Vietnam appoints Ambassador to ASEAN

VietNamNet Bridge – After Singapore, Vietnam is the second ASEAN member country that has its own Ambassador to ASEAN.

Ambassador Vu Dang Dung presented the credential to ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan in Jakarta, Indonesia.

On February 19, the Vietnamese Ambassador to ASEAN, Vu Dang Dung, presented the credential of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem to the ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan welcomed Vietnam as the second country to appoint its Ambassador to ASEAN.

He emphasized the important role of Vietnam in the association and praised Vietnam’s positive contribution to strengthen unity and cooperation inside ASEAN for common goals.

In the context of the global economic crisis, Vietnam and other ASEAN member countries’ establishment of its permanent representative delegation to ASEAN and putting the ASEAN Permanent Representative Committee into operation will help further unity and cooperation in ASEAN.

In 2010, Vietnam will assume the ASEAN Chairmanship. 2010 will mark the country’s 15^th ASEAN membership.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will lead a Vietnamese delegation to the 14^th ASEAN Summit in Huahin, Thailand form February 28 to March 1.

Xuan Linh

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When producers sell products themselves

VietNamNet Bridge – In the current difficult period, when consumers are trying to tighten their purse strings, companies are boosting sales by bringing products to families themselves instead of relying on distributors.

Companies are boosting sales by bringing products to families themselves

Luong Van Vinh, General Director of My Hao Cosmetics Company, said that companies can maintain sales only by retailing themselves; wholesale business now carries risks of losing sales agents to other companies and losing turnover as sales agents are also being affected by the economic downturn.

Selling products themselves

Therefore, Vinh has organised a team of 500 members in charge of selling products of the company in rural and remote localities.

The salesmen get minimum wage and the more lucrative income – commissions on sales, 1% of the turnover of dishwashing liquid, the best seller of the company, and 1.7% of the turnover of other products.

In the provinces in the west, salesmen carry products in ferry-boats on rivers or canals, while boats carry products further to more remote areas, where products are sold directly to buyers. In the north, big trucks bring commodities to localities, where smaller trucks and motorbikes carry the products further, to every street and corner of localities.

In new urban areas and residential quarters, the company supports distributors by giving them 4-6 salesmen, each in charge of 250 small shopping points. There are a lot of teams, and each team has a team leader, and every province or city a senior supervisor.

With such a ‘moving’ force of salesmen, after its turnover had dropped dramatically in September and October 2008 as consumers tightened their spending, the company’s turnover increased by 10% in the period between November 2008 and February 2009.

Going to alleys and side streets

In December 2008, Thuan Phat Foodstuff Joint Stock Company set up a sales team of 100 members to take the company’s products to every small shop in alleys and side streets. The decision has helped the company sell 200,000 more products a month.

Truong Lan Anh, General Director of the company, said that it was necessary to bring products to places where consumers go, groceries and markets. ”We have a distribution network with 1^st and 2^nd class agents. We provide trucks to support sales agents, and we also provide staffs to take care of customers,” Anh said.

Vissan, a processing foodstuff producer, now has 50 showrooms and 1,000 retail sales agents across the country, and has been trying to expand its sales network. In November 2008, the company signed strategic cooperation contracts with other companies, under which the companies sell each other’s products.

Analysts have also advised companies to develop sales networks to deliver products directly to every small grocery and to every family. They have pointed out that in rural areas, people don’t purchase goods because there are no goods to purchase, not because people don’t have a demand.

VietNamNet/SGTT

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US nuclear power technology introduced in Vietnam

VietNamNet Bridge – The Vietnam Nuclear Energy Institute and the US’ Westinghouse Power Company last week introduced AP 1000 nuclear power technology at a workshop in Hanoi.

According to Westinghouse, the advantages of this technology are that the production cost of generating nuclear power is very competitive and it is quite a bit safer than second generation technology.

In addition, with the small size and synchronous technology, nuclear power plants applying AP 1000 are simple to run and maintain. Nearly 50% of nuclear power plants in the world are using Westinghouse’s technology.

Speaking at the workshop, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Le Dinh Tien said that to ensure energy security, Vietnam must consider nuclear power. However, nuclear power is a very sensitive industry because it is dangerous.

Power generation is a very new industry in Vietnam so according to Tien, Vietnam’s greatest difficulty is a shortage of qualified human resources.

“Training takes a long period. To have human resources for the nuclear power industry, we have to call for the participation of overseas Vietnamese who have worked in the nuclear power industry. We also have to use retired scientists because they are very experienced,” Tien said.

Professor Pham Duy Hien, former Director of the Vietnam Power Energy Institute, said: “I’ve waited for a long time for such a workshop. Previous ones didn’t provide me with new information like this one.”

Hien said it is necessary to have some more specialised workshops for scientists to learn more about AP 1000 technology.

Faced with threats of power shortages and the increasing prices of coal and oil, the Vietnamese government agreed to speed up and double the scale of the first nuclear power plant project in Ninh Thuan province from 2,000 to 4,000 MW.

