Welcome to the bumper summer issue of InfoTextX – the e-newsletter
from the Knowledge Business Centre at InfoLab21, aimed at keeping you informed
about developments inside InfoLab21 and other news which we hope will be of
interest to you.
If you would like to contribute news items to future editions of InfoTextX
and our new website, or know someone else who would like to receive this InfoTextX
please contact the editor – Amanda Ross - at a.ross@lancaster.ac.uk.
New InfoLab21 Website
The InfoLab21 website has been re-branded and updated to reflect the growing
range of ways that organisations can interact with InfoLab21. The site now
includes a news function and numerous case studies. Previous issues of InfoTextX
will be archived on the site, as well as information and presentations from
InfoLab21 events and a Job Shop.
Let us know what you think of the site and if there are any particular features
you would like to see.
New Job Shop Launched
The KBC has enhanced the Associate Company Scheme with the launch of the Online Job Shop, accessed via the new InfoLab21 website. The Job Shop has been developed to provide companies with direct access to InfoLab21 undergraduates and graduates from the departments of Computing and Communications Systems. It provides direct access to CVs of ICT students seeking part-time and vacation work, ICT related graduates and the facility to post ICT related vacancies. The KBC will help to co-ordinate the release and promotion of adverts through the site and will collate chosen CVs to enable a company to shortlist and interview potential candidates.
For more information see
http://www.infolab21.lancs.ac.uk/courses/jobshop.php
New Arrivals To InfoLab21
The KBC is pleased to welcome the following businesses to InfoLab21:
Intuitive
Intuitive create engaging and innovative web solutions - from web design, interactive animation and mobile solutions to highly complex eCommerce and B2B solutions. As an independent ‘Tier-one’ Internet Service Provider, they offer a comprehensive range of website hosting and Internet services.
15secondTV
15secondTV is a start-up company that creates innovative entertainment products and services for the global digital generation. Their ethos is to be creative in ideas, products and business and they are about to launch their first product, ready to exploit the convergence of media, mobile and internet industries.
Krypton TV
Krypton.tv is a design consultancy who, with partners in Digital TV and Broadband industry, specifies, designs and delivers solutions and provides differentiated products for Terrestrial, Satellite, Cable and IP content delivery for consumers and professional installers.
Kinetic Cubed
This company specialises on economic development, urban regeneration and international trade and investment solutions and has strong commercial partnerships across Europe and East Asia. With a wealth of experience they have a solid base to transfer knowledge an cutting edge thinking across business sectors, markets and disciplines.
Update On The InfoLab21 Graduate Academy
The aim of the InfoLab21 Graduate Academy (IGA) is to raise the capability
of digital industries in the region and enhance the competitive advantage
of the ICT sector by providing graduate capability and access to academic
commercial research derivatives, while also developing mechanisms to support
graduate retention.
IGA graduates may undertake short-term 'placements' in a company for a
period of 2-4 weeks to work closely with staff on a specified project.
For example, www.laddermaster.co.uk was Academy member Michael Maud’s first site for the IGA. Click here to find out more
Alternatively, they may be based in the University working closely with academics or technical staff to develop R&D or solutions on behalf of the clients. IGA graduates will be supported by two experienced team leaders and a project manager. The KBC are currently advertising for more graduates.
If you have a project that may be suitable, or for more information, contact Nick or Colin at the KBC.
Congratuation To Our Certified Ethical Hackers
The first EC-Council Certified Ethical Hacker course ran this week, and we now have 2 Ethical Hackers within InfoLab21 (so watch your backs!). Congratulations to Philippe and Dan from ICT Focus, who worked extremely hard to get the qualification. Although all experts in systems administration & networking, course attendees came from a wide range of institutions - from education, the NHS, the Fire & Rescue Service and Buildign Societies - reflecting the importance of IT infrastructure security to us all. The course is likely to be repeated regularly over the coming year.
InfoLab21’s Escendency Helps Improve Public Services
Escendency.com - a web-based management systems company based in Lancaster
University's InfoLab21 is working in partnership with Lancaster City Council
to transform the way in which it manages its performance. Escendency’s
unique real-time, people-centred, organisational performance management
system is improving effectiveness at LCC making it more open, accessible
and accountable to local people.
Richard Tulej, Head of Lancaster City Council's Corporate
Strategy Service, said
“It was very clear to me that the Escendency Performance Management
system would change the Council's whole approach to monitoring and managing
its performance and is exceeding all our expectations."
The company's customer base has also recently grown significantly with Arun
District Council and Bridgnorth District Council taking up the system.
http://www.infolab21.lancs.ac.uk/courses/jobshop.php
www.escendency.com
Xerox Funds InfoLab21 Research Project
Xerox has funded a research project in InfoLab21 Computing Department as part of Xerox's University Affairs Committee program, which awards grants to leading international universities. Dr. Mark Rouncefield, a Senior Research Fellow in Computing and researcher Dr Simon Kelly's proposal 'technologies of leadership' was one of only ten successful international bids.
