Computer Weekly articles from April 2005

Computer Weekly archives from April 2005

IN BRIEF.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Government delays IT waste directive The government has delayed implementing the Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment Directive recycling legislation that was due to become law on 13 August. It said the delay was caused by "major...

Shortage of ERP skills could push up pay.(enterprise resource planning)
April 5, 2005... ERP staff rates expected to increase by 15% l Freelancers' contracts increasing to 16 weeksl SQL, Unix and Office skills in high demand Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Employers will face shortages of IT professionals with...

India can halve IT costs, says bank.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Companies can halve their IT costs by outsourcing the management of their IT infrastructure to India, according to a research paper by Deutsche Bank. The investment bank predicted that...

Business leaders demand more government funds for police to tackle professional hackers.
April 5, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Businesses are facing direct losses to computer criminals of at least [pounds sterling]2.4bn a year, research to be published today by the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit will reveal. The volume of...

IN BRIEF.
April 5, 2005... Airwave completed on time and on budget Airwave, the [pounds sterling]2.9bn Tetra-based communications network for every police force in England, Scotland and Wales, has been completed on time and to budget. The system allows officers to...

in brief.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Microsoft to launch iSCSI version 2 Microsoft is preparing to launch version 2.0 of its iSCSI software to improve Windows-based server connectivity to enterprise storage area networks. Version 2.0 is expected to be available for download...

Network security testing course aims to set a benchmark.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk A security training course aimed at creating a benchmark in the industry has become available in the UK. The Open Source Security Testing Methodology Manual (OSSTMM) claims to be the first...

White paper delivers, says E-Skills.(information technology workers training plans)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Last month's government skills white paper will give employers unprecedented influence in shaping the future of IT training in the UK, the head of public private training body E-Skills UK said this...

Projects, mergers and legislation boost spending.
April 5, 2005... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Strong financial results from IT recruitment specialist Spring Group have provided further evidence of growing demand for IT skills. Since late 2001 demand for IT skills has fallen in the UK...

Growing use of Linux could make mobile apps more cost-effective.
April 5, 2005... Meta predicts 25% of all new mobile phones will be running Linux in five yearsl Advances will mean firms can develop their own apps more cheaply Arif Mohamed computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Advances in mobile operating systems and the...

Oblix to boost Oracle web identity tool suite.(acquisition agreement)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Oracle has acquired identity management company Oblix to bolster its web identity product suite. Oblix sells identity management software that delivers web access control, including single...

Plumtree tracks web activity in real time.(new software from Plumtree Software Inc.)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Plumtree Software has released Plumtree Analytics Server in a bid to improve the delivery of real-time reports on website user activity and content use. Analytics Server is designed to track...

Websites will drive savings, says Socitm.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Government IT managers group Socitm believes that "a significant slice" of the 2.5% efficiency gains the Treasury expects local government to make can come from self-service websites. The...

CA to offer ID tracking.(Computer Associates International Inc., identity)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Computer Associates is to offer an access management product that tracks and removes obsolete, unused or rogue user IDs and access rights. The technology, called eTrust Cleanup, could help IT...

Data glut is hitting UK productivity, say workers.
April 5, 2005... Nick Huber and Lindsay Clark nick.huber@rbi.co.uk UK workers believe poor communication between staff and a glut of electronic information is making them less efficient than their counterparts in the rest of Europe, a study of the...

Users wait to learn new HP chief's strategy.(Mark Hurd appointed at Hewlett-Packard Co.)
April 5, 2005... NCR chief executive Mark Hurd will replace Carly Fiorina at HPl Gartner urges users to monitor Hurd's plans for cost-cutting carefully Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Hewlett-Packard has appointed NCR chief executive Mark...

BPO market set to grow to [pounds sterling]71bn in 2005.(business process outsourcing )(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The worldwide market for business process outsourcing will reach [pounds sterling]71bn in 2005, up 8% from 2004, analyst firm Gartner has predicted. In Europe spending on BPO will remain strong and...

Undercover chatroom work captures e-criminal.(Barrett Lyon, National Hi-Tech Crime Unit)
April 5, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Investigative work by a US computer forensic specialist helped lead the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit and the FBI to a Russian gang responsible for launching denial of service attacks against online...

case ; Tracking software protects Yell from harvesting attacks.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Online directory service Yell is investing in tracking technology to protect its online database from theft by criminal groups and rival businesses. The company faces regular attacks from...

Leica uses middleware to receive real-time stock data from outsourced US warehouses.(Sterling Commerce Inc., Leica Microsystems Inc., contract)
April 5, 2005... Data from warehouses is translated and routed directly into SAP systeml Real-time inventory system helps cut delays in sending out spare parts Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Leica Microsystems, a manufacturer of high-precision...

Wickes standardises supply chain systems.(Wickes Building Supplies, Manugistics Group Inc., contract)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk DIY retailer Wickes has rolled out Manugistics forecasting software to help reduce stock levels and the number of re-deliveries it has to make. The retailer, which operates 171 stores across...

Online bookie uses IT to foil gangs.(Sporting Index threatened by criminal gangs)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Online spread betting company Sporting Index is using sophisticated technology to protect itself against denial of service attacks, following a series of cyber-extortion attempts by Russian criminal...

Newham shares software through Microsoft portal.(London Borough of Newham)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Microsoft-based portal will simplify links to back-office systemsl Other local authorities will aid Newham with development costs Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Six months after signing a 10-year strategic partnership with...

Microsoft beefs up security with Windows Server Service Pack 1.
April 5, 2005... SP1 includes tools that promote more secure network configurationl Microsoft says it has addressed root cause of issues, not just symptoms Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Microsoft has released Windows Server 2003 Service...

AMR sets up forum for European SAP users.(AMR Research Inc.)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Analyst company AMR Research is establishing a European forum to bring together SAP users. The company's US SAP Best Practice Peer Forum already has about 50 members representing large SAP users...

Users need to know SunGard plans.(SunGard Data Systems Inc., acquisition)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The acquisition of SunGard Data last week could lead to the software and disaster recovery specialist being broken up, experts have warned. The [pounds sterling]6bn deal was the largest ever...

National child protection IT plan due this autumn.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Arif Mohamed computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The government has told councils it will not directly invest in local child protection IT systems ahead of work taking place at national level to build an information sharing index. The...

The global power of IT.
April 5, 2005... The perpetual challenge for globalising IT is to get the benefits of centralisation without losing local flexibility. This is what Dan Greer, director of information systems governance at global employment services company Manpower believes his...

Blair's Digital Britain vision poses challenge for IT leaders.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... Lindsay Clark and Tony Collins computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk IT-led transformation of public services has only just begun, according to the government. With a general election looming, ministers have been busy setting out their vision...

Blair challenges IT leaders to drive digital plan.
April 5, 2005... ensuring local authorities continue to invest in the IT systems needed to facilitate change. The prime minister made the central role of IT explicit in his video to the CIO council, which was made at the request of the government's chief...

BCS offers online CV certification for freelances.(curriculum vitae , British Computer Society )(Brief Article)
April 5, 2005... John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Freelance IT staff are being offered a BCS service to build up an online record of their career history - verified by their clients - for use by potential employers. "The primary aim of the...

Networking for SMaller firms.
April 5, 2005... Small firms implementing their first network or overhauling an existing one may find themselves facing too many choices. Jessica Twentyman explains how technology developed for the big hitters can help smaller businesses Many small and...

What makes a good IT manager for SMEs?
April 5, 2005... I am managing director and majority owner of a small manufacturing company which has always installed IT systems in a piecemeal way. We now plan to employ an IT manager. What personal qualities and practical experience should we look for? ...

Compliance can help.(management)
April 5, 2005... Senior managers in small and medium-sized businesses could be forgiven for believing their lives are dictated by an escalating burden of regulation. In some ways this is true, but are they missing the potential benefits regulation can deliver?...

