The Return Shadow Souls Chapter 4 Free Essays

â€Å"You’re shaking. Let me do it alone,† Meredith said, putting a hand on Bonnie’s shoulder as they stood together in front of Caroline Forbes’s house. Bonnie started to lean into the pressure, but made herself stop. We will write a custom essay sample on The Return: Shadow Souls Chapter 4 or any similar topic only for you Order Now It was humiliating to be shaking so obviously on a Virginia morning in late July. It was humiliating to be treated like a child, too. But Meredith, who was only six months older, looked more adult than usual today. Her dark hair was pulled back, so that her eyes looked very large and her olive-skinned face with its high cheekbones was shown to its best advantage. She could practically be my babysitter, Bonnie thought dejectedly. Meredith had high heels on, too, instead of her usual flats. Bonnie felt smaller and younger than ever in comparison. She ran a hand through her strawberry-blond curls, trying to fluff them up a precious half inch higher. â€Å"I’m not scared. I’m c-cold,† Bonnie said with all the dignity she could muster. â€Å"I know. You feel something coming from there, don’t you?† Meredith nodded at the house before them. Bonnie looked sideways at it and then back at Meredith. Suddenly Meredith’s adultness was more comforting than annoying. But before she looked at Caroline’s house again she blurted, â€Å"What’s with the spike heels?† â€Å"Oh,† Meredith said, glancing down. â€Å"Just practical thinking. If anything tries to grab my ankle this time, it gets this.† She stamped and there was a satisfying clack from the sidewalk. Bonnie almost smiled. â€Å"Did you bring your brass knuckles, too?† â€Å"I don’t need them; I’ll knock Caroline out again barehanded if she tries anything. But quit changing the subject. I can do this alone.† Bonnie finally let herself put her own small hand on Meredith’s slim, long-fingered one. She squeezed. â€Å"I know you can. But I’m the one who should. It was me she invited over.† â€Å"Yes,† Meredith said, with a slight, elegant curl of her lip. â€Å"She’s always known where to stick in the knife. Well, whatever happens, Caroline’s brought it on herself. First we try to help her, for her sake and ours. Then we try to make her get help. After that – â€Å" â€Å"After that,† Bonnie said sadly, â€Å"there’s no telling.† She looked at Caroline’s house again. It looked†¦skewed†¦in some way, as if she were seeing it through a distorting mirror. Besides that, it had a bad aura: black slashed across an ugly shade of gray-green. Bonnie had never seen a house with so much energy before. And it was cold, this energy, like the breath out of a meat locker. Bonnie felt as if it would suck out her own life-force and turn it into ice, if it got the chance. She let Meredith ring the doorbell. It had a slight echo to it, and when Mrs. Forbes answered, her voice seemed to echo slightly, as well. The inside of the house still had that funhouse mirror look to it, Bonnie thought, but even stranger was the feel. If she shut her eyes she would imagine herself in a much larger place, where the floor slanted sharply down. â€Å"You came to see Caroline,† Mrs. Forbes said. Her appearance shocked Bonnie. Caroline’s mother looked like an old woman, with gray hair and a pinched white face. â€Å"She’s up in her room. I’ll show you,† Caroline’s mother said. â€Å"But Mrs. Forbes, we know where – † Meredith broke off when Bonnie put a hand on her arm. The faded, shrunken woman was leading the way. She had almost no aura at all, Bonnie realized, and was stricken to the heart. She’d known Caroline and her parents for so long – how could their relationships have come to this? I won’t call Caroline names, no matter what she does, Bonnie vowed silently. No matter what. Even†¦yes, even after what she’s done to Matt. I’ll try to remember something good about her. But it was difficult to think at all in this house, much less to think of anything good. Bonnie knew the staircase was going up; she could see each step above her. But all her other senses told her she was going down. It was a horrifying feeling that made her dizzy: this sharp slant downward as she watched her feet climb. There was also a smell, strange and pungent, of rotten eggs. It was a reeking, rotten odor that you tasted in the air. Caroline’s door was shut, and in front of it, lying on the floor, was a plate of food with a fork and carving knife on it. Mrs. Forbes hurried ahead of Bonnie and Meredith and quickly snatched up the plate, opened the door opposite Caroline’s, and placed it in there, shutting the door behind her. But just before it disappeared, Bonnie thought she saw movement in the heap of food on the fine bone china. â€Å"She’ll barely speak to me,† Mrs. Forbes said in the same empty voice she’d used before. â€Å"But she did say that she was expecting you.† She hurried past them, leaving them alone in the corridor. The smell of rotten eggs – no, of sulfur, Bonnie realized, was very strong. Sulfur – she recognized the smell from last year’s chemistry class. But how did such a horrible smell get into Mrs. Forbes’s elegant house? Bonnie turned to Meredith to ask, but Meredith was already shaking her head. Bonnie knew that expression. Don’t say anything. Bonnie gulped, wiped her watering eyes, and watched Meredith turn the handle of Caroline’s door. The room was dark. Enough light shone from the hallway to show that Caroline’s curtains had been reinforced by opaque bedspreads nailed over them. No one was in or on the bed. â€Å"Come in! And shut that door fast!† It was Caroline’s voice, with Caroline’s typical waspishness. A flood of relief swept over Bonnie. The voice wasn’t a male bass that shook the room, or a howl, it was Caroline-in-a-bad-mood. She stepped into the dimness before her. How to cite The Return: Shadow Souls Chapter 4, Essay examples

The Snob; Critique free essay sample

The Snob: Reflection In The Snob John goes to a store with the girl he loves; Grace. John sees his dad, and wants to leave the store with Grace because he does not want his dad to meet her. John feels embarrassed about how his dad is dressed and does not want Grace too see him. John’s dad sees them both in the store and eventually walks out without turning back to see John. Next John confronts Grace about how he portrays her as a snob, because she think she is better than everyone else, and she is high class and John and his family are not, and have had to work for everything they have today. John believes that Grace will not like his family and that they will not live up to her standards. Based on my personal experience I can relate to the moment John saw his dad and felt embarrassed about it. We will write a custom essay sample on The Snob; Critique or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I feel this way when I go out with my parents sometimes and they do things to try and embarrass me or go out dressed funny. Sometimes this makes me feel awkward or embarrassed to be seen with them, because I act and dress a lot different than they do, so I sometimes feel weird if I go out with them and they dress funny. This also relates to how John felt that moment at the store because if I go out and see people I know I sometimes feel like the will question who I’m with or what they look like. The topic of family and being embarrassed is present in the text The Snob, because when John is in the department store with Grace he sees his father. John instantly tries not to look up and have his dad notice him. John feels very awkward and embarrassed by the way he sees his father dressed because he does not want Grace to see his father dressed like that; because he fears she might judge him. John insists to Grace that they leave the store, but Grace wants to stay. After a while John’s dad eventually notices John and Grace, and after checking out he walks out of the store and does not turn his back to come see John, because she feels sad and embarrassed that John didn’t come introduce Grace to him. John confronts Grace about the situation and how he feels about her and he tells Grace that she is kind of snobby and that she acts and has a different lifestyle than he does, and he feels she might leave him because of that. Based on what happened in The Snob and my own personal experiences, I feel that many other people feel the same way. There are many reasons why people may feel this way. It could be because someone may feel embarrassed for their friends or family to meet someone they are friends with or are dating. They may feel the same way John did about his family compared to Grace, or they may feel the complete opposite. They may feel that they are not good enough compared to others based on how they look, dress or how they live. This may cause them to hide some those things by dressing a certain way when with that person or people. It may cause them to spend hours getting ready to try and make themselves look their best so they can impress people. They may also not invite people over but rather go to someone else’s house or a different location to avoid going to their house because they are embarrassed of how they live. They may also avoid contact with their parents when around these people because like in John’s situation; they may feel embarrassed and do not want the people they are around to meet or see who they are.

