Digital Government
What If It Doesn't Work?
So what do you do when you're in the fourth year of your Year 2000 remediation program? What else can you tackle after you've spent more than $40 million to fix 292 systems for the county government? What's left to recommend after preaching that the Year 2000 date change is not a technical problem
Digital Government
Graphics Powerhouses
Last year, most socalled Windows NT workstations were little more than soupedup PCs. They just couldn't hold a candle to Unixclass machines. But what a difference a year makes. Today's NT workstations are screaming graphics performers, running applications created especially to take advantage of
Digital Government
Street-Smart Tech
In city work, having as much information as possible on the history of criminal activity at a particular address could be a matter of life and death, especially for police officers, building inspectors and other city workers whose jobs involve entering properties uncertain about the risks inside. T
Digital Government
Digital Budget Wars
Should Santa Monica, Calif., build a new skateboard park? Or should money be spent on better policing for Main Street and the Ocean Park neighborhood? Rick, Jim and Marilyn think the skateboarders should get the nod. Michael wishes the city would just clean up the neighborhood. And Derek thinks San
Digital Government
Balancing Act
It used to be that you could bulk up on computers and power supplies to ensure that your server farm stayed up and running and was safe from outages. But oldfashioned redundancy isn't always enough these days. With the growing demands on World Wide Web and application servers, one sick server can
Digital Government
Order and Law
Here's the vision: A police officer in Alabama stops a beatup Chevy Impala on a routine traffic violation. But instead of calling the license plate in to dispatch and waiting several minutes for an answer, the officer types the number into a mobile computer linked to a nationwide information syste
Digital Government
Palmtops Rescue L.A. Fire Data
Every spring, the Los Angeles Fire Department heads into the hills to root out excess dry brush and other combustible materials that can spark Southern California's seasonal wildfires. Each time, the brush collectors unearth clues that could lead to fire prevention. Unfortunately, the information o
Digital Government
News Shorts
Washington, D.C., just inked a $28 million deal with Lockheed Martin IMS to install cameras and imaging systems at 40 city intersections in the nation's capital to deter motorists from charging through red lights. The deal is the latest in a rash of contracts designed to catch motorists running red
Digital Government
Announcing Daily Departures
Like most of you, we at civic.com are working to take advantage of the speed, versatility and popularity of the World Wide Web to improve the services we provide. Of course, we also must keep a foot in the print medium, in which most of our business still is conducted. Most of you probably are plan
Digital Government
Moving Beyond 'Low-Bid' Wins
Recognizing a need to move beyond traditional 'lowbid' procurement in its information technology buys, North Carolina has moved to a 'bestvalue' approach to IT acquisition. The shift represents more than just a change in thinking; it also recognizes the particular hazards of acquiring electronic
Digital Government
Five Governors Enter Regional Y2K Compact
Governors of five states announced their intent to share Year 2000 resources and information under a series of crosslicensing agreements that will allow states to swap materials and coordinate efforts to prepare the public for the millennial date change.
Digital Government
Feds Looking to Fund State Driver History Projects
The U.S. Transportation Department's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is looking to fund state projects that improve the reporting and recording of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) traffic convictions within a state and between states.
Digital Government
Details demanded on E-Rate subsidy.
Two powerful U.S. congressmen last week sent Federal Communications Commission chief William Kennard a pointed letter demanding more details on the FCC's plans to pay for the $2 billion ERate educational technology subsidy program.
Digital Government
Portland Picks CSDC's Enterprise Application Software
The Office of Planning and Development Review for Portland, Ore., has selected Amanda, an applicationtracking and datamanagement system from Torontobased CSDC Systems Inc., to handle a broad range of tasks including issuing and tracking building permits and landuse reviews.
Digital Government
Maryland Offers Y2K Status Report, Juggles Liability Legislation
Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening today will brief state and local emergency officials, cabinet members and representatives from utilities and hospitals on the state's Year 2000 readiness. The briefing will be held at 2 p.m. at the State Highway Administration Operations Center near BaltimoreWashington International Airport.
Digital Government
U.S. DOT Opens FY 2000 Anti-Sprawl Funding Program
The U.S. Transportation Department this week opened its fiscal 2000 funding rounds for the Transportation and Community and System Preservation Program to help local governments fight urban sprawl.
Digital Government
California Harnesses the Internet to Fight Bacterial Outbreaks
To better flag information about deadly bacteria outbreaks, California's Department of Health Services recently went live with a new Internetbased system that will speed delivery of information on outbreaks, including salmonella, which involves raw or undercooked poultry.
Digital Government
Nation's Governors Brainstorm on Education Tech Strategies
The National Governors Association next week will hold the first of two working sessions to brief governors on how to shape statewide visions for education technology and bolster state education programs with enabling technology.
Digital Government
Feds Kick Off Rural Distance-Learning/Telemedicine Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has opened a funding program to promote distancelearning and telemedicine initiatives in rural America.
Digital Government