Good IT wears a human face.(analysis)
April 5, 2005... It is unfortunate that the public is often most aware of IT when it goes wrong, or when organisations use it to provide additional "services" of dubious value. Receiving a fine after wandering into a bus lane, for example, does not make one...

Software industry told it must learn from the past and stop acting like 'hairdressers'.
April 12, 2005... Expert says lessons from engineering and the past are being ignoredl Lack of change history and modularity leads to unnecessary complexity John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Software development is generally more like a...

IBM sponsors female IT student awards.
April 12, 2005... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk IBM has renewed its sponsorship of the Axios A Star Awards, which reward the achievements of the best female computing students. The awards, now in their fifth year, are organised by software firm...

Guide spells out key risks of Basel 2.(a guide from BearingPoint Inc.)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk A guide about the forthcoming Basel 2 code on risk management has been published by consultancy BearingPoint. The guide outlines seven common mistakes made in Basel 2 compliance projects, including...

IN BRIEF.
April 12, 2005... Intelligence data project running three years late A government programme to allow intelligence agencies to exchange information through secure web links is running three years behind schedule, a report by the Intelligence and Security...

Review IT department's structure to improve efficiency.
April 12, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk To operate more effectively, large IT departments should review their complex structure and prioritise projects, Forrester Research has recommended. Forrester examined the advantages and...

Users' poor understanding holds back e-learning.(survey)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk The take up of e-learning has been stunted by businesses' lack of understanding about how the technology should be used, an Oxford University computer specialist has claimed. Most organisations...

What to ask prospective suppliers.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk A key task for IT directors in all industry sectors is choosing the right outsourcing supplier. However, the booming outsourcing market has become increasingly crowded with suppliers, many of which claim...

OSI sets new open source licence rules.(Open Source Initiative)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The Open Source Initiative (OSI) has launched a programme to reduce the growing number of different open source licences in use. The OSI is concerned that too many different types of licences...

Gartner: link IT spend to business wins.(survey)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Only one-third of IT spending in medium-sized enterprises directly improves business performance, Gartner has claimed. The analyst firm is urging medium-sized enterprises to take a more...

Growing need for project managers drives IT departments to spend more on training.
April 12, 2005... Spending on training increased by 7% in 2004l Employers careful about how they spend l Instructor-led courses favoured over e-learning Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk IT departments increased their investment in staff training...

SAP targets Oracle with low-cost maintenance for PeopleSoft users.(marketing)
April 12, 2005... SAP targets JD Edwards and PeopleSoft users with low-cost supportl ERP provider has also released a migration strategy for SOAs Cliff Saran and Antony Savvas cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk SAP has launched a programme to offer PeopleSoft...

in brief.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Impinj releases Gen 2 high-speed RFID tags Radio frequency identification technology supplier Impinj is to release RFID tags based on the Gen 2 specification. Gen 2 can boost read rates to up to 1,500 tags a second, which is about five...

Keep IT staff informed to improve business performance.
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Business performance is suffering because managers are failing to keep IT staff informed about business developments, a study has claimed. Eighty-six per cent of UK technology staff surveyed said...

Viatel offers international wireless network service to boost speeds.(Viatel Ethernet, Viatel UK Ltd.)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Viatel has introduced an international wide area network service, called Viatel Ethernet, which aims to provide local area network speeds across a wireless network. The company said businesses...

Firms failing to protect systems against crime.
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Businesses are failing to take adequate steps to secure their IT systems, despite a rise in computer crime over the past 12 months. Computer crime now affects 90% of businesses, costing the UK a...

Lack of proper training compounds problems.(United Kingdom. Child Support Agency)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Tony Collins and Mike Simons tony.collins@rbi.co.uk CSA staff were not happy with the training they received. Despite the delay in implementing the agency's new system CS2, "a number of staff were not trained before having to work on...

Police forced to turn away e-crime victims.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Police are having to turn down requests to investigate computer crime from businesses due to a lack of resources, the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit said last week. Mick Deats, deputy head of the...