VietNamNet/VNE

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Problems plague new teacher rotation plan for poor rural areas

VietNamNet Bridge – A new teacher rotation project is facing some controversy. Director of the Institute for Educational Studies Prof Dinh Quang Bao spoke to Nong Thon Ngay Nay (Countryside Today) newspaper on the issue.

How do you evaluate the rotation project for teachers in disadvantaged areas?

Living conditions for these teachers needs to be improved so they can concentrate on their work.

For many years, the rotation of teachers from cities to remote and mountainous areas and vice versa was due to the State’s requirements and teachers’ aspirations, as well as volunteerism. However, it’s hard to bring volunteers from advantageous areas to poorer, more rural ones. Therefore, intervention from State administrative agencies in this issue is very necessary.

It should not be obligatory, but rather based on voluntary participation. I believe that there are still many teachers who are fearless of the hardships associated with moving to more disadvantaged areas.

Has this project caused any problems in educational quality?

Sometimes, yes. An extensive knowledge of local languages, customs and traditions is required for qualified teachers. As a matter of fact, teachers play the most important role in improving the quality of education. Newly rotated teachers would surely need more time to get to know new work areas.

How does the rotation project affect teachers?

If teachers rotate every five years, they, especially those who are moved to remote and mountainous areas from cities, will not be able to keep their minds on their work, as it takes one year for them to become familiar with the new place, and the second and third years to do the tasks and then from the fourth year onwards, they will be wondering where they will go next, as their five years will already soon be up. How can the teachers concentrate on their work under these conditions?

If this project is implemented, who do you think should be moved to these disadvantaged areas?

It would be better to send highly qualified teachers to poorer, rural areas, where they cannot only teach the children but also impart their experience and knowledge to other local educators.

However, in my opinion, local teachers should stay in their hometowns. A proper training strategy is required for these regions so that qualified teachers can be recognised. They will be the ones who help train other teachers. Co-ordinated training between teachers is best through the sharing information and experiences.

What are your proposals for this issue?

The State and Government need to simultaneously realise two things.

First, we would better appeal to teacher volunteers. I reaffirm my strong belief that there are still many volunteers who are willing to work in disadvantaged areas. For these people, the State and Government should have incentive polices such as an increased income and better assistance.

Additionally, living conditions for these teachers needs to be improved so they can concentrate on their work. Besides, it’s essential to work out policies for attracting teachers from advantaged areas as well as internal training in disadvantaged areas.

Secondly, we need to make teachers to participate in the rotation, as the shortage of educators in poor, rural areas is a serious problem. Regarding this issue, the Ministry of Education and Training should immediately conduct a survey on the number of teachers needed and which school subjects are suffering the most, so that there can be appropriate solutions to the issue.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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Students, poor residents fear bus fee increase

VietNamNet Bridge – A proposal by the HCM City Department of Transport to increase bus fares is causing a stir among many poor students and residents.

Commuters from Nguyen Van Cu Street in Long Bien District take the bus from Ha Noi to neighbouring Hung Yen Province.

At the end of last year, the department submitted a plan to the municipal People’s Committee to increase local bus charges. If the proposal is approved, ticket prices would increase by VND1,000 from March 1st.

The price of a ticket for routes under 31km would then be VND4,000. Moreover, monthly vouchers would be replaced with books of 60 tickets, costing VND120,000 (US$7), and VND85,000 ($5) for students.

"When all things are increasing in price, how can students like me get by if bus prices also go up?" asks one student who must take two buses from her house to her university. If prices are to increase, she will have to spend VND16,000 each day travelling.

Nguyen Thu Thuy, a resident of District 6 and a regular bus passenger, says that monthly tickets should not be abolished.

"It doesn’t make sense to raise prices and abolish monthly tickets. Those monthly passes are very convenient for students," Thuy says.

Tran Quang Phuong, head of the department says that the increase is due to hikes in fuel prices, as well as basic salaries.

Moreover, statistics supplied by the department say that in 2008 the city had to subsidise VND625 billion ($35 million) for the bus services sector.

In regards to the abolition of monthly tickets, Phuong says that many passengers have complained of being discriminated, and this is not why the department has decided to replace it with 60-ticket booklets.

However, Thuy says that this should be solved by improving services, not getting rid of monthly passes.

Pham Xuan Mai, a lecturer at the HCM City University of Technology, says that increasing bus fees will stop many students from riding every day.

"Most passengers are people with low incomes or students. If the city wants to encourage people to travel by bus, prices should not be increased," he says.

Nguyen Huu Huong, head of the Transport Technique Faculty at the university, says that until the municipal infrastructure improves, subsidies for this kind of service should not be provided.

"Increasing bus prices will create more burdens for people on low incomes," says Huong.

The municipal People’s Committee has not yet made a final decision on the proposal.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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"Slumdog Millionaire" wins big at 81st Academy Awards

British director Dan Boyle's rags-to-riches love story "Slumdog Millionaire" won big at the 81st Academy Awards Sunday night, grabbing eight Oscars including best picture and best director.

