Computer Weekly articles from June 2004

Computer Weekly archives from June 2004

Understand business objectives to prepare the most effective outsourcing contracts.
June 1, 2004... John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Successful outsourcing starts with clear company aims and an understanding of how outsourcing can help you meet those aims, according to BCS professional member Elizabeth Sparrow, a consultant...

Forget the next big thing.
June 1, 2004... Bob Jones Opinion After the debacle of the past few years, with the combination of Y2K and post-dotcom blues, you would have thought the IT industry had learned its lesson. Looking back at the good old days, the pace of innovation...

Council takes aim at housing fraud with biometric signature verification system.
June 1, 2004... Hillingdon's housing system reduces fraud and increases efficiency Lisa Kelly computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Hillingdon Council is using a bespoke biometric signature system to cut fraud and increase the efficiency of services for...

Web services predicted to take over from EDI.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Web services are the future of IT and can deliver cost savings within months. That was the message from Mike Thompson, principal research analyst at Butler Group. Speaking at the IT Director's...

Finance firms pay more as IT projects boom.
June 1, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Salaries for IT professionals with the right business skills are booming as financial services companies in the City of London recruit staff for a wave of new IT projects. Salaries for IT and...

Plan your web project milestones.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Managing web projects, by J Rodney Turner The start of the project It is better to spend a week planning and have a team of eight people work at 100% efficiency for 12 weeks, than a team working at 50% efficiency for 13...

Don't let disgruntled staff land you in court.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Neil Chaney Opinion A recent survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers on behalf of the DTI found that 90% of larger firms had a malicious security incident over the past year. Most attacks were caused either by viruses or...

Strong personal skills and certification are key to becoming a successful project leader.
June 1, 2004... l Studies highlight need for good project managersl Key certification routes are Prince2, PMI and APM l Personal skills are as important as certification Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk UK business needs good project...

Welsh Assembly takes broadband plan offline.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The Welsh Assembly has scrapped a [pounds sterling]16.5m project to help people in deprived communities get online, leading to accusations that it has not provided the investment needed to take...

Experts gather to offer advice on compliance.
June 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Some of the most influential government officials and experts involved with freedom of information legislation will be speaking at a conference in London this week (3-4 June). Phil Boyd, assistant...

CMA tells government to tackle broadband blight.
June 1, 2004... l Slow, limited broadband makes UK less attractive to multinational firms l CMA warns UK could get left behind as other countries invest John Riley and Antony Savvas john.riley@rbi.co.uk The Communications Management Association...

Systems will not be ready in time for Freedom of Information Act.
June 1, 2004... Tony Collins and Nick Huber tony.collins@rbi.co.uk The Freedom of Information Act will come into full force next January, before many government agencies and other public sector authorities have implemented the technology to meet their...

outsourcing ; Outsourced PCs roll in at Barclays.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Barclays is to take delivery of 41,700 Dell desktop and notebook PCs as part of a seven-year managed desktop outsourcing service with EDS. The first roll-out, due to be completed in 2005, will...

salaries ; Public sector IT salaries catch up.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Local authority IT staff salaries are catching up with private sector counterparts, according to a survey by Computer Economics. IT directors in local authorities in London and the South East...

open source ; CA releases open source database.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Computer Associates has revealed plans to make its Ingres enterprise relational database open source. Tony Gaughan, senior vice-president of development at CA, speaking at last week's CA...

Fibre links boost Merlin's star gazing.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Global Crossing has been awarded a contract to establish high-capacity links between five radio telescopes across England and the Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire, home of the Lovell Telescope. The five remote telescopes and the giant 76m...

IT leaders must show bottom-line benefits.
June 1, 2004... l Showing benefits saves IT from having to prove its value to the businessl Charging business units for services is one way to demonstrate cost benefit Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk IT directors have to prove investments in...

More infrastructure projects need to be linked to business objectives.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Too few IT infrastructure projects are linked to business objectives, analyst firm Meta Group has warned. Speaking ahead of Meta and IRM UK's Enterprises Architecture Conference in London next...

