FIELDTRIP OVERVIEW

Fieldtrip and Seminar is one of our subjects in our curriculum both in Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT) and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS). This subject was to be conducted for us student to be knowledgeable to the new technology and other machines that were using in the said company where will be visiting and to observe on how they will be using that.

This subject is categorized into two parts: the minor and the major fieldtrip and seminar. In minor fieldtrip and seminar were already done and conducted only in the school for the seminar and for the fieldtrip were done that in the Sutherland.

So, here comes the major fieldtrip and seminar which be conducted on Metro Manila. The faculty of Institute of Computing and the BSIT and BSCS 3^rd year student were excitedly preparing for the major event. October 4, 2010 was the day for our departure going to Metro Manila to conduct our trip.

In the five days expedition in some part of the Central Luzon area, each day we’ve been into a different companies and learned new things form them. The companies we visited are: Bayantel, IBM, SeaChange, PLDT, SSS, Global Exist, TTI, MMDA (traffic engineering) and the University of Philippines at the ITTC. We visited also in Tagaytay at the People’s Park in the sky and Laguna (Enchanted Kingdom) for a site seeing purposes and recreational activities.

To put in plain words just to know happened each day of our trip and to know what we learned, liked and we didn’t like each day of the tour of every company. I will explain each of our days in our expedition. 

Day 1 (October 4, 2010)

Today, I went on a company visit to…

            We went to the Bayan telecommunication (Bayantel) which is located at Roosevelt Avenue, Quezon City. That was the first company we visited when we arrived to Manila.

What I learned?

            I have learned that Bayan Telecommunications Holdings Corporation was incorporated in October 15, 1993. Bayan Telecommunications, the operating arm of BTHC and formerly known as International Communications Corporation, was incorporated in April 18, 1961. The Bayantel is one of the strong competitors of the PLDT in terms of the communication networking. They are the one who is accountable in the landline communication such as the telephone. Bayan Telecommunications' existing nationwide network is composed of satellite, terrestrial and land/submarine based cable facilities. The network includes capacities in the National Digital Transmission Network (NDTN), a joint project of six Philippine telecommunications carriers.

What I liked?

            The way they present their report, I like quite a bit because they presented it will to us and they explain to us very nicely and understandable.  I gain some knowledge about their business by presenting their report to us. Also I like the room where they present the report to us that makes us comfortable to lean one ear to him.

What I didn’t like?

              I didn’t like about them is they rush everything on their report. Also that they make wait us outside of their building and they don’t even entertain us there. And also the person who is in charge to present to us was not so prepare of his presentation. They don’t even tour us on their company for to know more about their business, they just only show us their data center.

Day 2 (October 5, 2010)

Today, I went on a company visit to…

             The second day of our trip is scheduled for our national seminar which is to be held in the University Of The Philippines In Their Information Technology Training Center (UPITTC) at the NISMED Auditorium, UP Diliman which is entitled at UP-USEP Information Technology Symposium.  In the symposium there are some different topics to be discussed by the different professor in the said university and guest speaker. To formally start the program, Prof. Lemuel Braña gives his Welcome remarks. The topics were discussed is first Writing a winning Thesis by Ms. Rose Ann Sale, which she talks about the stages on writing a thesis, next to her is John Boaz Lee that talks about the Visualizing Wikipedia Article Evolution with Stream Graph, Ms. Michelle Lee Moscatel on her Personal Learning Environment, while Ms. Len de Gracia on her Animation and Mobile Application Game Development by Professor Carloss Bott which talks about the Game Development Techniques and the last topic that discuss to us is the Empowering the Nation through Educational Technology delivered to us by Mr. Ferdinand B. Pitagan Ph.D. under on his topic is what is educational technology?

            After the seminar has been conducted by the UPITTC student and faculty, we proceed to the UP techno hub which located at Commonwealth, Quezon City. Theirs a lot of company their but we only visited the IBM innovation center and the SeaChange company.

What I learned?

            I have learn a lot on the different topics that they impart to us especially on the Animation which discuss by Ms. Len de Gracia that you can create an anime by simple photoshop and illustrator only. I’ve learned also that “the problem isn’t the availability of data but it’s the understanding the data itself” and that Wikipedia articles are like biological systems, they evolve which impart by Mr. John Boaz Lee and lastly, you can develop a game using a C++ language.

