From left to right:

Donald Bell, Phil Britten, Raju Oak, Kafai Cheng

Photograph: Martine MacFarlane

Raju Oak provided background information on the phenomenon of the Indian software industry with particular focus on offshore outsourcing and the software quality processes typically employed within an Indian software house (SEI SW-CMM etc).

An absorbing presentation was followed by an enthusiastic question and answer session. Raju gave thoughtful answers and offered food for further thought. Only the timing of the London flight forced this stimulating meeting to an end.

Many thanks to Raju and Phil Britten for making the long journey north to Glasgow to give us this excellent presentation.

Raju has kindly allowed us to make his presentation available from this site. You may download the Zip file or the PowerPoint file.

This meeting was arranged through PROMS-G, the BCS Special Interest Group in Scotland for Project Managers.

Hosts: Kafai Cheng & Martine McFarlane

Glasgow Science Centre at Pacific Quay on the banks of the River Clyde is Glasgow's newest and most spectacular landmark. David Grimmer fired our imagination with an introduction to the GSC on Guy Fawks Night ... and he managed to make himself heard over the sounds of rockets and bangers from the festivities outside!.

The GSC is the venue for many exciting exhibitions, events, presentations, workshops, seminars and it recently hosted the prestigious BA Festival of Science. It was wonderful to find out more about this national treasure.

Glasgow branch hope to organise a trip to the GSC in the near future ... watch this space!

- A Bring Your Laptop Java Event

In the first of what we hope will be a series of "hands-on" sessions, Donald Bell demonstrated the creation of a Java Applet.

Several participants joined in the Java fun with Donald in a computer laboratory in Strathclyde University. All the necessary computing materials were provided including a CD to install the compiler, notes and a floppy disc with examples.

Java applications included the inevitable "Hello World" program and an applet to draw the BCS "key" logo. The crowning glory of the evening was an applet to put a clock on the screen which involved getting the time information from the system, displaying the numbers as a digital clock and updating the display once a every second.

Our traditional Christmas Smeed lecture is one of the most popular events in our calendar. This year, Duncan thrilled his audience with his treatise on "The Current Place of the Silicon Chip in Society".

A fascinating overview of GPS devices and their applications in the mountains, in-car and in town.

Hand-held navigational aids are becoming more efficient and evermore manageable. Just as our ancestors journeyed using the stars to guide their paths, so we use satellite to guide our steps though the 21st Century.

Personal accounts of experience with these devices made this a useful and interesting presentation. The speakers brought a variety of hand-held GPS devices to show to the audience.

ICT is becoming increasingly important and essential in all aspects of life, not the least education. Most people concentrate on the technology but the speaker made the case that, rather than concentrate on the data networks, more emphasis should be placed on the capital expenditure side, i. e. how to make money.

More information on the University of the Highlands and Islands can be found at http://www.uhi.ac.uk

The Piping Centre, McPhater Street, Cowcaddens, Glasgow

A traditional dinner followed by an evening of music and dance.

By popular request, last year's inaugural ceilidh has now been established as an annual event.

BCS Glasow Ceilidh 2002 was another resounding success and the committee would like to thank everyone who made the effort to join us on the night.

The evening started with an update on BCS in Scotland from Dr Iain White, Chairman of the BCS in Scotland. He made particular mention of the work done by the sub-committee commenting on the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) which was spearheaded by David Leslie of Edinburgh Branch and of the preparatory work of the sub-committee for the Scottish Schools Competition.

Brian Ward gave a presentation on the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL) and Martine MacFarlane updated the audience on activities of the SYPG ( Scottish Young Professionals Group), including the recent Programming Competition. Donald Bell, Chairman of the Glasgow Branch, followed up with some remarks on local issues.

The BCS Code of Conduct requires us to seek to upgrade our knowledge and skills, and to maintain awareness of relevant developments. The process is called Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and, of course, we all do it; but are we doing it effectively?

In his inspirational talk, David considered CPD in different work situations, and at different career stages, and also made comparisons with CPD in other professions. David used the Kolb cycle to illustrate the continous cycle of development and reflection that makes for effective CPD.

A lively discussion followed the talk and many left the meeting determined to write up their notes for the year. Your very own webmistress was finally jolted into action and she is now the proud owner of two CPD certificates.

Kudos to David Leslie!