The film tells about a story of two brothers growing up in the slums of Mumbai, India, with one finding love and the other finding a life of crime.

"Slumdog Millionaire," which struggled to find a distributor and almost went direct to home video, had already won a Golden Globe, a Producers Guild award, a Screen Actors Guild award for best ensemble cast, a best director honor from the Directors Guild of America and a best adapted screenplay award from the Writers Guild of America.

Many of the film's young stars were flown to Hollywood to attend the Oscar ceremony, and they all walked onto the Kodak Theater stage as the film's producer Christian Colson accepted the statuette.

"As you pull back the spine (of the story) is another spine, is the love story," said director Danny Boyle, who won the Academy Award for Best Director. "It's a chance to get yourself lost in romance."

Slumdog went into the ceremony with 10 nominations and walked away with eight. It only lost in one category -- sound editing. It had two nominations in the original song category.

Top nominee "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" had 13 nods, but won only three, for art direction, makeup and visual effects.

Meanwhile, Sean Penn won his second best-actor Oscar for his role in "Milk" and Kate Winslet took home her first Oscar statuette for best actress for her role in "The Reader."

The 33-year-old Winslet is the youngest actress to earn six Oscar nominations. The record was previously held by actress Bette Davis, who was 34 when she received her sixth nomination in 1942.

To win the Oscar, Winslet beat out Meryl Streep, who earned her record 15th nomination for her role as a strict nun in "Doubt." Katherine Hepburn and Jack Nicholson are tied for second with 12 nomination each.

"WALL-E" won the Oscar for animated feature film, while Japanese film "Departures" was named the best foreign language film.

Following is the list of winners at Sunday night's 81st Academy Awards ceremony, which was held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood of Los Angeles.

The Academy Award for best picture has gone to "Slumdog Millionaire," which ends the night with eight awards, including best director for Danny Boyle.

Danny Boyle won the best director Oscar for "Slumdog Millionaire."

The Academy Award for best actor was awarded to Sean Penn for his role in "Milk."

The Academy Award for best actress has been awarded to Kate Winslet for "The Reader."

The Oscar Award for best supporting actor went to the late Heath Ledger for "The Dark Knight."

Popularity of "Slumdog Millionaire" unexpected

Chris Dickens, who won the Oscar for film editing for "Slumdog Millionaire", said Sunday night that he did not foresee the film's popularity.

"It wouldn't have even occurred to us," he said backstage at the Kodak Theatre where the Award Ceremony was held. "I'd never imagined that we'd have so many of us getting these awards."

He said the challenge of editing "Slumdog Millionaire" was in paring the complex story down to a reasonable length.

"There were big challenges to sort of make it work cohesively," Dickens said of the tale of a young man recalling his life in a series of flashbacks. "So many different images, so many different storylines going on. The challenge was to get it to fit together really neatly."

"Slumdog Millionaire" ended the night with eight awards, including best picture for producer Christian Colson and best director for Danny Boyle.

VietNamNet/Xinhuanet

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Local coaches disagree with Calisto’s plan

17:19' 23/02/2009 (GMT+7)

Coach Henrique Calisto.

VietNamNet Bridge – Members of the Coaching Council don’t agree with the plan for the national football team and the U-23 team submitted by chief coach Henrique Calisto.

According to this plan, the national team will convene for the first time on May 19, with half of the players being U23 players. After that, the national squad and the U-23 team will gather at the same time for subsequent gatherings.

The period from September to November will be the busiest time for both teams and for the coach as well.

According to the Coaching Council, it is risky to convene the two teams at the same time because it will be difficult for Calisto to work with two teams at once. This year, the U-23 has to concentrate its strength for the SEA Games while the national squad aims to enter the final of the Asia Cup 2011.

Calisto’s plan shows that the U23 and the national squad will have the same coaching board and the same chief coach. The Coaching Council didn’t agree, saying that one coaching board is unable to take care of two teams.

The Coaching Council also questioned the absence of coach Mai Duc Chung from the coaching board of U23 team. Last year Chung led U22 Vietnam (the core of this year’s U23) to the championship of the Merdeka Cup 2008.

The Coaching Council will directly question Calisto about his plan on March 4.

Calisto spoke with the local media about his plan.

Could you tell us the major contents of your meeting with VFF about the plans for national teams in 2009?

We sat together to work out the plans for the national squad and the U23 team at the upcoming qualifier round of Asian Cup 2011 and SEA Games 2009. We will make adjustments while we implement the plan based on the actual situation.

In May 2009, the national squad will convene with around 30 players, including U23 footballers. After a short time of practice, I will choose the official team for a friendly match against the Bahrain team on May 31.

In early September, U23 will take a 10-day training tour abroad.

In October, the national team will take part in the HCM City Cup. In November, the U23 team will join the VFF Cup while the national squad will play two matches in the qualifier round of the Asian Cup 2011. In December, U23 will attend SEA Games 2009.

