it newsletter 2017it newsletter upgrade 1st workshop held at hct page 2 of 8 | volume 2, issue 02,...

Welcome to the October 2017 issue of this IT Newsletter!

The department experienced a breakthrough of opportunities during the month of October! To name a few, the HCT-IT and the Internet of Things LLC "mOmkin" entered into a mutual agreement to foster a Cooperation Program for IoT initiatives.

Also, the department had its initial meetings with the Ministry of Education for some prospect projects with the active involvement of students. Moreover, it is an honor that HCT-IT had been recognized by the Oracle Academy for an active participation during the Oracle Academy Virtual Student Day and CISCO WebEx Conference by CISCO Lead/Success Contacts with CISCO Experts! IT students participated during the SQU-hosted Programming Competi-tions that ranked HCT-IT as 17th and 20th placers, respectively, out of 32 competing teams!

Congratulations to the staff and students of the IT Department for these humble achievements! Continue to soar high with flying colors!

HOD’s Message

Higher College of TechnologyDepartment of Information Technology

Volume 02, Issue 02October

IT NEWSLETTER2017

http://www.hct.edu.om/academic-departments/it-department

Dr. Huda Al-ShuailyHead of IT Department

Newly-Joined/Rejoined IT Lecturers

The following sta� from HCT attended the meeting: Dr.

Huda Al-Shuaily, the Head of IT Department, Dr. Manal

Nasser Al-Rawahi, Networking lecturer and Head of Indus-

trial and Community Engagement Committee, and Mr.

Mohammed Al-Bahri, Internet and E-Security lecturer. The

mOmkin representatives Mr. Sami Masmoudi, Mr. Jai, and

Mr. Ali Al-Ajmi happily welcomed the HCT-IT representa-

tives.

Both parties agreed for the formation of an operational

committee that may oversee the ful�llment of the agree-

ments and implementation of an action plan to undergo

some project development related to IoT. ***

We are fortunate to welcome three (3) new-

ly-joined IT lecturers, namely: Mr. Faisal Al-Tou-

bi (Internet and E-Security), Ms. Khalida Al-Siya-

bi (Information Systems), and Ms. Maha Al-An-

qoudi (Software Engineering); and two (2)

newly-rejoined IT lecturers, namely: Dr. Najiba

Al-Zadjali (Information Systems), and Dr.

Seema Al-Raisi (Software Engineering). ***

IT NEWSLETTER

Page 1 of 8 | Volume 2, Issue 02, October 2017

Ms. Khalida Al-SiyabiMr. Faisal Al-Toubi Ms. Maha Al-Anqoudi

Dr. Najiba Al-Zadjali

Dr. Seema Al-Raisi

The HCT and the Internet of Things LLC “mOmkin” signed a

cooperation program to establish the 1st Internet of Things LLC

lab using SIGFOX technology which is exclusively operated by

mOmkin in the Sultanate.

The program aims at undergoing research to provide solutions

and services relevant to Internet of Things for the HCT’s IT

Department. The program was signed at the HCT’s campus by

Dr. Khalid Abdelaziz Ambusaidi, Dean of the HCT, and Mr.

Sultan Amin Al-Zidjali, CEO of the Commercial Unit of Internet

of Things LLC (mOmkin). The presence of Mr. Ali Al-Ajmi (mOm-

kin) had also been acknowledged.

Following the signing of agreement above, a group of sta�

from HCT-IT personally met the mOmkin representatives last

October 19, 2017 in Knowledge Oasis Muscat- KOM4, 7th �oor.

Signing of Cooperation Program with mOmkin

HCT-IT Collaboration with MOE: Initial Meetings

Through the supervision of Dr. Huda Salim Al-Shuaily, Head

of HCT-IT Department, Dr. Manal Nasser Al-Rawahi and Mr.

Mohammed Al-Bahri, IT Lecturers, went forth to the Ministry

of Education (MOE) last October 9, 2017 for an initial meet-

ing which was centered on School Curriculum of IT and

Mathematics in light of the courses o�ered in higher educa-

tion. During the said meeting, it was found out that there are

prospect projects that can be developed as course projects

by students for their own advantage. The participants of the

meeting had decided to have another meeting on the

following month to discuss about course projects to be

participated in by sta� such as Dr. Fatma Al-Abri, Dr. Muna

Al-Rahbi, and Ms. Huda Al-Ghafri; and a student named Mr.

