Ideas
Take Responsibility for Your Cookies
The Cato Institute's Jim Harper on Tuesday <a href="http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2009/08/11/all-hail-the-demise-of-a-bad-policy/" target="_blank">blogged</a> that a recent White House proposal to reverse a long-standing ban on cookies is an acknowledgment that Americans can control their own cookie intake. No, this was not a commentary on the administration's healthcare overhaul plan.
Cybersecurity
Navy's network security roadmap to be explained at Virtual FOSE
Navy Department Chief Information Officer Robert Carey will be the keynote speaker at tomorrow’s Virtual FOSE conference.
People
Insourcing and the politics of government job security
One big difference between the government and contractor workforces, as one reader sees it, is that when agencies cut jobs, they typically reassign personnel to new positions, but when contractors cut jobs, they cut staff.
Cybersecurity
Business groups want Congress to address E-Verify concerns
TechAmerica and others ask lawmakers to deal with their worries about E-Verify.
Modernization
NextGen 911 shows versatility
A vendor today showed how the Next Generation 911 emergency calling system is expected to use Internet Protocols to process phone calls, text messages and video.
Digital Government
Time-In-Grade May Not Go Away
The Office of Personnel Management is withdrawing its plan to abolish the one-year time-in-grade requirement for federal employee promotions. OPM <a href="http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-19174.pdf">announced</a> in the <em>Federal Register</em> on Tuesday that it would withdraw proposed regulations to abolish the time-in-grade rule after the agency determined that it would be more productive to consider the merits of the time-in-grade issue as part of a more comprehensive review of pay, performance and staffing issues.
Digital Government
Roosevelt Scholars
Alex Parker over at <em>Government Executive</em> writes that lawmakers have renewed their push to pass the Roosevelt Scholars Act (H.R. 3510), which would create scholarships for graduate students in exchange for a federal service commitment. The increased attention to the effort comes amid new reports that the government needs a more robust workforce with a range of skills, particularly in the <a href="http://wiredworkplace.nextgov.com/2009/07/cyber_insecurity.php">cybersecurity arena</a>.
People
New acquisition rules to target phony technology products
Regulators are in the early stages of developing new rules to make sure agencies aren’t buying phony IT products.
Modernization
Debate still rages on federal use of cookies
A plan to allow Web tracking technology on government Web sites draws protests, support.
Modernization
OMB and private groups track Congressional earmarks
A volunteer group is creating an online database to contain more than 17,000 congressional earmark requests, while OMB says it is planning to expand its own database next year.
Modernization
Air Force prepares for NetCents contract change
Gregory Garcia, director of the 754th Electronic Systems Group, which oversees the Air Force’s Network Centric Solutions contract, talks about the strategy behind NetCents-2 and his expectations for the new contract.
Modernization
6 tech trends government IT managers should be wary of
There are many good information technology innovations, but not all the current fads are good for government IT. Some trends are bad in general, and some are very bad for government IT managers in particular.
Modernization
Government, industry create threat forum for power grid
EnergySec has grown to include 200 members from the electric power industry, security vendors and government regulators since its formation in December to provide an alternative to the more formal ISAC for rapid sharing of information.
Digital Government
Inspector general questions Energy technology transfer program
Illinois lab's award of exclusive license for chemical monitoring system appeared to favor subcontractor.
Digital Government