Users win 10-year pledge of support from Microsoft.
June 1, 2004... Customers welcome decision to extend software upgrade lifecycles Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Microsoft is responding to a principal criticism of its customers by extending the support lifecycle for its enterprise products to...

Watmore appointed Blair's CIO.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Ian Watmore has won the race to become the UK's head of e-government, one of toughest and most high-profile jobs in the IT industry. Watmore, currently managing director of consultancy Accenture,...

Report criticises Chinook verdict.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk A former RAF air commodore has questioned the integrity of systems and the airworthiness of the type of Chinook helicopter which crashed on the Mull of Kintyre 10 years ago in one of the RAF's worst...

Cognos brings intelligence to the business.
June 1, 2004... Cognos suite evolves to meet growing demand for more effective use of data Nick Langley computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk What is it? Business intelligence tools deliver information drawn from corporate data to decision makers. Over...

IT profession on board for the annual charity ball.
June 1, 2004... This year's Intellect ICT Industry Charity Ball, backed by Computer Weekly and the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists, aims to raise more than [pounds sterling]30,000 to help autistic children. The annual gathering of the...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2004... Job agencies with no time for the disabled Paul Reynolds Information analyst, EDS I would like to add my own take to the ongoing discussion about seeking jobs through agencies. I am deaf and cannot use the telephone - something...

accountable TO whom?
June 1, 2004... The blaming of the pilots for the fatal crash of their Chinook helicopter on the Mull of Kintyre on 2 June 1994 highlights the difficulty in holding manufacturers to account for any major failure of their systems. Tony Collins reports on the...

SAns ; Dell, EMC and Brocade team up on cut-price Sans for small firms.
June 1, 2004... l Dell/EMC AX100 can be installed with simple wizard instructionsl Other large suppliers are likely to follow Dell's example on price Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Dell has launched a storage area network to allow small...

Document management systems aid compliance.
June 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Document management, document imaging and knowledge management systems will play a vital role in helping local and central government bodies comply with the Freedom of Information Act. Public bodies...

s; Global companies join plan for online business process database.
June 1, 2004... l Proposed database is backed by Shell, IBM, Gartner and the US Navyl IT directors would be able to compare the systems of other firms Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The World Bank, multinational companies and software suppliers...

The right man for a tough job.
June 1, 2004... The appointment of Ian Watmore as head of e-government is one of the best decisions this administration has made. He has a reputation for being open, clear and effective. In his current job as UK managing director of consultancy Accenture,...

Fences can't protect you.
June 1, 2004... Secure "islands" will keep data out of the wrong hands BYLINE: Nicko vanSomeren Opinion Increasing globalisation and the rise in outsourcing mean that large IT departments are under more pressure than ever before. The need to...

YOUR SHOUT; Have your say at ; computerweekly.com.(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2004... On the possible demise of the extranet In response to Alec Milton, who wrote that extranets could be obsolete within five years (Computer Weekly, 11 May) There is a strong counter-argument to Alec Milton's views, which is: ...

NHS wrestles with erratic demand for IT.
June 1, 2004... A confidential paper has revealed that the level of demand for BT's services under the national programme for IT may be different from what has been anticipated Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk The Department of Health is in...

BSkyB uses web analytics.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Broadcaster BSkyB is extending the use of web analytics software across its online operation, after the technology helped it cut costs and boost efficiency. The software, delivered via...

CA software enables IT chiefs to run infrastructure like a business.
June 1, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Computer Associates has unveiled a strategy and products to help IT directors manage their technology infrastructure like a business. Speaking at the company's annual conference in Las Vegas...

Cisco's converged network vision has bandwidth for next 20 years.
June 1, 2004... l New router kit enables voice, video and data to run off single IP network l System can deliver "always-on" bandwidth of up to 92tbps Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Cisco's Carrier Routing System (CRS-1) is the company's...