We also plan to arrange one or two friendly matches against overseas clubs for the national squad and send the U23 team to the Merdeka Cup in Malaysia.

We know that you will not call for any player of Binh Duong or Hanoi.ACB clubs for the gathering of the national team in May, why?

Binh Duong and Hanoi. ACB will participate in AFC Cup 2009 in May so VFF decided to not call up any player from the two clubs.

If the national team attends official tournaments, we will have to call for the best players but the team will only play friendly matches then so we don’t need to do so.

How many players do you plan to call for this gathering?

I’m considering choosing some new players for the national squad and U23 team but I haven’t made a final decision yet.

On this occasion, I would like to say that I didn’t say that I would change the “blood” of the national team or I would choose a massive number of new players for the team as some newspapers reported.

Do you feel heavy pressure?

It is not accurate to call it pressure because pressure only comes when we have tournaments. At this moment, I only see that we need to be more responsible, because we are the current Southeast Asian champion. We have to be more careful and serious.

VietNamNet/VNE/TP

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Find the best affiliate programs

Find the best affiliate programs and make money online with affiliate marketing!

AffiliateTips.com provides you with a complete guide on how to make money online with the best affiliate programs. Here you find extensive resources on affiliate marketing. We review and compare all top affiliate programs and rank the best ones. A stop here will give you all the information you need to start making money online and become a successful affiliate.

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Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is an Internet-based marketing practice in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought about by the affiliate's marketing efforts.

Affiliate marketing is also the name of the industry where a number of different types of companies and individuals are performing this form of Internet marketing, including affiliate networks, affiliate management companies, and in-house affiliate managers, specialized third party vendors, and various types of affiliates/publishers who promote the products and services of their partners.

Affiliate marketing overlaps with other Internet marketing methods to some degree, because affiliates often use regular advertising methods. Those methods include organic search engine optimization, paid search engine marketing, e-mail marketing, and in some sense display advertising. On the other hand, affiliates sometimes use less orthodox techniques, such as publishing reviews of products or services offered by a partner.

Affiliate marketing—using one website to drive traffic to another—is a form of online marketing, which is frequently overlooked by advertisers.^{[citation needed]} While search engines, e-mail, and website syndication capture much of the attention of online retailers, affiliate marketing carries a much lower profile. Still, affiliates continue to play a significant role in e-retailers' marketing strategies.^[1]

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The SIMPLEST Helpdesk System on the Planet

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An integrated scheduling calendar

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The service and support industry’s definitive online resource

Welcome to helpdesk.com, the definitive help desk software and CRM solutions directory on the Internet.

Since 1995, helpdesk.com has been the service and support industry's leading online resource for helpdesk and CRM-related products and services, providing a one-stop knowledge and information portal for CRM, help desk, and IT professionals, users, and evaluators alike.

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ITIL Heroes’ White Paper
Understand and implement ITIL Service Support without shedding blood!

The ITIL Heroes Handbook gives you a quick backgrounder on ITIL basics and dives deep into ITIL Service Support with examples drawn from real-world customers. It packs some action; you get to implement a Service Desk to understand how easy it is.

Oh, and we almost forgot -- the comic approach taken here keeps you awake while you are trying to read all this stuff!

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Help desk

A help desk is an information and assistance resource that troubleshoots problems with computers or similar products. Corporations often provide help desk support to their customers via a toll-free number, website and/or e-mail. There are also in-house help desks geared toward providing the same kind of help for employees only. Some schools offer classes in which they perform similar tasks as a help desk. In the Information Technology Infrastructure Library, within companies adhering to ISO/IEC 20000 or seeking to implement IT Service Management best practice, a Help Desk may offer a wider range of user centric services and be part of a larger Service Desk.

Contents [hide] 1 Functions 2 Organization 2.1 Deskside team 2.2 Network team 2.3 Other teams 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Functions

A typical help desk has several functions. It provides the users a central point to receive help on various computer issues. The help desk typically manages its requests via help desk software, such as an incident tracking system, that allows them to track user requests with a unique ticket number. This can also be called a "Local Bug Tracker" or LBT. The help desk software can often be an extremely beneficial tool when used to find, analyze, and eliminate common problems in an organization's computing environment.

The user notifies the help desk of his or her issue, and the help desk issues a ticket that has details of the problem. If the first level support technician is able to solve the issue, the ticket is closed and updated with documentation of the solution to allow other help desk technicians to reference in the future. If the issue needs to be escalated, it will be updated, noting what was attempted by the technician and dispatched to second level support.

There are many software applications available to support the help desk function. Some are targeting enterprise level help desk (rather large) and some are targeting departmental needs. See Comparison of issue tracking systems.

From the mid 1990s research by Middleton ^[1] at Robert Gordon University found that many organizations had begun to recognize that the real value of their help desk(s) derives not solely from their reactive response to users' issues but from the help desk's unique position where it communicates daily with numerous customers or employees. This gives the help desk the ability to monitor the user environment for issues from technical problems to user preferences and satisfaction. Such information gathered at the help desk can be valuable in planning and preparation to other units in IT as well as non-IT departments such as sales and product development.

