Discovering the Uniqueness of 3 Dimensional Scanner at UTM

Johor Bahru, 13^th January:  Local crime technology is now moving into an era of advancedtechnologies as well as requiring the renewal of the forensic investigation.

Pertaining to this matter Forensic Department, Faculty of Sciences in collaboration withAtama Tech Sdn. Bhd. was organising a seminar relating to 3D Laser Scanning in ForensicApplication.

The 3D Laser Scanning in Forensic Application in Malaysia seminar was held at UTM JohorBahru campus has also featured a FARO 3 Dimensional laser scanner brands that can revolutionizeforensic investigation techniques in the future.

Technically, this German-made scanner is able to allow forensic experts to 'return' to thelocation of crime in the state of origin to obtain critical information that may be related to the caseshandled since the data has been collected in 3D. Scene reconstruction can be made and modeled using specific 3D software.

With FARO Photon 3D Laser Scanner, every data obtained are documented in the form of a ‘Digital Fingerprint’ of the scene as well as preserving the evidence of crime and scene of the crimefrom being destroyed.

3D Laser scanning technology has been widely used by law enforcement agencies including International Investigation Bodies in documenting crime scenes in a three dimensional way

Authorities such as police and other agencies of law enforcement in Malaysia has longadopted the technology and implement it every time an investigation takes place. Unfortunately there are still weaknesses.

“In case of any new development happened during a court case for example, this 3D Laser scanning method can be used to analyze post-events data that resulted from explosion, blasts, fire, structural or mechanical failure, air catastrophe and traffic accidents”, said Christian Smilinski, Technical Representative of  FARO Technologies Inc, Singapore.

The seminar was held on January 13^th, 2011 at Ibnu Sina Institute and was attended by the representatives from the Fire and Rescue Department, Royal Malaysia Police and other government enforcement agencies.

Also giving speech were Prof. Dr. A. Rahim Yaacob from the Forensic Department, Faculty of Science and Soh Song Chaw, the Southern Branch President of Malaysia Chemist Institute.

UTHM Introduces UCiTV for Students' Convenience

BATU PAHAT, 25 Julai (Bernama) -- Universiti Tun Hussein Onn (UTHM) mempunyai kaedah unik bagi memastikan syarahan dan hasil kerja pensyarah serta perundingnya dapat digunakan oleh penuntut universiti itu sepanjang masa secara maya.

Bagi memastikan ia mencapai matlamat itu, universiti sejak dua tahun lepas telah mewujudkan University Campus Interactive Television (UCiTV) bagi kemudahan penuntutnya.Ketua UCiTV Mohd Nor Ihkasan berkata, penuntut dan masyarakat dapat mengikuti syarahan dan hasil kerja pensyarah serta perundingnya yang telah dimasukkan dan diarkib ke laman web UCiTV."Penuntut boleh mengakses pelbagai syarahan dan hasil kerja pensyarah serta perunding bagi kepentingan ilmiah penuntut. Ia memastikan hasil kerja tenaga pengajar itu tidak membazir," katanya kepada Bernama di sini, pada Ahad.Beliau berkata demikian selepas majlis perasmian UCiTV sempena dengan perasmian program mengenang Tokoh Negarawan Allahyarham Tun Hussein Onn oleh Menteri Penerangan Komunikasi dan Kebudayaan Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim.Menurut Mohd Nor, sejak diwujudkan dua tahun lepas UCiTV yang boleh dilayari di alamat ucitv.uthm.edu.my telah mendapat sambutan yang menggalakkan daripada penuntut dan masyarakat.Sehingga kini katanya, kira-kira 300,000 pelawat dari 86 negara seluruh dunia telah melayari laman web UCiTV.UCiTV menggunakan teknologi "Windows-based IPTV" bagi memastikan imej yang dihasilkan berkualiti tinggi, kata beliau.Beliau juga berkata, memandangkan UTHM turut mempunyai pelajar asing yang ramai daripada 20 negara, UCiTV turut memberi peluang kepada keluarga mereka untuk mengikuti pelbagai perkembangan di universiti berkenaan.Mohd Nor berkata, UCiTV yang hanya mempunyai enam kakitangan tetap dan empat pinjaman bersedia bekerjasama dengan agensi kerajaan dan universiti tempatan lain di dalam mengembangkan teknologi dan kemudahan UCiTV.

