By Ron Scruggs

A good work scope puts you in control of the project and procurement process.

This is an overview of the items to be included in any work scope document (sometimes called an SOW or statement of work).  Note that before selection of a vendor, you should complete negotiations. Negotiation after selection reduces your negotiation leverage. Make sure you specify the results you are after and have the contract terms defined. If you have a need that is not defined in the contract documents, then it is not in the deal. Avoid side letters and verbal promises.

After you have the SOW team and consensus, the first step is determining whether the SOW is to be for results (the vendor is responsible) or resources (we are responsible).  For results SOWs, the language should state that the vendor is responsible for achieving the “following results”. You do not tell the vendor how to achieve the results or who to use.  For resources SOWs, you will be defining the steps, people and you determine their performance (when to be on the job, the type of engineer and other details).

If you are creating results work scope documents, call them statement of results (SOR) or another appropriate name not associated with time and expense resource documents.

Red-flag language to avoid in results SORs is unclear, ambiguous wording such as:

• Joint efforts (This avoids vendor responsibility for results)
• Customer will assist…” (This avoids vendor results)
• Qualified technicians…” (How are they qualified?)
• Best practices…?” (According to whom?)
• Reasonable…?” (be precise in results SORs, reasonableness can vary)

Avoid the vendor totaling creating the SOW or SOR. If a customer fails to specify requirements, then the vendor has a license to propose anything, or to tailor its presentations to identify only the requirements that it can meet. The sales effort then subtly shifts to convincing you that the vendor’s strengths are your requirements.

The basic work scope must answer these six questions:

1. What is the work to be performed?
2.  How is it managed?
3.  What are the benefits to our company?
4.  Are there special requirements?
5.  What are we supplying?
6.  When is it finished?

What is the work to be performed? 

1. Explain the background, where you are now and where you want to be.
2. State the results you want to be achieved by the vendor.
3. State the deliverables the vendor is to provide
4. Define the schedule for the results, deliverables and acceptance.
5. Define the service levels that you want and the measurements.

How is it managed?  How are you going to oversee the project?

1. Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly. Red-flag reporting
2. Achievement to date, achievements planned
3. Identification of problems to date (use a rolling estoppel process)
4. On-site meetings, progress meetings, acceptance process meetings, etc.
5. Project managers with authority to make decisions for the results.
6. Milestone reviews
7. Payment for performance.

What are the benefits to our company?

1. When the results are achieved, what benefits do we expect?
2. Vendor needs to know the benefits of results for full understanding.
3. These were likely expressed to get internal buy-in of project.

What are some special requirements?

1. Technical requirements (specifications)
2. Government and legal requirements
3. Contract requirements (SLAs if not specified elsewhere)
4. Location of work and access requirements

What are we supplying?

1. Define the customer-supplied items (data, hardware, etc.)
2. Specify the dates
3. Note that vendor has to report on issues with our items
4. Any item not specified as contractor supplied, is vendor responsibility

When is the project completed?

1. Define the acceptance criteria.
2. Define who is responsible for acceptance.
3. Define what happens for failure to meet acceptance.
4. Is there initial acceptance and an operational acceptance?
5. Are all deliverables completed and accepted?
6. Use of an acceptance form to signify customer acceptance.

Summary:

• A good RFP and SOR puts you in control of the procurement process
• Address “results” or “resources”
• Answer the six basic questions
• The right team is essential (sometimes it is only the buyer and PM)
• There is no substitute for preparation
• Negotiate before you select.
• Use a clear and concise writing style; simplify wherever possible
• Avoid ‘reasonable’, ‘best practices’, ‘joint efforts’ and other ambiguous language
• Spell check and proofread all correspondence to potential vendors
• Always include your form contract in your RFP and work scope document
• Never underestimate the power of competition – it yields the best deal
• If it is not in the contract (or Work Scope Document), it is not in the deal.

By Joe Auer

Beware of software upgrade insurance. There’s an emerging trend I must warn you about. Software companies are excluding new releases of the software you’ve bought from the maintenance and support fee you already pay. They’re adding fees, only they’re often calling them “upgrade insurance.” There’s no better way to say it: We should resist paying for upgrade insurance. By using the term “insurance,” those vendors want us to feel we’re covered for some unforeseen or unusual event. Nonsense. It’s just a way for the supplier to charge a new fee for a service that has always been included.Traditionally, software maintenance included bug fixes, help-desk support, enhancements and new releases (a.k.a. major enhancements). Although most basic maintenance programs still include the first three, the inclusion of new releases is now becoming an open question with upgrade insurance. Just to be clear, new releases are usually indicated by a change in the number to the left of the decimal, such as 3.5 to 4.0. Enhancements are usually noted by changes to the right of the decimal, such as 3.4 to 3.5, and are sometimes called point releases.

Regardless of the names, it’s important for us to insist that software maintenance and support include everything. To fully realize the benefits of standardized software packages, we must be kept current. Software that remains static undermines the fundamental reason for moving away from in-house custom development. After all, the supplier is joining us with other users to collect common requirements and spread costs. Maintenance and support fees were originally designed to do just that — provide dynamic software that evolves with changing business conditions.

So how do we counter the upgrade insurance racket? We should include maintenance and support as part of the licensing negotiations. That raises the deal’s value and also ties the deal’s completion to resolving all maintenance and support issues at the time of licensing. That way, the supplier risks losing the entire deal over just a maintenance issue. It’s easier to get vendors to concede that maintenance and support include everything, even new releases of the software, when we have bargaining power. If we fail to get that concession, we’ll in essence be relicensing the software with each new release.

by Bill Kern – ICN Senior Consultant

There’s a saying among aviators that the best pilots aren’t the ones who rely on their superior flying skills to survive life-threatening situations—they’re the ones who use those superior skills to avoid life-threatening situations! In business, the best contracts aren’t the ones that rely on superior Terms and Conditions to survive costly disputes—they’re the ones that use a superior Statement of Work to avoid costly disputes in the first place!

