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Friday, November 28, 2008

Xerox Set to Release Solid Ink MFP -2009

11x17, from BLI...

Xerox is releasing a new MFP based on the solid-ink technology it purchased along with Tektronix in 2000.

From the BLI report,

"...Xerox is readying an A3-class color MFP based on its solid-ink technology as a competitor to 11" x 17" color laser engines and HP’s Edgeline inkjet-based offerings. Pioneered by Oregon State University researchers in the 1980s and commercialized by printer maker Tektronix (Xerox acquired the color printing and imaging division of Tektronix in 2000), solid-ink engines are currently used by Xerox in some A4-class printers and MFPs such as the Phaser 8860 family (which includes the 8860 and the 8860MFP). The technology uses melted ink sticks, as opposed to toner particles or liquid ink, to render an image..."


The technology is good- ease of use in terms of adding "toner", and the Green value with no empty bottles or cartridges.

I wonder if Xerox has figured a way to prevent the color pie chart from melting off your proposal while it sits in the car on a hot summer's day...

Something Completely Different - "Hydropolis"

20,000 Leagues Beneath the Sea - Hydopolis

Currently under construction in Dubai, Hydropolis will be the world's first luxury underwater hotel. It will include three elements: the land station, where guests will be welcomed, the connecting tunnel, which will transport people by train to the main area of the hotel, and the 220 suites within the submarine leisure complex. It is one of the largest contemporary construction projects in the world, covering an area of 260 hectares, about the size of London's Hyde Park.

"Currently under construction in Dubai, Hydropolis will be the world's first luxury underwater hotel."

"Hydropolis is not a project; it's a passion," enthuses Joachim Hauser, the developer and designer of the hotel. His futuristic vision is about to take shape 20m below the surface of the Persian Gulf, just off the Jumeirah Beach coastline in Dubai.

The 220-suite hotel was due to open by the end of 2006 but has experienced delays and is now scheduled to open in 2009. It will incorporate a host of innovations that will take it far beyond the original blueprint for an underwater complex worthy of Jules Verne.

There are only a few locations in the world where such a grandiose dream could be realized. A high proportion of today's architectural marvels are materializing like fanciful mirages from the desert sands. We have come to expect extravagant enterprises to be mounted in the Middle East, and especially in Dubai. "This venture could only be born here in Dubai," says Hauser. "It [has] a very open-minded, international community - and that's what makes it so special."

The land on which Hydropolis is being built belongs to His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai. It was his last free beach property on this stretch of coast. The project is a fantastic one, yet Sheikh Mohammed's success record with comparable schemes instils confidence that science fiction can become fact. With his support, several companies have been formed to kick-start this phenomenal project, and around 150 firms are currently involved.

"There have been many visions of colonising the sea – Jules Verne, Jean Gusto and several Japanese architects – but no one has ever managed to realise this dream," says Hauser. "That was the most challenging factor, and that's what makes it so fascinating. Despite being a dream of mankind for centuries, nobody has ever been able to make living underwater possible."


UNDERWATER HOTEL DESIGN

The original idea for Hydropolis developed out of Hauser's passion for water and the sea, and goes much deeper than just building a hotel underwater. More than just curiosity, it is a commitment to a more far-reaching philosophy. "Once you start digging deeper and deeper into the subject, you can't help being fascinated and you start caring about all the associated issues," he explains. "Humans consist of 80% water, the earth consists of 80% water; without water there is no life."

Hydropolis reproduces the human organism in an architectural design. There is a direct analogy between the physiology of man and the architecture. The geometrical element is a figure eight lying on its side and inscribed in a circle. The spaces created in the basin will contain function areas, such as restaurants, bars, meeting rooms and theme suites. These can be compared to the components of the human organism: the motor functions and the nervous and cardiovascular systems, with the central sinus knot representing the pulse of all life.

The ballroom, located at this nerve centre, will have asymmetrical pathways connecting the different storeys along ramps. A large, petal-like retracting roof will enable the staging of open-sky events. Staircases, lifts and ramps will provide access to the ballroom, while flanking catering areas will supply banquets and receptions.