Keeping up with IT

The world today is indeed borderless, thanks to breakthrough discoveries in Information Technology. We can share virtually anything from one end of the world to the other, from lecture notes, to the latest movie reviews, and unfortunately even our personal data. Experts from academia and MSC Malaysia Status Companies converged at Monash University Sunway campus in conjunction with the MSC Malaysia’s 3rd Research and Development (R&D) Series and IP Connect 2010. Head of School of Information Technology Prof Chris Messom welcomed the delegates saying: "This was an excellent opportunity for industry and academia to meet and share research that will lead to commercialisation" The yearly event themed ‘How Vulnerable Are You?’, was organised by the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) under its MSC Malaysia R&D initiatives and geared towards fostering closer collaboration between industry and academia.

Ms Pak Mei Yuet the Head of Technology Policy and Research of MDeC, highlighted emerging security issues saying: “As responsible Internet users, we have to be more vigilant with what we share with others, as people with malicious intents are always one step ahead.” Where social technology used to be impersonal and random, now it is all about relationships and loyalty, which is obtainable by observing communities and how an individual’s choices are heavily influenced by those around them. “People, not keywords are at the centre of our search strategy,” said Deputy Head of School of Information Technology, Dr Saadat M Alhashmi, during his talk ‘Next Generation Browsing with Personalised Search Engines’. “We trust what our friends and family like, so once personalised, search engines and advertisers will focus on this influence and customise our searches to include results that were ‘liked’ previously by those close to us,” Dr Saadat explained. Noting that the ‘one size fits all’ concept of search engines is gone, Dr Saadat believes that understanding individuals and their behaviours will be the way forward. “By just being in an online community, advertisements and even News sites are also highly customised to match the individual’s needs and status, without being intrusive,” he added. However, right behind these remarkable advancements, creeps the uncertainty of safety and legal issues that hamper our confidence in these ideal technologies. Mr Deepak Pillai, lawyer and law expert from Haryati Deepak Advocates & Solicitors, provided new insights to the dark side of Information Technology in his talk ‘New Technologies and the Legal Challenges They Pose’. “The law will always play catch-up to Information Technology,” Mr Deepak said, of the rapid evolution of Information technology and likewise, the mushrooming of computer crimes. Computer crimes such as online fraud, identity theft, hacking, phishing, and spamming are a global threat, “so it is a crucial time to call for cooperation between countries, as the perpetrator could be spamming Malaysians from the other side of the world,” Mr Deepak explained. “Malaysian cyberlaws are revised from time to time, and the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 will also be enforced,” he said. Users, too, must play their part. Other than not sharing our personal data online, Mr Deepak stressed that “we must also be aware of our personal settings on social sites and know the cyberlaws in whichever country we are in, and how they may serve to protect us.

Universiti Sains Malaysia: USE TECHNOLOGY TO SEEK KNOWLEDGE

Penang, 31 May: Developments in communications and information technology have brought about changes to society and university students, specifically those in distance education. This group of people should use technology in seeking knowledge.

According to the Acting Vice-Chancellor of USM, Assoc. Prof. Omar bin Osman, technological developments have created societies that are information-based that will enable them to compete globally.

“However, all knowledge available at the finger tips will not be of use if students do not strive to master the technology. The ability to master technology such as the Internet will give students the competitive edge and ensure that they are not left behind in their pursuit of knowledge,” he said at the Distance Education Students Welcoming Ceremony in conjunction with the Distance Education Orientation Week from 28 May to 1 June 2007.