Terms and Conditions
Without a doubt, Terms and Conditions (Ts & Cs) are a critical part of a well-written contract. They provide the framework within which the contract is written and the work is done. Without the structure and support they provide, the contract would be meaningless. In the real world of rushing to get the job done, most contracts’ Ts & Cs are barely considered, rarely used and almost never vigorously enforced. However, a major problem occurs when the Ts & Cs point to the statement of work for the description of the deliverables the supplier is to provided, and proper care was not been taken in drafting the statement of work. Resolving whether the supplier did or did not provide the deliverables under a poorly written statement of work, places the customer in a difficult position. This often leads the project manager to ignore all but the most blatant contract breaches and to accept delivery of less than optimal goods and services.

Statement of Work
A well-written statement of work (SOW) is just that—a clear, understandable statement of your needs, the primary means of communicating your requirements to a supplier. It can simplify and speed-up the procurement process. The SOW aids suppliers in preparing bids and assists you in evaluating those bids. It reduces the administration effort required after contract award, and it provides a basis for performance measurement. A good SOW resolves many conflicts before they arise. It’s one of the most vital components of an effective contract and a successful project.

In a large number of organizations, the SOW is the first, and often the only, contract document the Project Team (including your people and the supplier’s) use on a regular basis. For them, the SOW is used to plan daily work; to guide design decisions; and to settle the multitude of daily issues and “minor” disputes that arise during the life of the contract. Unfortunately, the SOW is all-too-often a poorly written, hurriedly reviewed document that defines only the bare minimum of work required—and is often ineffective at that! In many cases it is written by the supplier who’s self interest is not to provide clarity in the SOW.

In the “get it done yesterday” world that too many contracts are written in, the most skilled negotiators in the group spend the majority of their time arguing the less important Ts & Cs. The critical SOW is left for the technical staff (whose members usually have no negotiation training or skills) to deal with the supplier’s marketing staff (who are usually highly trained, skilled negotiators). Should it come as a surprise then that contracts written under these conditions often result in confusion, disappointment and animosity on both sides?

The SOW is arguably the most important document in your contract. Give it the attention it deserves. Whether you’re buying or selling, regardless of whether you’re dealing with “results” or “resources,” it’s in your best interest to make sure the SOW accurately and clearly defines what needs to be done. For the buyer, the SOW lets the supplier know, in detail, exactly what goods/services are needed. For the seller, the SOW provides a better understanding of the customer’s needs. A clear, well-written SOW will help both sides avoid much of the confusion and conflict that arises during any project; and it will help you more quickly resolve those that can’t be avoided.

Getting Started
Before you even begin to write your SOW, call your team together and get agreement on three simple questions:
• What are we buying?
• Who do we want to be responsible for planning and managing day-to-day work… them or us?
• Who do we want to be responsible for the quality and timeliness of the final product/ service…them or us?

The importance of the first question is obvious. After all, if you and your team don’t know what you want, how can you correctly communicate it to a supplier? As obvious as that seems, you’d be surprised how difficult it can be to get a consensus in answering this question. To avoid future disagreements, take the time to identify the “team answer.” If you have a clear understanding, it will help as you write the SOW, negotiate the contract and, ultimately, manage the supplier after the award.

The second and third questions are just as critical as the first. However, the answers to these two should be the same. If you want them to be responsible to plan and manage day-to-day work (a “results deal”), then they also should have the responsibility and the authority to ensure the quality and timeliness of the work. On the other hand, if you want to be responsible for planning and managing the day-to-day work (a “resources deal”), then you need to retain responsibility and authority for the quality and timeliness of the final results.

If you do it right, the answers you come up with will become the theme of the entire SOW. Keeping a consistent theme throughout the SOW will go a long way in eliminating conflict throughout the life of the contract and will strengthen your hand in court if a serious dispute does arise. Everything we discuss in the rest of this article should be consistent with this theme. With these three seemingly simple questions answered to set the theme, we can now begin to write the SOW.

Formatting Your SOW
The first step in the SOW process is to decide on a format. There is no universally accepted structure for a Statement of Work. The “look and feel” of your SOW may differ a great deal from that of a competitor’s SOW…and that’s okay. The SOW is not a complex document…in fact, the more straight forward the format of your SOW, the better off you’ll be. How you structure your SOW is not as important as making sure it has a structure.

Having said that, there are certain characteristics that all well-written SOWs share. If you keep these common characteristics in mind as you write, you will have an effective tool for conveying your needs to prospective suppliers.
• Use a well-structured, common sense, “easy-to-navigate” format.
• Use easy-to-read, clear and unambiguous language.
• Provide a brief, informative overview of the project’s larger purpose, goals and objectives.
• Define the specific authority, duties and responsibilities of all involved parties. The key here is that to avoid finger-pointing, only one party (you or the supplier) should be responsible for any single task in the project
• Provide specific, meaningful, non-contradictory details relative to tasks to be accomplished, services to be performed and/or items to be delivered.
• Develop a project timeline that shows key milestone, completion and delivery dates.

These are not complex ideas, but they are important ones. Combined with our “who’s responsible” theme, they will help you develop a world-class document.

