Programmers who wish to see changes in the C programming language can make their opinions known. The creator of C, Bjarne Stroustrup, is now embarking on its upgrade. Stroustrup, who works at the research labs of AT&T Corp., Bedminster, N.J., wants to improve the consistency of the language as well as make it easier to learn. More information can be found at: http:// www.research.att.com/~bs/C?_panel.pdf.
DigitalNet Holdings Inc., Herndon, Va., has released the latest version of its secure platform, the XTS-400. Using this specialized server, workers can access networks of different clearance levels, eliminating the need to use dedicated machines for accessing classified networks. Personnel can pass information from one network to another, with XTS-400 checking for appropriate clearances. More than 600 XTS solutions are used by the Defense Department and intelligence agencies. The company is now marketing it for uses in homeland security and law enforcement, according to DigitalNet vice president George Webber.
	Journalist Tom Adelstein has launched a Web portal where federal, state and local government agencies can download open-source software. Called Government Forge (http://governmentforge.org/index.html), it features open-source software that fits needs in administration, regulatory compliance and other areas. One package highlighted is Leopard, a bundle of software tools for developers to set up a data exchanges.
Verizon Communications Inc., New York, has introduced third generation wireless phone service for San Diego and the greater Washington area. The long-awaited 3G standard has been touted as a successor to today's cellular phone network systems. Verizon also introduced a 3G virtual private network service for users to replicate their computers' desktop display on mobile telephones. The VPN connection has a throughput of 300 to 500 kilobits per second.
Officials of Aurora, Colo., have improved the productivity of the city's non-emergency vehicles by equipping them with an automated vehicle tracking system.
It used to be that Jeff Williams, an inspector with Virginia's Department of Social Services, would have to carry an armload of documents to every child day care center he inspected. Not only did he need a 72-page inspection form for each location, but he also took along a stack of paper containing more than 500 standards for regulating day care centers.
Hewlett-Packard Co. yesterday demonstrated iCommunicator, a PC application that accepts live voice input, converts it to on-screen text, then converts the text to video images of sign language.<br>
As recent headlines have shown, building a foolproof electronic voting system is difficult. A successful system must protect the voter's privacy while ensuring strict accountability of each vote cast.
The aerospace controls division of BAE Systems plc, Farnborough, U.K., has introduced a new version of its real-time operating system for use in aircraft, called CsLEOS (originally called the Control Systems Layered Embedded Operating System). This fault-tolerant operating system now provides support for graphical user interfaces. It also adheres to the DO-178B standards set by the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics to qualify flight critical software.
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have developed an alternative way of authenticating users that they claim is easier to use than passwords.
Accompanying the recent release of its Athlon64 line of 64-bit processors for the desktop computers, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Sunnyvale, Calif., has updated its list of recommended motherboards.
A decision by Massachusetts to shift to open-computing standards and consider open-source software as part of that strategy has many software companies concerned about their future business with the state.
The Air Force Research Laboratory is soliciting proposals for the advanced decision environment technology program, which will develop and demonstrate technologies for global information and knowledge sharing. It also will provide decision-makers with analysis and simulation tools for tactical and strategic planning and operations, and enable advanced command and control.
The Defense Department's push to transform the military by providing them with interoperable, digital systems will continue to offer business opportunities to firms focused on the agency's research, development, test and evaluation market, according to a new analysis.
The growth of wireless networking has brought some serious security concerns. Sometimes ubiquitous and easy access to data networks isn't a good thing.
To capture the data from one of its particle-colliding experiments, the Energy Department's Stanford Linear Accelerator Center has created what it claims is the world's largest database, one with more than 800 terabytes of data.