Mohammed Al-Wahaibi. ***

IT NEWSLETTERUpgrade 1st Workshop Held at HCT


Dr. Muna Al-Rahbi, Mr. Ahmed Al-Qasmi, Ms. Bashayer

Al-Ajmi, and Ms. Huda Al-Ghafri attended a seminar entitled

“Pursuing Business Value of Information Systems: When,

Where and How?” last October 4, 2017 at SQU. The seminar

aimed to provide an overview how research has pursued

the study of IS business value, its locus and temporality, and

the importance to understand the nature of the business to

demonstrate business value of IS to justify the investment.

Also, Dr. Muna Al-Rahbi, Dr. Asma Al-Marhoobi, and Mr.

Ahmed Al-Qasmi attended a workshop entitled “How to [do

research to] Publish in Leading Journals” last October 11,

2017 at SQU. The aim of the workshop was to discuss best

practices of good quality research as well as the tips on how

to publish research papers in leading academic journals.

Participants from various colleges and universities in Oman

attended the said workshop.

Prof. Kohli was the resource person of the said seminar and

workshop. Prof. Kohli is a co-author of the book The IT

Payo�: Measuring Business Value of Information Technolo-

gy Investment, published by Financial Times Prentice-Hall.

Also, he is a Research A�liate at MIT Sloan Center for Infor-

mation Systems Research and a past Senior Editor for MIS

Quarterly and is currently serving as a Senior Editor for Infor-

mation Systems Research. ***

Seminar on IS and Research at SQU

The TRC-‘Upgrade Program’ aims to create a convenient

environment to the innovations of students to convert

students’ projects into startups that may deliver economic

and social bene�ts to the Sultanate of Oman.

The �rst workshop called “Transforming Graduation

Projects to Startups” presented by Engineering Village was

held last October 29, 2017 in the HCT Auditorium, partici-

pated in by students and sta�. ***

CISCO Academy Lead Contact Meeting

The HCT-Muscat CISCO Academy Support Center organized the

CISCO Academy Lead Contact Meeting which was conducted

last October 26, 2017 in N310, HCT with the following agenda:

Role and Responsibility of Lead Contact and Success Lead,

latest CISCO Academy updates and NetSpace, Academy Dash

Board Summary for Oman, IoT Olympics, and Renewal of

ITC/ASC Agreements.

Representatives from the following various CISCO Academies

were invited during the said meeting: Higher College of Tech-

nology (Host Academy), Ibra College of Technology, Ibri College

of Technology, Nizwa College of Technology, Salalah College of

Technology, Shinas College of Technology, College of Applied

Science – Salalah, College of Applied Science – Sur, Military

Technical College, Gulf College Oman, Majan College, and Open

Arab University. ***

Some remote attendees and presenters joined the said meeting

as follows: Mr. Marc Khayat, the CISCO Systems Technical Man-

ager, who made a presentation remotely from Lebanon, and Mr.

Amine Ikibi, the Corporate Social Responsibility Program Man-

ager, who presented remotely from Poland.

IT NEWSLETTERThe ilearning Oracle academy Awareness Session was conduct-

ed last September 21, 2017 in N231 which was attended by

lecturers of the Database Specialization.

The session provides information about how to navigate and

administer iLearning and available curriculum teaching

resources, how to create student accounts, how to access the

curriculum materials, how to view outlines and delivery maps,

how to implement technical requirements, how to assign

curriculum to students, how to produce reports to monitor

student progress and achievement, and how to produce

student certi�cates of completion.

Finally, the organizers also talked about Oracle Academy Virtual

Student Day. The awareness session was organized by Mr.

Gregorio dela Cruz, the Program Coordinator of Database

Specialization, and Ms. Ronette Rabanal, the Assistant Program

Coordinator of the same specialization. ***

The Oracle Academy Virtual Student Day, organized by the Oracle

Academy, was held last October 26, 2017. The students were

gathered in N419 to access the URL link to listen from inspiration-

al speakers who shared expert knowledge about latest technolo-

gy trends as well as their personal career journey through IT

industry.

The virtual session was participated in by one hundred and seven

(107) IT students and thirty (30) lecturers from the various

specializations, including the Head of Department.