InfoLab21 Links With Local Tourism Association
On Thursday 1st June 2006, InfoLab21 was pleased to welcome a visiting group of members of the Lancaster & District Tourism Association. The LDTA is a small association made up of approx 50 members representing Local Attractions, Retail, Accommodation and Restaurants. Paula Higgin, Secretary LDTA, stated “It was very interesting and all the members thoroughly enjoyed the day.”
www.learningtourism.lancs.ac.uk
Japanese Visit
InfoLab21 was visited by- Dr. Shigeki Takeda, Department Manager of the Tokyo Business Dept, Corporate Business Strategy Division of Kyocera Corporation. Dr. Shigeki met with InfoLab21 Heads of Departments as part of an exploratory visit, supported by the NWDA, to build on InfoLab21's extentsive international links.
County Going Stateside
A group of trade experts has jetted into Lancashire to find out how to sell the county in the United States. The officials, who represent the UK Trade and Industry (UKTI) department in cities across the Atlantic, came on a fact-finding mission to pinpoint areas where US firms can invest in the UK and vice versa.
"Lancashire companies have been showcasing the great strengths we have here to us and, when we get back to the States, we will have a real idea of where the strengths are and be able to sell them to firms out there…..Everything we have seen here has impressed us and I believe there is a massive amount we can do to promote investment."
The visit was organised by the North West Development Agency as part of a two-day familiarisation tour of the region. InfoLab21 was noted as a highlight of the tour.
For the full story see: http://www.prestontoday.net/Viewarticle2.aspx?SectionID=74&ArticleID=1575870
Events At InfoLab21
“The Innovators Toolkit”
A Workshop to be held at InfoLab21 on August
3, 2006 at 9.15 a.m to 12.30 p.m.
To announce the establishment of their UK Office in Cumbria IP.com are hosting their first UK, Intellectual Property and Innovation Workshop on August 3, 2006 at InfoLab21. “The Innovators Toolkit” is targeted at SME’s and Organisations responsible for assisting SME’s within their regions. The workshop gives a compact but tailored overview of the ways that innovation is best protected and managed in order to rank amongst the tangible assets of a company and to illustrate just how much more an Enterprise can do itself to minimise the costs associated with the protection of Intellectual Property. For information contact Dr. Ron Jones on 01768 486966, rjones@ip.com and please visit www.ip.com/uk . There is a small charge of £30 + VAT for the Workshop including a Course Manual.
" InfoLab21:Technology Matters"
Room C74, InfoLab21, Lancaster University on September 6th, 2006 at 9.00am to 11.45
Refreshments upon arrival
Presentation 1: ~ IT Systems of the Future: The BT Perspective ~
Presenter: Robin Mannings – Research Foresight Manager: BT Adastral Park Research Centre http://www.btplc.com/Innovation
Information about the event will be featured in the next issue and posted in the new Events section of our website, where you can find dates of all our events and view presentations.
Training Opportunities!
Keeping it real at ICT Focus
RealNetworks have chosen ICT Focus as its North of England venue to
host Real University Helix courses. The first courses will take place
in November, with Helix Content Creation on the 21st followed by Helix
Server Administration on the 22nd. The course fee for each day is £250+VAT.
People interested in attending should contact ICT Focus ictfocus@lancaster.ac.uk
in the first instance.
72 more University-certified IT Professionals in the North-West
A University exam board recently approved awards for 72 IT professionals
working in support roles in schools, colleges, the public sector and
SMEs - with most of them working in the Northwest. The Certificates
cover Network and Systems Engineering and range from an introductory
course to advanced courses or courses that incoporate vendor qualifications
such as Microsoft's MCSE and Cisco's CCNA. All certificates incorporate
a series of study days at InfoLab21 followed by on-line supported learning,
with assessments based on real-life scenarios and work-based reflection.
For details of all courses please see www.lancaster.ac.uk/ictfocus, e-mail ictfocus@lancaster.ac.uk or phone Tracy on 01524 510425
Still The Best In The Northwest
Lancaster University has risen nine places to be ranked 21 (out of 109 institutions listed) in the Times Good University Guide 2006, making Lancaster the highest ranked university in the North West.
http://domino.lancs.ac.uk/info/lunews.nsf/I/8946665778DF1A2B802571850038439B
Opening Up Public Sector Contracts To SMEs
The Supply2.gov.uk Portal was launched by Jim Fitzpatrick, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Department of Trade & Industry on Tuesday 27 June 2006. Supply2.gov.uk is a dynamic new government-backed service designed specifically to give companies easy access to lower-value contract opportunities (typically worth under £100,000) offered by the public sector. This portal brings buyers and suppliers together for the first time and is the first portal of call for lower-value business opportunities.
Web Perils Advise Switch To Macs
Security threats to PCs with Microsoft Windows have increased
so much that computer users should consider using a Mac, says
a leading security firm. Sophos security said that the 10 most
commonly found pieces of malicious software all targeted Windows
machines. In contrast, it said, none of the "malware"
were capable of infecting the Mac OS X operating system.
For full story see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/5150508.stm
The £15m InfoLab21 building was made possible with funding from Lancaster University, the Northwest Development Agency (NWDA), the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).
Project part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund NW Objective 2 Programme 2000-06 NW Knowledge Based Action Plan www.nwua.ac.uk Delivering an Entrepreneurial and Digital Economy in North West Lancs.
For further information on InfoLab21, please see:
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