Digital Government

Profile: Private sector is no culture shock for Woods

One might expect Bob Woods, who has spent much of his life as a civil servant, to experience a severe case of culture shock after leaving government service for a privatesector job as the president and chief operating officer of Federal Sources Inc.

Digital Government

Air Force's costs soar skyward

The Air Force will spend hundreds of millions of dollars more than previously estimated to ensure that its thousands of computers properly process dates after 1999, according to new Air Force cost estimates. To fix its 2,944 computer systems so that they are Year 2000compliant, the Air Force now e

Digital Government

Compaq acquires Digital for $9.6B

Looking to boost its presence in the enterprise computing environment, Compaq Computer Corp. last week announced it would acquire Digital Equipment Corp. and its extensive portfolio of computer and networking products and services. With the estimated $9.6 billion deal, in which Compaq will buy all

Digital Government

Shredder cleans out Win95 desktops

After staking out a hard line against the government awarding contracts to itself, cooler heads seem to be prevailing on Capitol Hill.

Digital Government

Federal Bytes

Bob Dornan, parking attendant The monthly breakfasts sponsored by Federal Sources Inc., McLean, Va., have proven popular events for federal IT industry movers and shakers. But there is an irksome downside to attending: the endless line to get out of the RitzCarlton's parking garage. The situation

Digital Government

DOD funds battlefield IT and security

As part of a broad push for force modernization, the Defense Department next fiscal year will focus funding on such key information technology initiatives as battlefield digitization and information security, according to the department's fiscal 1999 budget request released today. The $257 billion

Digital Government

Navy taps IDP for PC, notebook leasing pact

In a prototype procurement program that eventually could change the way it purchases information technology, the Navy Atlantic Fleet last month awarded International Data Products Corp. a fiveyear, multimilliondollar contract for leasing computers, peripherals and networking equipment.

Digital Government

Clinton to ask for electronic filing, trade data systems

More than four years after the Clinton administration proposed automating interactions between businesses and federal agencies, officials plan to raise the profile of two projects designed to simplify the collection of trade data and promote electronic filing of corporate tax information. The presi

Digital Government

Industry Watch

Customs awards OCR pacts The Customs Service has awarded Cornet Inc., Springfield, Va., and HiTech International, Arlington, Va., contracts to supply electronic document readers to the agency.

Digital Government

HUD shares address book agencywide

In a move that should help eliminate redundant information and promote information sharing, the Department of Housing and Urban Development is planning to roll out a central electronic address book for scores of HUD offices nationwide. HUD is developing in house the HUD Communications Manager, whic

Digital Government

Intercepts

RAMSTEIN AIR FORCE BASE, Germany Bosniabound again. The Interceptor has staged his flyaway dish here and manifested it through the Air Force Integrated Deployment System developed by the Standard Systems Group in Montgomery, Ala. for a return trip to beautiful downtown Tuzla and environs. T

Digital Government

CIO Council tackles IT staffing shortage

The Education and Training Committee of the federal CIO Council last month kicked off an effort to address the problems agencies face in recruiting and retaining information technology workers. Glenn Sutton, vice chairman of the committee and deputy chief information officer at the Office of Person

Digital Government

Data center consolidation: (Past) time to get moving

Citing possible operational savings of 30 to 50 percent, the Office of Management and Budget in October 1995 issued a bulletin directing agencies to inventory existing data centers and to produce by September 1996 a consolidation plan, with work due to be completed in early 1998. Well, early l998 h

Digital Government

Integrators shore up work forces for Year 2000 projects

With the deadline looming for federal agencies to identify and fix Year 2000 software glitches, integrators, like the agencies, are stepping up efforts to find qualified people to do the work, even if it means turning to temporaryemployment agencies. While contractors report that most work is just

Digital Government

OSD leaders Valletta, Rand jump on buyout bandwagon

Even as the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) faces a major reorganization, Anthony M. Valletta and at least five other senior members of the Defense Department's command, control, communications and intelligence (C3I) staff plan to leave the Pentagon after applying for early buyouts last month.

Digital Government

Whistle-blowers: be careful what you ask for

Even whistleblowers who have proved they have been the victims of discrimination do not always get all the compensation they want from the government.

Digital Government

DOD to upgrade comm

STUTTGART, Germany The U.S. European Command (Eucom), headquartered here, has devised an innovative plan to quickly upgrade rather than replace its key backbone network in Europe in a partnership involving the Army, the Air Force, the Navy and the Defense Information Systems Agency. Air Force Bri

Digital Government

Back to square one on welfare reform

After a year and a half of working in its secluded policy labs, the Department of Health and Human Services finally told Congress what the state information technology community has known for some time:

Digital Government

Technology Is Tough Sell for State Budget Surpluses

Colorado's Andre Pettigrew calls 1997 a year of lost opportunities for state information technology investments. As executive director of the state's Personnel and General Support Services Department, Pettigrew watched in dismay as the state government returned $139 million in excess state funds to

Digital Government

Guarding the Data Gates With Biometrics

Secrecy is the first essential in affairs of the state, wrote Cardinal de Richelieu in 1641.