HYDROPOLIS LAND STATION

In order to enter this surreal space, visitors will begin at the land station. This 120m woven, semicircular cylinder will arch over a multi-storey building. On the lowest level passengers board a noiseless train propelled by fully automated cable along a modular, self-supporting steel guideway to Hydropolis. A just-in-time and on-demand logistical system will facilitate efficient supply of goods to the hotel.

The upper storeys of the land station house a variety of facilities, including a cosmetic surgery clinic, a marine biological research laboratory and conference facilities. On the lower levels are the staff rooms, goods storage and loading areas, and hotel and parking areas.

The land station also includes a restaurant and high-tech cinema screening the evolution of life in the ocean and the history of underwater architecture. As a finale, the screen will open to reveal the real-life Hydropolis. A viewing platform at the front opening of the spanning roof will allow views of the architecture as well as the light shows of Hydropolis.

MARINE ARCHITECTURE

This structure promises to be a conceptual as well as a physical landmark. While human beings accept the existence of water, we have only a superficial appreciation of its significance. "We waste it, go swimming in it and generally take it for granted," says Hauser. "Humans could actually live self-sufficiently underwater, generating energy, nurturing food supplies and so on. This is why we are starting a foundation to demonstrate something of the importance of water in our lives.

"My general plan was to create a living space in the sea. My initial proposal was a deep-sea project, which looked very different. I had to adjust to the local reality of the natural surroundings and change to a shallow-water construction.

"We want to create the first ever faculty for marine architecture because I believe that the future lies in the sea, including the future of city planning. I am certain that one day a whole city will be built in the sea. Our aim is to lay the first mosaic by colonising the sea."

Hauser plans to incorporate many different elements associated with the sea. The cosmetics will be ocean-based, the cinemas will screen films that focus on aquatic themes and a children's seaworld will educate as well as entertain.


He views his creation as a place where those who do not dive – or do not even swim – can experience the tranquillity and inspiration of the underwater world. "We are expecting around 3,000 visitors a day in addition to the hotel guests. The aim is to inspire people to develop a new awareness of the sea."

As well as emphasising the positive aspects of water, Hauser also believes we are systematically destroying marine life, and thus wishes to draw attention to various dangers and problems, such as the loss of algae and the destruction of the coral reefs.


Article here.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Copier Sales Training - Role Playing


2008

Ring...ring...


Have a great T-Giving!

I saw this on the Caskey Site and it is funny.

One of the most favorite sales training activities ever...RolePlaying...enjoy



Tuesday, November 25, 2008

HCL Technologies Hosts Over 500 of the Top Minds

HCL - Unstructure 2008, "...an annual compendium of thoughts..."

I posted earlier about the HCL/Xerox partnership, and managed print services. The following is a rather long press release regarding HCL's annual meeting.

The speaker list is impressive and the goals of the get together capacious. The overall theme is Green, Sustainability and the Global Economic landscape.

Press release

ORLANDO, FL -- (Marketwire) -- 11/25/08 -- More than 500 of the top business minds in the world discussed, debated and collaborated in Orlando last week about how to engage in a successful, sustainable, environmentally conscious business in the wake of the current global economic slowdown as HCL Technologies Ltd.(HCL) hosted its fourth-annual Global Customer Meet. Dubbed Unstructure 2008, the concept is an annual compendium of thoughts compiled from both the physical event and an online forum (www.unstructure.org) where participants have and will continue to exchange action-oriented ideas.

"The global economic slowdown has taken center stage and our physicalenvironment continues to deteriorate as businesses face the most challenging times since the Great Depression," said HCL CEO Vineet Nayar."We were fortunate at Unstructure this year to have high quality conversations to generate positive action that will help organizations and practitioners to reinvent their strategies for sustaining growth while also playing a significant role in saving our environment."

Highlighting HCL's global customer meet this year was a keynote address byformer U.S. Vice President Al Gore, who received the 2007 Nobel Prize for Peace for his efforts to enlighten the world community about the effects of global warming. During his address titled, "Thinking Green - Economic Strategy for the 21st Century," Gore hailed U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama for his support for the Green movement and told those in attendance that environmentally sound practices, once thought to be a draw on the bottom line, are today viewed not only as economically sound, but also as a necessity for sustainability of businesses.

In closing, Gore noted that in the future, our children will look back on the first years of this century and either say "what were you thinking, why didn't you act," or, "how did you find the courage to rise up and solve the problem?" "I hope they say the latter," he closed. "We have everything we need to solve this problem except political will but political will is a renewable resource."

