Monthly Technology Updates

SEPTEMBER 1999

September 1999 Technology Updates

1. Year 2000 update - Y2K command center

On February 4, 1998, an executive order established the Presidents Council on Year 2000 Conversion. More than 30 federal agencies and regulatory bodies are represented on the council. In testimony before Congress on July 29, 1999, council chairperson John Koskinen announced the establishment of the Information Coordination Center (ICC).

The ICC will collect and coordinate information about the Y2K problem. This information will come from federal, state, and local governments, as well as from private industry and other countries. The ICC has no power to act on the information it obtains. However, it will provide status reports to all federal agencies, which will determine what, if any, action should be taken at the federal level. With a staff of 30 to 40 people, the ICC will also help coordinate action among the various federal agencies. The director of the ICC, Retired Lieutenant General Peter Kind, is working to develop the center.

For more information, click on these links:


2. PC tips - Finding files

You finished that twenty-page paper on the Civil War early in the semester. But now you can't find the file on your computer. Maybe you don't even remember what you named the file. Don't despair. The Windows Explorer Find feature can help. To use the feature, follow these steps:

  1. Open Windows Explorer
     
  2. Click on Tools, then Find, then Files or Folders
     
  3. You now have many search options.
     
    • If you know the file name, you can just type it into the Named field and then click Find Now.
       
    • If you know part of the name, you can use wildcard characters. For example, Civil*.* will find all files that begin with the word Civil.
       
    • If you don't know the file name but know some of the text that appears in the file, you can enter the text into the Containing Text field. For example, entering Gettysburg into the field will return all of the files that contain that word somewhere.
       
    • If you do not know which directory to search, be sure to choose the top level of your drive and then check the Include Subfolders box.
       
    • If you have some idea about the date on which the file was last used, you can search by date. Just click on the date tab and enter your search criteria.
       
    • You can search for files of a particular type (such as Word or Excel) or a particular size range by using the advanced search feature.
       
  4. The search results will appear in a box below the search screen.
     
  5. To access a file appearing in the search result just double click the file name.
     

3. Microsoft declares Instant Messaging war

A war has broken out between Microsoft and America Online (AOL) over instant messaging standards (see "I seek you" - Chat With Old Friends or Make New Ones, from March 1999 technology updates, for an overview of the instant messaging concept). The war started in late July when Microsoft unveiled its MSN Messenger Service. A main feature of the Microsoft service was its ability to send messages to AOL users and import AOL Buddy Lists. Since the release of the Microsoft service, programmers at AOL and Microsoft have been busy. AOL programmers have been trying to keep MSN users from sending messages to AOL users. Microsoft programmers have been coming up with ways around these technical barriers.

Internet portal site Yahoo! joined the war with its Yahoo! Messenger service, which was also interoperable with AOL. AOL quickly blocked the Yahoo! service. The Yahoo! and MSN instant messaging services are not interoperable.

Microsoft has announced that it will support the Internet Engineering Task Force's (IETF) effort to develop a standard for instant messaging. In addition, Microsoft has sent a letter to AOL CEO Steve Case, asking him to open up the AOL instant messaging system. Case responded that doing so would constitute a security risk. On August 20, Microsoft admitted that a bug in its Messenger software may reveal a user's E-mail password to non-authorized users.

For more information, click on these links:


4. Buying alcohol online

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Twenty-First Amendment Enforcement Act (HR 2031) on August 3, 1999. The bill was sponsored by Joe Scarborough (R-Florida) and passed on a vote of 310-112. The legislation provides state attorneys general the power to seek an injunction, in federal court, against any company that violates state law in importing or transporting intoxicating liquor. Currently only 20 states allow the direct shipment of alcohol from the seller to the purchaser. The legislation has been opposed by wine companies and electronic commerce advocates. They see the bill as stifling the still growing business of selling wine, beer, and spirits via the Internet. The legislation was originally pushed by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) as a way to stop the sale of alcohol to minors over the Internet. The bill was also supported by wholesalers, many of whom have a state-sanctioned monopoly on the sale of alcohol. Many of the major online home alcohol delivery sites require strict age verification and comply fully with state liquor laws.

For more information, click on these links:


5. Microsoft Office '97 security hole

On July 29, 1999, Juan Carlos G. Cuartango posted a message on the NTBugtraq list that detailed a security problem with Microsoft Excel '97. The problem actually exists in the Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) driver that ships with Excel '97. ODBC allows different computer programs to access data in a standard manner. The ODBC problem allows a person to embed malicious code Ð like viruses and the command to delete files -- in an Excel spreadsheet. Because this vulnerability is not a macro virus and is not associated with macros, users are not warned about the risk. The problem exists only in version 3.51 of the driver. However, Microsoft does not recommend using version 4.0 with Office '97 products. The company is still working on a fix for the problem. To determine which version of the file exists on your computer, search for "ODBCJT32.DLL" using Windows Explorer. When you find it, click on the file to highlight it, then right-mouse click and select Properties. Click on the version tab and look at the file version line.

