ACM TechNews - Friday, December 29, 2000

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ACM TechNews
Volume 2, Number 147
Date: December 29, 2000
Site Sponsored by Gateway (http://www.gateway.com)

Top Stories for Friday, December 29, 2000:
http://www.acm.org/technews/current/homepage.html

"New Congress Will Face Important Internet Issues"
"Unions Slow to Gain Traction in Tech World"
"Big Brother Knocked in 2000"
"Internet's Future Is Screwed on Tight"
"Weak Holiday Computer Sales May Trigger a Price War"
"Valley Firms Unprepared for Major Power Crisis"
"How Women Make Science Work"
"Companies Turning Cool to Telecommuting Trend"
"Getting Inner Cities Online"
"Still a Long Way from Checkmate"
"Growth in Research Spending Is Expected to Shrink in 2001"
"As Bills Go Unpaid, Internet Firms Sever Dot-Com Ties"
"Domains Don't Net as Many Buyers"
"Survey Says Hong Kong Net Surfers World's Most Avid"
"China Strengthens Laws Against Internet Crime"
"The New Brain Game"
"Employers OK With E-Surfing"
"Enforcing Compliance"
"Linux Revenue and Influence Roll Along"

******************* News Stories ***********************

"New Congress Will Face Important Internet Issues"
Online privacy, e-commerce taxation, and copyright reform are
expected to be the key high-tech legislative issues on Capitol
Hill during 2001.  Lawmakers in Congress are expected to put
aside their party differences and work toward laying more . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item1

"Unions Slow to Gain Traction in Tech World"
With the Internet economy slumping this year, several union
groups have been trying to organize disgruntled tech-industry
workers.  However, the unions have had only limited success so
far, and analysts are unsure whether the labor movement will be . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item2

"Big Brother Knocked in 2000"
The Privacy Foundation on Thursday released its list of top
privacy concerns in 2000, and the group judged workplace
surveillance to be the top privacy concern during the past year.
Second on the list was the privacy of medical records, followed . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item3

"Internet's Future Is Screwed on Tight"
Although 2000 is already being regarded as a bad year for the
Internet economy, with over 100 dot-coms having failed and the
tech-heavy Nasdaq having fallen more than 50 percent, analysts
and industry insiders say the future is brighter than many . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item4

"Weak Holiday Computer Sales May Trigger a Price War"
A price war could be looming over the PC industry as
manufacturers reeling from the disappointing holiday season cut
prices in an effort to move excess inventory.  Jupiter Media
Metrix's Peter Christy predicts a "brutal war" in the first . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item5

"Valley Firms Unprepared for Major Power Crisis"
Silicon Valley companies are not prepared to handle their growing
need for electricity at a time when California's energy supply is
dwindling, according to a recent survey from the Silicon Valley
Manufacturing Group.  Most of the area's companies do not have . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item6

"How Women Make Science Work"
Women often find it difficult to fit into the high-tech culture,
but technology would benefit greatly from the diverse thought
that would result if more women joined the industry, says Carol
Kovac, director of IBM Life Sciences.  "We're taught and trained . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item7

"Companies Turning Cool to Telecommuting Trend"
Fewer companies now allow employees to telecommute and many
managers say telecommuting never delivered its promised benefits,
several recent surveys indicate.  Although telecommuters number
as many as 24 million, according to the International Telework . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item8

"Getting Inner Cities Online"
A growing number of companies are addressing social issues such
as the digital divide while seeking profits at the same time.
Digital Mafia Entertainment (DME), for example, is targeting
low-income communities as an untapped market for discounted . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item9

"Still a Long Way From Checkmate"
Although artificial intelligence (AI) has yet to match the
thought capacity of human beings, it does form the backbone of
many sophisticated and commonplace machines, according to many
scientists.  Computer chess games feature AI, and . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item10

"Growth in Research Spending Is Expected to Shrink in 2001"
The growth rate of research and development spending among U.S.
companies will fall in 2001 as a result of plummeting stock
prices and weak sales, according to a recent report from Battelle
Memorial Institute and R&D Magazine.  Next year companies will . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item11

"As Bills Go Unpaid, Internet Firms Sever Dot-Com Ties"
Web hosting firms, Internet service providers, and software
vendors have lost patience with dot-coms that fail to pay bills,
and are looking to attract established brick-and-mortar firms as
clients.  Web-site management firm Digex, for example, recently . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item12

"Domains Don't Net as Many Buyers"
Generic Internet domain names are no longer considered as
lucrative as before.  Procter & Gamble (P&G) recently sold
flu.com for an undisclosed amount.  The company maintains that
the money from the sale covered the expense of maintaining the . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item13

"Survey Says Hong Kong Net Surfers World's Most Avid"
Hong Kong Internet users spend more time on the Internet than
other users across the globe, according to a newly released AC
Nielsen survey of Internet surfing habits in 18 countries.  The
survey found that Hong Kong Internet users spend an average of 10 . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item14

"China Strengthens Laws Against Internet Crime"
The Chinese government has tightened its grip on the Internet by
passing a law that criminalizes the use of the medium to
"overthrow the Socialist system," to "incite subversion of state
power," to "destroy national unification," or to "maintain . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item15

"The New Brain Game"
President Clinton in October approved a bill that raises the H-1B
visa limit from 115,000 to 195,000, in a move that resolves some
hiring issues but creates new problems as well.  The American
Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act eases the IT labor . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item16

"Employers OK With E-Surfing"
A recent Saratoga Institute survey indicates that most employers
are not very worried about employees surfing the Internet on
company time, despite the stories about how much personal surfing
can cost in lost productivity.  Employers are publishing flexible . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item17

"Enforcing Compliance"
BSA and the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA)
say the United States lost $3.2 billion in business and retail
software sales last year to software piracy, and the piracy rate
was estimated at 25 percent.  BSA performs enforcement actions on . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item18

"Linux Revenue and Influence Roll Along"
Linux shipments and revenue will continue to grow over the next
four years, according to a recent International Data (IDC)
report.  Shipments of Linux will climb to 4.7 million in 2004, up
from 1.3 million this year, IDC says.  Meanwhile, Linux revenue . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/1229f.html#item19

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