ACM TechNews - Monday, March 4, 2002

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ACM TechNews
Volume 4, Number 318
Date: March 4, 2002

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Top Stories for Monday, March 4, 2002:
http://www.acm.org/technews/current/homepage.html

"Computer Viruses Still Proliferating; E-Mail Risk Rising"
"The Corner Internet Network vs. the Cellular Giants"
"Rights Groups Press Council of Europe on Cybercrime Treaty"
"Questions Dog ZeoSync's Compression Claim"
"Antipiracy Bill a High-Tech Threat, Hollywood-Style"
"Bavaria's Booming High-Tech Economy Remains Envy of Germany"
"New Nanomaterial Could Make Way for Fast, Cheap Optical Components"
"Courts Starting to Recognize Software and Web Fine Print"
"If ICANN Can't, Who Should?"
"Military Transformation Opens Up New IT Market"
"Clusters Put Security at Risk"
"O Bluetooth, Where Art Thou?"
"Collaborative Software Helps Build National Science Digital Library"
"Industry Slump Steadies Federal IT Work Force"
"Do We Still Need as Many H-1B Visas?"
"VOIP: Coming to a Desktop Near You"
"Augmented Reality"
"Councils of War"

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

"Computer Viruses Still Proliferating; E-Mail Risk Rising"
Computer virus attacks are growing at a steady rate; TruSecure
unit ICSA Labs polled 300 North American companies and found that
they suffered 1.2 million virus attacks during the 20-month
period that ended Aug. 31.  Monthly virus infections rose 13 ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item1

"The Corner Internet Network vs. the Cellular Giants"
A new paradigm for Internet access is emerging in wireless mesh
routing, which transfers Internet data packets from one wireless
node to another.  The local networks being constructed by
hobbyists and semi-altruistic entrepreneurs around the country ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item2

"Rights Groups Press Council of Europe on Cybercrime Treaty"
The 30-member Global Internet Liberty Campaign has sent a letter
to the Council of Europe secretary general asking him to release
documents detailing a proposed addition to a cybercrime treaty
signed into law in November.  The accord, which defines ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item3

"Questions Dog ZeoSync's Compression Claim"
Serious credibility issues have dogged ZeoSync after it announced
in January the discovery of an algorithm that would enable
tremendous data compression with zero data loss.  If true, the
technology would be a huge breakthrough, but CEO Peter St. George ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item4

"Antipiracy Bill a High-Tech Threat, Hollywood-Style"
The Security Systems Standards and Certification Act touted by
Sen. Fritz Hollings (D-S.C.), which would require electronics
manufacturers to incorporate copy-protection technology into all
their hardware, could raise development costs and slow product ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item5

"Bavaria's Booming High-Tech Economy Remains Envy of Germany"
Germany's Bavaria province is weathering the high-tech downturn
much better than other areas of the country, and doing well on
the international scene as well.  Its two major tech presences,
Infineon and Siemens, have laid off thousands worldwide, but ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item6

"New Nanomaterial Could Make Way for Fast, Cheap Optical Components"
Professor Uri Banin of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Nir
Tessler of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology report in
the latest issue of Science magazine that they have devised a new
way to enable polymers to carry out optical data transmission.  ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item7

"Courts Starting to Recognize Software and Web Fine Print"
Legal recognition for electronic contracts commonly employed for
software, computer devices, and Web sites is firming up,
according to industry insiders.  Although standard form contracts
are common in other industries, using them online presents ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item8

"If ICANN Can't, Who Should?"
ICANN President Stuart Lynn's proposal to radically restructure
ICANN has thrown the organization into turmoil.  Lynn considers
the current ICANN structure "flawed from the beginning...noble
but deeply unrealistic...fatally flawed," and his proposal is a ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item9

"Military Transformation Opens Up New IT Market"
The Defense Department is planning a strategic shift toward
technology to help it operate more like a top-notch business.  In
response, technology companies are leaping to offer their
products and services for homeland defense and security.  Two of ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item10

"Clusters Put Security at Risk"
Australia has been the site of several clustered supercomputer
efforts, including a research cluster from Australian National
University (ANU) connecting 100 Intel-based PCs at a fraction of
the cost it would take to build a single unit.  However, Bob ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item11

"O Bluetooth, Where Art Thou?"
Bluetooth has arrived, but without the hype that surrounded the
technology when it was still in development.  Significant
barriers, such as price, interoperability, and the availability
of devices are just beginning to come down, say analysts.  The ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item12

"Collaborative Software Helps Build National Science Digital Library"
Cornell University has adopted SourceForge, a collaborative
software development application from VA Software, formerly VA
Linux, to use in the National Science Digital Library.  The
project is headed by the National Science Foundation and also ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item13

"Industry Slump Steadies Federal IT Work Force"
Faced with the possible retirement of up to half of the federal
IT workforce by 2005, agency IT heads at the Chief Information
Officers Council say the weakening of the private-sector IT job
market has provided temporary relief, but the long-term outlook ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item14

"Do We Still Need as Many H-1B Visas?"
Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) President
Harris N. Miller and Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) disagree over
whether the cap for H-1B visas for foreign workers needs to be
lowered.  Miller does not think so, and refuses to believe that ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item15

"VOIP: Coming to a Desktop Near You"
Voice-over-IP (VOIP) is poised to take off throughout the
enterprise because of several developments.  Microsoft's Windows
XP operating system includes Session Initiated Protocol (SIP)
support, which could prove very useful to call centers and ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item16

"Augmented Reality"
Augmented reality (AR) is technology designed to supplement one's
view of the world through the overlay of digitized data such as
text, 3D animation, graphics, and sound.  A wearable AR prototype
developed by Columbia University--the Mobile Augmented Reality ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item17

"Councils of War"
Civilian technology and Web services are being spun off into the
military sector, including email, online auctions, and advanced
navigation technology.  These three applications are examples of
how the civilian tech world is influencing military ...
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0304m.html#item18

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