Newsletter 2011.04

 
 
Posted: Posted in: Newsletter

Welcome to the METHOD IT Newsletter for April 2011

We hope this email finds you and your colleagues well in these difficult times.

All the METHOD IT team in and around Tokyo are safe and accounted for. We would like to extend our condolences and heartfelt sympathy to all those affected by the earthquake and tsunami of March 11th.

Data Center Hosting and Disaster Recovery

Through all the aftershocks and power outages of recent weeks, our Data Center servers haven’t skipped a beat. Your website, email, Intranet and other valuable data are the backbone of your business and you cannot afford downtime, especially during this tough period of recovery.

Infrastructure Monitoring

In this uncertain climate, constant and thorough monitoring of your business’ IT services is a must. Summer is fast approaching with the risk of further outages in Tokyo — are your systems equipped to handle this?
Our Monitoring solutions run 24/7 and we are instantly alerted the moment a problem arises.
We also provide an interface for you to keep tabs on the status of your website, servers, firewalls and more at anytime, even from your iPhone.

METHOD IT on Twitter

Follow us on Twitter for status updates and the latest IT news.

News from the Web

Quakebook

This is what SNS were made for – ‘Quakebook’, a Twitter-sourced charity e-book, is now available in Kindle format on Amazon with 100% of all proceeds going to the Japanese Red Cross.
‘2:46: Aftershocks: Stories from the Japan Earthquake’ is a compilation of short essays, photographs and artwork related to the March 11th earthquake and its aftermath, submitted by everyone from first-hand witnesses to overseas observers.
The project was initiated and co-ordinated by Our Man in Abiko, a British resident of Japan.

iPad 2 Delays

Apple announced that they would be postponing the March 25th Japanese release of iPad 2 because all efforts in the nation should be focussed on disaster relief and recovery.
Shipping of iPad 2 worldwide may also be subject to delays due to its containing electronic parts manufactured in Japan.

Twitter Trends Go Nihongo

As of Tuesday April 12th, Twitter users can opt to see Japanese language results in ‘Trends’, Twitter’s realtime list of the most-tweeted keywords, found in the right-hand panel on the website.
This is a significant update to the localization of Twitter in Japan and further increases its power for the spread of instant, viral information in the country.
As was proven during the power outages and transport chaos last month, Twitter is often capable of providing more reliable and up-to-date information than official channels.

iPhone Abs?

i-fukkin, a Japanese iPhone App described by its maker as an ‘abdominal muscle encourager’, has just been released in a free lite version. By holding the iPhone while doing sit-ups the device’s built-in accelerometer can sense how many repetitions you have done. Japanese idol Ayana Okada appears in-App as a cheerleader, keeping count and offering support or a scolding as necessary.
We fear the real purpose of the App may be lost in translation on the English market… *ahem*