A | A |

Indonesia is expected to have an Air Force that is on par with China and the United States in dominating Southeast Asia by 2045, University of Indonesia defense expert from Andi Widjajanto said Tuesday.

Speaking at the International Air Power Seminar 2012, Andi said that the Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) capacity for air force dominance in 2012 was slightly below that of Malaysia, with the strongest being the US, quoting Jane’s Southeast Asia Air Force Inventory 2012.

If Indonesia goes to war with the US, the TNI-AU would be put in a state of paralysis against the superpower, being air subordinate relative to the super power.

Air subordination refers to the weakness of a country's air force relative to other countries. As of 2012, Indonesia is considered subordinate to countries like China, but is considered air superior to countries such as East Timor.

If Indonesia fights against Malaysia, the two countries would be on equal grounds in terms of air force dominance capabilities, or what in military terminology is referred to as air parity.

“We already have strategic plans [for the air force] for at least until 2024. The government has already planned that and we will reach the country’s minimum essential force requirement by that year,” Andi said. “By that year, we will reach air parity with Singapore and Malaysia.”

“We will have air dominance throughout Southeast Asia by 2045.”

Andi said Indonesia would have air parity with countries such as China, the Five Power Defense Arrangements (FPDA) and the US.

“But we still don’t know how we will be in the position of air dominance with those countries,” he said.

China, for example, has bombers which can reach Australia, he said. (png)

 

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Jelang Derby Madrid - Casillas Berani Bertaruh Madrid Akan Menang

Beritabola.com Madrid - Real Madrid tak
pernah terkalahkan dalam lebih dari 10 tahun terakhir saat harus
menghadapi Atletico Madrid. Untuk pertemuan tengah pekan ini, Iker
Casillas malah berani bertaruh kalau El Real akan kembali
menang.

Madrid butuh kemenangan untuk menjaga jarak empat poin
yang mereka punya atas Barcelona. Jika kembalai imbang, apalagi kalah,
jarak El Real dengan seteru abadinya itu bisa merepat menjadi tiga
atau satu poin.

Selayaknya di belahan dunia lain, laga derby
umumnya menjanjikan pertandingan sengit, namun Derby Madrid adalah
sebuah pengecualian. Catatan tak terkalahkan Madrid dalam 22
pertandingan terakhir adalah buktinya. El Real jauh lebih superior
dibanding Atleti.

Dominasi Madrid atas Atletico diyakini
Casillas akan berlanjut tengah pekan ini. Dia malah berani bertaruh
kalau 'Si Putih' bakal pulang membawa kemenangan.

"Itu akan
menjadi pertandingan yang bagus. Setiap tahunnya mereka bersemangat
dan ingin mengalahkan kami. Saya tidak tahu apa yang akan terjadi,
tapi Real Madrid harus tetap menang untuk menjuarai liga," sahut
Casillas di Mundo Deportivo.

"Saya bertaruh untuk kemenangan
Madrid," lanjut kiper nomor satu Spanyol itu.

Meski optimistis
menang, Casillas tak memandang remeh lawan. Keberadaan Radamel Falcao,
Diego Ribas dan Adrian Lopez disebutnya membuat Madrid tetap arus
waspada di Vincente Calderon.

"Falcao pemain yang hebat,
seperti halnya Diego atau Adrian, Anda tak bisa melupakan itu," tuntas
Casillas.
(dtc/din) Sumber: detiksport

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Letter: Saints are sinners who kept on trying

Letter: Saints are sinners who kept on trying

| Tue, 04/10/2012 11:05 AM

A | A | A |

Your words (“Going to hell in a hand-cart”, Sunday Post, April 8 by Duncan Graham) went straight to my heart and I was deeply moved, if not outright stunned. I’m sure many of us readers were very hard hit by what you wrote. What you did took an immense amount of courage and wisdom.

As someone who is also doing the best she can to be a person who feels, thinks, speaks and acts in line with the right things, according to God, may I please be allowed to offer some comments on the excellent soul-baring experience you wrote about?

First, please don’t be too hard on yourself. The Creator Himself is not, you know. The fact that you really saw the hardship the old porter went through, and felt for him, shows that you have a kind and caring heart that beats warmly in sympathy for your fellow souls who are suffering.

Many of the people who also witnessed the old porter pull along his heavy load wouldn’t think twice about what they saw, much less help him. So, in many ways, you, Duncan Graham, are what people highly developed in spirituality would call “an advanced soul”.

Second, I believe that a soul who is sincere in wanting to help always gets another opportunity to do so. So you didn’t get to help the old porter — this time. Perhaps, when you see him again, you can offer him a sum of money that will really and truly be a miracle for him?

Or perhaps the appearance of the old porter served to move you so much that you just had to write the story about him, thereby deeply touching and awakening the hearts of those who read your article? There is no such thing as coincidence, you know. My mother used to say that coincidence is a miracle God performs while remaining incognito.

Third, it is sometimes hard to know when to be helpful! Some suffering people may refuse help outright — perhaps it’s part of their negative karma that they need to erase?

A few weeks ago, on my walk home to meet a waiting friend, I saw an elderly, little beggar lady walk away from a man who ran after her waving a two-thousand-rupiah bill. Since she sat down on the sidewalk, I took some money from my pocket, went to where she was sitting, and offered it to her.

By that time the man had arrived, all out of breath, and said to her: “Here, Ibu, you dropped the money I gave you.” But the old beggar refused all the gifts, wouldn’t take them at all. She even got angry at us, started to utter several curses and tried to hit us. So the man and I finally walked away, and he said sadly: “I wanted to help her, but she refused.” I answered, “Pak, your intention is what counts, isn’t it?” and then we stood and, for a while, had a nice chat.

About 50 meters from that place I encountered another beggar, who was sincerely happy with what I had to share with her. Then I hurried home to meet my friend.

Later on I thought a lot about this incident with the ancient beggar. Perhaps she was mentally ill? Perhaps she needed food and drink more than she needed money? Why didn’t I go out of my way to buy victuals for her? Why did my eagerness to get home soon to meet my beloved friend overshadow everything else, including the more important matter of really helping the old lady?

I really felt terrible, and could have kicked myself. Only after I had promised myself to do better in the future did I begin to feel a bit better, but was encouraged by the saying: “Saints are sinners who kept on trying”.