            In the company we visited, I have learned that the IBM Philippines has the most extensive IT services network, servicing the most number of clients across all sectors and industries. IBM provides IT and business solutions to majority of the top companies in the Philippines from the government, financial & banking, telecom, retail & distribution sectors, among others. It was established in 1937 and they served as their clients are the PLDT/ Smart, BPI, Jollibee, Meralco, BDO, Shell, Globe telecoms, Shoe Mart, San Miguel corporation, Land Bank and the PAL. They provide the software services on their clients and the common software they provide is the Tivoli Software and the Lotus Software.  IBM has evolved to become the leading information technology partner in the country, providing hardware, software and services. The Country General Manager for IBM Philippines is James Velasquez.

While in SeaChange company which new to me, I learned that their company is the world’s leading Ad insertion solutions and they their what they a Video on Demand application. SeaChange International is the global leader in multi-screen video and one of the largest software companies worldwide. The Company provides innovative, Emmy award-winning solutions and services for back office, advertising, content, in-home devices and broadcast to hundreds of media companies globally, including blue chips such as Comcast, Virgin Media, AT&T, Hutchison Whampoa, Vodacom and DISH Network.  Headquartered in Acton, Massachusetts, SeaChange has product development, support and sales offices around the world.

What I like?

            Of all the speakers that have talked in front of us in the said seminar, Ms. Len de Gracia catches our attention and made me interested to listen to her. I liked the way she delivered her topic to us because it makes us alive and leaned an ear to her. She makes us alive at that time because of the previous topics that are quite boring. She has a sense of humor and an excellent speaker because she speaks thoroughly in English which is pleasant to listen to her.

            On our site visit, I liked on the IBM Company because they have their souvenir items for those student who raised question and answered their question even though I don’t mine but I appreciate that thing which they prepared on that day.  

What I didn’t like?

            There is one speaker that made me totally bored to listen on the seminar because the way he delivered his topic about Mobile Application Game Development was so serious and hard to understand, he is Mr. Carloss Bott. He speaks so fast which we can hardly understand his English which are some was so deep for us to comprehend. Same as to Mr. Jean Paul Broc the Chief-Executive-Officer (CEO) of SeaChange. While he is presenting about their company to us, I can’t deny that time he discuss to us his own topics, my eyes are going to fall because they liked a sleeping peels to me that makes me asleep every time they talk. Every one of us are yawning at that time cause

Day 3 (October 6, 2010)

Today, I went on a company visit to...

PLDT Company InnoLab or the Innovation Laboratory and Telecommunication and Education Center is our first company we visited in this day which is located at Boni Avenue, Mandaluyong City Manila. Before we got there, we encountered a bumper to bumper traffic somewhere in Quezon City area. So, we take a nap for a while on the bus while waiting for us to arrive to our destination.

On the afternoon, I transferred out from the bus 1 move to the bus 4 for me to go the Social Security System (SSS) Company together with the student who didn’t yet visit the SSS.  It is located at the 2/F Magsaysay Hall, East Avenue, Diliman Quezon City.

What I learned?

            The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) was founded on November 28, 1928 they called it as the Age of Birth. PLDT is the leading telecommunications provider in the Philippines. Through its three principal business groups - fixed line, wireless, and information and communication technology - PLDT offers the largest and most diversified range of telecommunications services across the Philippines’ most extensive fiber optic backbone and fixed line, cellular and satellite networks. Their company has so many ages like: Age of Destruction (1939-1949), Age of Hope (1949-1958), Age of Change (1959-1968), Age of Control (1969-1978), Age of Revolution (1978-1988), Age of Gatekeeper (1989-1998) and the Age of Convergence (1999- present). The PLDT innolab was established in 2003. I find out also that the first single chip microprocessor was first announce in 1971 and changed the world. I discovered that they use a cloud networking for their telecommunication.

            In the Social Security System, I gain knowledge from their company that they are highly computerized and use a standard technology for their company. Whereas they use a biometrics for their employee’s ID to validate the exact person identified in an ID. They started on computerization on 1970-1973 and fully computerized on 1992-1996 and use BIOS (Branch Online Integrity System) for their system.

What I like?

            I appreciate the friendliness and approachable employee both on the PLDT and SSS Company. They tour us around their company and introduce their machines and as well as the system they using for company. Even though they are tired of walking around and facilitate a large number of student but still they are ready and have smile on their face at the end of our tour and explore their business. I like also that they provide snack for us.

What I didn’t like?

            It made my tummy hungry and bored while we on the presentation of Mr. Edmund Mamoyo because he ended his presentation late noon already. We are so very hungry at that time and so tired listening at him even though his topic is quite interesting because he discuss and introduce us the network topology of the PLDT and the different transmission medium of their company. He seems like a teacher or an instructor that discusses his lesson for the whole semester for us for just 2 hours. 