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Freight Bill Factoring

Don’t wait 30 to 60 days to get paid. Get cash in 24 hours! We pay cash for your slow paying freight bills.

Having to wait 30 to 60 days to get paid for your freight bills can be very difficult. If you are working with reputable clients and freight brokers, we can help you get paid quickly, usually in 24 hours. We work with trucking companies and freight brokers in the USA and in Canada.

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Factoring financing - Program details

Factoring Program

Factoring financing - Program details

Facing a problem because your clients pay in 30 to 60 days? Need to get paid sooner? Most new and growing businesses can’t afford to wait up 60 days to get paid. There are supplier and payroll commitments that must be met. But often, securing the funds to meet these obligations is difficult.

Factoring can provide you with the funds to pay employees and suppliers. It provides predictable cash flow, helping you manage and grow your company. It can benefit you if:

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New images for Tesla's more powerful Roadster Sport

Posted Mon Jan 19 2009 6:55 PM by Ralph Hanson

The Tesla Roadster Sport develops 15% more power than the 248hp (185kW) Roadster

Tesla has delivered 150 all-electric Roadsters to its first lucky customers and still has another 1,100 or so eagerly awaiting their chance to hop behind the wheel of the $100,000 sports car, but despite the backlog the company has decided to add a new model to its lineup. The new car is called the Roadster Sport and it is essentially a more powerful version of the existing Roadster.

The Roadster Sport has 15% more peak power than the 248hp (185kW) Roadster and will go from 0-60mph in just 3.7 seconds (the standard model takes 3.9 seconds). The vehicle also comes with a hand-wound stator and increased winding density for lower resistance and higher peak torque (the stator is the stationary part of an electric generator or electric motor). The motor still spins to a redline of 14,000rpm, with drive being sent to the rear wheels via the upgraded gearbox found in the 'powertrain 1.5' package.

In addition to high-performance Yokohama tires, the Roadster Sport also has improved suspension with adjustable dampers and anti-roll bars that will be tuned to the driver's preference.

Tesla plans to start taking orders for the new model from today, and has priced it at $128,500 in the United States and €112,000 (excluding VAT) in Europe. First deliveries are scheduled to start in late June, and anyone who has already ordered the standard Roadster can upgrade to the new Roadster Sport.

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Audi releases new video and images for V10 FSI R8

Posted Sat Jan 31 2009 11:10 PM by Alex Kaufmann

The R8’s new V10 engine is the same 5.2L mill found in the S6 and S8 saloons

Audi's R8 was an instant success when it broke onto the scene in 2007, and now the Germans are sweetening the deal with a V10 FSI engine, further strengthening the similarity to the Lamborghini Gallardo, with which it also shares a platform. Though the new engine is still an Audi, strictly speaking - it's also found in the S6 and S8 sedans in similar form - it's based around a Lamborghini design. But whatever the provenance of the engine or platform, it's clear that Audi's R8 has found its own niche in the high-performance sports car world, and with the addition of the V10 engine is flirting with supercar status.

With 5.2L of displacement, an 8,700rpm redline, 525hp (386kW) and 391lb-ft (530Nm) of torque, a 0-62mph (100km/h) time of just 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 196mph (316km/h) it certainly reads like a supercar. It's apt to drive like one as well, since the R8's platform has proven to be a success in terms of both road and track dynamics. The car can reach 124mph (200km/h) in another 8.1 seconds.

Fuel efficiency tips in at a rather respectable, though by no means exemplary, 17mpg (13.7L/100km), though enthusiastic use of the loud pedal - a near-inevitability with a V10 strapped to one's back - will certainly reduce that figure in practice, however.

Not that fuel economy is a primary concern of the R8 V10 buyer. The R8 V8 model, rated at a more parsimonious 20mpg highway, is the better choice for daily driving, though not by much. Audi insists the V10's utility is still high, however, highlighting the car's 3.53cu ft (100L) of carbo space under the front hood, and 3.18cu ft (90L) behind the seats.

Pricing for the car will start at €142,400 ($182,800) in Europe, and will be available with a choice of either six-speed manual or Audi's R tronic sequential gearbox. Weighing in at 3,571lb (1,620kg) the V10 R8 isn't exactly a lightweight, but it's only 68lb (31kg) heavier than the 420hp (313kW) V8 version. The weight is distributed in a classic mid-engine 44/56 front/rear ratio, however, ensuring balanced behavior under braking and slightly tail-biased handling under acceleration. Lateral acceleration on the factory-equipped 235/35 front and 295/30 rear street tires is a bracing 1.2g. Moving to a less staggered rubber setup should improve that figure even further.

The stock wheels feature a 10-spoke Y-design, ensconcing standard 15in front/14in rear disc brakes or optional carbon ceramic brakes that weigh a combined 19.8lb (9kg) less than their steel counterparts - a serious reduction in unsprung, rotating mass.