A full detail of the first and the last chapters of the movie Gladiator Essays

A full detail of the first and the last chapters of the movie Gladiator Essays A full detail of the first and the last chapters of the movie Gladiator Essay A full detail of the first and the last chapters of the movie Gladiator Essay Essay Topic: The Heart Goes Last This essay is a full detail of the first and the last chapters of the movie gladiator; it also covers 3 different topics on the chapters. I am going to explain the expressions given by characters, what director wants from audience, and the role of camera in the movie. This film is presented as an exciting epic. The central focus of the film is intended to be on Maximus (Russell Crowe) by the director (Ridley Scott) and is about one mans heroic stand against the greatness, but at the same time, the corruption of the Roman Empire. Hell is unleashed is the title of the opening scene and begins with credits to the background of flames. It then progresses to a figure walking in a long grassed field to the background of the sky and the camera in a close up, focusing on his hand, the wedding ring clearly visible showing his devotion to his family at an early stage. At this point the music is melancholy with a female soloist which carries on throughout the film. This is a situation of calm; almost like a dream. The shot cuts to a close up on Maximus face as he lifts his head with his eyes closed, as if in deep thought. This is a dramatic change of scenery from the dream like golden fields to the reality of a war stricken battlefield. The music intensity quickens and he opens his eyes, the combined intensity of the music and the clothes he is wearing make him look like a powerful warrior. The camera then cuts to many different angles but after each one cuts back to Maximus, this is showing how busy everyone is when they are preparing for battle. The music is the theme tune. The music stops to show, perhaps, the silence before the battle and the camera cuts to Maximus riding his horse, the camera dollies with the horse and the music starts and intensity slowly rises as the camera cuts to the enemy showing themselves out of the dark. The camera is in amongst the soldiers preparing for battle showing the intensity of war and the discipline of the Romans compared to the barbarians. There is a birds eye view as the battle starts and you are shown all the firepower they had at their disposal. Archers, catapults, cavalry are shown to show the technologically advanced Romans. The camera cuts to the soldiers and the front line battle. The camera cuts to a close up with the camera dollying with cavalry soldiers and Maximus, the music is very fast which reflects the actions happening at the scene. The camera follows them into war where death is shown all the way through and very graphically which shows the horror of war, as the battle comes to an end the music slows and the scene moves into slow motion. The sound effects stop completely but for the music, which is very calm and mournful reflecting the horror of the battle. In this scene the shots go from distant to close up which show the violence, anger and pure adrenaline of war. At the end of the battle ash and snow start to fall, which represents that the Romans won the battle, but with a great cost of human life, the music is very melancholy representing sorrow. The Director wishes to show the audience how organized and invincible the Romans are (on the battle field at least), how they are lacking in motivation, and in contrast how the barbarians are fighting for a lost cause and yet they will not give up. He shows this by always making the Romans look organized and goes in amongst the barracks and with Maximus in the ambush with the camera where as the camera watches the barbarians get attacked and slaughtered. Death smiles at us all is the title of the ending scene and is of possibly the most significance of the whole film. It is the scene where he two main characters die and has religious over tones from the start. It starts with the two main characters, Maximus and Comadus, rising on a platform with roses dropping from above and a gospel choir singing as if they are rising up to heaven; the camera is close up until they go out of view and then pans out to see a wooden structure that resembles a cross. This may symbolize that someone is going to die. As they rise to the top platform the viewer is shown the whole of the floor of the coliseum covered in rose petals; this shows that this is a very emotional occasion. The camera then cuts to a close up of each person of significance to give the effect of a showdown, the petals also mite look like blood on the sand of the arena. During the period of most of the fight there is no music, only other sound effects such as swords clashing; this is because there is no music that could state every emotion that the characters would be feeling and so there is no need because the event almost speaks for its self as it is of such emotional significance because it would affect so many people. Before the battle starts we see a paradox between a bad man wearing white stabbing a good man wearing black in the back whilst showing affection and hugging him, this shows that Comadus wants to become the good man in the publics (us) eyes and Maximus is very upset and his life and does not care, all he wants to do is take revenge and do the last words of Marcus Aeurileus. As the battle starts the camera dollies with them but cuts back and forth from the ground level view and in the stands which puts the audience right in the seats of the arena, this is to give variety to the fight scene and keep it seeming fast paced and keep the audience involved in the fight, it also shows the fighters perspective to the fight. All through this scene some bits are in slow motion, others blurred and some normal speed; this is because whenever any of those happened it was always seen from Maximus view and so Maximus is beginning to die and would be seeing things at different speeds. The fight is fast paced and the camera angles vary lots of times in a very short space of time to make it look more exciting than it actually was. The only sound used throughout the fight scene is that of clashing blades. The camera cuts to Maximus house once more to show that he is dying and is almost dead, the director here wants the audience to sympathise with Maximus. As Comadus dies there is no music and very gory sound effects to show the enormity of the event and the director wants the audience not to have sympathy for him. The camera then cuts to silence with the camera spinning round the coliseum to give the effect of everyone watching and reflecting on the emperors death; the music starts very slowly