Duncan Graham, the stone you threw in the still lake has created, and will create, ever-widening circles.

Tami Koestomo
Bogor, West Java

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Concert opens eyes of high-school teens to green scene

Concert opens eyes of high-school teens to green scene

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 04/10/2012 11:06 AM

A | A | A |

Seniors at SMK 1 state vocational high school in Central Jakarta rushed to the school’s auditorium last week in need of a break after sitting for final examination tryouts.

Using prayer mats to sit on the floor, they were eager to enjoy a music performance and a movie presented by the Music Syndicate of Earth Dwellers (Simponi), a group concerned with environmental and social issues.

Simponi used the occasion to campaign for the environment and to promote a green lifestyle to students.

Simponi manager M. Berkah Gamulya started with a slide show describing how Jakarta had changed over the last 40 years.

“Through music and film, we want to encourage the students to improve the city’s environment.”

Berkah said in his presentation that only 9.38 percent of Jakarta was green or open space in 2010, down from 49.4 percent in 1974.

Meanwhile, the number of residents of the city had doubled from 4.5 million in the 1970s to around 9 million in 2010, he added.

Traffic in Jakarta was no better. He said that the city’s residents had 9 million motorcycles and 4 million cars and added an additional 1,068 motorcycles and 216 cars everyday.

Berkah said that the uncontrolled development of commercial buildings would make Jakarta’s environmental condition worse.

“There are 132 malls, 279 supermarkets, and only 153 traditional markets in Jakarta. This year, there are 20 malls that are going to be built and all of them will produce waste every day.”

Jakartans could build one Borobudur-sized pile of trash every two days, he added, making a comparison with the world-famous Buddhist temple in Central Java.

Simponi suggested that students take small actions to improve the environment, such as using homemade compost baskets, not littering and planting trees to improve the environment.

The school’s deputy headmaster, Agus Ramdan Rukmana, welcomed the program.

“It is a positive program for the students. We also want ours to be a green school.”

One student, Suciati Delima, 18, said that the event was important.

“We became aware when the comparison to old Jakarta and its recent condition was made. This world is not only for us but also for future generation. We have a responsibility to take care of it,” she said.

Suciati said that the school had a green program requiring every student to bring one tree every new school year to be planted on the school’s grounds.

“We don’t have a wide open space, so we plant the trees in pots and put them in any free spot at the school.” (cor)

Simponi’s “Our Jakarta, Green Jakarta” program is touring 20 local high schools until May. Schools interested in booking a program can email to simponi10@gmail.com or call 08158019813

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KWK 01 Drivers Protest Sinar Jaya AC 153 Bus Routes

The new routes of Sinar Jaya AC 153 bus (Bekasi-Tanjungpriok) which
often pass on Jl. Cakung-Cilincing (Cacing) are protested by tens of
KWK 01 public minivan (Tanjungpriok-Cakung) drivers. These KWK drivers
protested because they are worried their passengers will turn using
the AC 153 bus instead of taking the KWK 01. Some of these drivers
even stop operating as form of protest

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SWiPE allows 'deep search' semantic queries using the Wikipedia UI

If you struggle with RDF triples (Resource Description Framework) and SPARQL (Query language and protocol for RDF) do not despair. SWiPE (Searching WIkiPedia by Example) allows semantic and well-structured knowledge bases to be easily queried from within the pages of Wikipedia.

If you want to know which cities in Florida, founded in last century have more than 50 thousand people you will be able to enter the query conditions directly into the Infobox of a Wikipedia page. Swipe activates certain fields of Wikipedia that generate equivalent SPARQL queries executed on DBpedia.

Swipe is a middleware system that intercepts user’s browser requests for Wikipedia pages to introduce an in-page SBE (Search By Example) user interface.  Swipe answers structured queries posed by the user through the SBE interface. It uses familiar Wikipedia pages to help you construct queries, returning the results to the familiar Wikipedia interface or a standalone web page.

Credit: Swipe

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Rooney Yakin Menangi Derby Manchester

Beritabola.com Manchester - Masih ada
empat laga untuk dilalui Manchester United sebelum menghadapi
Manchester Cty. Kendati demikian, Wayne Rooney sudah mengutarakan
keyakinan terkait derby dengan rival sekota klubnya itu.

Derby
Manchester dijadwalkan mentas di Etihad Stadium pada 30 April
mendatang. Sebelum itu, MU masih harus menghadapi Queens Park Rangers,
Wigan Athletic, Aston Villa, dan Everton.

Pertemuan di Etihad
nanti bakal jadi laga keempat di antara kedua tim musim ini.
Sebelumnya, MU dan City sudah bertemu di Community Shield, Premier
League, dan Piala FA. Hasilnya, MU menang dua kali dan City menang
satu kali. Namun, pendukung The Citizens tentu masih mengingat
kemenangan 6-1 di Old Trafford Oktober lalu.

Sejauh ini, City
punya catatan relatif bagus jika berlaga di kandang sendiri. Dari 16
laga di Etihad, skuad arahan Roberto Mancini itu meraih 15 kemenangan
dan satu hasil imbang. Singkatnya, mereka belum pernah kalah di liga
jika bertanding di hadapan pendukung sendiri.

Namun, MU pernah
memberikan kekalahan di Etihad. Itu terjadi ketika The Red Devils
menang 3-2 pada babak ketiga Piala FA Januari silam.

"Kami
jelas cukup bagus untuk mengalahkan mereka di sana," ucap Rooney di
ESPN Star. "Kami sudah menunjukkannya ketika kami menang 3-2 di Piala
FA."

"Mereka punya rekor kandang yang luar biasa, tapi kami
berhasil meraih kemenangan di sana," tegasnya.
(dtc/roz) Sumber:
detiksport

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Draw Something draws in 50 million downloads and $210 million from Zynga

It has been a whirlwind few weeks for OMGPOP, creators of the mobile social game Draw Something.  In less than two months it has been downloaded over 50 million times and is believed to be the ‘fastest growing original mobile game’ of all time.

OMGPOP, the New York based games company sold Draw Something to Zynga in March after the game knocked Zynga off the top of the social game charts.

The premise of Draw Something is simple enough. Think Pictionary for the iPhone, iPad or Android.  Draw an image on your device and your friends try to guess what you have drawn.