The SOW doesn’t need to be long nor does it need to give a detailed description of every nut, bolt or line of code you need. It does, however, need to include enough consistent detail about your expectations so that work plans, management plans, system designs and test plans can be developed and executed.

Although there is no universal SOW format, there are some items that are common to almost all well-written SOWs. These include:
• Cover page
• Table of contents
• Listing of other applicable documents
• Overview of the project
• Detailed description of work to be performed
• List of deliverables
• Project schedule.

While no specific item is required, these features are extremely helpful in providing the common-sense structure that is so critical to an effective document.

A Senior Consultant with ICN, Bill Kern has spent over 40 years in the computer industry. The majority of his experience has been in management positions with technology vendors specializing in computer hardware, systems development, outsourcing and third party leasing.

Originally posted on Blogger.

Happy New Years everyone!

I am going to start 2010 with an update on the current Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, January 2010 edition.

In September 2009, digital 62.2 started broadcasting out of City of Industry. HTTV USA (Hantian TV) is 24 hours of Mandarin language television. I didn’t even know about this until a friend cancelled his cable because of all the free Chinese television available now.

The other free 24 hour Chinese stations in Los Angeles are 18.8, 44.6, 44.7. and 44.8. You can include 62.2 as part of that group now. 18.1 still has Chinese on for about 5-6 hours a day.

I currently have FiOS and get a few hours of Chinese programming on Channel 20 and 26 everynight. Channel 281 is a Bay Area station that runs 24 hours.

My parents recently switched to DirectTV’s “MandarinDirect III” package. It includes CCTV-4, Tai Seng Sat TV, Phoenix North America, Phoenix InfoNews, CTI, TVB8, and TVBS. Pretty impressive. Although the Taiwanese Mega Pack and Great Wall TV package from Dish Network seems to have DirectTV beat.

I’ll cross my fingers and hope FiOS gets these type of packages soon. I don’t think my wife would like it. ~_~

Ok, that’s the latest update from City of Angels. Go Lakers!

Related Posts:
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, Part 2
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, Part 3
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, April 2009
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, May 2009
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, October 2009

Fans of former Fox & Friends Weekend co-host Page Hopkins got an early gift in their stocking if they were watching MSNBC. (And that’s a big if for many of her former viewers at Fox News.) Page was spotted by ICN providing afternoon updates last Sunday: the cable news blog reported that her status was unclear, i.e., if she were a freelancer or a more permanent employee.

It has been over a year since Page Hopkins left Fox News reportedly on her own terms in late 2008. Page had been a rather popular F&FW co-anchor before being unceremoniously canned in early 2008. Subsequently, she was relegated to a rather minor role before her departure with little fanfare.

The International Competition Network web site has just had a makeover.  Looks nicer, but on the downside, the first link I selected was dead.  Hopefully they’ll work through the glitches quickly, because the new site looks promising.  The old one looked tired and was not at all user-friendly.  This one looks like it has potential and is considerably easier to navigate and find what you are after – at least when the links work.  It’s not perfect, but it’s a vast improvement on the original site.

The ICN Bulletin Board and Blog now also seem to be fully up and running (although it seems like more of a pure bulletin board than blog – if you want to post something you need to send it via an FTC email address (icn@ftc.gov) – it would be fun to try something controversial, like recommending the removal merger authority from the FTC and consolidating it into a single agency, the DOJ(AD), and see whether it was posted.  My guess is I wouldn’t have much luck with that …).  Despite the restrictions, the Bulletin Board looks like a useful initiative.

By Joe Auer

But for the well-prepared customer, this can be an opportunity.

While the end of the year may indeed be an ideal time to negotiate a good deal, it can also be a trap for the unwary. Haste always makes waste for an IT customer. Don’t let a vendor rush you into signing a contract, because you could lose out on further cost savings and contract protections.

Nevertheless, vendors get normally prudent customers to act otherwise by rushing into a contract with lines like: “You know, it’s almost the end of the year. We’d like to get your order in this year’s business, so we’re cutting you a super deal. If we don’t get it signed this year, these concessions probably won’t be available in January.”

The supplier’s motivation may be genuine, but it’s using a highly effective ploy that’s designed to get you to buy now. The risk to the customer is that he can lose focus and react solely to a good price and other goodies, but at the same time he can also give up warranties, remedies for nonperformance and other valuable contract protections – issues that can cost serious money.

There’s no substitute for a thorough analysis of a supplier’s offer. In addition to the “great offer,” consider these three points:

• Is there a legitimate business need for the product?

• Are there incentives offered that can be of value to the business?

• Are the terms and conditions favorable?

More often than not, these year-end specials come up short when it comes to favorable terms and conditions.

Usually, the supplier insists on using its form contract, arguing that it’s necessary to close the deal by the end of the year. Even savvy customers have been known to get excited by the year-end hype, cave in and sign the form agreement. But of all the marketing ploys designed to get a signature on a contract, this one can play into the hands of the well-prepared customer.

Keep in mind that the vendor’s “super” offer should be considered only a point of departure for negotiations. Begin negotiations the first moment the acquisition is contemplated, not the last. From that point, a persistent and logical pursuit of your concerns will help convince your vendor’s salesperson that there is a deal to be made, but it’s a matter of “resolving a few things first.”

It’s also important to recognize that even if both sides would like to do a deal by the end of the year, you must focus on what’s truly important, like service levels, warranties, remedies for nonperformance, broad rights to intellectual property, results-oriented support guarantees and absolute clarity of contract terms and conditions. Obviously, this is a key time for your procurement team to prioritize its objectives, gain strong consensus and have all members commit to the negotiating position.