Topics were subdivided into either Technical Presentations

or Career Presentations by experts. Some of the topics

covered were Overview of Big Data, Cloud, Internet of

Things and other latest technologies. Ms. Ronette Rabanal,

the Oracle Coordinator, coordinated the Virtual Activity

with MENA Oracle. ***

iLearning Awareness Session

Oracle Academy Virtual Student Day


The Preliminary Round for the Huawei ICT skill Competi-

tion Middle East 2017 was held last October 24, 2017 in

N419. The objective of the event was to organize the

preliminary round of Huawei ICT Skill Competition. The

exam covered di�erent types of questions based on IP &

IT Technologies such as Routing, Switching, Wireless,

Network Security and Cloud Computing. The duration of

the exam was 90 min from 12:00-1:30pm. The following

students from the various specializations and levels who

participated during the skills competition are the follow-

ing: Haifa Al-Balushi, Shaima Salem, Zainab Al-Ajmi, Kaw-

ther Al-Kharusi, Mohammed Raheeq Hadhrami, Dhyaa

Al-Jabri, Nada Al-Haddabi, Shaima Alsabbagh, Anood

Al-Husaini, Faisal Al-Hasani, Sulaiman Al-Balushi,

Buthaina Al-Rashdi, Zuweina Al-Wahibi, Abeer Al-Sidairi,

Israa Al-Tubi, Bushra Al-Hadi, and Khalil Al-Hinai.

The sta�-organizers of the event were the following: Dr.

Tripti Sharma (Networking Lecturer), Ms. Bashayer

Al-Ajmi (Information Systems Lecturer), Ms. Praba P., Ms.

Khadija Sasikala (Networking Lecturer), Ms. Shaima

Al-Amri (Internet and E-Security Lecturer), and Ms. Zahra

Nasser Al-Siyabi (Networking Lecturer). ***

Huawei ICT Skills Competition

IT NEWSLETTERDr. Eman Al-Abri, Software Engineering Lecturer, super-

vised and coached six (6) students who attended the Oman

Collegiate Programming Contest which lasted for two (2)

days last October 31 and November 1, 2017. The venue of

the event was in Grand Hall, Sultan Qaboos University. The

aim of the competition was to test the ability of the partici-

pants to solve real-life problems using programming

languages such as C, Microsoft Visual C++, or Java.

The event was participated in by various colleges and

universities of Oman, to name a few: Sultan Qaboos Univer-

sity, Nizwa College of Technology, Shinas College of Tech-

nology, Ibri College of Technology, College of Applied

Science in Sohar, Waljat College, German University of Tech-

nology, Middle East College of Information Technology, and

Higher College of Technology. In total, there were

thirty-two (32) competing teams. The HCT had the follow-

ing participating two (2) teams as follows: The Team 1 that

garnered the 20th Place composed of Muntadhar Al-Ajmi,

Nader Al-Zadjali, and Amrulas Abdullah while the Team 2

that earned the 17th Place composed of Mohammed

Al-Wahaibi, Ahmed Al-Mukhaini, and Ibrahim Al-Jabri.

Oman Collegiate Programing Contest


Competitive Programming SeminarThe Competitive Programming Seminar was conducted last

October 5, 2017 in N419. This seminar was conducted in light of

introducing the students to the competitive programming

methods and upcoming programming competition.

Presentation about competitive programming conducted by Dr.

Muhammed Al-Badawi, Senior Lecturer of Sultan Qaboos

University. Students and lecturers of the department attended

the seminar.

The event was organized by Mr. Ahmed Al-Qasmi, Dr. Eman

Al-Abri, and Ms. Bashayer Al-Ajmi. Ms. Bashayer Al-Ajmi, one of

the organizers, said, “This seminar was informative and provided

new insights about how programming competitions are

conducted. It showcased few methodologies in solving prob-

lems using programming languages. The speaker explained the

environment of the upcoming OCPC competition.” ***

On the �rst day of the event, the participants were introduced to

the competition guidelines and mechanics, in which they were

also given a practice session to get used with their workstations.

On the actual day of competition, the contestants were given

�ve (5) hours to solve a series of twelve (12) questions, without

any break time.

The HCT teams had solved four (4) problems in total while the

winner of the competition had solved seven (7) problems out of

twelve (12). ***

[Continued from page 4]

Symposium on Instructional Design at SQU

IT NEWSLETTERThe Department Sta� Development Committee organized a

seminar entitled “Big Data and Data Analysis of Social Media

Tweets” delivered by Ms. Maha Said Al-Anqoudi last October

25, 2017 in BS002.

Having gained an academic experience with the University

of Stirling, Scotland, under the program Master of Science in

Big Data, the resource speaker shared her knowledge and

skills about her area of research and specialization.