Some of the eye-popping stats from Zynga include:

Credit: OMGPOP

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Newly elected minister to hand out tablets

The recently announced election results for Uttar Pradesh are symbolic in more than one way since the state is considered to be one of the economically backward states. First up, Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav is now Uttar Pradesh’s youngest chief minister. (A quick overview: Akhilesh Yadav’s father was the chief minister before being defeated by rival politician Mayawati.) Samajwadi Party live streamed part of the swearing-in ceremony on their YouTube channel, signifying the growing awareness of newer ways to connect with the citizens. Akhilesh Yadav represents the next generation of political leaders in India, and keeping true to the “Gen Y” rhetoric, he will be distributing tablet computers to students who pass 10th and 12th grade.

This distribution of tablets is a new page in India’s digital adoption. Since 2006, political organisation in South India—DMK—gave out color television sets to lure voters. (The election commission directed DMK to stop the distribution now.) While India is seeing several cheap tablets spamming the market, tablet computers getting into the hands of students is a step in bridging the digital divide. These cheap tablets might not be the best out there and they aren’t meant to be, the intention here is to equip students with newer technologies. Netbooks have failed to pick up and while the Indian government has sanctioned $1000 for tablets for each parliamentarian, a $35 (or less) tablet for students still makes sense compared to no mobile computing device.

Consider it a publicity stunt or a cheap incentive, technology in the hands of more people in the country is for the better.

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Gen-Y social media mistakes to avoid in a new business

In today’s society, for a business to profit from the potential of social networks and to maintain what we consider a modern brand, a positive Internet presence is vital.

For businesses starting up, social media can be a valuable tool in order to gain exposure in a cost-effective manner, as well as potentially gain funding through online sources. Platforms such as Kickstarter. This platform has become one of the main ways students can apply for the backing they need for a product or service, and is only one of the many online services designed with today’s startup in mind.

Starting a business when young is an expensive process — but a good name can go a long way. Social networking is a free and effective way to market your new business, but what mistakes should young people avoid when they are first starting out — and afterwards?

1.) Don’t just broadcast. Engage and be exciting.

Consider creating campaigns and incentives to build your online business profile. When you first set up a business as a young person — potentially fresh from college — you may not have a dedicated client base or relationships to recommend you. Increasing brand awareness through exciting online campaigns and engaging with your potential customers can help bridge the gap.

2.) Corporate versus ‘human’ tweets.

There is a balance that has to be maintained on corporate social media accounts. If the account is used purely for self-promotion, then it may not be an attractive prospect for customers to bookmark or follow. Building customer loyalty by providing engaging and supportive communication can be of more benefit than advertising product promotions.

3.) Proofread your Facebook and Twitter updates.

Although social media networks are informal by nature, it does not mean that spelling mistakes and typographical errors will go unnoticed. If you want customers to increase your sales by purchasing more frequently, then trust has to be based on professionalism.

On social media platforms, it is the small errors that can have the most detrimental effects.

4.) Promote activities properly, but don’t purchase your followers.

A Twitter profile or Facebook page with many ‘likes’ and followers are generally more active, and will seem more trustworthy and worth following to new visitors. Building a network of followers takes time, but it is the quality of followers that is important. Don’t be fooled by ‘pay for follower’ campaigns — they don’t benefit your business in the long run.

5.) Put damage control systems in place.

Social media’s nature as a platform to connect business and consumer comes with a number of risks. A campaign to engage your customers, such as the McDonalds debacle, can turn into a global backlash which is damaging to your brand.

Small businesses that are just starting up don’t have to worry about criticism on this kind of scale, however, just as customers can broadcast positive feedback, it can also be negative. Monitoring this kind of activity and putting systems in place to deal with it is a must as soon as you enter the world of social media.

6.) Complete your social media profile thoroughly.

A simple step, but one that is often forgotten. Personal profiles can afford to miss out steps when you sign up for a social media account; professional businesses cannot. Do not forget to input as much information as possible, and include links to any other online profiles or websites.

7.) Maintaining a clear marketing strategy.

Although using social media platforms is a free option, it still costs time — and this needs to be incorporated within your business strategy. For those who are still studying and working, it is even more crucial to maintain a balance at the beginning, so you have a good base once you leave education to focus on your start-up.

8.) Quality, not quantity.

A recent study suggested that there are certain methods that effective tweeters use to both maintain a valuable following and maximize their click-through rates. By making your social media updates attractive, you will gain more exposure than simply using capitals or obviously PR-based wording.

9.) Schedule time for social media updates.

The trick to building your business’s social media profile is to be consistent, rather than do too much too soon. It is not uncommon to become addicted to the challenge of gaining as many followers or Facebook likes as possible in a short amount of time, but it needs to be kept in mind that doing too much at the beginning could make you lose interest and drive in maintaining it afterwards.

10.) Monitor your websites and accounts on a regular basis.

Using passwords that are easy to guess will render you vulnerable to unauthorized access. Using ‘Qwerty’ passwords, ‘Welcome1′ or ‘Password1′ are some of the most commonly used — and not only is it easy for you to remember, but for others to guess — who would be happy to gain access to your social media accounts.

It is also becoming more common for websites to experience hacker attacks, so checking the status of your websites can mean a problem is detected early.

See also:

• Passwords to become fossils by 2017?
• How do I create a secure password? (infographic)

11.) Keep personal and professional accounts separate.

It may be an idea to link social media organizers — such as Hootsuite — to separate accounts. Once a message is published, it can be the work of a moment to become re-tweeted or commented on, and a screenshot can be no more work than the click of a button.

In order to avoid such mistakes, double check which account you are publishing an update from.

12.) Make a mistake - admit to it.

The world of social media can be unforgiving if a business makes a public faux pas — but it may be best just to admit to it. In some cases, what may be a staff mix-up of personal and corporate accounts can even become beneficial and ‘refreshing’. Don’t pawn it off as ‘hackers’ — just say sorry.

13.) Be careful of licensing rules.

There has been a surge of lawsuits in regard to online activity and licensing — so be careful that your new business is not caught in that trap.

Creating a social media policy is recommended, and copyright disclaimers should be written and checked — get in touch with someone in the legal industry if you need assistance. Avoid defamatory wording or copyrighted material in any published updates.

14.) Tailor activities for your target audience.