If you have any substantial doubts as to whether the deal should be completed by the vendor’s sale deadline, the signing of the contract should be delayed. In many cases, when the vendor has used the end-of-the-year ploy and the customer has refused to sign, that “absolute best deal” has continued to be available for months into the new year. This is especially true when the marketing rep is eager to make that first sale of the new year.

Remember: A time limit on negotiations benefits the best prepared, so get ready for the year-end rush.

By Joe Auer

One of the more important issues when I advise IT buyers is their basic attitude toward contract negotiations. In many situations, the end user or senior management has a friendly, close relationship with representatives of the vendor. The vendor is referred to as their partner, friend or the one with the solution to their problem. As a result, these stakeholders, who must protect their company’s interests, can be less than objective in analyzing the vendor’s proposals, promises and provisions.

Whenever I brief the key players on the customer’s negotiating team, I use the following “attitude adjustment” points, which are useful for all of us:

• Negotiations begin when the first person in your organization exchanges information with the vendor. You gain or lose negotiating power with every succeeding interaction.

• The customer is the buyer, and the vendor is only the potential supplier. You’ve got what all the vendors want – the money.

• Change your “needs” to “preferences.” Needs aren’t negotiable; preferences are. Don’t tell a vendor you need it, its product or its service. Just say you prefer it.

• At negotiation time, the vendor’s sales representative has projected to his management that the deal with the customer has already been sold. Use this to your advantage, since the sales rep has placed the pressure on himself to close the deal.

• Vendor reps face many pressures to reach certain sales goals at various times, such as quarterly, annually or when earnings are down. Be aware of these pressures.

• Vendors will try to exploit almost any sense of urgency. Remember that haste makes waste, unless your side is the better prepared, has alternatives and sets a deadline that’s to your advantage.

• Generally, it’s to the customer’s advantage when vendors bring in their top brass, as long as the customer is unimpressed with warm-and-fuzzy talk about relationships and places on the agenda substantive negotiation points to address with the vendor’s executives. They have more to give away than the sales reps do.

• Never rely on vendor promises and benefits unless they’re written in the contract, and hold the customer personnel who trust those promises accountable.

• Vendor shareholders and senior management are primarily interested in bottom-line profits and allocating risks to the customer, not interpersonal relationships. Don’t rely on these relationships; vendors just use them to get what they really want.

• Multiple acquisition methods (leasing vs. purchasing, short- vs. long-term contracts) should be considered in most cases, though vendors will try to give you tunnel vision that benefits their current performance objectives.

• The customer does have alternative vendors, approaches and deal timing, and both sides should be aware of that during negotiations.

• Vendors must be aware that negotiations will end only when the customer is fully satisfied and the agreement is fully documented.

• Ignore a vendor’s claims, especially early in negotiations, of “That’s the best deal we can give you.”

• If you haven’t heard a no from the vendor or haven’t experienced a deadlock, impasse or some sort of breakdown in negotiations because you asked for too much, you haven’t gotten the best deal you can get.

• Remember that negotiations are enhanced by thorough planning, knowledge, teamwork and dedication to securing the best contract protections at the best price.

• Most important, remember that competition is your strongest ally. Don’t select a vendor until you’ve gone through competitive negotiations on everything, including the contract, with at least two potential vendors.

You and the rest of your negotiating team should keep these points in mind and review them like you would review a checklist before each negotiation. After all, other professionals, like pilots who have been flying for 20 years, still review their checklists before takeoff.

JOE AUER is president of International Computer Negotiations Inc. (www.dobetterdeals.com), a Winter Park, Fla., consultancy that educates users on high-tech procurement. ICN sponsors CAUCUS: The Association of High Tech Acquisition Professionals. Contact him at joea@dobetterdeals.com

Department of Health | accessed 26 October 2009 (pdf)

The programme of Integrated Care Pilots (ICP) is a two-year Department of Health (DH) initiative. Its purpose is to explore different ways of providing health and social care services to

The programme of Integrated Care Pilots (ICP) is a two-year Department of Health (DH) initiative. Its purpose is to explore different ways of providing health and social care services to help drive improvements in local health and wellbeing.

Integrated care is an important building block within the strategic plan for improving the health and wellbeing of the population of England, as highlighted in both the NHS Next Stage Review report High Quality Care for All and the concordat Putting People First. Both documents stress the importance of improving local health and care services by offering personalised, flexible and high quality services, where the individual is at the centre and engaged in service organisation. Integration may refer to partnerships, systems and models as well as organisations; crossing boundaries between primary, community, secondary and social care.

Each of the 16 pilot sites participating in the national programme has developed an integrated model of care to help respond to particular local needs. Using their in-depth knowledge of the local population, the pilots are designing services that should be flexible, personalised and seamless.

The ICP programme is one of a number of initiatives looking to deliver these objectives. All pilots will be working with local organisations involved in world class commissioning (WCC) assurance Year 2, and participation in ICP should enable sites to demonstrate success against many of the competencies for WCC assurance.

The following pages provide summaries of the work each pilot will be doing over the next two years as they explore the potential and impact of their models, whilst identifying learning and best practice to be shared with others.

Originally posted on Blogger.

KXLA’s 44.8 is a new all China channel labeled ICN. But it is run by the IAVC folks.

KSCI’s 18.8 is sporadic and shows Super Spy now.

I actually got FiOS TV when I upgraded to FiOS from DSL a few months back. I get 2 versions of Sino TV, one for the LA region and one from San Jose. Zhong Tian is broadcast about 5 hours a day on a channel.

All in all, I miss 44.6 and 18.8 when I am on FiOS. But I switch back and forth once or twice a week.

