Experience is everything

Hot Spare

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 02:52:59 PDT

Apa itu Hot Spare?

Hot Spare bisa diartikan sebagai perangkat cadangan seperti hard disk atau controller yang berada dalam modus siaga, berarti ia sedang online dan harus tersedia ketika perangkat utama offline atau gagal. Sistem ini akan mendeteksi kegagalan dan secara otomatis beralih ke Hot Spare untuk digunakan sebagai pengganti. Hot Spare umum digunakan dalam array RAID dimana drive tambahan melekat pada controller dan ditinggalkan dalam modus siaga sampai kegagalan terjadi.

Seperti diketahui system RAID bisa terdiri dari beberapa perangkat Harddisk yang disatukan, kegagalan system bisa terjadi apabila salah satu dari disk bagian dari RAID mengalami kegagalan, disinilah system Hot Spare bekerja, dia akan secara otomatis menggantikan kedudukan Harddisk yang gagal sampai salah satu bagian disk dari RAID yang gagal tersebut diperbaiki.

Menggunakan Gmail sebagai Hard Drive Online

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Mon, 10 May 2010 20:33:46 PDT

Daftar isi

1. Pengenalan
2. Mempersiapkan account Gmail untuk menggunakan penyimpanan online
3. Instalasi ekstensi shell GMail Drive
4. Menggunakan Gmail Drive untuk menyimpan file
5. Program lain untuk menggunakan Gmail sebagai penyimpanan online
6. Kesimpulan

Pengenalan

Seperti yang kita ketahui bersama, Gmail (email gratis dari Google) menyediakan kita 2 Gigs lebih penyimpanan gratis untuk email kita. Kapasitas yang sangat besar bukan? Kapasitas yang sangat besar dari kebutuhan email saat ini.

Jadi apa yang bisa kita lakukan dengan kapasitas sebesar ini? Anda mungkin bertanya-tanya? Bagaimana jika saya katakan bahwa kita bisa menggunakan kapasitas sebesar ini untuk penyimpanan tambahan dan bertindak sebagai hard drive online bagi Anda untuk menyimpan file?
Berkat program besar oleh orang-orang di sini http://www.viksoe.dk/code/gmail.htm, Anda dapat membuat virtual drive pada Windows Explorer atau di bawah My Computer yang memungkinkan Anda untuk menyimpan file langsung ke account Gmail Anda. Ketika Anda menginstal program ini, akan dibuat ekstensi shell yang menghubungkan langsung ke account Gmail Anda. Untuk menggunakannya Anda hanya perlu membuka Gmail Drive di My Computer atau Windows Explorer, masukkan identitasnya logon Anda, dan mulai menyeret file ke dalam dan keluar dari Gmail Drive. Sesederhana itu, meskipun ada beberapa batasan untuk program ini. Pada saat ini, Anda hanya bisa meng-upload file 10MB atau lebih kecil menggunakan ekstensi Gmail Drive. Jika ini merupakan masalah bagi Anda, Anda mungkin ingin melihat daftar program penyimpanan gmail lainnya.

Mempersiapkan account Gmail untuk menggunakan penyimpanan.

Bila Anda menyimpan file menggunakan Gmail Drive, Gmail akan menempatkan file-file ke dalam folder inbox Anda. Jika Anda memulai menyimpan banyak file, ini dapat dengan cepat mengacaukan folder ini. Untuk membuatnya lebih teratur kita akan menciptakan aturan yang menempatkan semua file Anda disimpan ke Arsip Gmail sebagai gantinya, yang akan menjaga kekacauan inbox anda. Semua file upload menggunakan GMail Drive memiliki subjek yang berisi GMAILFS teks. Menggunakan teks ini kita akan membuat filter yang secara otomatis menyimpan setiap pesan dengan subjek tersebut ke dalam Arsip.
1. Logon ke Gmail.
2. Klik link Create Filter yang berada di sebelah tombol Search Web di bagian atas layar Gmail.
3. Dalam dialog Create Filter, masukkan ke dalam subjek GMAILFS. Kemudian tekan tombol Next Step.
4. Centang di Skip the box (Archive it) dan kemudian tekan tombol Create Filter.
Sekarang ketika Anda meng-upload file menggunakan Gmail Drive, maka secara otomatis akan melewati folder inbox Anda dan disimpan dalam Arsip. Untuk melihat file dalam Arsip, cukup klik pada link All Mail pada menu navigasi sebelah kiri.

Instalasi ekstensi shell GMail Drive

Langkah pertama adalah untuk men-download software menggunakan link yang ada di bagian bawah halaman ini:
http://www.viksoe.dk/code/gmail.htm
Setelah didownload, cukup extract file dan double-klik pada program Setup.exe. Ketika telah selesai bukalah file Help yang Anda harus baca untuk mendapatkan pemahaman tentang bagaimana program bekerja. Ketika selesai membaca, cukup membuka My Computer (atau Windows Explorer) dan Anda akan melihat Drive Gmail seperti yang ditunjukkan pada Gambar 1 di bawah ini.

Gambar 1. My Computer dengan Gmail Drive

Menggunakan Gmail Drive untuk menyimpan file.

Sekarang software diinstal, cukup mulai menyalin file ke Drive Gmail. Anda juga dapat klik kanan pada file dan pilih Send To -> Gmail Drive. Ketika Anda mulai meng-upload file ekstensi akan ada progress barhadir seperti yang ditunjukkan pada Gambar 2 di bawah ini.

Gambar 2. Upload file dengan Gmail Drive

Jika file telah selesai di-upload, Gmail drive tambahan akan menghitung folder lagi dan Anda akan dapat melihat file yang tersimpan dalam folder. Jika Anda ingin menghapus file, cukup klik pada file tersebut sekali untuk memilihnya, lalu tekan tombol hapus. Di bawah ini adalah gambar Gmail Drive saya.

Gambar 3. File disimpan pada Gmail Drive

Seperti yang anda lihat Anda dapat menyimpan berbagai jenis file dan ukuran dan selama Anda memiliki ekstensi Gmail Drive diinstal komputer, Anda dapat mengakses file-file ini dari mana saja.

Program lain untuk menggunakan Gmail sebagai penyimpanan online

Meskipun secara pribadi saya lebih menyukai Gmail Drive karena kemampuannya untuk membuat virtual drive untuk Anda, tetapi dia memiliki keterbatasan. Kemampuannya hanya bisa menyimpan file 10 MB atau lebih kecil. Jika ini bukan masalah besar untuk Anda, dan Anda seperti memiliki virtual drive, maka tidak ada alasan untuk membaca lebih lanjut. Di sisi lain, jika anda tidak membutuhkan virtual drive, tapi Anda harus menyimpan file yang lebih besar dari 10 MB maka Anda mungkin ingin melihat program-program yang diuraikan di bawah ini.