If a blog focuses on student funding, then enrich it with interesting links to news concerning student finance or the cost of living — but an image of a dancing cat is unlikely to impress your audience. Keep your activity succinct, valuable and relevant.

15.) Avoid poorly timing updates.

Update social network messages in relation to the audience you wish to appeal to. If you are looking to get a message out to a UK audience, then activity needs to coincide with that time zone, and the times in which you will get the most readers.

Image credit: Chinen Keiya

Related:

• How much are your skills worth in social media careers?
• Next-gen consumers: Bringing companies to their knees
• How to get people to click on your Tweets (infographic)
• Harvard announces fund for next generation Gates’ and Zuckerberg’s
• Payday loan firm ‘targets students’ online, the warning remains clear

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Serbian President Boris Tadic resigns

Serbian President Boris Tadic resigns

Dusan Stojanovic, Associated Press, Belgrade | Wed, 04/04/2012 5:42 PM

A | A | A |

Serbian pro-Western President Boris Tadic said Wednesday he is resigning, paving the way for an early presidential election where he will face a strong challenge from a nationalist candidate.

Serbia's parliament speaker is expected to call the vote for May 6, the same day when parliamentary and local elections are already scheduled.

In the presidential vote, Tadic will be challenged by nationalist candidate Tomislav Nikolic who has received tacit support from Russia.

Tadic, who has worked hard to bring Serbia closer to the European Union, said the challenge will be tough, and called on voters to choose which way they want the country to go.

"I'm offering a road of European integration and preserving the country's integrity," Tadic said. "I will run in that election with optimism because of the positive trends in our country."

Tadic's presidential term would have expired early next year. But he decided for an early vote apparently to boost the chances of his Democratic Party, which has been slipping in recent pre-election polls against Nikolic's populist Serbian Progressive Party.

Nikolic expressed confidence he will beat Tadic in the May vote. If no candidate receives 50 percent of the votes cast in the first round, the top two contenders will go into the second round.

"I hope the election campaign will be fair," Nikolic, who has narrowly lost against Tadic in two previous presidential elections, said Wednesday.

Tadic's ruling democrats are blamed for the country's deep economic and social problems. The nationalists also claim Tadic is willing to sell off Serbia's cherished former province of Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008, at the expense of distant and uncertain EU membership.

"I will never recognize Kosovo," Tadic said while announcing his resignation.

In recent years, Nikolic has succeeded in attracting disenchanted Serbs by railing against corruption and social injustice. In the process of his political transformation, Nikolic has claimed to have shifted from staunchly anti-Western, to pro-European Union.

There is growing concern among Serbian liberals that the victory of Nikolic, who was deputy prime minister in coalition government with late President Slobodan Milosevic in the late 1990s and backed his wars in the Balkans, could plunge Serbia back into confrontation with the West. (nvn)

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Making sense of Microsoft's confusing Windows activation rules

Over the years, I have written tens of thousands of words about the mysterious workings of Microsoft’s Windows activation technology in XP, Vista, and Windows 7. It might be one of the most arcane and misunderstood technologies of the PC era.

Last week, the topic came up again when I published details about Microsoft’s decision to cut the number of Windows and Office product keys it includes with TechNet subscriptions. (See “Microsoft slashes product key allowances for TechNet subscribers.”) Two years ago, a TechNet subscription included 10 product keys for each version of Windows and Office. That number was cut to five in late 2010, and to three earlier this month.

A half-dozen readers left Talkback comments and sent emails telling me that it’s “well known” that each TechNet product key can be activated 10 times. Several quoted Paul Thurrott, who wrote in 2010, without citing a source, “Each product key can be used to install up to 10 versions of the OS or application, for the most part.”

So, they say, no big deal—three product keys equals 30 installations per Windows and Office version.

But is that true?

I’ve fact-checked this issue several times over the years and have never been able to track down a definitive answer.

This policy is not documented on any official Microsoft site. I have found unofficial statements on Microsoft’s public support forums and in private emails, like this example from a front-line tech on a support forum:

You have 2 product keys for most products, and for Windows Retail keys, each of these keys will let you activate at least 10 times (it depends on the key type).

Another customer got this message from a support rep last week, via email:

Thank you for contacting Microsoft regarding your TechNet subscription.

I understand that you are not satisfied with the TechNet product key reduction. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.

Our customer research has identified that three product keys are the appropriate amount for TechNet professional subscribers based on subscription usage. As such, please be advised that each product key is good for up to ten activations. Also, most products come with a complimentary 30, 60, or 90 day evaluation period. If you plan on frequently re-imaging machines, please consider using the trial version in lieu of one of your activations. These complimentary evaluation periods should allow you to complete your short-term testing. If you need to do long-term testing, you will need to use one of your activations.

Smoking gun? Well, I’m always suspicious of information that comes from front-line support reps, who often are well meaning but not fully in the loop. In addition, these two messages are actually contradictory. One says each key is worth at least 10 activations, the other says up to 10. Is either statement true? If so which is it?

I asked a few official and unofficial sources at Microsoft. It took 48 hours and much hemming and hawing, but I finally got a Microsoft spokesperson to confirm that 10 activations per subscription key “is not the official policy across all products.” She went on to note that “different products call for different activation parameters.”

That’s something more than a non-denial denial, but it’s still far from clear. And that, as it turns out, is the crux of the problem. The official policy for retail Windows product keys is that you are allowed one activation, with an unlimited number of reactivations on hardware that is substantially the same as the system on which the OS was originally installed.

But the activation servers, which do the grunt work of processing activations over the Internet, aren’t so rigid. There are, in fact, business rules designed to flag unusual behavior and allow or block activations based on those rules. For example, if you activate a retail copy of Windows on a PC and then, 18 months later, try to activate that same key on a different PC, your activation will probably complete without error. Why? Because that’s the behavior of an enthusiast getting a new PC, not a pirate.

If, on the other hand, the same key is used to try to activate Windows on six different PCs in widely scattered geographical locations over a short period, that key is likely to be flagged as stolen.

Microsoft doesn’t like to go into detail about those business rules, because doing so makes it easier for pirates to figure out how to game the system. Crooks who have to guess about how the system works are more likely to screw up and get caught.

