Microsoft Flexes Global Alliances to Deliver New Server Line

In helping customers who are  budget conscious to reduce IT expenditures and be more competitive on the global stage, Microsoft Malaysia has announced the general availability of Windows Small Business Server 2008 (SBS 2008) and Windows Essential Business Server 2008 (EBS 2008). The launch is part of Microsoft Corporation’s USD 6.5 billion annual investment in products, support programs and incentives for small and mid-size businesses (SMBs).

These solutions bring the power of Microsoft’s enterprise-class server technologies to SMBs in a way that these companies can best utilize them. Large businesses traditionally will have the budgets to equip themselves with a roster of specialists with the technical knowledge to manage IT environments – a luxury that SMBs can rarely afford.

“Globally, SMBs are the engines for economic growth and opportunity. Our SMBs, likening their larger counterparts, are facing tough challenges brought forth by the widespread uncertainty in the world market,” said Ramesh Rajandran, Product Marketing Manager, Infrastructure Servers, Microsoft Malaysia.

Mr. Vincent Lee, Country Business Manager, Industry Standard Servers, Technology Solutions Group, HP Malaysia, said, “HP is proud to be one of the key technology enablers of Microsoft to provide SMBs with optimized hardware configurations. Together we will ensure superior customer satisfaction when installing, running and maintaining the SBS 2008 and EBS 2008.”

Microsoft’s partners like HP, Dell and IBM are offering a broad choice of solutions for the new server line. In addition, HP, IBM and Intel Corporation have also designed and priced blade servers specifically for midsize customers. Combined with EBS 2008, these blade servers will give customers an affordable and scalable infrastructure solution that is quick to set up and easy to maintain.

Lee continued, “SMB customers are constantly searching for ways to stay at the technology forefront without having to make hefty IT investments. Being able to share our insights with Microsoft in the development of their new server solutions was an excellent opportunity for us to adequately address the needs of SMBs.”

Many independent software vendors (ISVs) are also supporting SBS 2008 and EBS 2008, across a wide variety of applications such as backup and recovery, security, business management, systems management, line-of-business applications, and more. In addition, SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 will run virtually any applications certified on Windows Server 2008.

Elaborating on the new products, Mr. Rajandran pointed out,” the Small Business Server 2008 is an upgrade to Microsoft’s Small Business Server 2003, whereby, it comes with standard & premium edition. The standard edition is enhanced by Windows Server 2008 & Windows Sharepoint Service 3.0…the premium edition comes with all the tools that is available in the standard edition plus an additional SQLServer 2008…”. Designed for companies with up to 75 users or PCs, SBS 2008 is an integrated server solution created to help businesses keep their data more secure and make their company more productive. 

Essential Business Server 2008 is a new software in Windows Essential Server solution that comes with a complete set of features in Small Business Server 2008 plus an additional database. EBS 2008 is designed for businesses with up to 300 users or PCs, and allows IT managers to have more control over their environment by reducing complexity and automating common tasks. With support for Windows Mobile phones, SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 can significantly help boost productivity with access to business e-mail, calendar, contacts and files when away from the office.

For more information about these new Microsoft solutions, and a whole range of other products, including detailed feature lists, please visit, http://www.secureandreliable.com.my/Home.aspx.

Honda Malaysia Unveils the Classy 3rd Generation Honda City

Honda Malaysia has revealed the 3rd Generation Honda City and to all Malaysian consumers who are seeking for value-for-money sedans can find it all in the All-New City, which is now value-added and complete with a dynamic stylish design, class-leading performance and ingenious practicality.

The City Grade-S, which is the entry level, is priced at RM84,980, while its premium model Grade-E is retailed at RM89,980.

Speaking at the All-New City’s launch ceremony which was held at Mandarin Oriental KL, Mr. Atsushi Fujimoto, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer for Honda Malaysia, said “…City has always been well received among discerned customers here in Malaysia, particularly for its practicality and economical features such as easy-to-manouvre size, spacious cabin, fuel efficiency and affordable price point…”.

Mr Takeshi Nakamura, Chief Engineer of Honda R&D Co. Ltd explained that the new model’s exterior styling had adopted the concept of the ‘Arrowshot Form’, which originated from the idea of an energetic arrow stringed on a bow and ready to be released. “The dynamic form and theme moved all the developing vectors in one direction…”.

Equipped with the newly developed i-VTEC engine (also found in the new Honda Jazz), the 3rd Generation City ables to produce 120PS at 6,600 rpm, and 145Nm of torque at 4,800 rpm. It is also the first in the 1.5-liter sedan segment to come with the 5 Speed Automatic Gear Transmission. Both fuel efficiency and power output have been improved and balanced, without compromising one or the other, to achieve environmental-friendly performance. Fuel efficiency has been pursued from various angles, from improving oil retention, friction reduction, reducing fuel consumption in the high-speed and high-load ranges to reducing the overall weight of the car, thereby contributing to the model’s fuel efficiency. In terms of environmental performance, the All-New City meets the Euro 4 level of emission.

Interior spaciousness and comfort are greatly enhanced in the All-New City with a 100mm extended wheelbase that provides better styling and efficient space usage. It has a more adjustable and variable driving position and as such, providing better driving comfort, especially during long-distance drives. It now comes equipped with a tilt and telescopic steering column and driver seat height adjuster. The tilt and telescopic adjustment ranges have increased from 10 to 40 mm for each direction, and the driver’s ratchet height can be altered within a 50 mm range. A footrest has been widened by shifting the accelerator and brake pedals 15 mm to the right.

Developed for the best balance between maximum capacity and practical usage, the vehicle’s trunk capacity is now at an astonishing 506-liter, providing a lofty carriage space in cars of its 1.5-liter segment. Unique spaces such as the rear underseat tray (located beneath the rear seat) allow passengers to store their umbrellas and an extra pair of shoes for rainy days. Glove box and coin pockets are larger, allowing passengers the convenience to store more things. More storage areas are also incorporated – the cardholder located in the center arm rest, and extra cup holders are added in the front door pockets, between the two front seats, in front of the shift lever and in the rear armrest.

Another new features that has been incorporated in All-New City is the new and multi-format compatible entertainment feature — the revolutionary ‘Advanced Audio’ digital media system is developed to be compatible with iPod, MP3 players and other sources of digital audio sound to allow driver and passengers to enjoy entertainment at their convenience. All major operations, such as song selection and volume adjustment, are controlled using four push buttons and a rotary selector similar to the Jog Dial function on an iPod. The system also provides high quality sound output with sophisticated acoustic tuning.

Uncompromise with car safety, Honda All-New City has been enhanced with the revolutionary Advanced Compatibility Engineering or ACE body structure, which is an extension of Honda’s G-Force Control (G-CON) technology, designed to spread out and disperse collision impact so as to limit cabin intrusion and to effectively minimise driver and passengers as well as pedestrian injuries. Other safety features include SRS airbags, active headrests to prevent whiplash injuries and ABS and EBD.

The All-New City is now available in the 1.5-liter i-VTEC Grade E and Grade S variants at all Honda authorised dealers nationwide. While the Grade S offers essential features of the All-New City, the Grade E variant offers additional features such as paddle shift, rear reclining seat, rear underseat tray and 16-inch alloy wheels. These two variants come in a selection of five colours: Alabaster Silver Metallic, Bold Beige Metallic, Polished Metal Metallic, Crystal Black Pearl and Deep Lapis Blue Metallic, of which the last two are new colours.

Customers can visit all authorised Honda showrooms nearby to view and test-drive the All-New City. For more information, please call Honda Toll Free number at 1-800-88-2020, or log on to www.excitementinthecity.com.my for more details.