He said that USM has taken the initiative to enhance the e-Learning portal of the School of Education, USM, hence, students are able to attend video conferencing sessions anywhere.

“Commencing this Academic Session, students who face difficulty in attending lectures at the district centres of the School of Distance Education can follow the video conference and download lecture videos if they have Internet lines.”


“Based on the study related to the initiative and feedback from students, we believe that this will greatly benefit students. We are also looking into the technology that will enable students to interact with their lecturers during video sessions which we hope to implement in the near future,” he said.




Through the School of Distance Education e-Learning portal, students can access additional notes, assignment questions, sel-access learning modules and others available at http://el.usm.my/pppjj/.

For the 2007/2008 Academic Session, 1,732 students from all over the country will pursue their Bachelor of Arts [Humanities], Bachelor of Social Sciences, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Management degrees.

From this total, 53 students will undergo the orientation programme at Maktab Sabah, Kota Kinabalu from 5 June and 74 students will undergo this progmme at the Kolej Datu Patinggi Abang Hj. Abdillah, Petra Jaya, Sarawak.

USM also accepted 26 senior citizens and 32 students with different abilities.

Universiti Malaysia Perlis Secures and Optimizes Web Experience for 8,500 Users with Blue Coat ProxySG Appliances

SUNNYVALE, Calif., November 16, 2010 – Blue Coat Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: BCSI), the technology leader in Application Delivery Networking, today announced that Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP), one of Malaysia’s top engineering universities, has deployed Blue Coat^® ProxySG^® appliances with Blue Coat WebFilter to secure and optimize the Web experience for 8,500 users. With the Blue Coat ProxySG appliances, UniMAP can define flexible Web access policies while mitigating the impact of bandwidth-intensive, rich-media applications such as video, resulting in lower management costs, improved application performance and greater Web security.

“We need to protect our users from Web threats and other malicious content while providing optimal application performance and readily available Internet access across our distributed campus,” said Hj Nasrudin Abd Shukor, director of the Information Communication and Technology Center at UniMAP. “The Blue Coat products meet the high expectations of our community of academics, students and administrators and allow me to utilize my staff more efficiently, giving me peace of mind.”

UniMAP deployed the solution across its campuses in three days and can now easily define and alter policies based on users, content, groups and times of day with the ProxySG appliances. With the ability to categorize every URL into up to four categories, WebFilter gives UniMAP the granular visibility into Web content that allows it to create flexible access policies without overblocking content. 

Additionally, WebFilter is supported by the cloud-based Blue Coat WebPulse™ service, which rates new content in real-time and immediately applies definedpolicies, freeing IT security officers to focus on more strategic objectives. The WebPulse service provides on-demand security intelligence based on real-time URL requests from 70 million users worldwide to quickly identify new Web content, including malware and other malicious content. The discovery of malware by one user immediately protects all users, providing UniMAP with greater security than it would have on its own.

In addition to providing flexible control of Web content and a first line of defense against malware, the ProxySG appliances are uniquely adept at managing video traffic. Advanced functionality, including stream splitting and video caching, minimize the impact of video on the network by reducing the number of video streams that need to be downloaded. By optimizing video traffic, Blue Coat appliances free up bandwidth for other applications and improve the Web experience for all UniMAP users.

“The deployment of the ProxySG appliances has enabled Universiti Malaysia Perlis to get more value out of its network for the benefit of the entire organization,” said Nick Nindra, managing director for ASEAN, Blue Coat Systems. “In keeping malware at bay and recreational applications under control, the University has improved Web performance and security, so university staff and students can take advantage of the latest applications and technologies, including video.”

UniMAP, situated at the northernmost part of the Malaysian peninsula, specialises in electronic-based engineering and has grown from 116 engineering students in 2002, to more than 8,000 today. The university consists of eight engineering schools that offer 27 separate undergraduate programmes, as well as many postgraduate degree options.

