Primary and Secondary Schools Around The World Select Sun Microsystems' Cost
Effective Sun Ray(TM) 1 Enterprise Appliance to Enrich Education In the 21st
Century Thousands of Sun Ray(TM) Systems to be Deployed in K-12 Sector Will
Enable Students and Teachers to Obtain Instant Access to the Internet and
Web-based Applications
PALO ALTO, Calif., Jun 28, 2000 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Sun Microsystems,
Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW), today announced that primary and secondary schools around
the globe are benefiting from a web-based computing model in classrooms by
selecting the Sun Ray(TM) 1 enterprise appliance. Purchasing several thousands
of Sun Ray systems, schools in Moose Jaw and North Battleford, Saskatchewan,
Canada, Amsterdam, Netherlands, and Maui, Hawaii are among the latest
educational institutions that are leveraging Sun's simple to use,
zero-administration, reliable platform, and alternative to the costly personal
computer.
Using Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliances, with its rich multimedia capabilities and
revolutionary Hot Desk technology, students and teachers can easily access the
Internet, and additional Sun(TM) applications, such as the StarOffice(TM)
productivity software suite. The Sun Ray systems' Hot Desk technology enables
session mobility, allowing students and teachers to move from desktop to desktop
instantly accessing their personal session anywhere on campus without having to
log on/off. In addition, the Sun Ray systems operate silently, allowing students
to listen to their instructor's lecture in a noise-free environment.
"The use of the Sun Ray systems in the K-12 environment will only enhance the
learning experience for both teachers and students," said Kim Jones, vice
president, Global Education and Research for Sun Microsystems. "The Sun Ray
systems and the network services model of computing will also allow institutions
to use their IT resources more efficiently and cost-effectively than ever
before."
Added Jones, "We have a long history of providing the education market with
innovative, cost-effective technologies. In such a short time since its
announcement last September 1999, more than 200 educational institutions around
the world, from primary schools to colleges and universities, are using Sun Ray
1 enterprise appliances, and that number continues to grow every day."
Moose Jaw and North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada
Over the next several months, roughly 3,300 Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliances will
be deployed to 42 schools in Moose Jaw and North Battleford, Saskatchewan, the
largest Sun Ray 1 system deployment to date. Working with Sun and
QuantumLynx.com, a division of SaskTel, Saskatchewan's leading communications
provider, the school divisions will distribute up to four Sun Ray 1 enterprise
appliances, hosted by Sun Enterprise(TM) 250 and Sun Enterprise(TM) 450 servers,
to each classroom in both cities. With roll-out scheduled for completion in
September for the start of the 2000-2001 school year, the Sun Ray system
deployment is expected to provide more than 11,000 students, and 800 faculty,
administrators and school officials with easy access to the Internet as well as
access to online educational materials, resources and curricula.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
The Netherlands recently set the standard to provide one computer for every ten
students by the year 2004. To help meet this goal, the city of Amsterdam
initiated the CIAO (Computers in Amsterdam Primary Schools) project which will
provide 1,000 Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliances to schools throughout Amsterdam.
At present, 26 schools are participating in the CIAO project, with approximately
40 more scheduled to join by year's end.
Maui, Hawaii
Throughout July 2000, thirty primary and secondary schools across three islands
of Maui will be deploying 1,400 Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliances. Every teacher
will have a Sun Ray 1 enterprise appliance at their desk, giving them access to
Lotus Notes/Domino student information applications, Lotus Notes email,
StarOffice productivity suite, and Netscape/IE browsing. The Sun Ray
implementation complements the Lotus implementation which was decidedly deployed
on Sun Enterprise Servers due to the reliability and robustness of the platform.
Today, only one individual is required to remotely manage the existing 250 Sun
Enterprise and Lotus Servers. In addition, the Sun Ray systems enable zero
administration running Unix, and each appliance never needs to be upgraded,
keeping administrative and resources costs to a minimum.