According to the resource speaker, “The wide interest in the

use of social media opens more opportunities of using social

media for many applications. There is future of social media

with big data.” ***

Social Media Tweets: Big Data & Data Analysis


Upcoming Event: OMD IIIOman Mathematics Day (OMD) III “International Conference on

Trends on Innovative Mathematics Curricula – Highlights on

Early Mathematics Education” will be held on November 20-22 at

the Conference Hall of the Sultan Qaboos University. Four (4)

workshops and four (4) parallel sessions are going to be deliv-

ered by renowned speakers.

Mr. Qais Hamdan Al-Farei, HCT-IT Math Lecturer, is one of the �ve

(5) members of the Organizing Committee of the said event. ***

“Learning never exhausts the mind.” - Leonardo da Vinci

Dr. Huda Salim Al-Shuaily, Dr. Manal Nasser Al-, Dr. Muna

Al-Rahbi, Dr. Asma Al-Marhoobi, and Dr. Eman Al-Abri, attended

a “Symposium on Application of Instructional Design in Higher

Education” last October 12, 2017 at SQU.

The resource persons were from the Higher Education Leader-

ship Academy Malaysia (AKEPT), University Utara Malaysia,

University of Malaya and University Sains Malaysia. The Malay-

sian resource persons presented the �ndings of their study that

sought to identify the current training needs for instructional

design and strategies (ISD). According to them, “A formal train-

ing of IDS is necessary for lecturers”. Some of the activities

during the symposium were the following: practical applica-

tions of Instructional Design principles and models at both the

macro-system and micro-system levels, the systematic process

for designing and developing an online course for undergradu-

ate students, and a panel discussion. ***

Dr. Saju Mohanan, IT Lecturer, conducted a practical session on

cloud computing called “Azure Cloud Deployment and Virtual-

ization”, as part of the sta� development program held in IT

department last October 10, 2017 in N413. Many registered IT

sta� members participated during the event.

The aim of the workshop was to provide insight on migrating

existing IT infrastructure into cloud and for providing awareness

on cloud deployment models, service models, cloud vendors,

latest development tools, and the developers’ roles.

Workshop on Cloud Computing

The activities conducted during the event include: Con�gura-

tion and deployment of windows virtual machine, Azure cloud

and provisioning of web apps using .NET, Java or PHP; Aware-

ness on how to design, develop, test and deploy web and

mobile applications, and awareness about the programming

languages and latest development tools used by cloud.

According to the resource speaker, “The adoption of cloud com-

puting services and the migration rate of IT infrastructure into

the cloud are in the early stages in Oman and other Middle

Eastern countries.” ***

A student induction program, otherwise known as Freshers’

Orientation Program, was conducted last October 17, 2017

in N419. The program started with a welcome address by

Dr. Huda Al-Shuaily, the Head of Department, followed by

an extensive discussion on Advising and Registration by

Ms. Jeba Roseline, the IT Registrar. Ms. Jeba Roseline also

discussed the New IT Program and the use of the College

Information Management System (CIMS). Finally, Ms.

Jacqueline Fat Yara, the QA O�cer, requested the partici-

pants to evaluate the said event. ***

Student Induction Program

IT NEWSLETTER


OMREN International Collaboration Symposium

Dr. Huda Salim Al-Shuaily, Dr. Fatma Al-Abri, and Dr. Muna

Al-Rahbi attended the OMREN International Collaboration

Symposium last October 30, 2017 in GuTech, Research Hall,

Muscat. Some highlights of the symposium include the

Welcome Note from OMREN, a word from OmanTel, Inter-

national Collaboration, Internet2, OMREN Data Center

Services, GEANT, General Discussion and Open Forum.

Moreover, OMREN is an initiative by The Research Council

(TRC) Oman to contribute to the emergence of an e�ective

national innovation ecosystem and provide the research

and education community in the Sultanate of Oman with a

common network and collaboration infrastructure dedi-

cated and adopted to their needs. ***

“An organization’s ability to learn, and translate that learning into action rapidly, is the ultimate competitive advantage.” - Jack Welch

IT NEWSLETTERStaff Induction ProgramThe department’s HR Committee organized the Sta� Induction

Program last October 19, 2017 in N310, which was participated

in by newly-joined and rejoined sta�. The program o�cially

started with the welcome message by the Head of Department,

followed by a short talk from the Heads of Sections, namely: Mr.

Talib Al-Mahruqi (HoS, Multimedia) and Dr. Saad Ahmad Salman

(HoS, Math).

The highlights of the program include: Academic Concerns by

Dr. Fatma Al-Abri, the Head of Academic Committee; Quality

Assurance Matters by Dr. Amando P. Singun Jr., the QA O�cer,

and Advising Procedures by Mr. Rishi Shankar Verma.