Gore's keynote underscored HCL's larger Go Green! Initiative, which was omnipresent at Unstructure. In addition to the green-focused keynote, HCL made Unstructure both a paper-free and carbon-neutral event, the latter accomplished by purchasing carbon offsets from Carbonfund.org to compensate for the estimated 1,500 metric tons of carbon emissions that would be emitted by guests and HCL employees in attendance. HCL also arranged to plant 650 oak trees -- roughly one for each guest and HCLite in attendance-- on 2.8 acres of land in the Western Himalayas to help sustain the natural habitat of the oak silk worm, whose open-ended cocoons become "FreeSilk" -- meaning it was harvested after the moths had abandoned their cocoons -- which was used to create the hand-crafted silk scarves that were presented to attendees as gifts.

In addition to Gore's discussion, Unstructure participants listened to keynote addresses by Xerox Chairman and CEO Anne Mulcahy, and world-renowned author and Management Educator Gary Hamel. In her address, "Sustainability: A New Business Paradigm," Mulcahy described how to balance economic and environmental priorities, noting that creating a holistic balance between these goals is now the key to long-term sustainability. Hamel spoke about the "Future of Management," including innovative new ways of mobilizing talent, allocating resources, and formulating strategies.

"There's a company whose entire management model is built on the principle of reverse accountability; that is a pretty radical thought," said Hamel."I think Vineet Nayar has said, 'The value is created at the interface between employees and customers. Our job as leaders is to do everything we can to enable that value to be created, and to do that you cannot have an old command and control kind of management system.'"

Unstructure also served as a platform for a number of key news announcements released by HCL and its partners. Among the announcements made at Unstructure were:

-- HCL Advances Go Green! Initiative with Carbon Neutral Global Customer Meet: announced HCL's plans to offset carbon emissions with carbon offsets purchased from Carbonfund.org and to plant 650 trees in the Himalayas.

-- HCL Technologies and TIBCO Expand Global Alliance: announced the expansion of HCL's strategic alliance with TIBCO Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX) to include new and updated HCL solution frameworks for Business Process Management (BPM), Complex Event Processing (CEP) and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA).

-- Xerox and HCL Technologies Announce Global Partnership: Xerox announced a strategic global alliance with HCL where HCL will serve as a systems integrator for Xerox's managed print services offering, which helps companies control office print environments to achieve continual cost savings and productivity gains.

-- Raiffeisen International Becomes the Latest Financial Institution to Benefit from Misys and HCL Development Partnership: Misys announced that its partnerships with HCL will provide Raiffeisen International with an outsourced, flexible resource to support development needs of its new banking products and more efficiently maintain its existing products as it grows its global business.

Misys and HCL have now agreed to expand the partnership to the Americas, Europe and the rest of the Asia Pacific region following the success of the alliance. The companies signed a Go to Market agreement, at a signing ceremony at Unstructure in Orlando, Florida.

While the event was punctuated with A-list speakers and important news, the majority of Unstructure was devoted to panel discussions focused on topics that included surviving and thriving in the global economy, management innovations and environmental issues. Some of the panel discussion highlights included:

-- Aligning IT to Business: discussed not only the threats, but also the opportunities created by the new models rising out of the economic downturn with an eye toward the practices businesses should follow to ensure sustainability

.-- Taking Advantage of Emerging Markets: addressed the increasing focus in recent years on the opportunities and challenges posed by the E7, or emerging market economies, such as China, India, Brazil, Russia, Indonesia, Mexico and Turkey, to the established G7 economies in the U.S., Japan, Germany, UK, France, Italy and Canada. The panel discussed the different approaches companies must take in terms of R&D, supply chain, manufacturing and the entire front office to optimize business opportunities in these emerging markets.

-- Unlocking and Monetizing Innovation: looked at whether employees should be encouraged to contribute to the betterment of their professions, even though such efforts very often do not have direct impact on their current jobs and employers, and whether or not this is the type of practice that makes innovation possible.

-- Creating a Lean Business: discussed how lean principles being applied to manufacturing today have resulted in tremendous efficiencies without sacrificing quality or superior market positions for their proponents and questions whether IT companies can apply the same principles to reverse their trends of misutilized computing power, wasted software spending, reduction in quality of infrastructure support and general inconsistencies in performance.

