Ideas
High Risk List Posted
The Office of Management and Budget just released its <a href="http://it.usaspending.gov/?q=content/highpriority-projects">high-risk list</a> of information technology projects. A full story will be posted later today.
Ideas
White House Throwback Home Page
My colleague Tom Shoop, editor of Government Executive, <a href="http://blogs.govexec.com/fedblog/2010/08/open_government_v_10.php">posted</a> in the FedBlog an image of the home page for the White House website circa 1994:
Ideas
You Can Teach Old Dogs New Tricks
OK, that's not meant as a dig. But it's a good description of a quick turnaround for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who almost boastingly stated during his 2008 presidential campaign, "I don't e-mail," and then watched his opponent Barack Obama digitally fly past him to claim the presidency. The nearly 74-year-old senator came in at the No. 1 spot among senators in a Digital IQ ranking.
Ideas
Intel Has a Good Story with McAfee
Intel Corp.'s announcement that it would by security firm McAfee Inc. for $7.68 billion could have an interesting play in the federal information technology market, according to Washington tech analysts. By having a McAfee at your fingertips, Intel can bolster the security in its chips, giving it a leg up in agencies looking for safer PCs, laptops, and wireless devices, some federal IT market watchers say.
Ideas
North 'Hermit Kingdom' Korea on Twitter
North Korea <a href=http://twitter.com/uriminzok>is on Twitter</a> and the United States asked the communist country if it was "prepared to allow its citizens to be connected as well?" tweeted <a href=http://twitter.com/pjcrowley>Philip J. Crowley on Tuesday welcomed North Korea</a>, assistant secretary of State for public affairs.
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Kundra Former Workers Go to Jail
Two former employees of federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra, back when he served as the District of Columbia's chief technology officer, have been sentenced to more than year-long prison terms for participating in a kickback scheme, according to the <em>New York Times</em>.
Ideas
Squaring Off on Recovery Jobs
The chairman of the board that oversees Recovery.gov released on Monday a statement promoting the transparency of the stimulus-tracking website, just as Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee alleged the site is a public relations effort aimed at inflating the accomplishments of the administration.
Ideas
An Open Government Lesson
<em>The New York Times</em> had a front-page <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/web_headlines/wh_20100813_3510.php>article</a> on Friday on how the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, drug and medical-imaging companies, universities and nonprofit groups worked together to try to find the biological markers that show the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
Ideas
NMCI Comments Wanted
Looks like the editors over at Wired's <a href="http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/">Danger Room blog</a> are working on a piece on NMCI, the Navy's massive intranet, which is up for an <a href="http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100709_9862.php?oref=search">upgrade</a>. They want your opinions, according to a <a href="http://twitter.com/dangerroom/status/21072398364">Tweet</a>.
Ideas
Reshuffling May Impair OGov
A rearrangement of staff within the White House may dilute the already weak enforcement of the president's open government directive, the Washington nonprofit Sunlight Foundation contends.
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5 Reasons Why Clinger-Cohen Failed
The 1996 Clinger-Cohen Act, which established the chief information officer position at agencies, among other things, was signed into law this month 14 years ago. By most accounts, it hasn't lived up to expectations. In fact, many say it's a downright failure.
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Debunking the Net Generation
A lot of reports and articles -- including many on this site (<a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100423_7313.php>here</a> and <a href=http://wiredworkplace.nextgov.com/2010/08/dot_appeals_to_gen_y_online.php>here</a>) and on Government Executive (<a href=http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?filepath=/features/1109-01/1109-01adif.htm>here</a> and <a href=http://www.govexec.com/features/0707-15/0707-15s1.htm>here</a>) -- that depicts younger workers and the Internet as joined at the hip. The 'Net, and the social networking it spawned, are indispensable to the so-called Net Generation (those between the ages of 17 and 31) and they demand to have the tools at the ready at work, sociologists say.
Ideas
Privacy Advocate Schwartz Joins NIST
Ari Schwartz, a longtime advocate for protecting privacy in the age of Web-based government, is leaving his post at the Center for Democracy and Technology to press for change from within the administration at the National Institute for Standards and Technology.
Ideas
USPS' eIDEAS Gets Poor Score
The U.S. Postal Service's web-based program to collect employee ideas on customer service, productivity and revenue generation lacks transparency, leaving submissions in limbo, according to the USPS inspector general.
Ideas
Compu-Forensics Saves Stim & Devaney
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at a hearing the other day criticized the head of the board overseeing stimulus spending for being unable to cite an instance where the board's analytical software prevented fraud and abuse.
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More Medicaid Systems Woes
Two years ago I <a href=http://techinsider.nextgov.com/2009/08/one_of_the_most_complicated.php>wrote</a> about how state's Medicaid claims processing systems seem to be one of the most difficult IT projects to develop. Maine, North Carolina and Indiana, just to name a few, were having difficulties building workable systems. Now it's Idaho's turn. As <a href=http://www.idahostatesman.com/2010/08/03/v-print/1289721/idaho-medicaid-providers-in-crisis.html>reported</a> by the Idaho Statesman:
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The Email Guessing Game
An obstacle I encounter regularly in this job is locating contact information for specific individuals in the federal government. Unless I've met someone directly or been given their email and phone number by a colleague, it takes a good amount of time to track them down. I regularly have to ask, "Do you know the email standard at [agency name]?"
Ideas