The cross-platform integration challenge.
June 1, 2004... ERP SAP's Netweaver application platform has been heralded as a product that could drive the take-up of web services, but what are the options for users wanting to adopt BYLINE: Laurent Lachal Tech talk SAP's Netweaver is getting...

BCS warns Commons inquiry of concerns about national ID cards.(British Computer Society)
June 8, 2004... John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Concerns about government proposals for a national identity card scheme have been expressed by the BCS to a Home Affairs Committee inquiry. "The risk of failure is significantly increased...

Web links bring 'democratisation' to dissemination of business data.(Business Objects suite)
June 8, 2004... Business Objects suite allows ad hoc query and analysis Nick Langley computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk What is it? Like other business intelligence suppliers, Business Objects has been expanding its product suite from its origins in...

The universal glue.
June 8, 2004... Truly effective interoperability is the big promise held out by web services, but that will only be delivered through a holistic management approach BYLINE: Neil Macehiter Opinion Web services technology is, above all, an...

UK comes bottom of the league in Europe on IT career development.
June 8, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk UK IT managers are receiving less training and career development than their European counterparts, new research has found. UK organisations are also the least likely to offer sufficient career...

Check priorities then sell them to the board.
June 8, 2004... Following an 18-month freeze the board is considering increasing the IT budget. It wants a list of priorities with cost and return on investment. Top of the list should be infrastructure and security, but these projects are expensive and the...

Council IT manager calls for Whitehall guidance on plans for user authentication.
June 8, 2004... New system means Medway Council is set to meet the e-gov deadline, but there is no point rolling out smartcards if ID cards will contain digital certificates Lisa Kelly computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Medway Council is on course to hit...

Plan for users acting as IT support staff.(training)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... BOOK profile The key user Probably the most common IT role played by a user is as local computer support. In any organisation there are always those users who are more expert than others and who may find themselves becoming an...

IN BRIEF.
June 8, 2004... Microsoft offers free licences for recovery IT Users of Microsoft's Software Assurance licensing programme are being offered free operating system licences to run disaster recovery servers. Users can run the servers without incurring...

Shopping centres get internal security boost.(Liberty International)
June 8, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Liberty International, which manages out of town shopping centres, is rolling out detection software to secure its internal IT systems from security breaches by employees. Liberty plans to roll...

Row looms over plans for national patient database.(British Medical Association, British Telecommunications PLC)
June 8, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk Plans by the government and BT to build a national database holding personal medical records on 50 million people will face a challenge this week at an annual meeting of GPs. Doctors at the...

Could your IT team rise to the Three Peaks Challenge?(fund raising events )(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... There is still time to sign up for the last few places in this year's Vanco Three Peaks Challenge. The challenge invites teams of IT professionals to climb Snowden, Ben Nevis and Scafell Pike in 24 hours to raise money for charity Care...

Retail exchanges aim for interoperability.(WorldWide Retail Exchange)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Daniel Thomas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The two largest global exchanges used by retailers and manufacturers have announced details of their long-awaited interoperability project, which aims to enable closer links between supply chain...

Liffe migration nears completion.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The Euronext Liffe futures exchange will complete a three-year project to migrate three European exchanges to its London-based trading platform in September. The project, which has cost tens of...

GPs voice confidentiality fears over data spine.(general practictioners, national data spine)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... explaining the benefits of the spine to patients, reducing the time for consultations. It could also mean that the spine will not contain records on everyone in England, despite an announcement by Reid that it will. The national data spine...

IN BRIEF.(Windows users face first 64-bit virus)
June 8, 2004... Sanjay Kumar quits Computer Associates Computer Associates' chief software architect Sanjay Kumar is leaving the company after resigning as chairman and chief executive in April. He was replaced by interim chief executive Ken Cron. Kumar's...

Selling IT made easy: give instant quotes to customers and sell all products online.
June 8, 2004... IT managers do not have the time to listen to face-to-face sales talk from suppliers or the flexibility with funding to haggle over a quote that has taken days to arrive BYLINE: Dominic Connor Opinion A sure sign of the upturn in...