Click on these links for more information:


6. Neptune in your living room

Microsoft has begun signing up Beta testers for its new version of the Windows operating system, called Windows 2000 (Win2000). Beta testers evaluate an early version of software to look for bugs and other technical problems. The Win2000 Beta costs $59.95. Microsoft has told testers that Win2000 will be "legacy free." That means the new operating system will not run older DOS-based applications.

Microsoft has also unveiled its long-term strategy for Windows. Sometime in 2001 it will release the first consumer Windows operating system built around the core of Windows NT (called the kernel). This system has been given the internal code name Neptune. Neptune will be able to automatically connect to the Internet to provide updates, patches, and remote administration. The software is likely to have a new, easier-to-use interface.

According to Microsoft, Neptune will be scalable to run on specialized computers, such as game systems and TV set-top boxes. This move is part of the company's "living-room ready" strategy of incorporating its operating systems into all aspects of the home entertainment and communications experience.

For more information, click on these links:

7. Scan it anywhere

It's the end of the semester rush at the library, and all of the copiers have long lines. You wish you could just scan the information you need right onto your PC. With Hewlett Packard's (HP) new CapShare 910 Information Appliance you can. The CapShare 910 is a hand-held device about the size of a CD Walkman and weighs less than one pound. The device costs about $700 direct from HP's Web site.

The CapShare 910 can scan documents and transfer the digital images to a PC or notebook computer. It can send output directly to a printer. The device also allows user to e-mail or e-fax documents to himself and others. The CapShare 910 has 4MB of internal memory, which can store up to 50 letter-sized, black-and-white documents.

A user scans a document by sliding the device over it. Software in the CapShare 910 keeps track of what parts of the document have been scanned and is capable of determining where overlaps occur. The device has a built-in LCD screen, so the results can be viewed instantly. It takes about six seconds to scan a typical letter-sized document.

For more information, click on these links:


8. Big deal for local content

The Internet is great for providing news and information from around the world. But two companies have been competing to provide Internet users news and information from their local area. Microsoft's Sidewalk (a feature of the Microsoft Network) and CitySearch both provide entertainment guides, local shopping information, and local news for major metropolitan areas.

On July 19, 1999, it was announced that TicketMaster Online-CitySearch will buy Sidewalk from Microsoft. The financial arrangements for the deal include Microsoft taking a 9 percent stake in TicketMaster Online-CitySearch. With this acquisition, CitySearch will become the largest provider of local content via the Internet. It plans to expand its guides from 33 to 77 cities in the near future.

For more information, click on this link:


9. E-mail only appliance

On August 19, SBC Communications announced its new e-mail-only portable Internet appliance. The device, which will be called eMessage, will contain a 7-by-10-inch keyboard and a flip-open screen. It will attach to a standard phone line for sending and receiving e-mail messages. The device will weigh less than two pounds and run on standard AA batteries. It is expected that the system will tie up the phone line for only a few minutes while transmitting and receiving data.

The eMessage device will cost about $180. In addition, users must sign up with one of SBC's Internet providers for e-mail-only service. This service costs $10 per month, but discounts for prepayment are available.

With this offering SBC is targeting U.S. households that do not have a personal computer. In addition, the company expects power computer users who want to access e-mail while away from their desk to sign up.

For more information, click on this link:

10. Where good ideas are hatched

Where do people with good high-tech ideas, but little money or expertise, go to hatch their new business? A growing trend in high-tech industries, especially Internet companies, is to join an incubator. Incubators are companies or institutions that provide business and creative expertise to start-up businesses. Many of the incubators take a stake in the companies they work with.

One incubator company that has been highly successful is IdeaLab! The company was founded in 1996, and since then it has helped over twenty businesses. Some of the successes that IdeaLab! enjoys include the Internet portal company Goto.com, online toy seller eToys, and computer give-away company Free-PC. In return for its services IdeaLab! takes an equity stake in the startup companies.

The incubator concept has proven so successful that some large corporations are trying their own twist on the idea. For example, Panasonic has recently established a 20,000-square-foot digital concepts center in California, where companies invited to join the incubator will pay a low rent. Panasonic is not planning to demand an equity stake in startups, but it is instead interested in developing long-term business relationships with these companies.

For more information, click on these links: