Computer Weekly articles from May 2004

Computer Weekly archives from May 2004

Rural affairs agency outsources its IT to IBM for [pounds sterling]850m.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... IBM has beaten Capgemini to become the preferred bidder for the seven-year, [pounds sterling]850m IT outsourcing contract at the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, it was announced last week. Under the deal, due to go...

Downtime.
May 1, 2004... BCS blasts Beatle over ethics of enticing e-mail Paul McCartney has incurred the wrath of the British Computer Society with his website's policy of encouraging fans to forward their friends' e-mail addresses to his site for marketing...

Telco NTL standardises on Microsoft.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Telecoms supplier NTL has rolled out Microsoft's latest desktop and server operating systems as part of a [pounds sterling]75m consolidation of its IT. NTL has installed Microsoft's Windows Server...

nHS IT; Slow demand for national systems.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk Initial demand from London NHS trusts for new national systems from the capital's local service provider BT is much less than contracted for in the first year and far higher than expected in the...

IT suppliers confident of new growth.
May 1, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Confidence among IT suppliers is at a record high, according to a survey by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, and Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank. The survey of more...

Health service IT professionals fear pay cuts after national review.
May 1, 2004... Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk NHS IT staff are increasingly anxious that they could face pay cuts of up to [pounds sterling]5,000 a year as a result of a government review of working roles in the NHS. The Agenda for...

Ex-helicopter chief says pilot verdict is 'ridiculous'.
May 1, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk A former director of helicopter procurement at the Ministry of Defence has described the blaming of the pilots for the crash on the Mull of Kintyre as "ridiculous and grotesque". Ron Holley...

Report finds computer system likely culprit in Chinook crash.
May 1, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk A former air commodore - one of the highest ranks in the RAF - has questioned the airworthiness of the Chinook Mk2 helicopter which went into service despite a series of failures involving its...

ZD576 pilot had doubts about engine control.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk One of the pilots of Chinook ZD576 expressed a specific concern about the helicopter's engine control system hours before he died when the aircraft crashed on 2 June 1994. The disclosure was...

t ; Industry welcomes new head of e-government.
May 1, 2004... l Main challenge will be changing processes within governmentl Watmore's consultancy background could serve him well in fight for funds Lindsay Clark and Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The appointment of Ian Watmore as the UK's...

MS support pledge boosts security.
May 1, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Microsoft's guarantee that its business products will have a 10-year lifecycle will boost the company's Trustworthy Computing security initiative, according to industry analysts. Users who do not...

Laws 'will be good for IT'.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Compliance will be the area that enables IT directors to exert influence on the board, according to a report from Butler Group. Mike Davis, senior research analyst and co-author of the report,...

RFID needs standards.
May 4, 2004... Communication and co-operation are vital to success BYLINE: Steve Coussins Opinion IT managers in the retail supply chain could be forgiven if they find themselves a little confused by what they read about radio frequency...

Varied support for flexible IT staff.
May 4, 2004... l Employers are turning down fewer requests for flexible working l Maternity Alliance says flexible workers lose status in the workplace Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The government's flexible working legislation for...

Energis encourages staff to gain international security certificate.
May 4, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk IT services and telecoms supplier Energis has begun a training initiative to encourage its IT security and sales staff to extend their skills and gain internationally-recognised qualifications in...

Don't fall prey to the classic training mistakes.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Michael Graham Opinion Despite the slump in the IT jobs market during the past few years, there are still about one million IT positions vacant in Europe, according to research company IDC. Over the past three years IT directors...

Sun strengthens web services with J2EE 1.4.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Sun Microsystems launched Java 2 Enterprise Edition version 1.4 last week. The launch takes Sun a step closer to providing Java-based web services. Version 1.4 will put Sun and its Java...

Users need 15-20-year roadmap for SAPERP.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk IT directors need to plan a 15- to 20-year roadmap to ensure a better return on investment from SAP enterprise resource planning systems, according to the IT director at Altria, the parent company of...

B&Q boosts availability with new San.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk DIY retailer B&Q has implemented a new storage area network across its UK operation to increase the availability of its corporate network and meet business continuity requirements. The...

DHL replaces 50 databases with a single worldwide datawarehouse.
May 4, 2004... l Datawarehouse will boost efficiency and be a platform for new services l Business reports will be improved and be consistent across regions Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Delivery firm DHL has embarked on an...

BT brings broadband to more rural areas.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk BT has announced a change in strategy which will bring the government's target of UK-wide broadband access closer. Communities currently left off the broadband map would no longer have to...

Kraft CIO saves [pounds sterling]280m by justifying IT spend.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk A former chief information officer of Kraft General Foods has revealed how he saved hundreds of millions of pounds in IT costs by using simple spreadsheets and common criteria for justifying technology...