RoamDrive

Program pertama yang kita akan berbicara tentang RoamDrive. RoamDrive adalah sebuah aplikasi yang menyediakan antarmuka yang memungkinkan Anda untuk meng-upload dan download file ke account Gmail. Program ini juga memiliki fitur bagus yang memungkinkan Anda untuk menentukan total ruang yang ingin Anda memanfaatkan untuk penyimpanan sehingga Anda tidak menggunakan seluruh ruang Anda untuk email. Program ini dapat melewati batas ukuran file 10 MB dengan memecah file yang lebih besar ke dalam beberapa bagian. Jika Anda ingin membuat filter untuk file yang tersimpan dengan RoamDrive sebagaimana dijelaskan pada bagian persiapan di atas, Anda harus menggunakan teks ROAMDRIVE dalam filter subjek Anda.

Gspace

Jika Anda adalah orang yang suka dengan FireFox, dan suka melakukan segalanya di sana, maka ada
extension yang disebut Gspace yang memungkinkan Anda untuk meng-upload file ke account Gmail Anda. Extension ini bekerja dengan cara yang sama seperti RoamDrive dalam mengatasi batas 10 MB dengan memecah file ke dalam beberapa bagian. Jika Anda ingin membuat filter untuk file yang tersimpan dengan RoamDrive sebagaimana dijelaskan pada bagian persiapan di atas, Anda harus menggunakan Gspace teks dalam filter subjek Anda.

Kesimpulan

Sekarang kita telah menyelesaikan tutorial ini tetapi saya perlu menyebutkan bahwa fungsi program ini tergantung pada Gmail. Jika mereka melakukan perubahan pada sistem mereka ada kemungkinan bahwa aplikasi tersebut akan rusak. Jika hal ini terjadi, tunggulah sampai pembaruan tersebut dirilis untuk bekerja dengan versi baru Gmail. Tetapi jangan takut karena file Anda masih dapat diakses melalui Gmail.

VM Ware baru

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:54:11 PDT

Sudah dua tahun semenjak saya tidak menggunakan vmware, ternyata pada 2010 sudah terjadi banyak perubahan mulai dari tampilan dan versi yang jauh lebih baik walaupun sekarang sudah ada competitor yang cukup berat dari Microsoft dengan virtual pc nya.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 7

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:54:00 PDT

6.Purchase Orders

Purchase orders adalah bagian dari BS1 Enterprise Accounting sehingga saya agak kesulitan untuk mebahasnya di sini.

Seperti software-software lainnya, Purchase Orders(PO) adalah langkah pertama untuk membuat rangkaian dari proses pembelian dan penjualan di sebuah perusahaan distribusi. Tanpa ada PO tidak mungkin kita bisa mendatangkan barang dan penjualan pu n tidak bisa dilakukan apabila tidak ada barang.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 6

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:53:28 PDT

5.Sales Orders

Sales order diinput sesuai permintaan dan bisa di cetak untuk disetujui oleh customer. Ketika sudah di approved, status dari order tersebut berubah menjadi 'On Order". Atau sales order bisa juga di input langsung sebagain 'On order' apabila persetujuan cutomer tidak diperlukan.

Untuk mengeluarkan barang dari Gudang bisa di cetak 'Picking slip' sebelum delivery order dibuat. Ketika picking slip sudah dieluarkan pengiriman bisa dilakukan berdasarkan picking slip atau sebagian dulu tergantung kebutuhan. Invoice aotomatis dibuat setiap shipment dilakukan.

Laporan pengeluaran barang bisa dibuat setelah shipmet dilakukan, ini berguna untuk pengecekan situasi stock barang yag ada di gudang.

Ketersediaan barang bisa digunakan untuk mengatur jadwal pengiriman, pembuatan sales order dan jadwal pengiriman barang dari supplier sehinggan stock barang yang ada di dalam gudang lebih efisien.

Phone dialer telah diintegrasikan kedalam menu customer, kita tinggal melakukan klik kanan pada customer, order atau shipment.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 5

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:53:01 PDT

4.Inventory
Inventory proses dibuat berdasarkan penerimaan dan pengeluaran dari sales. Transfer antar gudang, koreksi stock, pengurangan stok akibat kerusakan, kehilangan akibat pencurian dan barang untuk sample bisa diolah melalui menu adjusment.

Beberapa opsi untuk Inventory antara lain :
- Multi-warehouse and multi-currency
Gudang bisa terdiri dari beberapa tempat dan bisa juga menggunakan beberapa currency.
- No monthly closing of the inventory software required
Tidak diperlukan closing bulanan untuk melakukan proses transaksi Inventory
- Weighted average cost or standard cost
Berat standar dan rata-rata bisa di input kedalam setiap item
- On-line drill-down from inventory totals to source document
Bisa mengurutkan data dari Inventory total sampail kepada sumber dokumen
- Inventory Value Report, Perpetual Inventory Report and much more...
Pembuatan laporan-laporan inventory seperti Laporan aktual barang, perkiraan kedatangan barang dan sebagainya.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 4

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:52:47 PDT

3.General Ledger
General Ledger digunakan untuk mengolah data mengenai budget dan keuangan aktual untuk menghasilkan laporan keuangan seperti Laporan penerimaan kas, Blance sheet, Trial Balance Report, General Ledger Report, GL Totals Screen, GL History Screen, dan Laporan buku Bank. Beberapa opsi untuk GL antara lain :

- No monthly closing of the general ledger required
Tidak diperlukan closing bulanan untuk mengeluarkan laporan GL
- Automatic reversing journal entries
Melakukan proses reversing journal secara otomatis, biasanya alokasi transaksi untuk akhir bulan lalu dan bulan ini dilakukan secara manual, sehingga menghemat waktu pembuatan laporan keuangan.
- Optional subaccounts for branch, division, product group, etc.
Opsi intuk membuat sub cabang, divisi, product dan group.
- On-line drill-down to source document
Bisa mengurutkan data secara online mulai dari terbitnya Sales order sampai pembayara n oleh customer.
- Complete year-end processing
Melakukan proses transaksi tutup tahun secara menyeluruh
- User-defined Financial Statements, Trial Balance, General Ledger Report and more...
Laporan-laporan yang dibuat, bisa disesuaikan dengan kebutuhan perusahaan, dan bisa dibuat sesuai permintaan.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 2

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 06 May 2010 18:52:22 PDT

1. Account Payable
Menu ini memungkinkan kita melacak pembayaran kepada supplier. Jatuh tempo pembayaran , kepada bank mana kita harus membayar dan sebagainya. Beberapa opsi untuk Account Payable yaitu :

- Multi currency dan multy Bank
Kita bisa memilih untuk menentukan Currency dalam pembayaran kita, bisa berbentuk rupiah, dollar, yen dan sebagainya.

- No monthly closing of the accounts payable required
Kita tidak memerlukan closing bulanan untuk menentukan kapan jatuh tempo pembayaran, sehingga kita masih bisa melakukan perubahan terhadap pembayaran yang sudah diatur pada bulan-bulan sebelumnya. Ada beberapa software accounting yang memerlukan closing bulanan dalam prosesnya, hal ini bisa berakibat fatal apabila ada kesalahan pada pembuatan jadwal pembayaran karena setelah closing biasanya transaksi tidak bisa di edit ataupun dibatalkan.

- Intelligent Payment Management maximizes cash flow
Terus terang saya belum mencoba menu ini, sepertinya ditujukan untuk membuat management pembayaran agar lebih optimal dalam menentukan budget perusahaan dalam pembayaran.

- Handwritten or computer printed cheques
Pembuatan cek bisa menggunakan printer atau tulisan tangan.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition 3

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 17:03:03 PDT

2.Accounts Receivable
Digunakan untuk melacak pembayaran yang dilakukan oleh customer kepada perusahaan kita. Opsi-opsi yang terdapat dalam menu Accounts Receivable antara lain :

- Multi-currency and multi-tax
Pembayaran yang dilakukan oleh customer bisa berbentuk dalam bermacam-macam currency dan pajak.
- No monthly closing of the accounts receivable required
Seperti pada Account Receivable, kita tidak harus melakukan closing untuk menutup transaksi bulan lalu agar kita bisa melanjutakan transaksi bulan selanjutnya. Ini berguna apabila ada kesalahan yang bisa berakibat fatal dalam pembayaran, jadi kita masih bisa melakukan perbaikan terhadap transaksi bulan lalu.
- Handles VAT, GST, PST, HST and other taxes
Bisa menggunakan beberapa jenis pajak seperti Value added tax (VAT), Goods and Services Tax (GST), Provincial Sales Tax (PST), Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).
- Open item cash receipts
Saya belum mencoba menggunakan menu ini
- Aged Receivables reports, AR Statements
Report umur transaksi pembayaran dari customer.

BS1 Enterprise Accounting Free Edition

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 23:00:54 PDT

Category : Business & Finance Software
Platform : Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP
Publisher : Davis Business Systems Ltd.
Product page: http://www.dbsonline.com/enterprise

Seperti yang sudah saya ceritakan pada posting sebelumnya, saya akan mereview beberapa software CRM atau Enterprise Accounting untuk dijadikan bahan referensi.

Review ini saya tujukan untuk orang yang berkecimpung dalam bidang software akuntansi, dan untuk bahan latihan bagi yang baru menekuni bidang software akuntansi.

BS1 online source code nya dibuat menggunakan bahasa delphi, seperti yang diterangkan di website mereka, ada source code yang bisa kita download secara gratis. Ini ditujukan kepada para developer yang ingin ikut mengembangkan atau membuat beberapa penyesuaian tergantung kebutuhan.

Seperti yang terdapa pada software akuntansi pada umumnya, BS1 Online mempunya menu-menu umum, yaitu :
1.Account Payable
2.Accounts Receivable
3.General Ledger
4.Inventory
5.Sales Orders
6.Purchase Orders

ada menu tambahan untuk jenis enterprise yaitu menu Manufacturing, menu ini tidak terdapat dalam BS1 Accounting versi free.

Adding FeedFlare to your Blogger blog

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 08 May 2008 23:48:40 PDT

This guide is for "New Blogger".

In order to add FeedFlare to your blog, you'll need to insert a small piece of code near the post metadata (author, date, comments, etc) in your template. Fortunately, this is really easy (really!) — just follow these seven short steps.

Sign in to Blogger.
For the blog to which you're adding FeedFlare, click "Manage Template" or "Manage Layout" (you'll see one or the other).

If you clicked "Layout," follow the instructions for editing Blogger Layouts. If you clicked "Template," follow the instructions for editing Blogger Templates. (Yes, we realize that's a little confusing!)

Editing Blogger "Layouts"

Copy this code:

<script src="'" i=" + data:post.url' type=" charset="utf-8"></script>
In Blogger, click "Edit HTML". You should see the HTML for your blog template.
Click the "Expand Widget Templates" box above and to the right of the template code.
In your template code, scroll to
. (Don't see this code? You may be using a customized or non-standard Blogger template. Don't panic! Paste the code near the post metadata (author, date, comments, etc).
Paste the code from step 1 just below
.
Click [Save Template].

Click "View Blog" to see what you've done, and enjoy!

Editing Blogger "Templates"

Copy this code:

<script src="" i="<$BlogItemPermalinkURL$">" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
In Blogger, click "Edit HTML". You should see the HTML for your blog template.
In your template code, scroll to
. (Don't see this code? You may be using a customized or non-standard Blogger template. Don't panic! Paste the code near the post metadata (author, date, comments, etc.).)
Paste the code from step 1 just above
.
Click [Save Template Changes].

Click "View Blog" to see what you've done, and enjoy!

Mengubah file VCD menjadi format AVI

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Fri, 02 May 2008 00:42:50 PDT

Sebenarnya sangat sederhana untuk mengubah file dari format VCD kedalam bentuk AVI supaya bisa di putar di komputer kita. Cara sederhana untuk melakukannya adalah sebagai berikut :

1. Buka file yang ada di VCD (biasanya ada di drive E:\ kemudian cari folder 'mpeg' kemudian ubah 'files of type' menjadi 'Any File (*.*).

2. Setelah itu akan muncul file AVSEQ01.DAT , AVSEQ02.DAT dan seterusnya. Kemudian Copy file tersebut ke hardisk, misalnya ke D:\

3. Buka Start > All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt

akan terbuka kota dialog command prompt

4. Pindahkan drive ke D:\> tempat dimana kita meletakkan file AVSEQ01.DAT dengan cara mengetik D: kemudian tekan enter.

5. Untuk memastikan ada tidak nya file yang akan kita ubah, ketik dir di D:\> prompt

6. Ubah nama file AVSEQ01.DAT menjadi file AVI dengan nama yang kita inginkan misalnya film01.avi dengan mengetik D:\>ren AVSEQ01.DAT film01.avi

7. Sekarang file DAT tersebut bisa langsung dibuka menggunakan Windows Media Player atau Video Player lainnya.

Menghilangkan Navbar di Blog

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 01:06:22 PDT

Navigation bar (Navbar) biasa berada di paling atas halaman blogspot kita. Kadang keberadaannya mengganggu pandangan pemilik blog ataupun pengunjung yang datang ke blog. Ada cara sederhana untuk menghilangkan navbar tersebut.(Khusus untuk pengguna blog baru dengan design xml). Caranya seperti dibawah ini.

1. Buka kontrol panel blog anda
2. Masuk ke layout -> edit template
3. Kemudian masukkan kode berikut ini

#navbar-iframe {
display: none !important;
}

Masukkan diantara baris

<b:skin><![CDATA[/*
-----------------------------------------------
Blogger Template Style
Name: Rounders
Designer: Douglas Bowman
URL: www.stopdesign.com
Date: 27 Feb 2004
Updated by: Blogger Team
----------------------------------------------- */

dan baris

/* Variable definitions
====================
<Variable name="mainBgColor"
description="Main Background Color"
type="color" default="#fff" value="#ffffff">
<Variable name="mainTextColor"
description="Text Color" type="color"
default="#333" value="#333333">

Seperti gambar dibawah ini :

Komputer baru Nafas baru

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 01:48:01 PDT

Setelah lama mengajukan pergantian komputer baru akhirnya datang juga komputer yang diharapkan. Dengan spec yang lumayan tangguh komputer baru ini diharapkan bisa membantu kinerjaku dalam bekerja, sekalian belajar komputer dan internet :).

Grafisnyapun lumayan untuk ukuran komputer kantor.

Kita lihat saja apakah bisa cocok denganku yang suka mengobrak-abrik isi komputer...

Tapi sayang namanya juga komputer kantor tetap gak bisa dibawa pulang ke rumah :(

Review ERP & CRM

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 22:31:10 PDT

Banyak model ERP yang bertebaran di Internet. Tapi belakangan saya melihat
tren yang terjadi, ada beberapa vendor yang mulai mengeluarkan versi open
source dari ERP. Padahal apabila di lihat dari segi pembuatan, mengratiskan
ERP tidaklah 'pantas'. Apakah seseorang akan rela memberikan hasil jerih
payahnya setelah bertahun-tahun membuat system ERP dan kemudian
memberikannya begitu saja kepada orang lain?.

Apabila dilihat sekilas memang merugikan, akan tetapi harus dilihat juga
bahwa untuk menjalankan suatu system ERP tidaklah mudah. Nah inilah yang di
bidik oleh beberapa vendor ERP. Mereka mendapatkan keuntungan dari training
yang dilakukan terhadap user.Ada yang melakukan kontrak bulanan, tahunan ada
juga yang memberlakukan system mandays seperti yang di jalankan kepada
perusahaan di mana tempat saya bekerja. Tapi di perusahaan tempat saya
bekerja, pihak perusahaan masih di kenakan charge pembelian software yang
harganya mencapai ratusan juta rupiah.

Dari sinilah ide ini berawal. Setelah tahu seluk beluk ERP akhirnya aku
berketetapan hati untuk mencari ERP yang benar-benar bagus dan yang
terpenting adalah Free. Berhari-hari searching di internet. Banyak ERP yang
saya dapatkan mulai dari Compierre, Tiny ERP, ERP5, OpenTaps, OpenJades,
OpenDen, Centric dan masih banyak lagi. Khusus mengenai Compierre saya jadi
ingat workshop yang di adakan oleh HP dan beberapa pentolan IT indonesia
sekitar 2 tahun yang lalu. Di sana selain ada Ono W Purbo dan Michel S
Sugiardi ada juga Frans Thamura yang mereview mengenai Compierre.

Awalnya saya belum paham apa itu ERP karena kebetulan dua tahun yang lalu
perusahaan tempat saya bekerja belum melakukan implementasi apapun. Hanya
sekilas saya dapat menangkap apa yang di kemukakan oleh Frans. Yang menarik
di akhir sesi tersebut dia mengatakan bahwa beberapa tahun mendatang tren
dari ERP adalah free dan open source, yang di dapat oleh vendor hanyalah
training fee dan maintenance fee.

Apabila di bandingkan dengan software ERP sejenis seperti SAP atau
Peoplesoft yang harganya 'gila-gilaan' , software ERP free dan opensource
adalah solusi yang menyejukkan, terutama untuk perusahaan kecil dan menengah
(UKM). Sepertinya perkataan dia ada benarnya juga. Sekarang sudah mulai
banyak bermunculan ERP yang menerapkan system free dan open source seperti
Compierre. Tercatat ada beberapa nama baru dalam dunia ERP yang menerapkan
system free dan open source seperti Tiny ERP, OpenTaps, OpenDen, OpenJades,
dan yang terakhir saya dengar adalah Openbravo buatan Spanyol.

Saya berencana mereview beberapa ERP open source tersebut. Dan apabila ada
yang cocok dengan kebutuhan di Indonesia, saya akan melakukan dokumentasi
untuk kemudian di terapkan di perusahaan yang berminat. Jalan tersebut
memang masih panjang apalagi saya berusaha sendirian tanpa ada bantuan, yang
paling saya andalkan hanya internet.

Apabila semuanya lancar, akan saya terapkan di perusahaan yang baru
berencana saya bangun :) yaitu di www.resistek.com

Microsoft patent peace--or patent war?

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 23:15:52 PST

By Stephen Shankland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: November 3, 2006, 2:04 PM PST

news analysis Microsoft on Thursday declared a "patent peace" with Novell, the No. 2 Linux seller. But did the company in fact just declare a patent war with the open-source realm?

Microsoft and Novell announced the deal under which Novell's Suse Linux Enterprise Server and Desktop customers need not fear Microsoft will assert patent rights against them. In addition, Microsoft pledged not to assert patents against unpaid open-source programmers or against any open-source programmers contributing to Novell's OpenSuse.

The companies said they struck the partnership--which also includes technical cooperation to ensure various products interoperate--at the behest of customers. But the extent to which customers are reassured by the deal correlates directly with the extent to which they're worried about the absence of anything similar with Red Hat or any number of other open-source software companies.

In other words, the partnership can be interpreted as an attempt to inject Microsoft's patent values into the open-source world. That move is an affront to open-source businesses that generally share intellectual property, an approach anathema to the proprietary ways of Microsoft.

"I think it elevates the level of fear," said Raven Zachary, an analyst with The 451 Group, and gives new prominence to legal protection. "Indemnification was a hot issue a few years ago, and now it seems to be back."

Microsoft has expressed a fondness for software patents and a desire to profit from licensing them. That patent-centric approach has caused indigestion in the open-source realm at times. For example, Red Hat has forsworn using an open-source version of the Windows NT File System (NTFS) that could ease lives for those whose computers run both Windows and Linux.

To be sure, Microsoft's relationship with the open-source movement today is less adversarial and more sophisticated than in the past. The Novell partnership acknowledges that Linux is a force to be reckoned with. Microsoft's Shared Source plan involves some elements of the open-source philosophy. The company this week announced a partnership with Zend, developer of the open-source PHP Web site software. Microsoft has pledged not to sue anyone over a variety of patents involved with Web services.