Related Posts:
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, Part 2
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, Part 3
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, April 2009
Chinese Language TV in Los Angeles, May 2009

Recording and Management Servers
Within the primary control room, there will be servers with sufficient storage to capture video at full frame rate DVD resolution from the cameras located around the site.

In addition to the recording servers, the primary management server will also reside within this location.  The management server stores all user and system configurations and enables the management of devices and alarms. Each of these servers will be protected from power loss by the inclusion of UPS battery backup devices.

Viewing and Replay
Each Operator workstations has dual 19” LCD displays and a Joystick for PTZ camera control.  These workstations will be powered by the Cware Control Centre application that enables the operators to view live or recorded video, manage alarms and control cameras.

The Control Centre user interface is designed to be as simple as possible while still providing advanced capabilities.  The main screen can be utilised as the operator’s spot monitor and facilitates viewing of multiple cameras in live or replay mode, export of footage, viewing of alarms, management of the video wall and so on.  To enable simple navigation through the cameras and provide vital information on camera positions, the second monitor can be used as the map interface.  The map interface can provide users with a zoom overview of the site and highlight elements such as alarm triggers and camera positions.

As well as the maps, the system can be licensed with the patented ICN feature.  ICN stands for Image Content Navigation and enables a revolutionary method of navigating through the system.  With ICN enabled, it is possible to setup predefined invisible links within the video image from a camera that link to another camera.  This offers the operator the opportunity to click on an area of the image and the system will automatically switch to the best view of that area.  For example, if you have a camera overlooking a doorway and you see a suspicious individual enter through the door of a building, ICN makes it possible to click on the door and automatically switch to the camera inside quickly and easily without having to search through a list of cameras to identify the correct one.

The Cware server within the central location will constantly monitor each remote IP camera and encoder (for existing analogue cameras) device for alarm triggers, such as motion detection.  In the event of an alarm trigger from a remote location, the alarm management and response configuration can allow for a variety of notification methods, including simply presenting the user automatically with the video on their spot monitor or presenting the alarm to the video wall displays.

In addition to the monitoring motion alarms, the system can also enable system health monitoring.  In the event of events such as loss of connectivity to a server or the failure of a video feed to an encoder, an e-mail can be sent out to system administrators who are responsible for maintenance and upkeep.  This ensures that the system can proactively prevent and notify of potential performance issues.

The system also provides comprehensive logging, including operator activity, alarms and so on.  The log viewer tool then enables system managers to search and extract valuable information as a CSV file. This can then be imported into 3rd party systems, such as excel, to assess performance such as response times, number of alarms and so on.

Videowall
Within the control room, there will be high performance rack mount workstations connected to a large screen LCD displays.  These workstations will be powered by the Cware Videowall application.  Each workstation can display up to 16 or more video streams from remote cameras on wither a predefined or custom layout.  The Control Centre clients can manage the display of the cameras onto the video wall by simply clicking a tab at the bottom of the screen and choosing which cameras they would like to display.  It is proposed to utilise one or more of the screens as a dedicated alarm display whereby all incoming alarms from cameras can be shown to highlight this to the user.

“NANOTECNOLOGIA: L’IMMENS MÓN DEL MÉS PETIT”

Aula EL PAÍS, dimarts 29 de setembre a les 19:30 hores

A “Fantastic voyaje”, un mini submarí  s’endinsava dins del cos humà d´un eminent científic per intentar acabar amb el coàgul que li havia provocat una embòlia. Allò que en aquesta pel·lícula dels anys 60 es quedava en pura ciència ficció, l´avenç de les nanotecnologies ho està apropant a la realitat. La nanotecnologia és un sector emergent amb gran potencial que pot revolucionar la medicina, però al mateix temps, es desconeixen quins poden ser els efectes d’aquests nous materials sobre la salut humana i el medi ambient. Quines precaucions s’han de prendre en les aplicacions d’aquestes noves tecnologies? Com podem sospesar a la balança, riscos i beneficis? Esteu convidats a la propera Aula El País, on intentarem trobar la resposta a aquests i d’altres interrogants.

*INTERVENDRAN*

Jordi Pascual, Catedràtic de Física Aplicada de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) i Director de l’Institut Català de Nanotecnologia (ICN)

 Anna Garcia Hom, Investigadora del Centre de Recerca en Governança del Risc (UOC-UAB)

*ORGANITZA*

Aula El País i Observatori de la Comunicació Científica de la Universitat Pompeu Fabra, amb el suport de l´Institut Novartis de Comunicació en Biomedicina.

*INSCRIPCIÓ GRATUÏTA*

Com que l´aforament de la sala és limitat, les persones que desitgin assistir han d´instriure´s amb antelació trucant al número 93 401 05 00. La reserva de places es tancarà quan s´hagi emplenat l´aforament. La inscripció és gratuïta i s´haurà de facilitar un telèfon de contacte i el número de DNI o passaport de la persona inscrita. Cada trucada permetrà acreditar dues persones. La conferència tindrà lloc a la seu de la redacció catalana d´EL PAÍS, carrer Consell de Cent 341, Barcelona. Si per qualsevol circumstància imprevista s´hagués de cancel.lar alguna de les tertúlies, es comunicarà a les pàgines del diari.

It is important to focus at the ongoing technology developments to assess what will be possible for a solution of the future.  Controlware are constantly integrating and developing new technology within our Cware platform making it one of the most advanced systems available on the market today.

One of the key components of a system is to ensure the platform has a scalable architecture so that it can grow with user requirements.  The Cware platform is an IP based network solution that utilises IT network infrastructures to ensure a common platform of operation.  Based on a clustered server architecture Cware enables unprecedented levels of resilience.  The clustered approach enables us to treat all of the CCTV servers and storage as one virtual pool of devices.  In the event of a failure of one device, the other members of the cluster can take over to ensure near constant uptime of the system.

