Digital Government

Air Force operates a mini-FedEx hub to provide relief in Pakistan

Mobile communications system offers three classified data connections, three unclassified connections and three phone lines.

Digital Government

VA Catches Up on GI Housing Payments

Veterans attending college under the post-9/11 GI bill did not receive an increase in their basic housing allowance for the 2010 spring semester due to the clunky claims processing system that was in place until just this month.

Digital Government

VA completes education claims system in time for fall semester

Fully automated network works through complex calculations to determine veterans' tuition payments and housing allowances under the 2008 GI bill.

Digital Government

Up Next: The e-Patient Terminal

In the almost forgotten era before the Internet, if you were sick enough to go to a hospital, all you had do was lie in bed, have doctors and nurses care for you, and you eventually got better.

Digital Government

DARPA Tries to Create the Cyborg

Ahh, computers keep getting faster and smarter, but thank goodness they still don't match up to the power of the human brain -- or I'd be out of work.

Digital Government

Veterans Affairs and CMS will launch projects for personal health records

The initiatives could lead to almost a third of the public creating digital files to store their medical information.

Digital Government

Paris and Pakistan

A Navy buddy of mine working on the Pakistan relief operation mused in an e-mail on Monday that for some odd reason Paris Hilton and her arrest for alleged cocaine possession received more media play over the past weekend than the fact that "we rescued thousands of people."

Digital Government

DISA says more employees willing to make move to new HQ

Officials convinced most hard-to-replace employees will transfer from Arlington, Va., to Fort Meade, Md., due to flexible work hours and telecommuting.

Digital Government

Navy Saves Trees With Digital Signatures

Navy Chief Information Officer Rob Carey approved an <a href=http://www.doncio.navy.mil/PolicyView.aspx?ID=1919>electronic signature policy</a> for the Navy and Marine Corps on Aug. 27 in a move designed to save paper, improve security and save money.

Digital Government

When Cheaper Can Be Deadly

As anyone who has served in combat knows, if a buddy is wounded, the first two things you need to do are make sure he can breathe and his bleeding is stopped.

Digital Government

NGA's Sticking With Google

The National Geospatial Intelligence Agency <a href=https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&tab=core&id=482ab868878ecd0bd81d978216718820&_cview=0>tweaked</a> on Wednesday its <a href=http://whatsbrewin.nextgov.com/2010/08/google_now_owns_earth.php>original announcement</a> from last week to award a sole-source contract to Google for geospatial visualization services so outfits such as Microsoft can apply.

Digital Government

Defense looks for ways to detect insiders stealing classified files

Program would expose anyone conducting network searches, probing file index systems and copying information back to a computer.

Digital Government

Can VA's Processing System Wait?

The Veteran Affairs Department's paperless claims processing system ended up on the list of troubled IT projects that are up for <a href=http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20100823_4739.php>review and possible termination</a>. I wonder if federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra has a back up plan if he delays or cancels the paperless project.

Digital Government

Top Defense official says the U.S. must beef up cyber defenses

William Lynn, who disclosed classified networks were infiltrated by a malicious code in 2008, says the department must develop ways to stop attacks before sensitive information is stolen.

Digital Government

Google Earth vs Microsoft Bing Map

I <a href=http://whatsbrewin.nextgov.com/2010/08/google_now_owns_earth.php>reported</a> on Aug. 20 that the folks over at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency determined only Google had the smarts to handle visualization of the planet.

Modernization

Advanced communications support Defense in Pakistan flood relief

The Army, Navy and Marines rely on radios and mobile satellite systems that set up in minutes to coordinate helicopters and large C-130 cargo aircraft flying supplies to ravaged areas.

Digital Government

General, This is Called a Tie

Here's a loopy procurement that Defense Secretary Robert Gates should cancel immediately if he's serious about saving money: The <a href=https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&tab=core&id=5d4853031d4c98b503576b7d5161f903>General Officer Transition Course</a> hatched last week by the Army Contracting Center of Excellence.

Digital Government

Gates orders more information sharing to stop inside attacks

New policy will help alert Defense's investigative groups to threat information discovered during counterintelligence operations on department networks, systems and computers.

Digital Government

Google Now Owns Earth

Or, based on this <a href=https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=cb73f0c420f845c209adc2a22fb550d7&tab=core&_cview=0>sole-source contract announcement</a> from the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, Google now owns, at the least, visualization of the planet.

Digital Government

AHLTA's End (Sort Of) Explained

I <a href=http://whatsbrewin.nextgov.com/2010/08/the_end_of_ahlta.php>reported</a> on Monday the Military Health System decided to consider commercial software for its loathed AHLTA electronic health record system. The folks over at MHS told me the planning process started in December 2009, with establishment of an EHR Way Ahead Planning Office this February.