Drive to roll out new technologies makes retail a hotspot for IT job opportunities.
June 8, 2004... l Demand for IT staff in the retail sector has risen 25% since the end of 2003l Chip and Pin and RFID projects are driving need for experienced IT staff Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The roll-out of chip and Pin...

Develop presentation skills if you want to climb higher.
June 8, 2004... Tina Coulsting Opinion We all need to put more effort in to developing our communication skills in order to progress in our careers. And nowhere is this more true than in the IT industry. Time was when you could work in IT and be...

DTI offers overseas secondments to help firms with new technology.(Department of Trade & Industry)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk IT staff who want to learn new skills overseas can apply for an expanded secondment scheme run by the Department of Trade & Industry. The DTI Global Watch Secondments scheme aims to help small and...

Customer relationship software is saving council [pounds sterling]250,000 a year.(Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council)
June 8, 2004... l Measurement before and after implementation reveals 20% savingl CRM system avoids duplication and cuts number of follow-up calls Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council is saving [pounds...

Whitehall's two new IT agency chiefs face changing priority list.(Andrew Pinder, Peter Gershon, John Oughton, Ian Watmore)(appointments and resignations)
June 8, 2004... David Bicknell computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk This is a critical year for IT in the public sector. Central government investment in IT is on an unprecedented scale. The IT-led modernisation of the NHS is the biggest IT programme in the...

Out with e-envoy job description.(Ian Watmore responsibilities)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... David Bicknell computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Ian Watmore, the new head of e-government, has accepted one of the most difficult jobs in the IT industry. He will be responsible for developing policy and planning for IT in government and...

Operate across departmental silos.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... David Roberts Opinion It is vital that ministers and department heads show strong leadership, maintain continuity and ensure everyone is on-board and buys into strategic objectives. Changes in leadership and to reporting,...

Put focus on business change, not IT systems.
June 8, 2004... Jim Norton Opinion The Institute of Directors regards the government's performance on its e-government initiatives to be like the curate's egg - good in parts. First the good. The government has become much more realistic about...

E-government forgets local needs.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Fahri Zihni Opinion Although there have been successes in central e-government services, such as NHS Direct and online tax returns, the government has failed to recognise that 80% of transactions are local. This has not been...

Solaris 10 will deliver simplified file admin.(Sun Microsystems Inc.)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk The next release of Solaris in the fourth quarter of 2004 will provide a file system designed to automate common system administration tasks. Sun said the Solaris Dynamic File System, which will...

OGC puts suppliers in their place.(Office of Government Commerce, Peter Gershon)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... David Bicknell computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Peter Gershon's tenure at the Office of Government Commerce has had a profound effect on the government's various IT roles. He pushed through public sector-wide licensing agreements with...

New reference designs map out best practice.(Sun Microsystems Inc. introduces few identity management products)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Sun outlined a number of products and presented new performance benchmark results at last week's conference. It unveiled 16 reference architectures which aim to provide users with design templates...

Single user costs MoD [pounds sterling]10m after allowing worm onto the network.(United Kingdom. Ministry of Defence)
June 8, 2004... l Lovgate worm spread across 30 military sitesl Report blames single person using floppy discl It took IT staff four weeks to clean systems Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk A single careless computer user cost the Ministry of...

Student Loans Company delays online application.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... l Admin difficulties blamed for system delayl Online application form to be released in stagesl About 3% of students opted to apply online Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The Student Loans Company has delayed an online...

Pay cuts could jeopardise national IT programme.(IT staffs may leave their job)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk NHS organisations could face difficulties if IT staff decide to leave following a poor evaluation of their job roles in the Agenda for Change pay review, experts have warned. The review is...

Microsoft support pledge sharpens focus on what users really want from suppliers.
June 8, 2004... Software support Users and suppliers could work together on support strategies Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Microsoft's announcement last week that it is extending the support lifecycle of its enterprise products to 10 years...