The main aim of the system should be to provide the most useful event information to the right people at the right time to enable effective response and identification of perpetrators, reducing the likelihood that a similar incident would occur again.  Components such as Access Control and Video Analytics can be used to help gather this information by alerting users when policies have been breached.

To find out more about the Cware management platform click here.

The Institut Català de Nanotecnologia (ICN) is a non-profit research institute, created in July 2003, which works concurrently in Scientific Research (Nanoscience, primarily via European and national collaborative projects) and Technology Research (Nanotechnology, in areas of internal expertise and co-development with private industry). The ICN has been growing quickly, based on its strong success rate in attaining competitive grants at both national and EU levels, and is now seeking a Scientific Communication Officer to join the team. The new role will be primarily responsible for the preparation of written project proposals, press releases, publicity materials, articles for publication, and other dissemination and communication activities, both at project level and at an institutional level. This position requires a person with both scientific background and good communication skills and experience (particularly in English), dynamism and initiative, the ability to work independently and as part of a team, with an enthusiastic and flexible approach to work. Candidates should be thorough and meticulous in their approach to tasks in order to deliver a high quality professional service.

Tasks and responsibilities: • Writing, correcting and editing texts of primarily scientific nature, for project proposals and reports, dissemination activities and institional reports such as the Annual Report and Scientific Plans. • Producing and updating web and print-based promotional materials. • Contribute to reviewing and evaluating marketing activities, events and materials, and recommending future initiatives. • Other associated responsibilities as directed.

Requirements: • A good honours degree (or equivalent) in Science Communication, Media or a related discipline; a PhD (or equivalent) is desirable, but not essential. • Alternatively, candidates will also be considered who are able to demonstrate substantial experience in communication with a solid scientific educational background. • Fluent English. • Demonstrated highly effective interpersonal, oral and written communication skills, including a well developed capacity to communicate to diverse audiences. • A passion for science and an ability to communicate it to a wide range of audiences.

Highly Valued: • Spanish and/or Catalan (written and spoken). • Pro-active, responsible, capable of setting priorities, and of dealing with deadlines and periods of high workload. • Excellent organisational and multi-tasking skills.

Salary, depending on qualifications and experience, will be within the range 25.000 – 30.000 € and the working hours 37,5 a week.

If you are interested in this position please send a letter of application together with your CV to icn@uab.es by October 9th, 2009. Enquiries to Boaz Kogon, T: 93 586 8306; boaz.kogon.icn@uab.es

ICN (Image Content Navigation) addresses a major issue for the management of large video surveillance systems. When tracking a person or object around a site it is often difficult to keep up with the target. While a map based GUI interface (available with some CCTV management platforms) partially addresses this issue by illustrating camera locations on a map, it does not provide the means to track an object as it moves between areas covered by different cameras. Having to quickly remember camera names or identification numbers, especially if CCTV operators are unfamiliar with the site complicates this task further.

ICN solves this problem by connecting adjacent cameras together with an invisible mesh of hyperlinks. All the user has to do is ‘point and click’ on the hyperlink in the video to switch cameras and continue tracking, instantly navigating from one camera to another and keeping up with the object or person. Any number of video channels can benefit from ICN support even tracking of many objects in multiple views from both live and recorded video. ICN banishes slow response times and improves operator navigation. In the future this technology will develop further so that it is possible to tag an object allowing the surveillance system and cameras to automatically track objects as they make their way around monitored sites. ICN is available for the Cware management platform and supported on Cware’s Mobile Module to monitor, control and track video on Mobile .

If you think this technology can help you, to find out more or request a brochure click here.

ICN

Los operadores apoyan sistema europeo de llamada de emergencia desde el automóvil
Capital News 9/09/2009

La industria de telefonía móvil europea ha dado hoy su “total apoyo” a “eCall”, el sistema europeo de llamadas de emergencia integrado en los vehículos, que podría contribuir a salvar unas 2.500 vidas al año en la UE y reducir la gravedad de las lesiones en accidentes de un 10% a un 15%.

La Comisión Europea (CE) indicó en un comunicado que representantes de la Asociación GSM se han comprometido a contribuir al desarrollo de esta tecnología mediante la firma de un memorando de entendimiento de la UE, que tiene como objetivo la implantación del sistema en toda Europa.

“eCall” marca automáticamente el 112 -número único europeo de urgencia- cuando un automóvil sufre un accidente grave, y notifica su ubicación al servicio de emergencias más cercano, incluso cuando los pasajeros no saben o no pueden decir dónde están, precisó la CE.

Según la Comisión, la implantación del sistema requiere una “estrecha cooperación” entre las autoridades públicas, los fabricantes de automóviles y los operadores de telefonía móvil.

La industria móvil se ha unido así a los fabricantes de automóviles y a la mayor parte de los países de la Unión Europea y a tres Estados del Espacio Económico Europeo (Islandia, Noruega y Suiza), que ya habían demostrado su interés por “eCall”.

Sólo seis Estados miembros no han firmado aún el memorando: Dinamarca, Francia, Irlanda, Letonia, Malta y el Reino Unido.

“Estos países deberían dejar de pisar el freno y acelerar la introducción de un sistema que puede salvar vidas. De no ser así, la Comisión tendrá que presentar propuestas legislativas el año que viene”, aseguró en la nota la comisaria europea de Sociedad de la Información, Viviane Reding.