In the case of TechNet keys, there isn’t a literal 10-activations-per-key algorithm on the activation servers. Instead, the business rules are set to recognize the way that TechNet subscribers—who are typically enthusiasts and IT pros—are likely to use those licenses. They play with it, reinstall on multiple hardware configurations to test compatibility, and try to see if it breaks things. The upshot is that those TechNet subscribers behave far differently from typical retail customers. As a result, the business rules flag TechNet keys as special. They are indeed able to qualify for more activations than an equivalent retail key would get. And if your legitimately obtained keys fail to activate, you should be able to resolve the issue with a phone call or email to Microsoft support.

Sources at Microsoft adamantly refused to talk on or off the record about specific numbers used as activation guidelines. But they did confirm that the rules are relaxed:

The way we allocate keys for TechNet subscriptions is designed to offer our customers with high flexibility for their software evaluation needs with minimum hassles. In keeping with the spirit of the TechNet Subscriptions program, we go out of our way to ensure that legitimate subscribers are able to fairly test and evaluate our technologies.

My experience with TechNet downloads and product keys over the years bears that out. I keep good records about which keys are used where, and I can’t remember ever being denied activation because a key had been used too many times.

The lack of transparency in the process is frustrating, but it’s also understandable. Software pirates have proven, time and again, that they’re willing to treat each unique key as an asset that can be resold against the TechNet terms of service. Reducing the number of keys in a subscription means there are fewer of those assets to bootleg. As long as legitimate subscribers find a relaxed and tolerant attitude when activation time comes around, this might turn out to be a non-issue.

In the wake of the TechNet product key reduction, I’m interested in hearing firsthand reports about your experience with Microsoft’s activation servers. If you’ve had recent experience that can help make sense of how this activation works, please send me an email or leave a comment below.

Related:

• Windows Activation Technologies: an unauthorized inside look
• Confessions of a Windows 7 pirate
• Microsoft slashes product key allowances for TechNet subscribers
• Microsoft releases details on Vista activation

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Bandung to have first culinary research center

Bandung to have first culinary research center

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 04/04/2012 2:11 PM

A | A | A |

Mari Elka Pangestu: Tourism and Creative Economy Minister. JP/Nurhayati

Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu says the Bandung Tourism Institute (STP Bandung) in West Java is going to be Indonesia’s very first culinary research center.

"This is part of our effort to develop local cuisines, as well as to find the standard of tastes of our cuisines," Mari told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Culinary was included as one of the creative industry's sub-sectors at the end of last year because food was inseparable from tourism.

She said that the school is currently developing 15 local dishes, such as Indonesia's favorite rice dish nasi goreng (fried rice), traditional beef soup (soto), West Sumatran beef stew (rendang) and a sweet nutmeg delicacy.

"Now they are trying to create the best chocolate praline with nutmeg filling, upgrading local dishes to be an international dish," she said.

She said that more tourism institutes in Indonesia will follow in the footsteps of STP Bandung once they are ready.

In addition, she said that the ministry and culinary experts were currently finishing a blue-print on culinary development. (nfo)

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60 Traders Received Free SIUP

South Jakarta Micro Small Medium Enterprise Cooperative (KUMKMP)
Sub-Department is continuously holding the program of free business
license (SIPU) making in shopping centres. This time, the location
chosen is Cilandak Mall in Cilandaktimur, Pasarminggu, where 60 SIUPs
are issued for traders. “SIUP is given to traders or entrepreneurs as
legality for them to run business,” stated Head of South Jakarta
KUMKMP Sub-Department, Doddy S Geso, Wednesday (4/4)

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Thousands of Houses on Ciliwung Riverbank Flooded

Heavy rain that poured Bogor yesterday (4/3) once again flown its
water to Ciliwung River until the river water overflowed and caused
thousands of houses on the riverbank flooded. These thousands of
houses are located in Bidaracina, Kampungpulo (Kampungmelayu),
Cililitan, and Cawang

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Poverty rate in poor regency falls sharply, regent claims

Poverty rate in poor regency falls sharply, regent claims

The Jakarta Post | Wed, 04/04/2012 8:58 AM

A | A | A |

Karangasem, one of the poorest regencies on the resort island as recorded in 2011, has boasted success in bringing down the poverty rate, thanks to poverty-reduction efforts.

Data generated by the National Statistics Agency (BPS) through Social Safety Net Program Data Collection (PPLS) showed that by the end of 2011 the number of poor families in Karangasem was 17,061, far smaller than 33,199 recorded in 2010.

Karangasem Regent I Wayan Geredeg called the nearly 50 percent decrease as “a source of pride”.

“The poverty reduction program has become our priority over the past few years. The decreasing number of poor families has made us proud,” he said during the monthly public meeting organized by the provincial administration.

The simakrama public meeting, Pastika’s local adaptation of the western’s town hall meeting, has been organized at regular intervals in Denpasar and other major cities across the island since Pastika was installed as governor. Pastika uses the meeting as a medium to gain raw, unfiltered inputs from the public.

Geredeg acknowledged that he had yet to receive the census data in detail. “We are still waiting for the detailed data on poor families. Hopefully, the data would be really accurate and could direct the course of our next program,” he added.

He also attributed the sharp drop to Pastika’s policy to accelerate developments at the island’s poorest regencies, which include Karangasem, Buleleng, Bangli and Jembrana.

“Governor Pastika has treated Karangasem as his first priority, directing the provincial budget to finance development programs at the regency’s poor and drought-affected villages,” Geredeg said, adding that mobile free health services and clean water supply are among the best programs.

Pastika has launched several major poverty-reduction initiatives, including free healthcare for all registered residents of the island, free house renovation for poor families, a scholarship program for poor students and the integrated farming system (Simantri), which offers cash and technical assistance to farmers’ groups willing to adopt to organic farming and alternative energy sources.

“We were thankful to the provincial administration that has been helping us in reducing the poverty rate,” Geredeg added.

Geredeg said most of the regency’s poor families were living in drought-affected areas and experiencing difficulty in accessing clean water.

The regency-provincial administration joint program had gradually solved this problem.

“Families in Seraya village now have easy access to 60 liters of clean water. We will continue to improve the program in order to alleviate poverty in our region,” Geredeg said.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika praised the success of Kara-ngasem on reducing the poverty rate in the region. Pastika acknowledged that many villages in Bali were still in poverty due to lack of clean water.