And representatives of some open-source interests don't think Microsoft's move portends a further attack.

"Is this all things to all people? No. But it's a great first step," said Stuart Cohen, CEO of a multi-company Linux consortium, the Open Source Development Labs. "Obviously we're fairly comfortable that there aren't any IP risks (in using Linux), but it's been something standing over everyone's head."

But that doesn't mean Microsoft suddenly has an urge to help out open-source competitors. Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Thursday's agreement essentially provides a way to ensure the company's intellectual property preferences have teeth in the open-source world.

"We don't license our intellectual property to Linux--because of the way the Linux licensing, the GPL (General Public License) framework works, that's not really a possibility," Ballmer said. "The cleverness was, how do we get protection and respect for our intellectual property in a world in which that license agreement works?"

For its part, Novell argues that the partnership allays, not heightens, any intellectual-property worries.

"The reality is that the patent concerns are out there. We didn't invent them. This deal actually removes patent concerns for customers wanting to use Linux," said spokesman Bruce Lowry. "And it protects developers from patent challenge by Microsoft . This is good for the community. There's nothing that would stop Red Hat from doing something similar."

Alliance against Red Hat?

But Red Hat--already on the defensive after Oracle's plan to try to undercut the company's Linux support business--has a pessimistic interpretation.

"For Microsoft, it's the opportunity to try to take their whispering campaign about intellectual property and bring it out front," said Mark Webbink, Red Hat deputy general counsel.

It won't work, Webbink argued: "They should have learned a lesson from SCO"--a company that sued Linux companies and users regarding assertions that proprietary Unix technology was improperly used in open-source Linux--"that putting your customer in the middle of the squeeze play is not a good idea for business."

Zachary, though, believes that ultimately Microsoft isn't likely to go after Red Hat for patent infringement. "It would be a mistake," he said. "The public relations nightmare isn't worth the benefit, and it would make the open-source community even more hostile to Microsoft's overtures. It would also likely be a fast track to overturning software patents in the European Union."

Mark Radcliffe, an intellectual property attorney with DLA Piper, sees the move as a straightforward alliance against Red Hat.

"I think that they are picking out a Linux vendor who is weak and trying to drive companies to them, so that the stronger vendors such as Red Hat become less competitive," he said.

Red Hat adds new Linux legal protection

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 19:14:35 PST

By Stephen Shankland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: November 3, 2006, 4:40 PM PST

Faced with new competitive challenges from Novell, Microsoft and Oracle, Linux seller Red Hat has begun promising protection against intellectual-property lawsuits.

The leading Linux seller quietly slipped the indemnification provision into a question-and-answer page on their Web site after Novell and Microsoft announced a technical and patent partnership on Thursday.

"As with any indemnification provision, if (a customer) were to get sued for intellectual-property infringement over code they got from us, the provision of the indemnification language kicks in. At that point, we step into their shoes" to handle the legal attack, said Mark Webbink, Red Hat's deputy general counsel.

Indemnification of open-source software rose to prominence after the SCO Group sued IBM, arguing that it copied proprietary SCO Unix code into open-source Linux against the terms of IBM's Unix license. Then the issue died down--until recently.

Last week, Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison bragged that his company would provide legal indemnification along with a higher-cost option for its Red Hat Enterprise Linux support subscription. And Thursday, Novell boasted that its partnership with Microsoft means customers need not fear patent lawsuits from Microsoft, an expansion of an earlier promise to counterattack in patent lawsuits regarding open-source software it sells.

The indemnification is a new element to Red Hat's Open Source Assurance program, which guarantees customers that the company will rewrite code found to violate another's intellectual property. Webbink said he believes that earlier pledge is more significant than the indemnification.

"We still think the earlier version of the Open Source Assurance was the far more critical thing, and we'll continue to stand behind that," Webbink said.

But the company decided adding indemnification was worthwhile.

"Our management and board looked at it and said, 'Look, this isn't worth a hill of beans, but if saying it will make people feel better, we'll say it.' We've added it to the program," Webbink said.

AOL, Microsoft seek indie-rock cred

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Wed, 15 Nov 2006 18:21:52 PST

By Reuters

Published: November 4, 2006, 2:46 PM PST

AOL and Microsoft are wooing indie-rock fans to help solidify their digital music strategies.

Corporations seeking indie cred are nothing new. But both bids come at critical times for the technology giants.

AOL, in the midst of shifting from an Internet service provider model to an advertising-driven business, aims to expand its audience at the margins by stretching beyond the pop crowd with new programming aimed at hipsters.

Microsoft, meanwhile, is trying to make inroads with its new Zune digital media player by winning over the same group of tastemakers that first embraced Apple Computer's iPod.

As part of AOL's indie strategy, the portal on Oct. 26 launched a weekly Web-only video show called "The DL," hosted by Sara Schaefer of the comedy troupe Upright Citizens Brigade. It also plans to launch a revived version of its Spinner radio brand with special channels dedicated to indie music. Additionally, the company is already up and running with a new weekly podcast series called "The Interface," which focuses on acts like Spoon.

Microsoft, on the other hand, is targeting the indie community with heavy promotional activity around music festivals like CMJ, which runs through Nov. 4. CMJ is working with Microsoft to identify as many as 300 music-savvy students ages 18-22 to assist with on-campus and online promotions as well as feedback for the Zune, which is expected to hit stores Nov. 14.

The company already has been courting the blogger community. Microsoft made headlines this summer for flying big-name music bloggers including Coolfer and Stereogum out to its headquarters in Redmond, Wash., to test the Zune on a first-look basis. It's also running Zune ads across leading blogs, and the device will come preloaded with music and video from Sub Pop Records, Astralwerks, V2, Ninja Tune and Quango Music Group.

Bill Wilson, senior vice president of programing for AOL, says the indie-rock community is a natural fit given its strong involvement with digital music.

But corporate brands may not resonate with more discriminating rock fans, which is in part why both companies are cultivating new brands that can be promoted.

U.S. analysts had flagged atomic data on Web site

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 18:32:21 PST

By William Broad
The New York Times

Published: November 4, 2006, 11:07 AM PST

Two weeks before the government shut down a Web site holding an archive of Iraqi documents captured during the war, scientists at an American weapons laboratory complained that papers on the site contained sensitive nuclear information, federal officials said yesterday. Two documents were quickly removed.

The Bush administration set up the Web site last March at the urging of Congressional Republicans, who said giving public access to materials from the 48,000 boxes of documents found in Iraq could increase the understanding of the danger posed by Saddam Hussein.

But among the documents posted were roughly a dozen that nuclear weapons experts said constituted a basic guide to building an atom bomb. They were accounts of Hussein's nuclear program, which United Nations inspectors dismantled after the 1991 Persian Gulf war.