Special 'sideblades' on the V10 R8 are more aggressively styled than on the V8 model, the side-sills are wider and the exhaust grilles at the rear get a matte aluminum treatment. Another V10-unique detail is the inclusion of Audi's all-LED headlights as standard equipment. Integrating 54 LEDs, the lights generate a color temperature of 6,000 Kelvin - very close to natural daylight. They are available as an option on the standard V8 R8.

Unique interior touches add a more racing-inspired feel than the standard R8's cockpit - or 'monoposto' as Audi styles it. A wide variety of leathers are available, and the interior surfaces can be had in carbon fiber, piano black or a number of other finishes.

A number of upgraded R8 variants have been expected for some time, including a spyder version, also expected to debut in 2009. A diesel V12 model is still thought to be under consideration, though little movement on the matter has been heard since a pair of concepts were released earlier this year.

Gallery: Audi R8 V10 5.2L FSI

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See Full Gallery

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Toyota reveals pricing for 2010 Camry and Camry Hybrid

Toyota revealed its facelifted Camry sedan last month at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, which for the 2010 model year has been given a new look both inside and out and has received an upgraded 2.5L four-cylinder as the base engine. Today pricing was revealed, with a six-speed base car starting out at just $19,395 and ranging up to $29,045 for the XLE with automatic transmission.

The Hybrid starts at $26,150, with most of the rest of the Camry range hovering between $20,000 and $25,000. Full pricing details are listed below.

The new engine is equipped with variable valve timing with intelligence (VVT-i) and produces 169hp for Camry, LE and XLE grades. For sportier SE, the engine gets additional tuning and delivers 179hp – 21hp more than the previous four-cylinder engine. Customers can select either a six-speed manual transmission or a six-speed automatic with sequential shift. The 3.5L V6 delivering 268hp is also available.

Exterior changes to the petrol Camry include a newly designed grille and front bumper, an enlarged lower intake, larger projector headlamps and restyled tail lamps. The Camry and LE grades feature restyled standard wheel covers, while the XLE grade will run on new 16in 10-spoke alloy wheels, while the SE grade adds new 17in sporty alloy wheels.

The Camry Hybrid exterior enhancements includes a unique hybrid grille, a distinct front bumper, a wider lower intake, restyled fog lights and 16in alloy wheels.

Inside, Camry and LE grades are available with an optional audio system equipped with a new USB port for auxiliary music sources, Bluetooth, integrated satellite radio, single-CD, and MP3 and streaming music capability. Previously an option, all Camry petrol models will now be equipped with Vehicle Stability Control with traction control.

The facelifted Camry and Camry Hybrid are scheduled to go on sale in March.

Grade	Trans	MSRP
Base	6M	$19,395
Base	6ECTi	$20,445
LE	6M	$20,850
LE	6ECTi	$21,900
SE	6M	$22,165
SE	6ECTi	$23,165
XLE	6ECTi	$25,925
LEV6	6ECTi	$24,565
SEV6	6ECTi	$25,840
XLEV6	6ECTi	$29,045
Hybrid	ECVT	$26,150

Gallery: 2010 Toyota Camry facelift

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Online Banks: The Solution for Savers

Today's guest post comes from Jim at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity, a personal finance blog that follows the money decisions of a young professional in th ese challenging financial times.

With the economy in a slump and the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates, it's becoming harder and harder to save. If you're like me, you have a checking and savings account at a traditional bank that is earning an interest rate so low it might as well be zero. In our current economic climate, that's probably not going to change anytime soon. Chances are you've looked toward certificates of deposit as one option for your money, trading in some of your short-term liquidity for a more appealing interest rate, but balked because you are concerned you might need that money before the CD matures.

I may have a solution for you. Have you considered a high-yield savings account at an online bank?

An online bank is a bank that exists entirely online. ING Direct was one of the first online banks, but since then, there have been many others, including FNBO Direct, Everbank, HSBC Direct, and Dollar Savings Direct, just to name a few. With many of those banks, your only interface was through the Web or the telephone. Rather than pay for tellers, branch managers, and branches, online banks pass the savings onto customers by offering some of the highest savings account rates in the nation. The interest rates on high-yield savings accounts are often in the top 5 to 10 percent in the nation, are entirely liquid, and are protected by FDIC insurance.

A high interest rate on your savings account isn't the only benefit of working with an online bank. Because the website is your primary interface with the bank, it is often very sophisticated and very user friendly. They allow you to bank 24 hours a day, seven days a week, a convenience I've personally taken advantage of. Just recently, I locked in great rates on certificates of deposit from the comfort of my office. If I had to go to a branch, it's likely that I would have never done so.

Speaking of CDs, online banks often offer some of the best CD rates because their savings accounts are so high. The bank has to offer a rate that's often a percentage point higher on CDs, just to entice their customers. Some banks also make it easier to ladder CDs or buy a series of CDs of differing maturity dates so that they are effectively liquid. ING Direct has a single form you can fill out to open up an entire CD ladder.

