Can't stomach software metaphors? Chew on the Digital Digestive System
Packet Rat R. Fink The Rat has grown weary of the software industry's tendency to squeeze a metaphor until every possible variation has dissolved into fine dust. Take the rash of coffee-related product names that followed the introduction of Java. It got to the point where everything had been trademarked, and one vendor tenuously extended the metaphor by naming its product Twin Peaks in reference to the frequent line from the television series,
Linux makes the most of its Unix roots
As chairman and chief executive officer of Red Hat Software Inc., Robert F. Young has seen the fledgling start-up grow in four years into the world's leading supplier of Linux operating systems. Young has 20 years of experience in computer industry finance and marketing. After graduating with honors from the University of Toronto, he headed two computer leasing companies before he noticed the Linux user phenomenon in 1992.
GSA adds a new strategy to training
WILLIAMSBURG, Va.—The General Services Administration and the Chief Information Officers Council are creating a new training program for federal information technology professionals and managers. The Strategic and Tactical Advocates for Results program will focus on strategic thinking, said Emory Miller, director of IT professional development in GSA's Office of Governmentwide Policy, during a presentation last month at the Trail Boss Roundup conference.
A second Stillman, he of HHS, signs off
Described as a man of integrity and commitment to public service—and a stickler for detail—Neil Stillman retired this month as deputy assistant secretary for IRM at the Health and Human Services Department amid accolades from friends and co-workers. He worked 34 years for the federal government, including stints with the Air Force and Defense Intelligence Agency.
GAO: Agencies fail to account for Y2K funds
Nine agencies did not keep track of year 2000 expenditures, according to a GAO report released last week. Five agencies only estimated expenditures, and three agencies—the departments of Agriculture, State and Treasury—refused to respond to GAO inquiries. "GAO discovered that some funds were spent on non-Y2K activities," according to the Office of the House Majority Leader, Rep. Dick Armey (R-Texas).
NASA center creates in-air scenarios
The air traffic control tower is real, but the panoramic windows show virtual views of any large airport. NASA's Virtual Airport Tower at Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., can simulate weather conditions, times of day, sounds, and up to 200 moving planes and ground vehicles. Raytheon Data Systems developed the simulation programs for NASA.
CIO: Follow industry's lead
The Defense Logistics Agency is modeling itself after the private sector by relying on commercial products and by boosting efforts to recruit, train and retain information technology professionals, said Carla A. von Bernewitz, the agency's chief information officer. Government must be willing to change its culture to take advantage of information technology, von Bernewitz said at a recent seminar sponsored by Computer Marketing Associates in Tysons Corner, Va.
Center puts IDEAS to work
A team of six programmers re-engineered an aspect of Air Force Personnel Center operations with a demographics information system that cost the government about $100,000 and has saved the center's staff a lot of time. As word of the Web application has spread, the Interactive Demographics Analysis System (IDEAS) has noticeably reduced the number of pinkies, or personnel information requests, the center gets, said Master Sgt. Eddie Stevens, Internet application developer for the Air Force Personnel
Agencies can touch base when evaluating designs
A British-developed knowledge base will become a subscription CD-ROM and Web service for agencies that need help in evaluating conceptual engineering design proposals. The knowledge base, developed by Engineering Sciences Data Unit (ESDU) of London, contains data, equations, charts, graphs and Fortran computer programs of interest to aerospace, mechanical, process and structural engineers.
Phaser 740's easy setup earns points with sysadmins
Some of Tektronix's earlier entries had their minor components packed inside a bag in a box inside another box. The Phaser 560 gave some hints that the unwieldy setup process was being streamlined. And in fact, all the Phaser 740's components came inside one huge, nicely packed box and went together fairly quickly.
FTS 2001 vendors meet with federal users
KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Against a Star Wars-esque background of flashing lights, FTS 2001 contractors Sprint Corp. and MCI WorldCom Inc. last week pitched their competing high-bandwidth network services at the annual Federal Technology Service users conference. Both vendors will have to wait until they are allowed to enter local telephone markets before they can offer full end-to-end voice and data services.