The site was shut down on Thursday night after The New York Times asked questions about the disclosure of nuclear information and complaints that experts had raised. Yesterday, federal officials said they were conducting a review to understand better how and when the warnings had originated and how the bureaucracy had responded.

The House Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi of California, called the posting of the weapons information "a serious security breach," and other Democrats called for an investigation. The Republican congressman who had led the campaign for the creation of the Web site, Peter Hoekstra of Michigan, questioned whether the government had received any serious warnings about the site, and said he had always stressed the need to "take whatever steps necessary to withhold sensitive documents."

The complaints two weeks ago by the American weapons scientists, as outlined by federal officials yesterday, indicated for the first time that warnings about the site had come from the government's arms experts, as well as from international weapons inspectors.

A senior federal official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, said scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California last month had protested some of the weapons papers on the site to the National Nuclear Security Administration, an arm of the Department of Energy that runs the nation's nuclear arms laboratories. The objections "never perked up to senior management," the official said. "They stayed at the midlevels."

Managers at the security administration passed the warning to their counterparts at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversaw the Web site, the official said. As a result, a nuclear weapons expert said, the government pulled two nuclear papers from the Web site last month. He said the dangers of the documents had been recognized at Livermore and in the wider community of government arms experts. "Those two documents were on everybody's list," he said.

The first known protest about the site came last April, when United Nations weapons inspectors lodged an objection with the United States mission to the United Nations over a chemical weapons document, diplomats said. It was removed. After the site started posting nuclear documents in September, concern arose among United Nations weapons inspectors in Vienna and New York.

Earlier this week, two European diplomats said that weapons experts at the International Atomic Energy Agency concluded that they should warn the United States government of the dangers of posting the documents. They said that Olli J. Heinonen, head of safeguards at the agency, conveyed those concerns last week to the American ambassador to the agency, Gregory L. Schulte.

But Matthew Boland, Schulte's spokesman, said yesterday that the ambassador had received no warnings. Asked about that, one of the two European diplomats raised questions about whether Heinonen had followed through. Even so, intelligence officials in Washington said they were exploring whether the government had received warnings from United Nations inspectors.

An official of National Nuclear Security Administration said his agency would review the documents. To the best of his knowledge, he added, none of them had been reviewed by his agency, which is the government's expert on nuclear secrets.

Woz highlights celebration of Apple's history

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 19:20:43 PST

By Daniel Terdiman
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: November 5, 2006, 10:20 AM PST

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--If there's one machine that more than other shaped the future of the computer business, it almost surely is the Apple I.

And what do you get when you bring together four of the team,--including Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak--behind that groundbreaking computer? A lovefest.

That's what was on display Saturday at the Computer History Museum here as several hundred longtime Silicon Valley veterans and youngsters alike showed up for a panel discussion called "Apple in the Garage" celebrating Apple's 30th anniversary.

To be sure, that anniversary was really in April, but as part of the ninth annual Vintage Computer Festival, Wozniak, Apple employee No. 6 Randy Wigginton, Apple employee No. 8 Chris Espinosa, and longtime Apple employee and original Macintosh team member Daniel Kottke got together for an afternoon of storytelling about the earliest days of Apple and its seminal computers.

Last year, festival organizers, including Bruce Damer, founder of the DigiBarn computer museum in California's Santa Cruz mountains, celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Homebrew Computer Club. Wozniak appeared at the event as well, and to some, Saturday's event was a suitable bookend for a historical look back at the birth of personal computing.

And on Saturday, many of those in attendance were happy just to hear the four panelists tell stories about the creation of the Apple I in 1976, and its successor, the Apple II in 1977.

"We thought it would be a shame if we didn't have a birthday party for Apple with a cake," Damer said at the beginning of the discussion. And indeed, he had brought along a birthday cake adorned with a digital print of Apple's original logo.

But before anyone could eat the cake, the panelists took the audience down a memory lane of poignant Apple history.

Espinosa, for example, recalled how he had begun working for Apple while still in high school, and that he still counts himself lucky--he still works at Apple today--to have gotten to work alongside such technology luminaries.

"It was really interesting being 14 and 15 years old and having my hobby being hanging out with guys who were" changing the face of technology, Espinosa said. "I didn't really know that this wasn't the way 14-year-olds spent their high school year."

Apple's roots
Kottke recalled how he had become friends with Steve Jobs--who was not present at Saturday's event to the dismay of some in attendance--when both were college students at Reed College in Portland, Ore. He said the two had bonded over Eastern philosophies and that Jobs had not talked about his computer work.

But upon being invited to Silicon Valley, Kottke said he visited Jobs' house--the home of the famous garage where Jobs and Wozniak started Apple--and the first thing he found was Jobs' sister watching "The Gong Show" on TV and plugging chips into Apple Is.

Wozniak said that the early Apple team didn't have a telephone, and that Jobs was essentially running the entire business form his bedroom.

"It was a nice, warm place to meet people," Wozniak said of the Jobs' garage.

Wigginton remembered that in those days, many of today's computer industry luminaries hung out at the Homebrew Computer Club because it was a way to have access to working computers.

"Nobody could afford their own computer," Wigginton said. "It's amazing to me that owning your own computer was considered impossible."

For his part, Espinsoa joked about why he had gone to work for Apple rather than for another computer company.

"Scott Computer was too far away to work because I only had a bicycle," Espinosa said. "So Apple was much better for me because it was much closer."

He also said that when Apple began working on the Apple II, the team got its own building, though it didn't have any furniture beyond some telephones.

"When you're in a building with nothing but telephones and Steve Wozniak," Espinosa said, alluding to Wozniak's storied history building blue boxes, "you know you're going to have some fun."

But he also said the carpeting in the building was a constant source of static electricity, and that anytime someone was walking over the carpet and touched an open Apple II case, "you fried the keyboard chip."

"So we spent an incredible amount of time," Espinosa said, "replacing keyboard chips."

Before co-founding Apple, Wozniak was working for Hewlett-Packard, and he said that in order to protect himself from claims by HP that he was profiting off work that the computer giant owned, he got the company's legal team to run the Apple I plans by every department. They all turned the project down, he said.

And while HP was interested in the machine, Wozniak said that ultimately, the company was afraid it wasn't polished enough to be an HP computer. Later, he added that if HP had wanted it, it probably would have been a commercial failure and might have set the personal computer business back significantly.

In the early days, Apple was putting software on cassettes, but that the company didn't have automated tape duplication machines.

So, someone rigged up a system in which a rack of Panasonic tape machines were linked together off an Apple II and in order to copy as many tapes at a time as possible, the team would have to simultaneously press play and record on all the tape machines and hit the return key on the Apple II to begin the process.