and builds up. The camera cuts to Maximus house again to show he is really near the end and almost with his family in the afterlife, the solo vocalist returns and then the camera cuts between Maximus and the dead Emperors sister several times before a close up on his face as he dies; the camera then follows him as he glides along the ground, with rose petals clearly visible on the floor behind him symbolizing that he is b ack with his wife and child and happy again. The camera cuts to Maximus walking in the field back to his house as in the beginning but this time in colour and then cuts back to him lying on the floor in the middle of the coliseum. The camera moves to inside the ring of people and has a close up on the emperors daughters big speech about how Rome is not worth one good mans life with a close up view on her but looking up at her to give the effect of her being big and taking over. It then moves to a birds eye view as Maximus is carried off. Next the camera shows a close up of Chimsy burying Maximus figures of his family in sand stained in blood to symbolize him being with his family as he died in the same place in the sand and they are buried in his blood. The camera then rises to see the sun going down on the great city of Rome. In this scene I think that the director (Ridley Scott) is trying to show how weak such a powerful city like Rome can be and that even though it looks so magnificent, it only takes one man to tear it apart. Language At the beginning of the movie the language is shown in text. Within the text it explains the genre and idea of the movie by explaining the situation of the Roman Empire and that the Roman Empire was at its rise (therefore the audience realizes something is going to happen to the Roman Empire). But through out the whole movie the language is shown oral. Main characters such as Russell Crowe use very much of a wise-men language; this means they make influential speeches in the movie, which portrays their character in the movie. The barbarians and the Arabs are shown that they do not speak the same language as the Romans; therefore there are the bad and the roman language is the good. Music The music through out the movie is very downhearted and melancholy. The music expresses sorrow and sadness. At the beginning the movie starts with music and it ends with music, perhaps they are both parts of the same song because the tune seems to be the same. On the other hand there is a music theme for the wars and fights which is a more militia music type to show the expressions and give the feeling of war and death. Symbolism In this movie symbols were very much involved. Symbols such as robins to show winter, bad people wear black dirty and good people wear bright and clean, the bad dead body is on the floor in the arena and the good body is carried of with honor, a ring is shown to show devotion to family, flowers are always shown to show emotions, in the wars the catapults were shown to show the technology of the roman empire and Comadus is shown with a baby face which symbolizes a child, not an emperor. Many different symbols have been used in this movie to give hints or id

Should Parents Work When Their Children Are Very Young Essays

Should Parents Work When Their Children Are Very Young Essays Should Parents Work When Their Children Are Very Young Essay Should Parents Work When Their Children Are Very Young Essay Should both parents go out to work when their children are young? What are your views? (O-Level Nov. 2004) Crying, screaming and shouting were heard all around the room. Mike, a five-year-old boy, was grasping his motheraâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s hand. The reluctance of the leaving of his mother coerced him to appeal to his mother to stay at home. aâ‚ ¬? Mom, please! Dad is out to work. It is enough! aâ‚ ¬? Mike begged. Here comes a controversial social problem aâ‚ ¬ should both parents go out and work when the child is still young?Parents, so-called the first teachers of the children, have crucial impacts on their children. Their presence and love for the children while they are young affect the childrenaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s lives massively. Some parents decide that both of them will go out to work when their children are young. This arouses the deprecation. Firstly, young children do not have the ability to live independently without the help and guidance of their parents. If both parents go out to work, there will be no one at home. Therefore, when the children meet any difficulties, problems or danger, nobody will be aware.Definitely, it is unsafe for the children. For instance, if there is a short circuit in the house, it is easy to fire the house as short circuit can cause fire. However, you may argue that the parents can hire a helper to look after the children. It is true. However, so many cases have clearly indicated the disadvantages of that option. According to the news in Chongqing, China, some domestic workers help the children to shower by putting them into washing machines, and eventually cause the deaths of children.Although the cases are not numerous, the possibility of such potential danger has never gone. Thus, with at least one of the parents at home, one can ensure that the children are safe at home. Secondly, love form parents can never be substituted by other people. The young need the care and love form parents. With parentsaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ love, the young will have the courage to be brave when faced with a difficulty. Some people say that parents display their love as their children when they come after work.However, the long duration of being alone during the day time may leave a dark shadow in childrenaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s hearts. Furthermore, if at least one parent says at home with the child, the parent can conduct home education for the child. To bring early education to the child is to give the child an edge in cognitive development. Of course, this job can be done by having a tutor at home. However, the tutor only teaches knowledge from the textbook. He does not provide the moral education. To be a successful man, we know that morality and a good personality are crucial.However, I have to admit that if both parents go out to work, the children may become and better able independent to handle most of the things themselves. Inculcating independence in a child is a necessary life skill. Nevertheless, independence can be inculcated through other means like asking him to place his own order of food during an outing to Pizza Hut. In conclusion, there are advantages to be reaped from having both parents working, the disadvantages far more outgrowth the advantages.