Firms put vital data at risk by lax disc disposal.(survey)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Businesses are being urged to review their policies for disposing of old computer equipment after hard disc drives containing sensitive business information were found for sale on the internet. ...

Users expect to spend more on data storage.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Karen Gomm karen.gomm@rbi.co.uk Rising levels of e-mail, general data storage requirements and document management systems will drive up user spending on storage over the next year, according to a snapshot poll of delegates at last...

Don't ignore us, gov CIO is warned.(chief information officers)(Chris Guest)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Socitm has criticised the outgoing e-envoy for failing to consult sufficiently with local authorities. It is seeking reassurance from the new head of e-government that he will not overlook the...

Whitbread unifies its businesses' networks.(Whitbread PLC, Fujitsu Services, contract)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Whitbread is consolidating the separate networks used by its various businesses into a single, group-wide infrastructure. The former brewery, whose businesses include TGI Fridays, Travel Inn and...

Insurers back messaging system.(use of electronic messaging system)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Two of the largest insurance brokers in the City have thrown their weight behind a fledgling electronic messaging system as part of a wider shake-up of technology in the insurance market. The firms,...

University halves cost of mobile calls.(University of Liverpool)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The University of Liverpool has found a simple, innovative way to reduce its mobile phone call costs by more than 50%. The university has inserted a number of mobile phone Sim cards into its...

Nats reviews procedures after air control IT crash.(National Air Traffic Services)
June 8, 2004... l Computer crash disrupts flights across UK l Software was tested on operational systeml Ageing systems unlikely to be replaced before 2011 Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk National Air Traffic Services is reviewing its...

IT directors should plan for fuel crisis.(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk IT directors should check their emergency power supply arr-angements and draw up rotas for key staff to minimise any disruption that could be caused by possible protests over fuel prices, an analyst has...

Sun springs surprise with open source Solaris move.(Sun Microsystems Inc.)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Sun surprised the IT community last week by revealing plans to make its flagship Solaris enterprise Unix operating system open source. The move could boost the long-term prospects of Solaris, which...

Will you be boarding IT's Orient Express?(plan to raise funds for autistic children)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... This year's Intellect ICT Industry Charity Ball, backed by Computer Weekly and the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists, aims to raise more than [pounds sterling]30,000 to help autistic children. The annual gathering takes place...

Families are welcome at annual charity walk.(information technology services industry)(Brief Article)
June 8, 2004... People working in the IT industry, whether users or suppliers, rarely have an opportunity to take our families, colleagues or friends to a fun, relaxed event with like-minded individuals. On Sunday 27 June, everyone is welcome to just such...

First-class idea for productivity.(methods)
June 8, 2004... Website makes a case for mobile working but has surprises BYLINE: Jack Schofield Tech talk Why hasn't Research in Motion produced a waterproof version of the Blackberry? Today's top executives waste so much time taking showers,...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
June 8, 2004... Lessons on Chinook for computing in aviation John Blakeley Air commodore, RAF, retired Following your coverage of the Chinook controversy (Computer Weekly, 1 June) to mark the 10th anniversary of the crash, I would like to add...

Sun/Fujitsu server deal safeguards Sparc.(Sun Microsystems Inc.)
June 8, 2004... servers would replace existing SunFire and Primepower product lines. It claimed the design would provide users with, "safe and seamless binary compatibility along the Sparc roadmap". Rakesh Kumar, senior vice-president at analyst firm Meta...

IT directors plan a night sleeping rough to help young homeless.(National Coalition for the Homeless)
June 8, 2004... David Blaine stayed suspended uncomfortably above the Thames for 40 days near Tower Bridge in London. Computer Weekly would not go that far, but we do invite our readers to experience a little bit of discomfort with us near the same spot for...

NEXT MOVE.(career questions)
June 8, 2004... The question Should I retrain as a webmaster? I worked for 13 years in the software industry in India in the late 1980s and 1990s. I worked on Cobol, Unix/C and PC databases such as Foxpro and Clipper. After moving to the UK I...