            I don’t see any dullness at the SSS Company because they treat as well there maybe it’s the distance between the place where they about to introduce to us and showing their new technology which they are using.

Day 4 (October 7, 2010)

Today, I went on a company visit to...

For this fourth day of our tour we went to Global Exist, located at the Ortigas Center, Pasig City Manila. There you can see lot of tall buildings and establishment raise there. A little trivia on that place, Ortigas Center is considered as a small Makati City because the place is already developed like in Makati City.

What I learn?

            This company was founded by Winston Demarillo and the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Exist Global is a software engineering services firm that develops, designs and delivers enterprise-class products and cutting-edge web applications for some of the world’s most successful business, including a number of Fortune 500 companies. Since 2001, Exist has created new products and applications and enhanced existing solutions, using practice teams with areas of expertise including Open Source, Web 2.0 technologies, Java, .NET and Ruby on Rails. Founded in 2001, Exist is a software engineering innovation leader that enables businesses with world-class software development infrastructure, talent, and delivery platform. They specialize in developing enterprise software, interactive web and mobile applications, and technology software solutions for US, Asia Pacific, and Australia headquartered organizations. Exist Global is a premier supplier of outsourced software development services to companies in the US, Europe and throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Exist has been successful in connecting enterprise IT with both collaborative development communities and open source environments.

What I like?

            I am glad about that their company offers a seminar or a convention about open-sourcing and different computer languages such as java and C++ for all who is interested to join. I truly amazed, one of their employee who is Jo Eduardo which is he graduated as an Applied Economics student. She entered the company without the complete knowledge about the computer but she join the training on how to use Java language and now she already a developer of a game of a certain company or corporation using the a Java. I like also, the way they treat their employee because they make sure that every employee they have is well developed on their area of expertise.

What I didn’t like?

            I didn’t remember that makes me annoy when we visit the Exist Global because they entertained as well even though there are some delayed of time in their presentation but they explained to us why they having that problem. I can say that we lack of time on there. I am quite interesting about their company because they gave such training for you when you will enter their company.

Day 5 (October 8, 2010)

Today, I went on a company visit to...

We headed this day to Telecoms Training Institute which is located at Valenzuela City. It is an institute for a Telecommunication and Networking.

            On the afternoon, the next location we are going to Mandaluyong which the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority or what we called MMDA. We are going to visit their Traffic Engineering building.

What I learn?

I have learned different things with regards to telecommunications such as the voice fixed bandwidth which is being applied in telephones. Things like fiber optics and repeaters are also being discussed. TTI was originally established for the purpose of delivering telecommunications training programs to TELOF employees.

While at the MMDA, is responsible for services that have metro-wide impact and transcend local political boundaries, or entail huge expenditures beyond the capability of the individual local government units (LGUs) of Metropolitan Manila. They offer services such as Flood control and sewerage management, which include the formulation and implementation of policies, standards, programs and projects for an integrated flood control, drainage and sewerage system and Transport and traffic management, which include the formulation, coordination, and monitoring of policies, standards, programs and projects to rationalize the existing transport operations, infrastructure requirements, the use of thoroughfares, and promotion of safe and convenient movement of persons and goods; provision for the mass transport system and the institution of a system to regulate road users; administration and implementation of all traffic enforcement operations, traffic engineering services and traffic education programs, including the institution of a single ticketing system in Metropolitan Manila.

What I like?

            The only thing I found interesting in there was the machines which they have shown to us. That was my first time to see those kinds of equipments because they tour us in their building. While in the MMDA they also show onto us their data center and explained on how the CCTV camera have a great help to them.

           

What I didn’t like?

            The place for me was so uncomfortable because every room is inconveniences and also that the person who is in charge for us to tour and explain about their Institute and the machine they using was quite to serious that makes us boredom. It is quite disappointed because of a small area in their data center that I can hardly understand and hear what the facilitator trying to explain to us about the machine they are using.

APPENDIX

What I can recommend for the improvement of the fieldtrip and seminar?

            For those students who will be taking up this subject in the near future, I can utter only that starting from this day take a small amount from your daily allowance and start saving money now for this subject because it is an expensive matter. I know that the next fieldtrip and seminar would be a little far away from our fieldtrip today. I would suggest that find a place where it is an IT park and have a company which is using a high-technology machine and a latest technology this time.

            For the next officer, I would suggest that they will must be attentive and work the task early and completely. As what I observe to the officer in our fieldtrip they didn’t work properly the responsibility that assigned to them. And I can say that the president is not as responsible as what I observe because in times in our meeting he sometimes not around.