UKM to Acquire Latest Technology to be Among the World’s Best University

Sivaselvam
Pics by Mohd Hairul Azmi Jahid

BANGI, 18 July 2011 –UKM has drawn up its ICT Strategic Plan for the period 2011-2015 to be spearheaded by the Information Technology Centre (PTM) as part of its efforts to become a world renowned university.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Student and Alumni Affairs, Prof Ir Dr Othman A. Karim said the latest technology is needed to help spur the university’s principal activities to be on par with other institutions of higher learning on a global scale.

There needed to be comprehensive planning to achieve this, he said when opening PTM’s ICT Day here today.

He is confident that PTM will be able to meet requirements for the latest technology under the Strategic Plan, a blueprint that provides guidance for the implementation of ICT projects in a cost effective way in line with the need for priority to be placed on management and operational requirements within a specified period.

“This Strategic Plan also identifies the initiatives that will be supported by applications systems, technology, human capital development and ICT-based administration in supporting UKM’s mission and vision,” Prof Othman said.

In describing ICT as the driver of UKM’s transformation exercise, Prof. Othman said the level of ICT usage among UKM’s staff and students is high in view of the facilities and services that are being provided.

Even so, he hoped PTM will always seek feedback from the users of its services and look for ways to improve its delivery. He described the ICT Day as one such avenue for feedback and a way to re-evaluate the current technology, study problems that arise and ways to overcome them.

Prof. Othman was proud of the achievements of PTM in providing a wide range of facilities in terms of ICT infrastructure to help nurture research, teaching and learning while ensuring administrative excellence at the university.

Vice-Chancellor Prof Tan Sri Dato’ Wira Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin in her message for the ICT Day said that PTM, as a major service centre at UKM, has improved the quality of its service provisions in a comprehensive manner.

In 2010, PTM was awarded the ISO 9001:2008 certification, which she described as proof that PTM succeeded in meeting its KPI, and she hoped that efforts to build upon this would be continued through control and monitoring mechanisms so that improvement in service quality is achieved more effectively.

PTM Director Associate Prof Dr Mohamad Shanudin Zakaria said the era where ICT was seen as a technical facilitator to overcome the technical issues facing organisations is over. ICT’s primary role now is to develop and provide services that are suited for the world of business, he said.

“This requires intellectual transformation that is geared towards the realisation of a knowledge economy,” he stressed.

“For this purpose, ICT must be regarded as the driver in powering smart partnership and not just focussed on resolving issues in terms of content and hardware.”

Among the exhibitors at the ICT Day are the Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (Mampu), the OSS (Open Source Software) community, the amateur radio community, Telekom Malaysia, Symantec Corp (Malaysia) and Avaya (Malaysia).

   

Unimas to set up two more rural ICT projects

KUCHING: Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) plans to set up two more rural information and communication technology (ICT) projects in the state to help address the rural-urban digital divide.

Dr Alvin Yeo, the deputy dean of the computer science and information technology faculty, said the projects would be similar to eBario, a pilot project started by Unimas in 2001 to provide ICT to an isolated rural community.

"We are getting some funding from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation to get the eBario project to other places," he said.

He added that the locations had not been decided.

He said Unimas was also looking at training staff from other universities to implement the projects.

"They can then become the trainers for other projects and therefore create a domino effect," he told a press conference at an international conference on information technology in Asia here on Tuesday.

Themed "Social Computing: Engaging Communities", the three-day conference was organised by Unimas.

Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr George Chan, who opened the conference, said the state government was implementing some projects to narrow the digital divide and would support the efforts of other parties to tackle the issue.

"Plans to bridge the ditigal divide include increasing computer literacy and general computing skills.

"Also, telecentres will be established and gradually upgraded to become community knowledge centres providing access to e-government applications, e-learning and information resources," he said.