System stress led to long-term sick leave for staff.
April 12, 2005... Tony Collins and Mike Simons tony.collins@rbi.co.uk Poor communications and unrealistic expectations have hampered the introduction of new systems at the Child Support Agency. Although CSA staff were generally supportive of the...

IBM and NetApp sign storage deal.(EMC Computer Systems (UK) Ltd.)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk IBM and Network Appliance have joined forces to offer an alternative to EMC storage products. As part of the relationship, IBM and Network Appliance, also known as NetApp, have signed an OEM...

Fujitsu adds Itanium 2 servers.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Fujitsu has introduced two Itanium 2-based servers in an attempt to increase its enterprise user base. The Primequest 480 and 440 servers are a result of an alliance with Intel.They can hold...

Inadequate training, poor communication and IT problems are to blame, say CSA staff.(Child Support Agency)
April 12, 2005... Tony Collins and Mike Simons tony.collins@rbi.co.uk Attempts by the Child Support Agency to bring about reform through introducing new technology have repeated some of the most serious mistakes of past government IT-related projects....

HSBC warns of online banking bans.(HSBC Holdings PLC)
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Banks may be forced to refuse customers access to online banking unless they can show they have adequate firewall and anti-virus protection, HSBC has warned. Alan Jebson, group chief operating...

Data migration is a major problem.(United Kingdom. Child Support Agency)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Tony Collins and Mike Simons tony.collins@rbi.co.uk One of the biggest problems facing executives at the Child Support Agency is that there are hundreds of thousands of cases on an old system waiting to be transferred. The aim is...

Voca partners with HSBC and Lloyds TSB for a fresh view of online bill payments.(Lloyds TSB Group PLC, HSBC Holdings PLC)
April 12, 2005... Customers will be able to view and pay all bills from their bank's websitel Supplier OneVu says it has learnt from previous failed billing systems Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Voca, the payment clearing house formerly known as...

Government should fund security study for business, says Microsoft.(Scott Charney views)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Governments should fund long-term security research that could be transferred to the private sector for commercial deployment, Microsoft's global security chief said last week. Scott Charney,...

Oil firm standardises on Linux OS.(replacement of the software)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Statoil, Norway's largest oil company, has made a 50% cost saving by migrating from proprietary Unix operating systems to Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The oil and gas firm, which has operations...

UK slips down e-government league table.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... UK government ranked 10th in provision of online services to publicl Hits on e-government services low compared to rest of Europe Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The UK has slipped in the world e-government rankings,...

ID card bill postponed.(identity)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk The government has postponed legislation to introduce its [pounds sterling]3bn biometric ID card scheme in the run up to the election. Home secretary Charles Clarke said ID cards would appear in...

Parties get personal with new IT systems.(technology used in political campaigns)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Labour's eight-year reign in government has seen a revolution in the technology used in political campaigning. In the run-up to the 5 May general election, Labour and the Conservatives are...

Scania switches to software-based tokens to reduce its security costs.
April 12, 2005... Hardware tokens replaced by Java key application on mobiles l Move will eliminate cost of replacing tokens every three or four years Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Swedish truck maker Scania is replacing hardware-based...

Windows v Linux TCO undecided.(analysis)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Red Hat Linux is more costly to manage than Windows 2003 Server, according to a report published last week. Yet downtime costs more on Windows than Linux, another new study has suggested. A study...

Get ready for Windows SP2 automatic download.(service pack)
April 12, 2005... Many firms have yet to download the service packl Microsoft recommends testing before deploymentl Largest installation of SP2 will be 250Mbytes Computer Weekly reporters computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Corporate users of Windows XP...

HBOS delays project after XP roll-out difficulties.(Halifax Bank of Scotland)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk A project to create a single banking platform has been put on hold following problems installing Microsoft Windows XP. In one of the UK's largest XP implementations, HBOS Group, which includes...