Experts: A good data warehouse improves decision-making
What steps are critical for data warehousing success? DENVER—A well-managed data warehouse can dramatically improve an organization's decision-making capabilities, several experts said during a recent panel discussion. A data warehouse is one of the most effective ways for information technology to add value, said Kimberly Baker, vice president and general manager for data warehouse systems at NCR Corp. of Dayton, Ohio. But
Keydata builds secure hard drives into its latest 300-MHz portables
The Keynote 7700 notebook PC takes several paths to security. Its KeySecurity IDE hard drive works only in a particular machine, unless altered by the manufacturer. The unit has ROM bootup security, hardware-generated 32-bit encrypted passwords and two Kensington Lock slots from Kensington Technology Group of San Mateo, Calif. The $2,695 notebook features a 300-MHz Pentium II processor, 64M of synchronous dynamic RAM expandable to 192M, a 4.3G removable hard drive upgradeable to 10G and a 13.3-inch
Tax agency plans a well-earned upgrade for form imaging system
The IRS this summer will begin upgrading the Service Center Recognition Image Processing System, its imaging workhorse. "I feel good about the upgrade," said Judy L. Thomas, SCRIPS program manager. "It was not a Y2K decision; it was a business decision." The IRS in January 1995 went online with the $88 million SCRIPS at five of its 10 service centers. The system uses optical character recognition and image processing to collect and store tax data from some
Routers
Conventional wisdom has held that routers are the best way to manage the backbone of an enterprise network. Switches, faster because they don't have to read information for each packet, are best for workgroup or LAN-to-LAN environments. Over the last few years, however, the role of the router and switch have radically changed. As users have migrated to gigabit-speed network technologies, switches, albeit often with integrated routing capability, have migrated to the corporate backbone.
CIOs travel a risky path toward IT architecture
The goal of a governmentwide architecture for information technology is a lofty one. But the reality is elusive. The Chief Information Officers Council has made a laudable first few steps toward open systems along a path full of traps and blind alleys. For more than a decade, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers have sponsored a similar effort called the Open
Professional Calendar
Conference. Atlanta. Contact Supercomm; phone: 800-278-7372; Web: www.supercomm99.com. Seminar. Atlantic City, N.J. Contact Technology Training Corp. Seminars; phone: 310-563-1223; Web: www.ttcus.com. Conference. Boston. Contact Miller Freeman Inc.; phone 212-615-2928; e-mail: mdineen@mfi.com; Web: www.techtalks.com. Conference and exposition. San Jose, Calif. Contact CMP Business Forums; phone: 800-652-2578; Web: www.ebusinessexpo.com. Symposium. Winnipeg, Manitoba. Contact the Manitoba Government; phone: 204-945-4978; Web; www.gov.mb.ca/sfi.
AutoCAD 2000 makes up for slow file loading with user-friendliness
Can 1 million users be wrong? AutoDesk Inc. is betting the answer's no and anteing up an upgrade of AutoCAD Release 14 for Microsoft Windows 9x and Windows NT 4.0. Most new products are adopting 2000-style names these days, but the new AutoCAD 2000 is in fact more like 4000—though its $3,750 retail price is probably worthwhile for many AutoCAD users.
PTO prepares RFP for desktop, portable PCs
Patent and Trademark Office officials this week will release a desktop PC request for proposals tailored to small-business contractors with 100 or fewer employees. PTO posted a Commerce Business Daily Online announcement at www.cbdnet.access.gpo.gov on April 27 for the Desktop Acquisition contract, known as DART. Through the buy, PTO will buy desktop and portable computers, printers and other peripherals. The agency has 8,000 PCs.
Want to spruce up Internet software? Slip it some skin
So-called skins add a new look and feel to aging programs. They are nothing new; online gamers have used skins for years. Developers caught on to them as a convenient way to import and manage third-party features in an existing application. Skins can be an interface to plug-in modules or software.
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