“Supply of clean water has an important role in preventing poverty. If a family doesn’t have sufficient access to clean water, they are not able to improve their conditions. That is why access to clean water has to be the first step in solving the country’s problems with poverty,” Pastika said.

Lack of clean water, he said, had also caused economic inequality between southern Bali and other parts of the island.

“If we seriously observe, why southern Bali experiences faster growth and progress, that’s actually because the region has more and easier accesses to clean water supply,” he argued.

— JP/Ni Komang Erviani

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It ain't what you do...

The Jazz standard ‘It Ain’t What you Do‘ is well known by musicians as a classic chord sequence to improvise over, and it occurred to me the other day the lyrics are also a great analogy for making collaboration work over time within enterprises.

While many people focus on technology as a magic solution to enhance communication, collaboration and connections inside companies, the reality is that it’s the way that you do it that makes all the difference for success or failure. Enabling technologies are not hard to find these days - what’s difficult is making them work for the contexts of your business, and along with, or instead of, all the other ways people chose to network with each other and to share information.

Large technology companies whose employees are ‘dogfooding’ the product offerings they hope end users will buy (dogfooding meaning employees using the online software products they also sell) obviously works very well when your salary depends on your obedience and adherence to internal organizational models. Successful use of the tech is a very different proposition when endusers have no skin in the game and have other options and agendas.

Happily we’re now entering more mature and informed times where existing enterprise technologies and associated processes are starting to be melded with Enterprise 2.0/Social technologies by users. Aiming to achieve specific value propositions is taking precedence over experimental adoption of new ideas and fashions at a departmental collaboration silo level.

One of the attractions of encouraging collaborative practices in enterprises is fostering innovation. With the relationship between musical creativity and the technology world at a high right now (SXSW and major league bands as support acts for Marc Benioff’s barnstorming Salesforce events for example) it’s worth exploiting my musical analogy a bit further.

It takes a strong rhythm section and people willing to carry the chords that shape the melody before anyone can draw attention to themselves by playing the melody and/or improvising. Jazz musicians often take turns soloing before dropping back into the background texture of a tune, while we frequently hear about rock groups breaking up due to ‘artistic differences’, which is often about individual band members hogging the limelight.

The way that we organize to ‘do’ collaborative activities, developing mindful behaviors to help others, is at the heart of successfully working together. The ways, times and places we work together, putting relevant information into the flow of work to help others is transforming the ways in which we work.

The ways in which you use social networks for our personal use is all about you, and you can spend as much of your personal time as you want interacting and consuming with friends. Working together collectively uses very similar technologies for very different end results. As we all know there are plenty of shovel leaners, armchair quarterbacks, digital talkers and meeting mavens in companies and not enough unsung heroes who complete tasks. Much like the way jazz musicians (who may have never played together before) collaborate around the basic musical framework for ’It Ain’t What you Do’, giving each other room to shine while making sure they simultaneously carry the tune together all the way through is at the heart of the musical ethos.

Anyone can buy a musical instrument and make random noises, the challenge is in feeling you are expressing yourself in harmony with others, and that’s also where the real power of orchestrating the modern enterprise resides. Even though overcoming the political fiefdoms and personality conflicts in a company to realize these benefits can be as tricky as handling a group of divas, creating a collective way of working together which everyone enjoys and understands is a timeless differentiator for achieving optimum performance. This is as true for musicians, sports teams and other groups of highly skilled individuals as it is for business performance.

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Showing thighs ‘a porn crime’

Showing thighs ‘a porn crime’

Margareth S. Aritonang, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 03/29/2012 8:40 AM

A | A | A |

The newly established antipornography task force says it will crack down on women wearing skirts that fall above the knee as such clothing will be included in the group’s universal definition of pornography.

Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, the task force’s chairman, said Wednesday that the definition would be universally applied to all regions in the country, regardless of cultural background.

“We have yet to set a standard definition of pornography on which we will base our work. However, there must be a set of universal criteria to define something as pornographic, one of which will be when a woman wears a skirt above the knee,” Suryadharma told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting with the House of Representatives’ Commission VIII overseeing religious and social affairs on Wednesday.

When asked whether the task force would give leniency to women living in non-Muslim provinces, such as Bali and Papua, Suryadharma said that the task force would ensure the standards were universally applied.

“I know that some parts of the country have unique cultures, such as Bali and Papua. Nevertheless, we think that we must set universal criteria to be implemented in all parts of the archipelago. Requiring women to wear skirts that fall below the knee is one such criterion,” he said.

The plan was swiftly condemned by top politicians and activists.

House Deputy Speaker Priyo Budi Santoso said Suryadharma had gone too far in defining pornography.

“This will obviously make female lawmakers furious. I don’t think that the task force should make a fuss about women’s skirts. I think the definition of pornography must be based on principles with regards to how people should behave,” he said.

Rieke Dyah Pitaloka, a lawmaker from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said that the government ought to deal with more important problems than telling women what to wear.

“The way women wear their skirts, below or above the knees, will not impact others. It’s nothing compared to the fuel-price hike plan, which undoubtedly will impact a majority of the people,” Rieke said.

National Commission on Violence against Women (Komnas Perempuan) deputy chairwoman Masruchah opposed Suryadharma’s definition of pornography.

“Defining pornography based on women’s skirts is only a way to subordinate women. I regret that such an idea comes from state officials,” Masruchah said. She also called for the task force to consider the country’s cultural diversity.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono set up the task force on March 13 to implement the 2008 Pornography Law. The task force was given a mandate to curb the distribution of pornography.

The President appointed Coordinating People’s Welfare Minister Agung Laksono to lead the task force. Other members include Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Law and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin, and Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Linda Gumelar.

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Liga Spanyol Pekan Ini - Menguji Fokus Madrid & Barca

Beritabola.com Jakarta - Setelah bertarung
di leg I babak perempatfinal Liga Champions, Real Madrid dan Barcelona
kembali mengalihkan fokus ke liga domestik. Namun laga akhir pekan ini
juga akan dibayangi oleh persiapan jelang leg II.

Pada Rabu
(28/3/2012) dinihari WIB lalu Los Blancos memenangi laga leg I babak
perempatfinal Liga Champions di kandang APOEL NIkosia dengan skor 3-0.
Kemenangan ini membuat peluang mereka lolos ke babak semifinal menjadi
sangat terbuka.