Creating a Flowchart Design for the Validation Check Process Lab Report

Creating a Flowchart Design for the Validation Check Process - Lab Report Example Input validation check may either use blacklisting approach or white-listing approach. White-listing allows programmer to define the data that should be accepted in an entry while blacklisting does the opposite. That is, a blacklist approach defines a set of ‘known bad inputs’ that should not be accepted as an input whereas a white-list defines a set of known good inputs. Using the two approaches, one of the input checks may be application of a white-list. The auditor may consider checking the accepted data types in each entry. For example in the access routine number to payroll by the operator, one may specify that the input must consider of letters, special characters such as dollar sign and numbers. Since it acts like a password, the combination ensures security when it comes to accessibility (Nick, 2003). Additionally, employees’ number inputs may be restricted to letters and numbers only e.g kw997836. Besides, another input validation check to consider is canonicalization of all inputs. This involves reducing data received to its simplest form. Simplifying one input may facilitate bypassing of validation functions. Thus canonicalization ensures that any malicious user do not bypass the validation function (Nick, 2003). Last but not least, one may consider creating checks for the system content. Check for content specifies the maximum and minimum lengths of entries and probably the syntax. For example, in the employees’ number input slot, one may specify that the letters comes before numbers and the maximum number of characters is 6. The specification ensures that a malicious user does not paste several input data in the entry (Nick,

Change of Expectations of Men and Women in 1800s Essay

Change of Expectations of Men and Women in 1800s - Essay Example Elders in those days believed that these chores helped the women to keep in good shape because it helped to strengthen their muscles and organs. According to women these days, the emphasis is laid on stimulating their brain through excessive studying and thereby they neglect their physique making it weak and vulnerable to disease. In an aristocracy, where work is dishonored, it is customary for the lower class to work for the benefit and enjoyment of the upper class but this is not so in a democracy where work is honored because everyone works hard for themselves and their own welfare. Such high democratic principles can be seen in Christianity, where the child is taught at a young age to do service to others. Jesus Christ is the best example one can take to see his self-sacrificing attitude towards his race and Christian principles and teachings are based on this. Good Christian parents should see to it that they render the best possible training in virtues to their children so that they would grow up to be benevolent and self- sacrificing to all around them. Speaking on the post Civil War Gwendolyn Wright speaks to us about those people who moved to the suburbs to escape the problems of poor health and political and social unrest. Picturesque landscapes and the use of natural materials for buildings brought them more close to nature. But the decades after the Civil war saw the suburbs take on a different implication. Those families who could afford a house in the suburbs were labeled as â€Å"middle class†. The cult of home and motherhood reached its pinnacle in the last decades of the nineteenth century. People living in the suburbs very often would visit the city to enjoy the restaurants, parks, museums and other exciting things the city had to offer.

Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) Corporate Structure

Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) Corporate Structure Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) is a key player in the establishment, maintenance and provision of telecommunication and related services under the license issued by the Ministry of Energy, Water and Communications. It is the dominant player in the fixed line telephony market in Malaysia, offering local call, long distance call and data services through a range of platforms. TMs mobile communications business operates under the Celcom brand while its Internet access business operates under the TM net and Streamyx brands. TM also operates a wireless broadband Internet access network through TM net Hotspot. TM was incorporated in 1984 listed on Bursa Malaysia Securities in Nov 1990. the core business of TM is Telecommunications, Fixed Line Services, Mobile Cellular, Internet Connectivity, Operation of optic fibred systems, Managed Network Services, Trading in telecommunications equipment. Telekom Malaysia Berhad is the largest telecommunication company in Malaysia. It has a monopoly on the fixed line network and has a considerable market share of the mobile communications market after its acquisition of Celcom and merging with its mobile operation arm TM Touch. TM has an internet service provider subsidiary offering narrowband and broadband connectivity. Broadband connectivity is through DSL under TM Nets Streamyx brand. Due to its near monopoly of the last mile connections, TM Net is now the sole DSL broadband provider in the country. Telekom Malaysia officially changed its global brand from Telekom Malaysia to TM in April 2005. Telekom Malaysia Berhad, is one of the largest listed companies on Bursa Malaysia with an operating revenue of more than RM16 billion and total asset over RM41.8 billion. TM is a government-linked company, reporting government shareholdings of over 36%. Of the remaining shares, less than 4% are held by non-bumiputera Malaysians, the racial di stinction being an example of the governments affirmative action policy. TM had a large numbers of companies under its control both in and outside of Malaysia. Through its investment arm TM International Sdn Bhd, TM has  purchased and assumed control of a number of start-up