Stanford University, Berkeley University, The University of Western Ontario
(Canada), Universitat de Barcelona in Spain, the Carrollton School System in
Carrollton, Georgia, and the Newark Unified School District in Newark,
California are just a few of the other educational institutions that have
already begun using Sun Ray systems.
Sun Ray Enterprise Appliances
Sun Ray[TM] 1, Sun Ray(TM) 100 and Sun Ray(TM) 150 enterprise appliances, with
their Sun Hot Desk technology, are simple, low-cost networked devices that have
helped bring innovative technology and applications to classrooms around the
world. The recently announced Sun Ray 100 and Sun Ray 150 enterprise appliances,
providing more desktop space for educators and students with all-in-one CRT and
flat panel displays respectively, have further established Sun's dedication to
the education sector. Unlike personal computers which require an operating
system and applications running locally on the desktop, the Sun Ray systems
allow for instant access to existing applications and resources on the network,
regardless of the underlying platform -- including Sun's Solaris(TM) Operating
Environment, Java(TM) technology-based, multimedia or Windows NT applications.
For more information about the Sun Ray enterprise appliances, please visit
sun.com .
Sun In Education
Sun is a leading provider of open network computing solutions to colleges and
universities around the world, powering academic, research and high performance
computing systems, campus administration, digital libraries and student
instruction systems. In addition, Sun is committed to connecting the world's
students to the Internet, beginning with primary and secondary schools and
extending to all levels of higher education. For information about Sun in
Education, please visit sun.com .
About Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision -- The Network is The
Computer(TM) -- has propelled Sun Microsystems to its position as a leading
provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that power the
Internet and allow companies worldwide to ".com" their businesses. With $14.2
billion in annual revenues, Sun can be found in more than 170 countries and on
the World Wide Web at sun.com .
The Educational Institutions listed below are using Sun Ray 1 enterprise
appliances:
Moose Jaw and North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada
The new Sun Rays will allow our schools to introduce web-based curriculum into
the classroom, while reducing administrative overhead for hardware and software.
The Sun Ray Hot Desk technology will help make the transition to a high-tech
classroom environment very smooth.
-- Kelvin Shepherd, SaskTel Chief Technology Officer
Amsterdam, Netherlands
CIAO (Computers in Amsterdam Primary Schools) required the implementation of a
network that would be easy to use and manage because our users are young
children and teachers who have limited computer experience. When we added budget
considerations to the equation, the Sun Ray system was the obvious choice. Sun
Microsystems has delivered on its claim to provide a complete network computing
solution.
-- Joke Dorrepaal, CIAO project manager
Maui, Hawaii
We are excited about providing teachers and students with the latest model of
network and web-based systems for tomorrow's computing needs. The Sun Ray 1
enterprise appliances were selected because of their simplicity. Our schools are
located on three different islands. This system will provide needed access and
networking while saving on the cost of remote administration and maintenance.
-- James "Kimo" Apana, Mayor of Maui County, Hawaii
NOTE: Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun logo, datacenter.com, HotJava, Java, Sun
Enterprise, Sun Ray, Solaris and "The Network" Is The Computer are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other
countries. Netscape Navigator is a trademark or registered trademark of Netscape
Communications Corporation.
Press announcements and other information about Sun Microsystems are available
on the Internet via the World Wide Web using a tool such as Netscape
Navigator(TM) or Sun's HotJava(TM). Type sun.com at the URL prompt.
CONTACT: Liza Santos of Sun Microsystems, Inc., 650-786-8569, or
liza.santos@sun.com; or Brad Goodson of Burson Marsteller, 415-591-4061, or
brad.goodson@sfo.bm.com, for Sun Microsystems, Inc.
SOURCE Sun Microsystems, Inc.
CONTACT: Liza Santos of Sun Microsystems, Inc., 650-786-8569, or
liza.santos@sun.com; or Brad Goodson of Burson Marsteller, 415-591-4061, or
brad.goodson@sfo.bm.com, for Sun Microsystems, Inc.
URL: sun.com
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