ICI wants systems scanned ready for network deperimeterisation.
May 4, 2004... infosecurity europe At last week's conference IT directors discussed how to secure systems against growing threats and ways of making the case for funding to the board Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk ICI has asked IT security...

National programme for IT will push NHS IT spending growth up by 61% in 2004.
May 4, 2004... Spending revolution will test management structures and bring major changes Lindsay Clark computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The word "revolution" is often misused, but in the case of NHS IT, it is apt. Figures from the Computer Weekly IT...

Downtime.
May 4, 2004... The source for somereal cowboys Apache is a great name for a web server. It conjures up images of noble native Americans doing battle with the Microsoft Information Server cowboys. Alas, a little investigation has revealed that far...

Bank aims to link scanning and patching.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Standard Chartered Bank is developing technology to speed up and prioritise its patching processes, as pressure grows to protect systems from new vulnerabilities before hackers can exploit them. ...

Users to gain as Ofcom threatens to break up BT.
May 4, 2004... l Ofcom is considering splitting BT's wholesale and retail divisionsl Users fear BT Retail gets preferential terms from wholesale side Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Users could have a much greater choice of telecoms...

Monitoring tools help Lunn Poly overcome new booking system's teething problems.
May 4, 2004... l Travel booking system had to handle more users and respond more quickly l Frequently-called SQL statement was found to be running too slowly Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk Lunn Poly has used performance-monitoring tools...

Prepare security case for the board.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk IT directors should start collecting surveys, press cuttings and data about security breaches to help them make the case for investing in security, members of IT security user group the Jericho Forum...

User group slams software quality.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The new chairman of The Corporate IT Forum has called on software suppliers to improve the quality of patches and be held accountable for "sub-standard" software. Denise Plumpton, chairwoman of the...

IT-managed outsourcing tends to fail, says Gartner.
May 4, 2004... l Study finds half of all outsourcing contracts underperforml Gartner says IT staff lack necessary skills to manage deals successfully Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Outsourcing deals managed by IT staff are more likely to fail...

Firms face fines for reclaiming VAT on calls.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Businesses are risking fines for not separately accounting for the business and personal calls made by staff on corporate mobile phones - a task that can create a headache for IT departments. ...

staffing; Shell IT staff well placed to find new jobs.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Shell IT staff who leave as a result of the company's plans to cut thousands of jobs in its technology division will be well placed to find employment, according to recruitment consultants. ...

t; Business wants tough IT crime law.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Business groups are pressing the government to devote more police resources to fighting high-tech crime and to strengthen computer crime laws. Employers groups told an inquiry by an all-party...

Blunkett bioID card trial.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Home secretary David Blunkett launched a trial of biometric identity card technology last week involving 10,000 volunteers. He also announced draft legislation outlining plans for a national ID...

BCS revamps to increase members.(British Computer Society)(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... John Riley john.riley@rbi.co.uk The British Computer Society aims to recruit 10,000 more members over the next 12 months following the relaunch of the organisation in London last week. BCS chief executive David Clarke said the...

NHS IT; NHSprogramme battles for user buy-in as BMA voices concern.
May 4, 2004... Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk The British Medical Association has called for greater clinician involvement in the national programme for NHS IT. John Powell, chairman of the BMA's committee for IT, said, "Doctors working 'at...

Companies must plan for 'zero-day' attacks.
May 4, 2004... Bill Goodwin and Cliff Saran bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Users must deploy business continuity plans which assume that hackers will breach their corporate defences, the IT security directors from some of the UK's largest firms said last...

CSA holds back [pounds sterling]1m a month from EDSin systems dispute.
May 4, 2004... EDS blamed for computer problems but CSA makes 2,500 changes to design of IT systems Tony Collins tony.collins@rbi.co.uk The Child Support Agency and its main IT supplier EDS are locked in disagreement about whether the department...

Whitehall softens 2005 e-gov targets.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has reduced the number of mandatory e-government targets local authorities have to meet by 2005 in a new set of guidelines published last week. The policy...

Governance is IT's game.
May 4, 2004... The next boardroom mandate will be IT security BYLINE: John Colley Opinion The end of last year saw a flurry of regulations in the corporate governance arena in Europe, with Germany, the Netherlands and the UK all announcing...

Join IT's leading lights for a night to remember.
May 4, 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. Several hundred IT...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
May 4, 2004... NHS ITprojects are not always doom and gloom Alaric Cundy Director of clinical information, Barts and the London NHS Trust You have recently printed a number of "doom and gloom" items about the national programme for IT in the...

General Motors shakes-up its outsourcing.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... cio symposium IT directors share success stories on outsourcing, purchasing and ERP John Riley john.riley@rbi.co.uk General Motors is inviting suppliers into its plants and IT departments to learn about the company so they can...