telcos most notably close to the home region. TM has a local subsidiaries such as: * TMNet * VADS * Multimedia University * Multimedia College * TMRD * Telekom Applied Business On September 28, 2007, TM announced a revamp of its corporate structure, de-merging its fixed-line and mobile businesses into two separate companies: Fixed Co and Region Co. Fixed Co will comprise its domestic fixed-line business, internet service provider and other ancillary businesses. Region Co will comprise Celcom, its domestic cellular operator, and all of its international operations. The de-merger exercise is scheduled to be completed by Q1 2008 and both Fixed Co and Region Co will be listed on Bursa Malaysia by June 2008. On 10 December, 2007, TM announced a special dividend amounting to RM 1.6 billion to its shareholder. TM further added that after the demerger, Fixed Co. will adopt a dividend policy of a minimum RM700mil or up to 90% of normalized net profit, whichever is higher. On 11 April 2008, Telekom Malaysia announced that TM International will be listed on the Bursa Malaysia by 28 April 2008. TM International is renamed as Axiata Group Berhad in May 2009. Dialog Tele kom customer base as of end 2008 was 5.5 millions. In sponsorship, Manchester United signs five-year deal with Telekom Malaysia Premier League leaders Manchester United have signed a five-year deal with Telekom Malaysia (TM), which will become its Official Integrated Telecommunications partner in the Far Eastern country. TM is the largest telecommunications company in Malaysia, posting an increase in profits in 2009 of 180.4% compared to the previous year. The company is developing its tour match sponsorship of Man Utd into a complete partnership with the Club. Man Utds success in Malaysia is clearly evident with approximately 25% of the population supporting the Club. Its tours of the Far East attract large crowds with around 40,000 attending the training sessions with the same figure supporting the team at a match in Kuala Lumpur. Market analysis Market analysis is a research aimed at predicting or anticipating the direction of stock, bond, or commodity markets, based on technical data about the movement of market prices or on fundamental data such as corporate earnings prospects or supply and demand. It is a designed to define a companys current or potential markets, forecast their directions, and decide how to expand the companys share and exploit any new trends. Market analysis is a tool companies use in order to better understand the environment in which they operate. It is one of the main steps in the development of a marketing plan. The first step is to conduct market research or gather information through direct mail, telemarketing, focus groups or online surveys. Market analysis, which involves critically reviewing and organizing the data collected so that it can be used in making strategic marketing decisions. Just as one would not build a house on sand, one should never undertake a marketing program that is not buil t on a firm foundation of market knowledge. Telekom Malaysia (TM), the leading player in the Malaysian fixed-line market, is focusing on high-speed broadband and bundled services to drive its future growth, while a declining fixed-line market and shrinking ARPU remain its key challenges. Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) is engaged in providing a wide range of services for the telecommunications industry. The companys offering include fixed line, wireless, data and broadband services. The group operates in different countries namely Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, and Iran, with a strong focus on the Malaysian market. The company provides fixed line and data services such as telephone and internet connections for business and domestic purposes. Solutions for international wide area networks, corporate level virtual private networks. The Internet and multimedia services of the company include access services and application services. Under the cellular services the company offers wireless related services to its customers. It is managed by its operating subsidiaries such as Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad, TM International (Bangladesh), Dialog Telekom (Sri Lanka), Multinet Pakistan, PT Excelcomindo Pratama TBK (Indonesia), Spice Communications (India), Telekom Malaysia International (Cambodia), and Mobileone (Singapore). Major service offerings include voice, data, mobile internet, messaging, and international roaming. The non-telecommunication related services include property development, printing and publication of directories, education, trading in consumers premises equipment and other businesses. The company operates through four reportable segments namely, Retail Business, Wholesale Business, Global Business and Shared Services or Others. The companys Retail Business segment provides various telecommunication products, services and communication solutions principally to direct consumers, small and medium businesses, corporate and government customers. TM offers a range of voice services, internet or broadband services, data services and information communication technology services. As on December 2008, the Retail Business segment holds a customer base of 1.6 million. During the fiscal 2008, the respective segment accounted MYR 6887.2 million, an increase of 6% over last fiscal. The Wholesale Business segment of the company delivers various telecommunication products and services through its direct networks to other licensed network operators such as Network Facilities Providers (NFP), Network Service Providers (NSP) and Application Service Providers (ASP). The company provides various telecommunications network related services through Fiberails fibre optics backbone, via railway tracks and Petronas gas pipelines. Fiberail is a joint venture formed by Telekom Malaysia Berhad and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB). In addition, its Fibrecomm is a joint venture with Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). It operates through 10Gbps fibre optics network. Moreover, Fibrecomm also offers a neutral infrastructure service. During the fiscal 2008, the respective segment accounted MYR 997.1 million, a 0.65% decrease over last fiscal. Global Business segment is involved in the provision of inbound and outbound services for telecommunication products. The company under its Global Business segment holds collaborations in six continents namely, Asia, Europe, Americas, Oceania, the Middle East and Africa. It is involved on various business alliances with various telcos in Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and installed global IP nodes in Singapore, Hong Kong, the UK, US and others. Global Data Marketing and Global Voice Marketing teams are the major products and services provided by this segment. During the fiscal 2008, the respective segment accounted MYR 11 48.4 million, an increase of 3.70% over last fiscal. The companys Shared Services or Others include all shared services divisions, networks and subsidiaries that do not fall under the above lines of business. During the fiscal 2008, the respective segment accounted MYR 4381.7 million, a 1.55% decrease over last fiscal. Telekom Research Development Sdn Bhd (TMRD), the research and development division of the group entered into an agreement with MIMOS for research collaboration in cutting-edge technologies between governments linked companies (GLCs). It also signed an agreement with University Technology Malaysia to promote co-operation between the two parties in the field of research and development. The company spent MYR 65.5 million on RD during 2008. In May 2009, Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) and Wi-Net Technology Sdn Bhd (Wi-Net) entered into a Wholesale Ethernet Service Agreement for the provisioning of Wi-Nets wireless broadband service, Winet Broadband. It is the five year agreement, where the Wi-Net will leverage on TMs existing Wholesale Ethernet service and the new High Speed Broadband (HSBB) network and expands supply of its broadband service to more than 2,000 locations nationwide by 2010. Industrial analysis Industry analysis is a tool that facilitates a companys understanding of its position relative to other companies that produce similar products or services. Understanding the forces at work in the overall industry is an important component of effective strategic planning. Industry analysis enables small business owners to identify the threats and opportunities facing their businesses, and to focus their resources on developing unique capabilities that could lead to a competitive advantage. An industry analysis consists of three major elements. That is the underlying forces at work in the industry, the overall attractiveness of the industry and the critical factors that determine a companys success within the industry. Ease of entry refers to how easy or difficult it is for a new firm to begin competing in the industry. The ease of entry into an industry is important because it determines the likelihood that a company will face new competitors. In industries that are easy to enter, so urces of competitive advantage tend to wane quickly. On the other hand, in industries that are difficult to enter, sources of competitive advantage last longer, and firms also tend to benefit from having a constant set of competitors. .The ease of entry into an industry depends upon two factors. It is reaction of existing competitors to new entrants and the barriers to market entry that prevail in the industry. Existing competitors are most likely to react strongly against new entrants when there is a history of such behavior, when the competitors have invested substantial resources in the industry and when the industry is characterized by slow growth. Some of the major barriers to market entry include economies of scale, high capital requirements, and switching costs for the customer, limited access to the channels of distribution, a high degree of product differentiation, and restrictive government policies. A comprehensive industry analysis requires a small business owner to take an objective view of the underlying forces, attractiveness, and success factors that determine the structure of the industry. Understanding the companys operating environment in this way can help the small business owner to formulate a n effective strategy, position the company for success, and make the most efficient use of the limited resources of the small business. Once the forces affecting competition in an industry and their underlying causes have been diagnosed, the firm is in a position to identify its strengths and weaknesses relative to the industry. An effective competitive strategy takes offensive or defensive action in order to create a defendable position against the five competitive forces. Some of the possible strategies include positioning the firm to use its unique capabilities as defense, influencing the balance of outside forces in the firms favor, or anticipating shifts in the underlying industry factors and adapting before competitors do in order to gain a competitive advantage. rom the economist intelligence unit Malaysias telecommunications network is relatively advanced compared with other countries in South-east Asia. In terms of total industry revenue, Malaysias communications market is roughly on a par with that of Singapore (which has a much smaller population), and is well ahead of that of Indonesia. In 2003 the number of telephone land lines per 100 populations in Malaysia stood at 18.3, giving the country about twice the teledensity of Thailand, six times that of the Philippines and five times that of Indonesia. As in most of Asia, the use of cellular telephones has been growing steadily at the end of September 2005 there were around 17.6m mobile accounts. Although telecoms services are excellent and readily available in urban centres, they are only fair in many rural locations. The monopoly of Telekom Malaysia, which is largely state-owned, on