La Comisión recordó que la Asociación GSM abarca 219 países y reúne a casi 800 operadores de telefonía móvil de todo el mundo y más de 200 empresas, entre ellas los fabricantes de microteléfonos, las empresas informáticas, los proveedores de equipos, las empresas de internet y las organizaciones de comunicaciones y de ocio.

Para la CE, “eCall” es una de las prioridades de la iniciativa del vehículo inteligente y de su Plan de acción para el despliegue de sistemas de transporte inteligentes, que fomenta el uso de tecnologías de la información y las comunicaciones (TIC) para lograr un transporte por carretera más seguro y limpio.

En los dos últimos años, la UE ha destinado unos 160 millones de euros a la investigación de la aplicación de las TIC en el transporte, apuntó la Comisión.

VI edición The BOBs Blog Awards

Controlware offer users of CCTV a unique and fresh approach to management of surveillance systems with the Cware advanced management platform.  Cware is based on Controlware’s 25 years experience in networking communications and 10 years experience in digital IP CCTV solutions.  With customers across virtually all vertical markets including St Pancras International, Charles de Gaulle Airport, North Lanarkshire Council, Bahrain Grand Prix and many more Cware is a proven solution for medium to large CCTV networks.

Cware introduces ICN (Image Content Navigation) that allows security operators to easily track people and vehicles around locations without having to memorize cameras identities, names and numbers. Another revolutionary feature is 2.5D Live Video Maps that provides a unique alternative to the traditional fixed size multi-map tools commonly found in video management applications. These intelligent interactive navigation tools improve operator orientation, shorten response times and contribute to enhance the efficiency of surveillance operations.

Find out more here.

When tracking a person or object around a site it is often difficult to keep up with the target. While a map based GUI interface (available with some CCTV management platforms) partially addresses this issue by illustrating camera locations on a map, it does not provide the means to track an object as it moves between areas covered by different cameras. Having to quickly remember camera names or identification numbers, especially if CCTV operators are unfamiliar with the site complicates this task further.

ICN solves this problem by connecting adjacent cameras together with an invisible mesh of hyperlinks.  All the user has to do is ‘point and click’ on the hyperlink in the video to switch cameras and continue tracking, instantly navigating from one camera to another and keeping up with the object or person. Any number of video channels can benefit from ICN support even tracking of many objects in multiple views from both live and recorded video.

ICN banishes slow response times and improves operator navigation. In the future this technology will develop further so that it is possible to tag an object allowing the surveillance system and cameras to automatically track objects as they make their way around monitored sites.

ICN is available for the Cware management platform and the Cware Mobile Module that enables remote viewing and control of live and recorded video on mobile phones. To request a brochue add your email address here.

Office view Cware ICN

InformedCitizenNews
June 22, 2009

ICN Informed Citizen News broadcast Sunday June 21st, 2009. The news you should have heard this week, but didn’t.

There is a girl in my classe française, well actually in the ICN building at Urban, who looks, and more importantly sounds, like Ugly Betty. Now, she doesn’t wear the strange clothes, and she’s not so much ugly as a bit blurry on the big screen– but she’s definitely not America Ferrera, either.

She has issues with using the ICN mic, and hell, I just might, too, so I’ll overlook her tendency to sound like an American speaking to someone who doesn’t know English. But I wasn’t ready for her burst of attitude yesterday. She hops on the mic just after our professor had a stern word about failing quizzes (in the easiest language -related class I have ever taken). With the most decibel power we’ve yet to experience, she announces that she has yelled at the book store because she ordered her book for June 1, but they wrote June 11. She tells us she is very upset. I’m already thinking, “Wouldn’t this be better over email?” But no, clearly not. The French Prof says it’s a problem between the bookstore and the student, and there is nothing that she can do. So U.B. rapid-fires her words, still loud and clear, “Butyoudon’tcare?Imeanthat’salittleinsensitivedon’tyouthink?I’mjusttryingtotellyouIdon’thavemybookandIneedtoremakemyhomework.
That’snotverynice. But fine, I see how it is. You are right.  It’s between me and the bookstore.”

She wasn’t in class today. Let’s see if she sticks around.

The 8th Annual Conference of the International Competition Network begins in Zurich today.  An Agenda and core documents are available online.  Tim Grimwade, the Executive General Manager, Mergers Group, of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, will moderate a session on Merger Notification and Procedures this afternoon.  Tomorrow, ACCC Chairman, Greame Samuel, will be a panelist on the cartel panel ‘Transitioning from an Administrative to a Criminal Regime’ and then will moderate another breakout session on Transitioning to Criminal Sanctions.  Mark Pearson, Executive General Manager of the ACCC, will moderate a session on ‘Leniency: Maximising Incentives for Reporting and Cooperation’.

Other topics of interest include competition advocacy (inc market studies), unilateral conduct, competition policy implementation and sessions headed ‘Interactive ICN – Maximising Network Effects’.  A special project report has also been prepared for the conference by the Swiss and Israeli Competition authorities assessing ‘Competition Law in Small Economies‘.

Live blogging from the Innovative Church Network meeting at Atlee Community Church. The speaker today is Mike Licona, an apologist – that is, somebody is “concerned with the defense or proof of Christianity.” It’s absolutely fascinating to hear from somebody whose primary focus in life is to help establish formative foundational evidence for faith in Jesus. There’s a great resource here as well

Some of those most powerful take-aways from today’s talk:

You can make up for being average when you have a strong desire and passion for something.

An ignorant culture will be slaughtered by their ignorance outside of the church bubble.

We have to defend our faith firmly and confidently, but with gentleness and respect.

Early biographies of Mohammed indicate that Islam and it’s earliest followers used force and violence.

Historical evidence points to Jesus’ resurrection and is therfore a good basis for the truth of Christianity.

Licona debated Bart Ehrman regarding the veracity of the claims of Christ in an attempt to expose the idiosyncratic view of history held by this extremely influential individual. He prepared for 5 1/2 months, 50 hours a week for the first debate. Licona acknowledges that apologetics is not just an intellectual effort but a spiritual battle.

Historians can establish with certainty that Peter, James and John were martyred for their faith due to reliable historical sources.

In starting dialogue with someone about faith issues:
With an atheist, establish if it’s an evidenciary issue or one of the will. “What would it take to convince you?” Looking at the resurrection of Jesus is a defining issue for truth; there is excellent historical evidence for this event.

With the problem of evil (probably the strongest argument against Christianity) and the sheer volume of senseless evil, look at Plantinga’s Free Will Defense: God cannot do logically contradictory things. He cannot create a square circle, or a married bachelor, or do the square root of blue. These are logically incoherent. Thus, God cannot create a world of free beings, all of whom choose to do right, all of the time. Free will necessitates choice, and at least some will choose sin. His only other option would be to create a world without free will, which would be inconsistent with the true nature of love.

If God does not exist, objective moral values do not exist.
If objective moral values do not exist, there is no basis to call something ‘evil’.
If there is no basis to call something evil, the entire basis of the existence of evil disproving the existence of God is worthless.

Personal interaction with atheists often indicate, rather than disbelief, an intense anger or injury regarding the church or Christians.

Starting the conversation with someone who has been disappointed by God requires listening. Christians are “knuckleheads” more than they should be, and often cause problems that lead others towards a form of atheism.

You can’t judge a philosophy by its abuse. Stalin was an atheist – but that doesn’t stop atheists from identifying with him. In an atheistic reality, there are no rules, so Stalin and other dictators did not break any rules. However, Christian leaders HAVE “broken the rules”.

A estória continuada. Um pouco mais daquilo que já sabiamos.

O que me impressiona é o evidente carneirismo que existe: Aqueles que defendem até à exaustão que José Sócrates é inocente, uma mera vítima de um jogo de interesses e pressões do PSD (esquecendo-se que a TVI nas mão da Prisa é um pequeno projecto com a chancela PS/Maçonaria, e que um dos homens fortes de Sócrates foi resgatado da redacção dessa mesma estação de televisão).

Isto lembra-me um pouco, ao nível do desporto, os Portistas que têm a certeza que Pinto da Costa nunca corrompeu árbitros, dos Benfiquistas para quem o passado do seu presidente nada tem de impuro, ou dos Sportinguistas que exaltados afirmam que são espoliados jogo a jogo (a famosa tese da cabala).

Ou seja: o fervor com que defendem as suas causas é tanto, que acabam por perder clarividência. Não percebem o óbvio. Não põem em causa sequer que, no mínimo, seja possível que algo de incorrecto tenha ocorrido.

Este Charles Smith, de quem não tenho pena nenhuma, já tem o destino traçado: é o Bibi do Freeport. A escumalha graúda toda a aproveitar-se, e o pequeno é que leva. E nem consta que se tenha metido com o PS. Tem apenas uma atenuante: se chegar perto de uma condenação, uma chamadinha há-de tocar no seu telemóvel. E ala daqui para fora deste país à beira-mar plantado.

E ainda digo mais: iria tarde. A contar da data de hoje, pelo menos com uns 8 anos de atraso.

P.S.: Para aqueles que acha que a comunicação social é muito dura, alguém se lembra o que foi feito no tempo de Cavaco Silva a PM, por causa de umas célebres obras na casa de banho? Ou a Duarte Lima? Acho que se fosse alguém desse governo na altura, até o pendoravam num poste na Praça do Comércio.

Jornal “Expresso” noticia que Charles Smith recebeu 80 mil euros por marcar reunião com Sócrates 

O consultor Charles Smith terá recebido, em Janeiro de 2002, 80 mil euros como prémio de “boa fé” por ter conseguido marcar uma reunião entre o grupo inglês e o então ministro do Ambiente, José Sócrates, noticia o jornal “Expresso” na sua edição “online”.

Estes 80 mil euros (a câmbio da altura) são apenas a primeira das três tranches de 50 mil libras que Charles Smith referiu, no DVD, ter entregue como alegado suborno a um primo do actual primeiro-ministro para que o projecto do Freeport fosse aprovado. Esse pagamento faseado está descrito num contrato datado de 2002.

Para conseguir a reunião, Smith telefonou ao tio de Sócrates, Júlio Monteiro, que diz ter intercedido junto do sobrinho. Na reunião estiveram presentes os representantes do Freeport, o presidente da câmara de Alcochete, o presidente do ICN e José Sócrates – o primeiro-ministro assumiu ter participado no encontro que se realizou antes de ter dado entrada no ICN um novo estudo de impacto ambiental que já incluía alterações ao projecto original.

O contrato dos pagamentos, assinado a 3 de Junho de 2002 mas negociado desde Dezembro do ano anterior (após o chumbo do Ministério do Ambiente), entre o Freeport e a Smith & Pedro, previa que a firma de consultoria recebesse 500 mil libras em 10 fases, que correspondiam aos diversos passos de aprovação do projecto. Eram uma espécie de prémios pelo sucesso de cada passo em que a consultora ajudava o outlet.
Mas foram feitos apenas três pagamentos porque entretanto o consórcio inglês considerou que o processo não estava a ser tão célere quanto o acordado com a Smith & Pedro.

In Publico