"Any time someone would come in and talk about something like a $25 million Bank of America credit line," Espinosa said, an Apple employee might have to "stop the meeting and go over and switch out the cassettes and put in new ones and then come back and say, 'So what were we talking about?' That's the kind of place it was."

But of course, Apple is now one of the most important technology companies in the world, and its hallmark, despite Wozniak's long-ago departure, is elegant design. And he hopes to lay claim to that legacy.

"I don't want credit for designing the first (personal) computer," Wozniak said. "I just want credit for designing the first good one. (And for) publicizing the fact that a computer could be attractive."

Web tool splices filmmakers' global divide

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 20:39:14 PST

By Stefanie Olsen
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: November 3, 2006, 4:00 AM PST

Behind the making of the upcoming animated film "Happy Feet" is a tale of two film producers struggling to work together from different continents.

Like most global team efforts, the story features off-hour conference calls and a lot of e-mail trickling in overnight. But for a small digital-effects house like San Francisco's Giant Killer Robots, it also meant sending large, bandwith-hogging digital video files to the director's company, Animal Logic, in Sydney, Australia.

That's not an easy task when you're a little company that can't afford fiber-optic lines into the office. But if an innovative joint university-government project pans out, global movie-making teams like the one behind "Happy Feet"--due in theaters Nov. 17--could have an easier time getting their jobs done.

A small group of engineers in San Francisco is developing a Web browsing tool for use over a high-speed fiber network that would allow animation and film producers to co-produce a movie in real time. The application, called Sebastian, would work over a dedicated, point-to-point Internet connection, or so-called dedicated light paths, and would let remotely located artists accomplish tasks like marking up frames, editing video and changing color palates as if they were in the same room.

It would make a huge difference to smaller outfits like Giant Killer Robots. When the two "Happy Feet" teams were collaborating over broadband from different time zones, using a QuickTime video editing tool called CineSync, the video clips were more like watching a YouTube clip than a high-resolution wide-screen shot, which made it hard for the director to form an educated opinion on the fly. That sometimes painful process, suffice to say, slowed the movie-making process.

"It's a two-cans-and-a-string-in-between-them kind of problem. You're really trying to break down the walls of globalization. And it all depends on really wide pipe," said Pete Oberdorfer, co-owner of Giant Killer Robots.

Sebastian is under development at the Digital Sister Cities lab, a research and development team that's part of San Francisco-based Digital Sister Cities Initiative (DSCI). DSCI is focused on connecting cities and promoting economic development through advanced technologies.

One of the major goals of the organization is to get high-speed fiber connections beyond universities and big companies--right now about the only entities that can afford them. By first working with data-intensive businesses like movie outfits, DSCI hopes to begin seeding a market and sparking demand that will eventually convince big telecommunications companies to decrease their sometimes dizzyingly high fiber-line rates.

In other words, build the market, and just maybe the carriers will come. Of course, it won't be easy, but DSCI researchers see their project in two parts: First, give filmmakers the tools to collaborate remotely. Second, and likely more difficult, give them the high-speed network to make real-time collaboration possible.

Companies such as Cisco Systems and Lucasfilm's Industrial Light & Magic "can burn thousands of dollars to create infrastructure themselves," Oberdorfer said. "Companies (like ours) don't have that option. As this progresses, we see it scaling so that anyone can get access to it."

A key to this project is the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC), which operates the state's high-speed fiber network for education and research purposes.

Since DSCI has access to the network, Sebastian's developers can work on it in a high-speed environment. For companies to participate in the Sebastian development process, however, they also need access to a fiber-optic network. That's where's CENIC comes in. Sebastian's core team hopes to extend the network to small production houses, have them come to a California university campus to try it out, or acquire their own fiber network.

Fiber doesn't come cheap

There's little question that fiber connections are making modern movie making easier.

For example, Lucasfilm's San Francisco office has a 10-gigabit-per-second fiber network, which they use on some movie making projects, according to Joaquin Alvarado, director of DSCI. Of course, the studio behind the "Star Wars" movies isn't exactly a little company, and therein lies the challenge--getting small outfits access to fiber.

That's a problem, because it isn't cheap. Large telecommunications carriers typically charge between $15,000 and $20,000 per month for these services.

Michael Mages, former lead developer of Apple Computer's Final Cut Pro, is heading up the development of Sebastian, which is named after one of Mages' favorite musicians, John Sebastian.

"We're developing a product to enable the next-generation Internet...That's available in a research capacity right now, but we have early access to it, so we can build one of the first working tools for creative professionals," Mages said.

Alvarado said he believes that DSCI needs to develop compelling applications for business collaboration. Hence, the work with filmmakers.

"Filmmakers want to collaborate with people directly, and either you buy a dedicated line, which is mostly not accessible to low and mid-level production houses, or you don't. We're going to build a ubiquitous tool that's inexpensive, runs on standard platforms and allows people to preview video and film content remotely and interactive with each other," Alvarado said.

Sebastian will work like a Mosaic or Safari browser with a secure IP connection, according to Mages. The tool might offer the user a selection of production houses to link to from a list of menu options, and then once selected, it would connect the two companies in real time, with about an eighth of a second latency, Mages said.

An editor in San Francisco, for example, might select a video clip for review, and the director in Paris, could mark it up with suggestions. The two sides will also be able to talk over separate pipes designated for voice conferencing and over-the-shoulder video conferencing. With the tool, producers can also record the connected session for later review. Sebastian's player engine will support the film-editing tools Apple Final Cut Pro and QuickTime.

Mages said the lab plans to complete a prototype within the next year, developing it in partnership with production houses from San Francisco and international cities like Paris. Ultimately, he said, DSCI hopes to license the technology or sell it as software for around $149.

So far, several film and animation producers in San Francisco have agreed in principle to test the software. Giant Killer Robots' Oberdorfer said he hopes to eventually work with the technology. Wild Brain, another San Francisco digital-effects company, said it is in preliminary discussions with DSCI about using the technology, according to company representative. And according to Alvarado, engineers from Lucasfilm and several animation companies in Paris have signed on to the project.

"This is our pilot project," Alvarado said of Sebastian. "Our focus is this network and what kind of intellectual property we can build on top of this that incubates the students' and the city's relationship with all these other tech centers and companies. It's the next level of globalization."

MySpace to launch in Japan with Softbank

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Sun, 05 Nov 2006 22:22:07 PST

By Reuters

Published: November 5, 2006, 7:20 PM PST

News Corp.'s MySpace.com online service will be launched in Japan in a joint venture with Japanese Internet and telecoms group Softbank, the Nihon Keizai business daily reported on Monday. The 50-50 venture, to be called MySpace Japan, will first offer services for personal computers and later allow users to post photos and write blogs via cell phones, the paper said.