fixed-line and cellular services ended in 1994 with the licensing of several competitors. However, Telekom Malaysia remains the dominant provider of fixed-line services, with more than 90% of the market. The newcomers have tended to concentrate on mobile telephony. The ensuing competition has brought lower tariffs and improved service quality. The mobile network is primarily based on Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) technology; although a code division multiple access (CDMA) system is being used by Telekom Malaysia to meet demand from rural areas in eastern Malaysia. In order to achieve a truly competitive market, the government must eventually distance itself from the incumbent, Telekom Malaysia, and legislate provisions for local loop unbundling, co-location and interconnection. Without these, Malaysia will not have a competitive market for broadband services, and the fixed-line market is likely to remain stagnant. The development of information and communications technology (ICT) plays a crucial role in the governments plans for the economy. The government has attempted to position Malaysia as a regional and global ICT and multimedia hub, by providing tax breaks to attract multinational corporations and increase the companies competitiveness through the development of the Multimedia Super corridor (MSC) near the capital, Kuala Lumpur. Although the bursting of the dot-com bubble slowed the growth of the 750-sq-km MSC, by end-2005 a total of 1,421 companies had approved MSC status. These companies, of which 349 were majority foreign-owned, included technology manufacturers, data centres and communications-related industries. Usage of ICT, measured in terms of installed personal computers (PCs), rose to almost 170 per 1,000 population in 2003, up from 87.4 in 1998. The Economist Intelligence Unit estimates total information technology (IT) spending in Malaysia at US$3.3bn in 2005. Company analysis The Executive Summary entices the investor to learn more about the company. The company analysis in turn educates the reader regarding the companys history Company profile Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) as the leading integrated Telecommunications Company in Malaysia, that aim to deliver cutting-edge communications, information and entertainment services and the vision is to be Malaysias leading new generation communications provider, embracing customer needs through innovation and execution excellence mission Strive towards customer service excellence and operational efficiency, enrich consumer lifestyle and experience by providing innovative new generation services, improve the performance of our business customers by providing high value information and communications solutions, deliver value for stakeholders by generating shareholder value and supporting Malaysias growth and development Past Accomplishments Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) Investor Relations Unit is constantly striving to improve relationships with all our investors and in ensuring best practices are adhered to all communication with the capital market is governed by the Investor Relations Policy and Guidelines. Unique Qualifications Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) is a Malaysia based integrated communications solutions provider. The company is principally engaged in the provision of services and solutions in broadband, data and fixed line. TM serves 4.3 million fixed-line customers and 1.6 million broadband customers across the globe. In addition, the company also operates retail, wholesale and the global business. Major subsidiaries of the company include Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad, TM International (Bangladesh), Dialog Telekom (Sri Lanka), Multinet Pakistan, PT Excelcomindo Pratama TBK (Indonesia), Spice Communications (India), Telekom Malaysia International (Cambodia), and Mobileone (Singapore). Other than Malaysia, the company has presence in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, and Iran, through its subsidiaries. It is headquartered at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The company reported revenues of (Ringgit) MYR 8,674.90 million during the fiscal year ended December 2008, an increase of 4.57% over 2007. The operating profit of the company was MYR 729.40 million during the fiscal year 2008, a decrease of 21.27% from 2007. The net profit of the company was MYR 791.90 million during the fiscal year 2008, a decrease of 68.92% from 2007. Industry and structural links to company analysis Telekom Malaysia Berhad Financial and Strategic Analysis Review Global Markets Directs Telekom Malaysia Berhad Financial and Strategic Analysis Review is an in-depth business, strategic and financial analysis of Telekom Malaysia Berhad. The report provides a comprehensive insight into the company, including business structure and operations, executive biographies and key competitors. The hallmark of the report is the detailed strategic analysis of the company. This highlights its strengths and weaknesses and the opportunities and threats it faces going forward The Company is engaged in the establishment, maintenance and provision of telecommunication and related services. The Company focuses on fixed line voice, data and broadband, and other telecommunication-related services. The Company operates in retail business, wholesale business, global business and shared services/others. Retail business provides a range of telecommunication products, services and communication solutions to consumers, small and medium businesses, as well as corporate and government customers. Wholesale business provides a range of telecommunication products and services delivered over its networks to other licensed network operators namely network facilities providers, network service providers and application service providers. Global Business provides inbound and outbound services for a range of telecommunication products, including the fixed network operations of its worldwide subsidiaries.