November 2000 Technology Updates
1. Who wants to be a billionaire?
Web sites have given away money and prizes before, but nothing like the $1 billion that is up for grabs on a Web site called Grab.com. Grab.com is an e-mail marketing company that sends targeted e-mail messages to consumers. The site is offering the money as part of a promotion it hopes will lead to 25 million new consumers for its database. The odds of winning are greater than 2 billion to 1. but even with those odds the company is taking no chances, taking out an insurance policy against the possibility that someone will win the money. To enter the contest a person must provide some personal information, including e-mail and street addresses. Entrants then select seven numbers between 1 and 77. After the contest ends on December 26, 2000, Grab.com will select seven numbers at random.. If an entrant's seven numbers match Grab.com's seven numbers, that person will win the $1 billion. If somebody does win, he or she will not receive all of the money up front. Instead it will be paid over the next 40 years. Individuals may enter the contest only once.
Click on this link for more information:
2. PC Tips - Using fields in Word
Microsoft Word 2000 provides the ability to automatically insert information, such as the current date and time, into documents. This feature can be helpful in tracking documents and revisions. To use this function follow these steps:
- Open a Word document (or start a new one).
- Place the cursor where you would like the information to appear.
- On the menu bar click on Insert and then Field
- Select the information to insert.
- For date, click on Date and Time from the left column and then Date from the right column. Then click on okay.
- For date and time, click on Date and Time from the left column and then CreateDate from the right column. Then click on OK.
Many people find it useful to put date and time information in a header or footer. To do this follow these steps:
- Open a Word document (or start a new one).
- Access the Header/Footer menu by clicking on View on the menu bar and then Header and Footer. The header will appear with a floating tool bar that looks like this:
- To switch between the header and footer, click on the fourth icon from the left.
- To insert a date field, click on the calendar icon.
- To insert a time field, click on the clock icon.
- When you are finished, click on Close.
3. The connected car
Peugeot Citroen and IBM unveiled the first Web-enabled wireless car at the Paris Auto Show. The car, called the Xsara Picasso, contains a small screen that runs on the wireless application protocol (WAP) and the global system for mobile communications network (GSM) to connect to the Internet. Drivers will have the ability to browse WAP-enabled sites and retrieve e-mail.
The car is also equipped with a global positioning satellite (GPS) system and sensors that monitor the status of the vehicle's various parts. These sensors will allow the vehicle to report problems to a service representative. The service representative will also be able to track the car if it is lost or stolen. The Xsara Picasso is currently undergoing trials but may be available to the public as early as next year.
For more information, click on these links:
4. Hardest code cracked
A team of Swedish computer scientists announced on October 12, 2000, that it had cracked the world's hardest computer codes. The ten codes were put forward by Simon Singh in his book called The Code Book. Singh had promised a 10,000 British pound (about $15,000) prize to anyone who could crack all ten codes. Singh was so confident that the last code could not be cracked that he had already given a lesser prize of 1,000 pounds to a group that cracked the first nine codes.
The codes are derived from ancient Greece and World War II as well as from a complex code based on Internet security. The last code, which uses 512-bit encryption (current Internet standards use 128-bit) and complex mathematical algorithms, took a year to crack.
For more information, click on these links:
5. Panel rejects use of filters
A congressional panel, established under the 1998 Child Online Protection Act, has declined to recommend the mandatory use of filtering software (which blocks certain Internet sites) in schools and libraries. The 18-member panel did recommend that the government encourage the use of such software and that the software-filtering industry improve its products.
The panel's rejection of mandatory use of filtering software may prove moot. Congressional Republicans have attached an amendment to the Department of Education's appropriation bill that would require the use of filtering software in schools and libraries that receive federal money. The bill is expected the pass.
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6. Nobel Prize awarded to hardware pioneers
Three scientists who developed technologies essential for building computers, CD players, and cellular phones were awarded the Nobel Prize for physics on October 10, 2000. Zhores Alferov of Saint Petersburg, Russia, and Herbert Kroemer of Santa Barbara won for developing semiconductors. The third winner was Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments for his part in the invention of the integrated circuit. This year's prize is worth just under $1 million. Zhores and Kroemer will share one half, with the other half going to Kilby.
Zhores and Kroemer independently developed semiconductors, which are the basis for laser diodes, the basic technology behind such devices as bar codes, CD players, and laser pointers. Kilby's integrated circuit is the basis for all computer chips. He is also the co-inventor of the pocket calculator.
For more information, click on these links:
7. New PeopleSoft suite
On October 23, 2000, PeopleSoft, a leading provider of customer relationship management (CRM) systems, launched PeopleSoft 8 CRM. The new system is specifically designed to handle Web-based transactions and is focused on the business-to-business marketplace. CRM systems help companies automate and integrate their sales, marketing, and customer service activities. The new system has been in development for two years. PeopleSoft 8 CRM is part of the company's larger enterprise resource planning (ERP) system strategy. ERP systems help companies automate and integrate many of their functions, such as human resources, finance, customer service, and manufacturing. PeopleSoft follows its main rivals, Oracle and SAP, in offering Web-based ERP systems.
For more information, click on these links:
8. No hand-held car phones in Suffolk
On October 3, 2000, Suffolk county, located on Long Island in New York, became the first county to ban the use of hand-held phones in cars. The county legislature approved the measure on a 12-6 vote. The law provides for a fine of $150 for each violation. It was prompted by the death of a Suffolk family of four in an automobile accident in Virginia. The accident was blamed on the driver of the other vehicle, who was using a hand-held phone at the time. The new law will go into effect on January 1, 2001.
Brooklyn, Ohio, passed the first town ban on hand-held car phones last year. While other municipalities have approved similar measures, Suffolk is the first county with such a law. A number of states are considering similar steps.
For more information, click on these links:
9. NHTSA still has Y2K problem
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is responsible for issuing vehicle recalls, among other duties. Its Web site contains an extensive database of product recalls. However, the NHTSA site is still not Y2K-compliant. In fact the site tells users, "please note that for tires, equipment, and child safety seats use a model year of 1900."
The Y2K problem became widely known in the wake of the Firestone tire recall. The issue is especially acute because NHTSA was in part responsible for monitoring Y2K compliance in the automobile and highway safety industries. The agency says it is working to fix the problem.
For more information, click on these links:
10. Torture prevented by e-mail
A flood of e-mail messages to Turkish authorities prevented the torture and led to the release of Sehmuz Temel, a Kurdish activist. Temel had been arrested and tortured several times between 1994 and 1998. His treatment at the hand of Turkish authorities has left him disabled.
The e-mails came from members of Amnesty International's Fast Action Stops Torture (FAST) network. The FAST network allows Amnesty International to contact a core group of volunteers quickly. On October 19 it sent out an alert regarding Temel to 5,000 volunteers. Within 48 hours, 2,200 e-mail messages regarding Temel had been sent.
For more information, click on these links:
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