The firms are expected to announce the deal as early as this week after a meeting between News Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch and Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son, it said. A Softbank spokesman declined to comment on the report.

Microsoft to patch critical Windows, Office flaws

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 02:20:54 PDT

By Dawn Kawamoto
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: October 5, 2006, 2:57 PM PDT

Microsoft plans to issue nearly a dozen security patches on Tuesday, including critical fixes for Windows and Office.

The company will release six updates for the operating system and four for the office suite, according an advance notice sent out Thursday by the software giant. Some of the patches will be deemed "critical," the company's highest severity rating. The company also plans to send out a security bulletin for Microsoft .Net that will be tagged moderate, it said.

The updates, part of Microsoft's regularly scheduled monthly patch cycle, come after sample attack code has surfaced for vulnerabilities in the Windows Shell component of the operating system. Those flaws could enable attackers to use a Web site to load malicious software onto systems.

The past few weeks have seen the arrival of third-party patches for the Windows Shell problem. The Zeroday Emergency Response Team, or ZERT, delivered its own fix, aiming to help people protect their PCs until Microsoft issued an official update. In addition, security company Determina provided an outside patch for the same issue.

Microsoft has said it will provide a patch for the Windows Shell vulnerability in its October bunch of bulletins. It is expected to announce more details regarding the flaws once the patches are released next week.

In September, the company delivered a critical fix for Office, one of three security bulletins in that monthly patch cycle.

Torpark v1.5.0.7

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 19:33:29 PDT

Ada senjata baru untuk surfing internet dengan aman tanpa meninggalkan jejak. Beritanya aku dapat dari rubrik 'Digital Internet' Koran Tempo hari ini. Software tersebut bernama Torpark. Dijelaskan bahwa Browser Torpark diciptakan oleh Steve Topletz dan release perdananya adalah tanggal 19 September lalu.

Kalau boleh dibilang sih software ini tidak bisa di sebut Browser. Kenapa? Karena yang aku lihat dia tidak berupa suatu software yang utuh tetapi ternyata disandingkan dengan Mozilla fire fox, bisa juga disebut plugin. Sewaktu aku install di komputer ternyata Firefox yang selama ini selalu menemaniku tidak bisa disandingkan dengan Firefox bawaannya Torpark. Akhirnya ketahuan juga penyakitnya. Ternyata Firefox ku adalah versi desktop sementara Firefox bawaan torpark adalah versi Portable Edition.

Tapi selain itu memang sewaktu Torpark aku jalankan ada beberapa tahapan sebelum firefoxnya muncul. Jadi sewaktu loading tidak serta merta firefox muncul seperti pada browser biasa. Ternyata pada waktu Torpark dijalankan, dia akan menciptakan sebuah koneksi yang ter-encript ke jaringan TOR. TOR sendiri adalah singkatan dari The Onion Router yaitu suatu program yang memungkinkan penggunanya untuk berkomunikasi secara anonim di internet.

Jadi sekarang kita tidak perlu khawatir jejak-jejak penjelajahan kita di dunia maya bisa terendus oleh oknum yang tidak bertanggung jawab. Disebutkan di situs resminya, apabila menggunakan Torpark sewaktu kita menjelajah internet, IP kita akan berubah-ubah setiap menit sesuai data yang dipasok oleh jaringan TOR. Untuk membuktikannya kita bisa mencoba lewat situs yang menyediakan layanan pembacaan IP seperti di www.whatismyip.com . Akan terlihat apabila setelah sekian lama direfresh alamat IP kita akan berubah dengan sendirinya. Bisa saja IP saya yang di indonesia setelah beberapa menit akan berubah menjadi IP negara nun jauh di sana semisal Afrika Selatan. Saya sertakan screenshot.Torpark ketika pertama kali dijalankan.

Ada kelemahan yang sangat kentara apabila kita menggunakan Torpark. Kinerja browser kita akan terasa melambat. Ini disebabkan karena sebelum surfing di internet kita harus melewati dulu jaringan TOR. Tetapi jangan khawatir apabila kita tidak sedang ingin menggunakan Torpark, kita bisa menonaktifkannya sementara lewat tombol yang ada di browser firefox.

Untuk lebih jelasnya bisa dilihat langsung di situs resminya di http://torpark.nfshost.com/.

IBM deal could mean smarter cars, better drivers

noreply@blogger.com (andirst) — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 18:58:39 PDT

By Candace Lombardi
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: September 14, 2006, 2:13 PM PDT

IBM will help design software that could lead to self-adjusting headlights on cars and sensors that help avert crashes, as part of a deal signed Wednesday.

Big Blue will design and develop software and handle intellectual property management in a five-year deal with Magna Electronics, an auto electronics division of Canada-based Magna International, that has already begun developing "smart" car parts. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"Magna Electronics' partnership (with IBM) will be growing and enhancing the capability that we already have. It puts us on a different playing field," said Tracy Fuerst, a spokeswoman for Magna International.

Neither company would comment on specific products. But, Bernie Meyerson, the chief technology officer for IBM Systems Technology, did say that the collaboration could produce things like embedded sensors and cameras that would slow down a car approaching a stop sign if a driver does not react in time. Another system placed inside a car could tell when a driver is drifting off to sleep and sound an alarm, or emit an evergreen scent, to wake him. "Intelligent headlights" could adjust depending on lighting and weather conditions, said Meyerson.

According to one analyst, this deal will create multiple business opportunities for IBM. Whether it's hardware, software, storage, operations or management services, IBM will be able to become a supplier for these kinds of channels to the automotive industry, said Jonathan Eunice, president and principal analyst for Illuminata.

Meyerson said that the collaboration will incorporate the Unstructured Information Management Architecture (UIMA) technology that IBM unveiled in 2003. In this case, the UIMA technology would retrieve real-time data, including a car's speed, the speed of the car in front of it, traffic patterns and the average speed of multiple cars on a particular road. That data could then be used to regulate the car's driving patterns.

Having a car organize all that information and then respond to it accordingly is extremely complex, said Meyerson. It requires several software and hardware components in the car to work together seamlessly.

"To put it in the simplest terms, you need a computer that takes care of itself," said Meyerson. "It becomes like the human body. You don't act to make your heart beat. You don't act to make your immune system fight off bacteria. That level of autonomic function has not gotten there yet" for cars, said Meyerson.

Eunice said that politicians and technology companies like to put forth grand visions of car autonomy, safety and convenience to gain support for technology that is complicated and tedious to explain otherwise. Most likely, said Eunice, you will see such advancements in government and commercial vehicles first.

"We expect these to eventually be pervasive like seatbelts and antilock breaks. But it takes decades to happen," Eunice said. "It does require quite a long time to develop and the progress happens somewhat fitfully."