Akhir pekan ini Madrid harus melakoni laga
tandang ke markas Osasuna, Sabtu (31/3/2012) malam waktu setempat,
dalam lanjutan La Liga. Laga ini digelar empat hari sebelum Madrid
menjalani laga le II babak perempatfinal Liga Champions.

Pada
pertemuan di paruh pertama lalu, Karim Benzema dkk. meraih kemenangan
telak 7-1. Tapi Osasuna saat ini sedang dalam laju yang cukup bagus.
Tim besutan Jose Luis Mendilibar itu tak terkalahkan dalam enam laga
terakhir dan menduduki peringkat enam klasemen, atau batas akhir zona
Liga Europa.

Madrid punya catatan yang tak begitu bagus jika
bermain di kandang Osasuna. Dari tiga kunjungan terakhir ke Pamplona,
Madrid takluk dua kali dan satu kali bermain imbang.

Beberapa
jam setelah Madrid bertanding, Barca akan menjamu Athletic Bilbao di
Camp Nou. Tim besutan Josep Guardiola itu juga baru bertandang ke
markas AC Milan di leg I babak perempatfinal Liga
Champions.

Meraih hasil imbang di San Siro, tugas Lionel Messi
cs. di leg II tak akan mudah. Namun tiga hari sebelum laga leg II
digelar, Barca harus meladeni Bilbao.

Pada pertemuan di paruh
pertama lalu kedua tim bermain imbang 2-2 di San Mames. Namun catatan
statistik enam pertemuan terakhir lebih memihak pada Azulgrana. Dari
enam pertemuan terkahir, Barca menang tiga kali dan tiga laga sisanya
berakhir imbang.

Madrid dan Barca kini terpisah jarak enam
poin. Baik Madrid maupun Barca tak boleh kehilangan fokus jika tetap
ingin berada di jalur juara. Sedikit saja terpeleset maka perbedaan
poin keduanya bisa melebar atau makin merapat.
(dtc/a2s) Sumber:
detiksport

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The Story of Panggang Island Origin

Besides having breathtaking sceneries, Panggang Island turns out also has folklore story about the island’s origin that is told hereditary. There are two versions about the origin of the island which located in Panggang Island Urban Village, Seribuutara Island Sub-District, Seribu Island Regency. However, both versions are telling the same figure, a knight called Darah Putih

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'Miniskirts = porn': Religious Affairs Minister

'Miniskirts = porn': Religious Affairs Minister

Margareth S. Aritonang, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 03/28/2012 2:03 PM

A | A | A |

Suryadharma Ali: Religious Affairs Minister. (Tribunnews.com/Herudin)

Following the establishment of the anti-pornography task force, Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said that skirts that fall above the knee would be included in the working group’s definition of pornography, on which it would base its future work.

"We will arrange meetings with different stakeholders from the public to get input on how they understand pornography, and I'm sure that they will come up with different definitions [of pornography]. However, there must be a set of universal criteria to define something as pornographic, of which one will be when someone wears a skirt above the knee," Suryadharma, who was tapped by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to run the body on a daily basis, said on the sidelines of a hearing with the House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing religious and social affairs on Wednesday.

Once a standard of pornography was established, the task force would apply it nationwide across all ethnicities, he added.

Attempting to curb the distribution of pornographic materials across the country, the President recently established a task force on the management and prevention of pornography as a body to implement the 2008 Pornography Law.

The President appointed Coordinating People’s Welfare Minister Agung Laksono to lead the task force and Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali to manage day-to-day operations.

Members of the task force include other Cabinet members such as Communications and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Law and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin, Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Linda Gumelar, Education and Culture Minister Muhammad Nuh, as well as Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi.

 

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Nila Moeloek: Women Should Have Higher Education

The Dharma Wanita Persatuan (DWP) is celebrating its 12th anniversary
today (12/21) in Kuningan, South Jakarta. In this event, DWP
chairwoman Nila Moelek urges woman to have higher education in order
to achieve welfare for their family and surrounding
environment.

“Woman should be more educated to achieve welfare
for their family,” she expressed.

Moreover she said that
Jakarta DWP has big challenges to create welfare and eradicate
poverty. Due to high population number, various problems are emerging
in the city.

Meanwhile, according to City Secretary Fadjar
Panjaitan, Jakarta DWP is able to assist Jakarta Provincial Government
in eradicating poverty. Through its programs that directly touch
low-level societies, Jakarta DWP can effectively provide assistance on
the right targets.

“The first point of Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) is poverty eradication, which is very in line with the
government’s programs,” he stated

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Google to sell a branded tablet - Android game-changer?

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Google will begin selling co-branded Android tablets, attempting to slow Apple’s massive market share growth with the New iPad and a reduced-price iPad. Instead of getting into the OEM game, Google is expected to work with existing Android tablet-makers to market Google tablets through an online store and traditional brick and mortar retail outlets. But will it be enough to change public perceptions and get people to start purchasing Android-powered tablets instead of iPads?

Naysayers have been quick to point out the dismal failure of Google’s initial efforts to sell their Nexus One smartphone direct to consumers and, as Jason Perlow noted recently, even their highest profile devices (including those from soon-to-be subsidiary Motorola) suffer from fragmentation, bloatware, and miserable update records. How will Google-branded devices (reportedly from Asus and Samsung) sold direct by Google and in retail channels (often right next to Apple devices) solve this problem that seems to be inherent in Android?

According to the WSJ article,

Google believes the current model for selling tablets is broken, said people familiar with its strategy. Google has watched as wireless carriers, who helped Android become the No. 1 mobile operating system for smartphones, have struggled to replicate that success with tablets…

…This time, however, Google won’t have to worry about pairing with wireless carriers because tablets are primarily used with WiFi connections in people’s homes.

The article also cited what may be a more effective strategy (one that has worked for Amazon with their Kindle Fire tablet): subsidizing the cost of the hardware sold under the Google brand. Google will also have the opportunity to heavily market the tablets and take advantage of its considerable reach online and, more recently, in traditional media, to capture potential customers and educate the market on the value of Android tablets. Unfortunately, many customers and more than a few analysts are skeptical about whether Android has any value at all in the tablet space.

I’ve argued for some time that Android will ultimately win the tablet wars, at least in terms of market share. Google’s ability to market directly to consumers, though, is dubious at best. If it’s going to keep new customers from simply defaulting to iPads, then it will be the potential for differentiation and market segmentation provided by Android and many OEMs that does it (just as it has in the smartphone wars); a Google online store won’t exactly turn the market upside down.