YOUR SHOUT; Have your say at ; computerweekly.com.(Letter to the Editor)
May 4, 2004... On the limitations of spam filtering software In response to Danny Bradbury's article on using e-mail filtering software to stop spam and viruses (Computer Weekly, 20 April) Companies should not believe they are protected against spam...

Online test helps calculate return on investment from IT training.
May 4, 2004... John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk IT users and organisations are being offered a new BCS service which helps to identify individual and corporate IT training needs. People can complete an online questionnaire which assesses...

Staff left in the dark over monitoring technologies.
May 4, 2004... New technologies and laws are enabling greater communication monitoring. Industry experts argue whether this marks the arrival of Big Brother BYLINE: Martin Butler Opinion Big Brother isn't just watching you, he's listening too....

Chinese government to adopt BCS IT exam.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... The Chinese government is adopting the international version of the European computer driving licence qualification for its IT skills education programme in an initiative involving the BCS. The government will promote the qualification...

Games coders cannot expect big salaries.
May 4, 2004... Games development can be rewarding in many ways, just not financially Nick Langley computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk What is it? Everybody dreams of making a living from doing what they enjoy most. This must be what drives people...

plugging the storage GAP.
May 4, 2004... Storage devices are not buried away, they are on the network and make even archived data accessible. The Computer Weekly/ Posetiv survey finds users are prioritising software that manages stored data. Antony Savvas reports Two-thirds of UK...

IT is key to data law compliance.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Liz Maloney Opinion So, Big Brother has got his wicked way then? Every employer harbours a secret ambition to work for the Ministry of Truth? Everything you say and do will be noted down, only to be altered at a later date to suit...

Checks need not be 'Big Brother'.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Brenda Morris Opinion The need to monitor communications is part of the response by companies to increased data regulation. Conceptually, this is nothing new. For example, there is a long history of auditing business transactions, but...

UPS mail system packs in GPS and Bluetooth.(Brief Article)
May 4, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Delivery firm UPS is planning to roll out to the UKthe fourth generation of its Diad (delivery information access device), which, it said, offers improved accuracy and flexibility. UPS is...

Organisations failing to use SLAs to manage system performance.
May 4, 2004... l More than 40% of UK firms do not use service level agreements for ITl UK organisations rely on end-users to warn of performance degradation Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk UK users are failing to put in place service...

Outsourcing is a business skill.
May 4, 2004... As outsourcing continues to grow, the debate has moved on from whether it is a good thing or not to how to make it work more effectively. The need for answers to this question is reinforced by an estimate from analyst firm Gartner that half of...

Restructured BCS aims to help industry improve poor success rate ofIT projects.
May 11, 2004... John Kavanagh computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk IT staff will get proper recognition for their skills and experience - and IT projects will have a greater chance of success - following the restructuring of the BCS. So said leading government...

Be sure of a living legacy.
May 11, 2004... How can IT directors save costs and boost innovation? BYLINE: Mike Gilbert Opinion Market analyst firm Gartner says, "Chief information officers will have to spend the next 12 months holding down costs while innovating for the...

a public service.
May 11, 2004... Councils must ensure that in the rush to comply with e-government standards they do not lose sight of the needs of the users they are providing the service for The information management and technology drive for local authorities continues...

Corporate backlash emphasises importance of software testing.
May 11, 2004... As firms rail against "buggy" code, testing is growth area Nick Langley computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk What is it? Testing used to be the bit that got left out when software projects overran. The search for 2000 date-change...

Which security breaches should companies report to customers?
May 11, 2004... For any IT director the job of monitoring internet and e-mail use and investigating security breaches will give rise to a number of challenges, not least that of minimising the damage they can cause. One area that should be addressed at an...

How to turn around an unhappy IT team.
May 11, 2004... I have become IT director for a distribution firm, having previously run IT for a small retail company. There my staff were motivated and enthusiastic but in my new job the opposite is true. I am struggling to change attitudes and find the...

Accolade for NHS IT campaign.
May 11, 2004... Computer Weekly has scooped one of the top honours in UKjournalism for its campaigning coverage of the [pounds sterling]2.3bn ITmodernisation of the NHS. This is the third time in four years that Computer Weekly has won the Periodical...

Fujitsu team races to the North Pole.
May 11, 2004... The Fujitsu Polar Challenge, a competitive team race to the magnetic North Pole, has reached its halfway stage. Six teams of three, which comprise two experienced arctic explorers and one lucky "man off the street", set off from Resolute Island...

Firms fail to hire security staff with formal qualifications.
May 11, 2004... Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk Businesses are failing to hire IT professionals with formal security qualifications, despite an escalation in the number and cost of security incidents over the past two years. Only 10% of UK...