-- Aligning Employees with Business: looked at the incongruities of employee self-interest versus the interests of the organization and tried to answer not only if the two could be mitigated, but also if a more egalitarian form of management that places the employee first is the key to optimizing business outcomes.

While the physical event of Unstructure 2008 concluded last week, its second platform -- the online discussion -- will continue indefinitely.Those interested in the presentations, discussions and ideas that were generated from the physical event can learn more about them or continue intheir discussion by visiting www.unstructure.org.

The output of the event will be the "Unstructure Ask Book" -- a compendium of insight and action ideas collected for businesses to use as an"Evolution" manifesto.

For more information on the Global Meet, including the detailed agenda,please visit: http://www.hcltech.com/global-meet2008/.

About HCL Technologies

HCL Technologies is a leading global IT services company, working with clients in the areas that impact and redefine the core of their businesses. Since its inception into the global landscape after its IPO in 1999, HCL focuses on 'transformational outsourcing,' underlined by innovation and value creation, and offers integrated portfolio of services including software-led IT solutions, remote infrastructure management, engineering and R&D services and BPO.

HCL leverages its extensive global off shore infrastructure and network of offices in 19 countries to provide holistic,multi-service delivery in key industry verticals including Financial Services, Manufacturing, Aerospace & Defense, Telecom, Retail & CPG, Life Sciences & Healthcare, Media & Entertainment, Travel, Transportation &Logistics, Automotive, Government and Energies & Utilities.

HCL takes pride in its philosophy of 'Employee First' which empowers our 52,714transformers to create a real value for the customers. HCL Technologies,along with its subsidiaries, had consolidated revenues of US$ 2.0 billion(Rs. 8300 crores), as on 30th September 2008. For more information, please visit www.hcl.in

About HCL Enterprise

HCL is a $5 billion leading Global Technology and IT Enterprise thatcomprises two companies listed in India -- HCL Technologies & HCL Infosystems. The 3-decade-old Enterprise, founded in 1976, is one of India's original IT garage start-ups. Its range of offerings spans Product Engineering, Custom & Package Applications, BPO, IT Infrastructure Services, IT Hardware, Systems Integration, and distribution of ICT products. The HCL team comprises over 56,000 professionals of diverse nationalities, who operate from 19 countries including 360 points of presence in India. HCL has global partnerships with several leading Fortune1000 firms, including leading IT and Technology firms. For more information, please visit www.hcl.in

HP announced profits of $2.7 billion on sales of $33.6 billion


PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov 24, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) --

--Fiscal 2008 net revenue up 13%, or $14.1 billion, to $118.4 billion

--Fourth quarter GAAP operating profit up 4% to $2.7 billion; $0.84 earnings per share, up from $0.81 a year earlier

--Fourth quarter non-GAAP operating profit up 21% to $3.4 billion; $1.03 earnings per share, up from $0.86 a year earlier

--Fourth quarter cash flow from operations of $3.3 billion; fiscal 2008 cash flow from operations of $14.6 billion, up 52% from a year earlier

--Closed EDS acquisition; integration on track

HPQ 35.70, +1.06, +3.1%) today announced financial results for its fourth fiscal quarter ended Oct. 31, 2008, with net revenue of $33.6 billion, up 19% from a year earlier and up 16% when adjusted for the effects of currency. Excluding EDS revenue, net revenue grew 5% year over year or 2% when adjusted for the effects of currency.

Imaging and Printing Group

Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) revenue declined 1% to $7.5 billion. Supplies revenue grew 9%, while Commercial hardware revenue and Consumer hardware revenue declined 10% and 21%, respectively. Printer unit shipments decreased 8%, with Consumer printer hardware units down 8% and Commercial printer hardware units down 9%. Operating profit was $1.2 billion, or 15.5% of revenue, versus $1.1 billion, or 14.5% of revenue, in the prior-year period.

"HP capped off a strong year by delivering another solid quarter led by strength in our services segment and disciplined expense management," said Mark Hurd, HP chairman and chief executive officer. "Our global reach, broad portfolio, numerous cost initiatives and consistent execution differentiate HP in the current economic environment."

Contact Me

Greg Walters, Incorporated
greg@grwalters.com
262.370.4193