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Apple: iPad 3 battery gauge works as expected

AllThingsD’s Ina Fried published an article today indicating that the observations of unusual charing behavior with the iPad 3 aren’t so unusual after all.

Yesterday I noted that if you unplug your iPad 3 as soon as the battery indicator says “100%” you’re actually missing out on as much as 1.2 hours (10 percent) of additional run time. But Apple says that this is the expected behavior and that the iPad battery is designed to work this way.

Fried explains it this way:

Apple does, in fact, display the iPad (and iPhone and iPod Touch) as 100 percent charged just before a device reaches a completely charged state. At that point, it will continue charging to 100 percent, then discharge a bit and charge back up to 100 percent, repeating that process until the device is unplugged.

Soneira, President of DisplayMate Technologies Corporation, first discovered that the iPad 3 experienced a net loss of 1.2 hours (around 10 percent) of battery run time if unplugged as soon as its battery indicator displayed 100%. His essential point was that if the iPad 3 is fully charged (i.e. overnight) it will run 11.6 hours, which is 1.2 hours longer than if it is only charged to 100% (10.4 hours).

Apple VP Michael Tchao tells AllThingsD that Apple decided not to keep changing the battery status “so as not to distract or confuse users,” explaining:

That circuitry is designed so you can keep your device plugged in as long as you would like, It’s a great feature that’s always been in iOS.

So there you have it. The iPad battery displays “100%” a little prematurely because Apple didn’t think that it would be wise to show the battery constantly fluctuating between 90 and 100 percent as the battery goes through its normal trickle charge/discharge cycle to keep it topped off. Makes sense to me.

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1,900 Police/TNI Personnel Guard MPR/DPR Building

Thousands of protesters are predicted will pack the area around MPR/DPR building where the plenary meeting to discuss fuel (BBM) price hike plan is going to be held by People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) and House of Representatives (DPR) members, Friday (3/30). In fact, the number of protesters will be a lot higher compared than the demonstration in the same place on Tuesday (3/27)

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Mahasiswa Riau Tuntut Nasionalisasi Aset Negara

Metrotvnews.com, Pekanbaru: Sekitar 100 mahasiswa di
Pekanbaru, Riau, menuntut pemerintah melakukan nasionalisasi aset
strategis Energi dan Sumber Daya Alam (ESDM) yang dikuasai asing.

Tuntutan mereka ajukan dalam unjuk rasa yang mereka lakukan
bersama masyarakat untuk menolak rencana penaikan harga bahan bakar
minyak (BBM) subsidi pada 1 April mendatang.

"Penaikan harga
BBM sarat dengan kepentingan asing. Kami menuntut pemerintah untuk
menasionalisasi aset-aset strategis yang kini dikuasai asing," kata
koordinator aksi Bersatu Mahasiswa Peduli Rakyat (Bemper) Hendro Salim
di Kantor DPRD Riau di Kota Pekanbaru, Jumat (30/3).

Menurutnya, pemerintah saat ini bersikeras menaikkan harga BBM
subsidi karena dalam tekanan pengaruh kapitalisme asing. Alasan
pengurangan subsidi untuk menyelamatkan APBN merupakan pembodohan.
Sebab dari kebocoran anggaran di APBN lebih banyak digunakan untuk
pemborosan birokrasi dan aparatur negara.

"Sebagian besar
rakyat di negara ini selalu yang menjadi korban kebijakan yang pro
kapitalisme. Sedangkan segelintir orang menikmati penindasan terhadap
rakyat," paparnya.

Dalam pernyataan sikapnya, para mahasiswa
bersama sejumlah LSM menuntut pemangkasan anggaran pejabat dan
birokrasi, nasionalisasi aset, meminta SBY-Boediono bertanggung jawab
atas kerusuhan yang terjadi, dan menolak keras rencana penaikan harga
BBM subsidi.(MI/RIZ)

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Medco, partners to acquire two ExxonMobil’s gas blocks

Medco, partners to acquire two ExxonMobil’s gas blocks

The Jakarta Post | Fri, 03/30/2012 10:27 AM

A | A | A |

PT Medco Energi Internasional says it will join forces with two other firms to buy two oil and gas blocks operated by US-based ExxonMobil.

Medco, state gas distributor PT PGN and state fertilizer maker PT Pupuk Sriwijaya (Pusri) have submitted a formal bid for ExxonMobil’s Block B and the North Sumatra Offshore (NSO) block, Medco president director Lukman Mahfoedz said in a message on Thursday.

“If the acquisition is successful, the share composition for the two blocks will be 40 percent for Medco and 30 percent for PGN and Pusri, respectively,” he said.

Contacted separately, ExxonMobil declined to name of companies interested in its 100 percent stake in both blocks or its 30 percent stake in liquefied natural gas producer PT Arun NGL.

The assets produced a combined 215 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd) in 2010, ExxonMobil said in a statement sent to The Jakarta Post in August last year.

“We can’t comment further because the [acquisition] is still underway. We will ensure that the decision to sell the shares is consistent with the company’s long-standing practice of continuously reviewing assets for their contribution to the company’s operating and financial objectives,” the company said in the statement.

ExxonMobil is now concentrating its attention on developing the Cepu block in East Java.

Cepu’s Banyu Urip field will produce 165,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) by 2014 and may be one of the most important blocks in Indonesia’s effort to produce 1 million bpd of oil by that year, according to reports.

ExxonMobil has been operating in Indonesia for more than 100 years. Its current projects cover the Cepu block in Central Java, East Natuna in Riau Islands and the coal bed methane (CBM) evaluation project in Kalimantan.

Gas in Aceh was discovered by Mobil Oil Indonesia in 1971. After studies, the government and its partners set up an LNG plant in Arun and began exporting LNG to Japan in 1978.

State oil and gas firm PT Pertamina currently holds a 55 percent stake in the Arun LNG plant, ExxonMobil owns 30 percent and a consortium of Japanese buyers owns 15 percent.

According to upstream oil and gas regulator BPMigas’s data, the Arun LNG plant exported 362 cargoes of LNG in 2011, down significantly from 427 cargoes in 2010.

— JP/Rangga D. Fadillah

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