The inducted sta� members include Ms. Bashayer Al-Ajmi, Mr.

Faisal Al-Toubi, Dr. Arun Prasath, Dr. Pankaj, Dr. Sivaji Mathan, Mr.

Sulaiman Nazarudeen, Mr. Mohammed Al-Bahri, Dr. Manal

Al-Rawahi, Dr. Asma Al-Marhoubi, Dr. Eman Al-Abri, and Dr.

Muna Al-Rahbi.***

Omani Women’s Day CelebrationThe Sta� Development Committee organized a social

event during the Omani Women’s Day to give honor

among all women specially the empowered Omani women

whose sense of modesty, highly-esteemed integrity, and

pleasant characteristics are renowned. The social gathering

was held last October 17, 2017 in N239 with the theme

“Empowered Women Empower Women”.

The �rst session was attended by all ladies of the depart-

ment who happily partook from the sumptuous foods,

joined the chit-chatting, and joyfully exchanged greetings.


The second session was attended by all gentlemen of the

department who also enjoyed the food thereafter. ***

of 8 | Volume 2, Issue 02, October 2017

IT NEWSLETTERI am Ms. Maha Al-Anqoudi who is now an IT Lecturer of the

Higher College of Technology. This college where I am work-

ing now was the same institution I spent my college life,

where I completed my bachelor’s degree in Software Engi-

neering. After my graduation, I worked with SAP for 3

months under a training contract and got certi�ed as Mate-

rial Management Associated Consultant. After which, I was

hired by Abraj Energy Services as SAP Champion which

equipped me with business experience. I was then chosen

as best employee of the department. Therafter, the Ministry

of Manpower o�ered me the opportunity to pursue my

advanced studies which allowed me to study at the Univer-

sity of Stirling, Scotland, under the program Master of

Science in Big Data, which I successfully completed.

My aspiration is always to help improve the society especial-

ly the Omani educational system. I feel that I can contribute

much of it by becoming a teacher. I believe that the young

Omanis have the abilities which need to be discovered.

Hence, I want to contribute in preparing these students for

the competitive job market.

I would like to emphasize to students this message: “All of

you have something to provide for building the future of

Oman. Therefore, �nd it inside you and help in developing

your society, life, education and learning. We need to shift

from consumer society to productive society. That can only

be done if you will give to this country some of the power

inside you. I understand that there will always be challenges

along the way but you should never let them pass your way.

Instead, you have to believe in yourselves! Let us be respon-

sible enough for ourselves, for our society, and for our own

country! We should add our thumbprint to show that we do

exist and can add something to the betterment of the

humanity. Let your parents as well as the current and future

generations be proud of you! ***

Alumni Corner

Moderator: Dr. Huda Al-Shuaily

Editor-in-Chief: Dr. Amando P. Singun, Jr.

Content Editors:

1. Mr. Talib Al-Mahruqi

2. Ms. Jacqueline Fat Yara

Contributors: Department Committees

External A�airs:

1. Ms. Bashayer Al-Ajmi

2. Ms. Khalida Salim Al-Siyabi

Graphic Designer: Mr. Ibrahim Al-Azzi (Diploma Student)

Publicity: Ms. Mercy Claravall

EDITORIAL BOARD

Ms. Maha Al-AnqoudiIT Lecturer, HCT

The Sta� Development Committee, in coordination with the

team in Africa and CISCO experts, conducted a webinar

entitled “CyberSecurity Essentials” last October 19, 2017 at

07:00 am GMT and October 23, 2017 at 11:00 am GMT. The

interested sta� accessed the given link and enrolled them-

selves for the said webinar, who �nally received CISCO Certi�-

cate of Attendance. ***

Webinar on CyberSecurity Essentials

The Research Committee, headed by

Dr. Asma Hamoud Al-Marhoobi, is

encouraging the sta� to gain member-

ship to prestigious digital libraries such as IEEE. The yearly

membership for professionals is approximately 63 OMR. For

membership application, access the following link:

https://www.ieee.org/membership-catalog/productdetail/-

showProductDetailPage.html?product=MEMIEEE500 ***

IEEE Membership

According to the RHS College Committee decision, it is man-

datory for Lecturers to include the incident/accident report-

ing form in their individual Course File (hard copy) starting

from AY2017-2018 so that the lecturers can �ll-in the form in

case of possible incidence or accident throughout their

classes. ***

“Let us be responsible enough for ourselves, for our society, and for our own country...” - Maha

Accident Reporting Form

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