IN BRIEF.
April 12, 2005... DNS poisoning attacks are on the increase Domain Name System (DNS) attacks are becoming more widespread since they were first reported last month, according to the Sans Institute's Internet Storm Centre. DNS poisoning attacks affect...

Moving ahead with the best of the old.(condition of hardware and software used at ARRIVA PLC)
April 12, 2005... Staff at Arriva London bus garages have the very latest IBM hardware and Windows software, but they still use green-on-black text screens dating back to when their applications were developed 18 years ago. "Windows screens raised a...

Security professionalism comes to the fore at show.(Infosecurity Europe Show )
April 12, 2005... Over the past couple of years moves to put IT security on a more formal, professional footing, and to get the many existing IT security-related groups to agree a common purpose, have gained momentum. The latest developments in this area...

Price falls on contract renewals in buyer's market.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Organisations have begun to take advantage of a "buyer's market" for IT services by demanding hefty reductions in charges from suppliers in return for renewing contracts, according to Richard Holway,...

Banks lagging behind shops on chip and Pin.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Banks are lagging behind the retail industry in the roll-out of chip and Pin, despite putting considerable pressure on retailers to adopt the technology. More than a third of UK cardholders have yet...

Demoralised staff struggle with CSA systems.(United Kingdom. Child Support Agency)
April 12, 2005... on the system. They were "entering false information to fill in unknown details so that they could get the system to continue with the case". An administrative officer was cited in the report as entering information which the person knew...

YOUR SHOUT; Have your say at ; computerweekly.com.(Letter to the Editor)
April 12, 2005... On whether RFID means the end of stocktaking In response to reports that RFID and smartcards are set to revolutionise retail (Computer Weekly, 15 March) I would like to think that Doug Hargrove is right, and the end of stock taking is...

NEXT MOVE.(career related queries)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2005... The question How to I get back into project management? I have seven years' IT experience, mostly in sales. I was made redundant in 2001 from a large IT supplier and have since been working for a legal firm. I would like to return...

Report on CSA is the way forward.(publication of a report from the Child Support Agency )
April 12, 2005... History shows that governments abhor transparency and accountability on large, IT-related projects. That is why the publication of a report into the Child Support Agency is refreshingly out of character. It is revelatory, authoritative...

Letters.
April 12, 2005... NHS blaming suppliers could be a warning sign Stephen Castell Chairman, Castell Consulting Richard Granger, director general of NHS IT, has declared that some of the key contractors supplying the [pounds sterling]6.2bn national...

More than lip service.(information law management)(Column)
April 19, 2005... The test of regulatory compliance is business process change and ensuring employees are not your biggest threat Clive Davies Opinion Complying with the law has always been an issue for big business. US companies have operated...

Lock up data or lose it.(data security management)(Column)
April 19, 2005... Confidential data leakage can be devastating, but the cause is often ignorance rather than malicious intent Steve Purdham Opinion Many senior managers recognise that almost all their sensitive data is stored in electronic format...

Join the programme.(InfoSecurity Forum standard)(Column)
April 19, 2005... InfoSecurity Forum standard will help firms draft a comprehensive best-practice plan of action for security Jason Creasey Opinion One of the questions I get asked most is, "What is the biggest information security problem?" ...

Know your partners.(analysis, regulatory compliance)
April 19, 2005... Whether compliance is seen as a distraction or a useful tool, someone has to marshal and present the facts Andy Mulholland Opinion Unfortunately, the connection between many of the popular business issues and security is still...

Plug-and-play perils.(portable disk drives security measures)(Column)
April 19, 2005... Portable data storage may be convenient, but pen-sized high-capacity devices are becoming the latest threat Magnus Ahlberg Opinion Removable media devices have become a fantastic new addition to the growing assortment of gadgetry...

Security; Global alliance to hold IT 'security day' in London.(Information Systems Audit and Control Association)
April 19, 2005... The first UK fruit of an alliance of three major international IT security organisations formed earlier this year will be a "security day" in London on 10 May. The US-based groups represent three areas of IT security. The Information...