Alliance & Leicester cleans customer data.
May 11, 2004... l Financial services firm uses low-cost software to remove "dirty data" Project aids compliance with shared data scheme and saves IT staff time Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Alliance & Leicester is using low-cost software to...

Retailer issues tokens for staff to access VPN.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk The Carphone Warehouse is issuing staff with network "tokens" to ensure that only authorised people can access the corporate backbone remotely via the company's virtual private network. ...

IBM slashes price of entry level iSeries.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Cliff Saran cliff.saran@rbi.co.uk IBM has introduced an iSeries (formerly AS/400) server with an entry price two-thirds cheaper than its predecessor. The company said the eServer i5 is the first model to use its Power5 processor....

Financial regulations offer career opportunities for IT professionals.
May 11, 2004... l Sarbanes-Oxley and Basel 2 will necessitate major ITprojects l Analysts advise IT staff to take a lead in ensuring compliance of systems Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Forthcoming corporate governance regulations, such...

Certification for Microsoft desktop skills.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk Microsoft has launched its first certification course for IT desktop support staff. Aimed at staff with about one year's experience, the course is designed for anyone interested in a career as an IT...

New Merseyside IT supremo aims to stimulate investment and jobs.
May 11, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk The Merseyside ICT Industry Board has appointed Steve Smith as ICT sector director for Merseyside. Smith, who has more than 28 years' experience in the IT industry, will be working with companies...

Who to watch in Indian outsourcing.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Trying to list the major players in the Indian outsourcing market is rather like trying to nail water to a wall. New players enter the market and grow to be major influences across various sectors or dominate a niche. New services are created...

HP and BT sign global partnership contract.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk BT and Hewlett-Packard have signed managed services agreements between themselves with a combined value of [pounds sterling]835m over the next seven years. Under the agreements, HP will manage...

retail; Sainsbury's marketing campaigns improved by new datawarehouse.
May 11, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Sainsbury's may have struggled financially during its lengthy business transformation programme, but one department has reaped the benefits of new IT systems over the past two years, delegates at...

telecoms; Vodafone Ireland cuts cost and boosts revenue.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Mobile operator Vodafone'sIreland division has cut costs, boosted revenues and improved customer retention since rolling out a 1.5Tbyte datawarehouse from Teradata in September last year, delegates...

Don't play blame games.
May 11, 2004... Recent research from Forrester has shown that only 30% of organisations have a well-defined and understood process for solving IT performance problems. One of the reasons for this is that large IT departments are often split into teams...

Suppliers will meet RFID deadline, says Wal-Mart.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... l Wal-Mart has started its RFID trial with eight suppliers this monthl Almost all of the top 100 suppliers will meet the 2005 RFID deadline Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Wal-Mart began its long-awaited trial of radio...

OGC turns up heat on red warnings but refuses to publish Gateway review findings.
May 11, 2004... Publishing Gateway reviews is out but mandarins will feel the heat if IT projects receive consecutive red warnings, says head of independent Treasury watchdog Bill Goodwin bill.goodwin@rbi.co.uk The government is tightening...

IN BRIEF.
May 11, 2004... Hi-Tech Crime Unit nabs phishing suspects The National Hi-Tech Crime Unit has arrested 12 Eastern European nationals suspected of laundering funds obtained from the victims via phishing e-mails, which trick users into revealing their bank...

Downtime.
May 11, 2004... Baltimore board to leave the PKI key in the door We should know this week whether that once-lauded security company Baltimore Technologies has any directors after a botched takeover attempt. Predator firm Acquisitor Holdings was set to do a...

Red Hat boost for Linux on the desktop.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk Red Hat last week unveiled a long-term strategy for supporting Linux on the desktop, which includes the release of its Red Hat Desktop product and a two-year roadmap for security in its Enterprise...

UK falls down e-gov table.
May 11, 2004... l UK drops to ninth in worldwide league of e-government progressl Report says UK needs to demonstrate value of using online services Daniel Thomas daniel.thomas@rbi.co.uk The government's drive towards delivering public sector...

Capita moves to Bacs' IP payment network.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... Nick Huber nick.huber@rbi.co.uk IT services firm Capita is moving its payment systems to a new internet-based clearing system from UK payment clearing house Bacs. In a two-year roll-out, Capita will centralise its internal payment...

And the prize goes to.
May 11, 2004... The latest Computer Weekly IT Expenditure Report prize has been won by Michael O'Kane, who will receive a cheque for [pounds sterling]300. Runners up for the prize, the winner of which is picked at random from the thousands of IT...

Cisco goes modular with new operating system.(Brief Article)
May 11, 2004... l Modular approach makes it easier to upgrade switch and router systemsl Hardware has to carry less code, reducing potential vulnerabilities Antony Savvas computer.weekly@rbi.co.uk Cisco plans to launch a modular operating system...