Online banks probably sound very appealing right now, but I have to throw in a few warnings about them. The biggest concern is always that your primary interface is the Web and websites can go down because of high demand or computer failure. While not common, it's not unheard of for a bank website to go down. When that happens, it can be very disconcerting because there are no physical branches to visit. If I can't access my Bank of America account via the Web, I can always drive to a branch to access my money. I can't drive to an ING Direct branch or an HSBC Direct branch. One way to mitigate this risk is to working with a traditional bank that offers a high-yield savings account, like Citibank.

Another risk you face with using an online bank is that you're more susceptible of fraud. One common type of fraud is called phishing. It's when a thief sends you an E-mail, pretending to be your bank, asking you to log in to your account. You click on a link in the E-mail, and it takes you to the thief's site masquerading as your bank and you log in. At that point, they have all of your data. Online banks have plenty of security measures in place, but phishing won't be possible in real life (it can still happen on the phone!). You won't walk into a thief's bank and think it's your own (The Sting, anyone?).

The benefits of using a high-yield savings account at an online bank vastly outweigh the negatives I've mentioned. If you haven't taken a look at them, check them out. You may be pleasantly surprised.

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Here Comes a Bankruptcy Boom

November 11, 2008 10:26 AM ET | Rick Newman | Permanent Link | Print

If you've been saving your cash for fire sales at bankrupt retailers, don't blow it all at Circuit City. Many other companies are likely to end up in even worse shape over the next year.

So far in 2008, there have been a few name-brand bankruptcies—like the recent Circuit City filing, Linens-n-Things, Frontier Airlines, and Mrs. Fields Cookies—plus the colossal liquidation of Lehman Brothers. But believe it or not, it has been a fairly calm year for bankruptcy judges, by one important measure: the corporate default rate. The share of corporate bonds in default over the past 12 months, which goes hand in hand with bankruptcies, has been about 3 percent, according to data compiled by Prof. Edward Altman of New York University's Stern School of Business. That's near the historical average. So, the vast majority of corporations have been paying their debts during the early part of this recession.

But like many good things of the past few years, that's about to end. The latest data from Altman suggest that by this time next year, the corporate default rate will be somewhere between 8.5 percent and 11.1 percent. That means there could be three to four times the number of corporate bankruptcies we've seen over the past year. And each one of those will probably involve layoffs.

As a result, Altman predicts, the unemployment rate could peak as high as 9.5 percent, which would represent a net loss of jobs for 3 million people beyond those who are already unemployed today. "It could hit autos, builders, retail, a lot of areas with a lot of employees," Altman says. "It's going to be rough."

Altman's unemployment prediction is on the gloomy side—Goldman Sachs, for instance, forecasts a peak unemployment rate of 8.5 percent next year. But there certainly seems to be plenty of bad news around the corner. General Motors is one teetering giant. The big automaker says it could run out of cash within a few months, which could prompt one of the biggest bankruptcy filings in U.S. history. That would affect dozens of suppliers, hundreds of car dealerships, and the banks that finance GM's cars. Chrysler could follow suit, and Ford isn't in much better shape. Overall, estimates for job losses in the auto industry range from 30,000 to as many as 100,000.

And that's just one industry. As unemployment worsens and the recession deepens, consumers could rein in spending even more than they already have, leaving an impact on everything that has to do with consumer sales. And Altman says he has already seen a dramatic increase in bankruptcies among small and midsize companies.

Declaring bankruptcy, however, isn't always as dire as some people believe. Most companies that file for Chapter 11 protection don't go out of business. Instead, they shed debt, reorganize, and emerge as healthier companies. That's what United Airlines and Delta Airlines have done and Circuit City is planning to do.

A successful reorganization, however, requires a special kind of financing to help the ailing company get back on its feet, called debtor-in-possession financing, or DIP. This is usually a lucrative business for banks and financing companies, since the DIP lender gets paid back before most other creditors. Except that right now, banks don't want to lend to anybody. "The problem is the DIP market is all but closed," Altman says. If lenders don't loosen up, add one more item to the government's to-do list.

Tags: General Motors | bankruptcy | recession | unemployment | banking | Circuit City

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« Why AIG Is Devouring the Bailout Fund

Relief Starts to Trickle to Troubled Homeowners »

Reader Comments

Read all 35 comments about this article

bail outs

the hard workin people,the baack bone and the ones who have gave all there bodys have always come lastwhen it comes to our gov.lets get real we have let our country be over taken by the rich and they dont want any 1 to have money but them or even to keep a roof over our heads,there for its understandabale that bail outs are not for the people that have and still bust there backs every day for the rich after all whos gonna do the dirty hard jobs for them.

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Job Universe: Bank Tellers

• The job: The teller is the worker most people associate with their bank. Among the responsibilities of tellers are cashing checks, accepting deposits and loan payments, and processing withdrawals. Tellers make up approximately one fourth of bank employees and conduct most of a bank's routine transactions. Tellers in many banks are being cross-trained to perform some of the functions of customer service representatives.

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• Outlook: Banks are opening new branch offices in a variety of locations, such as grocery stores and shopping malls. Banks are also keeping their branches open longer during the day and on weekends. Both of these trends are expected to increase job opportunities for tellers, particularly those who work part time. Most openings will arise from the need to replace the many tellers who transfer to other occupations.

• Experience: Most tellers are required to have at least a high school diploma, but some have completed some college training or even a bachelor's degree in business, accounting, or liberal arts. Once hired, tellers usually receive on-the-job training. Tellers should enjoy contact with the public. They must have a strong aptitude for numbers and feel comfortable handling large amounts of money. They should be discreet and trustworthy because they frequently come in contact with confidential material.

• The not-so-good: Tellers work in an office environment. They may experience eye and muscle strain, backaches, headaches, and repetitive motion injuries as a result of using computers every day. Tellers may have to sit for extended periods while reviewing detailed data.

• Pay: Salaries of tellers vary with experience, region of the country, size of city, and type and size of establishment. Median annual earnings of tellers were $22,140 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $19,300 and $25,880 a year.

Learn more: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos152.htm

This information is from the Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics

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The Rise of Islamic Banking in a Time of Economic Crisis

By Thomas K. Grose

Posted December 10, 2008

Shopping for a business loan during a global credit crisis is tough work even if you're a fast-growing start-up like Ireland's Blue Ocean Wireless. And the scrutiny can cut both ways. Blue Ocean, which supplies wireless communications for merchant shipping, was giving a closer-than-normal look at whether possible lenders could be counted on amid the ongoing financial shakeout.

People walk past the first Islamic Bank of Britain in London, England.

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When the company got a $25 million loan this fall, it came from what might seem an unusual source: the Bank of London and the Middle East, or BLME, which strictly follows Islamic sharia law rather than conventional western banking practices. Islamic banking requires transactions be structured in alternative ways since the rules ban interest and trading in debt. Blue Ocean is one of many European companies benefiting from a surge in Islamic financing that's pushing sharia-compliant banking into the mainstream and extending its appeal to non-Muslims. The sector's growth comes at a time when the western banking system is caught in a liquidity crisis. Blue Ocean took comfort in the fact that BLME draws on the petrodollar surpluses of Persian Gulf oil producers. "The liquidity was there," says Blue Ocean's chief financial officer, Tariq Aslam.

The boom in Islamic banking is providing a crescent-shaped sliver of good news for the City, London's beleaguered financial district. It's fast becoming the main hub of Islamic banking outside the Middle East, a development encouraged by Britain's Labor government, which laid out the welcome mat to sharia-compliant banks several years ago. "The government sees it as another way to draw business to London, to bring investors to the U.K.," says Duncan McKenzie, director of economics at International Financial Services London.

Growth field. London now is home to 25 companies offering some form of Islamic financing. BLME is the largest of five wholly sharia-compliant banks operating in Britain. The first, the Islamic Bank of Britain, opened in 2004, and the number is expected to double within five years. Moreover, most of Britain's conventional banks also have established "Islamic windows," units that offer sharia-compliant products. Globally, the sector's total assets are pegged at between $500 billion and $1 trillion and growing at a rate of 10 to 15 percent a year.

Certainly, business is brisk at Kuwaiti-owned BLME, which is somewhat ironic, given that it opened its doors in July 2007, on the eve of the banking crisis. It is just completing a big leasing project for a major transportation company, and other deals it has sealed this year include financing for apartment buildings and a language school in London. It also provided an $11 million loan to RecovCo, a British aluminum reprocessor that is expanding its operations in France. For the first six months of this year, BLME reported pretax profits of $2.7 million and its assets more than doubled, to $931 million.

The basic concepts of Islamic banking go back 1,400 years, but the world's first modern Islamic bank didn't open until 1975. And the sector didn't really blossom until five years ago, when it was buoyed by rising oil prices and the strengthening economies of Asia's Muslim countries. Sharia law prohibits investing in certain industries or products, including alcohol, tobacco, pork, and pornography. The Koran also forbids usury, so financial transactions are structured to rely on income in the form of rents or profits from the loan, technically not interest. Sukuks, for instance, are a type of Islamic bond backed by ownership of a tangible asset that produces a financial return. Another popular instrument is the commodity murabaha, essentially cost-plus financing, which involves the sale and repurchase of a commodity to fund a loan.

The financing BLME arranged for Blue Ocean, for example, was a commodity murabaha. Here's how it worked: The amount of the first portion that Blue Ocean wanted from its $25 million loan arrangement was relatively small. So an appropriate, low-cost commodity was selected to accommodate the transaction, in this case special high-grade zinc. The bank purchased the commodity—an amount equal to the cash Blue Ocean wanted to withdraw—then sold it at a small profit to the company for the same price on a deferred payment basis. Blue Ocean, with the bank's assistance, then resold the metal at the original purchase price, thus raising the cash it wanted. All transactions occurred nearly simultaneously so that the deal wasn't whipsawed by market price fluctuations.

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