Author Archive

Vandana Sinha

States, feds eye restrictions on offshore outsourcing

Growing concern that government IT contractors are relying too heavily on foreign workers could lead several federal and state lawmakers to severely limit or ban outright offshore outsourcing on government contracts.

Navy students go to school on Groove Networks

Navy students on opposite coasts and across borders are swapping files and instant messages in a virtual classroom they can tap into from their desktop and portable PCs.

Homeland Security extends smart-card deal for 10 years

Datatrac Information Services Inc. will continue to provide services to the Homeland Security Department under the Integrated Card Production System contract.

AT&T passport center work extended

The State Department has stretched a contract with AT&T Government Solutions to manage its National Passport Information Center for another five years.

Passports to get facial biometrics

The State Department, which wants to issue passports with biometric data on embedded computer chips, is seeking vendor input on the plan.

Vendors say DHC Visit deadlines are no easy task

Vendors have warned Homeland Security Department officials that the ambitious deadlines for its entry-exit biometrics program will be "doable, but difficult."

Lawyers say FAR revisions could fetter software purchasing

Proposed changes to federal rules for buying software could make it difficult for agencies to adopt commercial software licenses, a Boston-based law firm says.

Desktop PCs sales trail notebooks

May was the first month that sales of notebook computers generated more revenue than desktop PCs, and buyers purchased more LCD monitors than standard CRTs, a new survey finds.

Microsoft widening federal sales channels

Microsoft Corp. is making a new, "gigantic" push for more public-sector sales?an area in which the software company acknowledges it hasn't invested as much as its competitors in the past decade.

Federal approach to IT spurs growth, researcher says

The government's push toward homeland security and e-government, combined with a businesslike approach to project spending, is driving the federal IT market, according to the chief of a federal market research firm.

MapInfo gives clear picture of exports

<FONT SIZE=2>A Web site that maps U.S. export data for each state is saving many hours for Commerce Department employees who have been swamped by an annual doubling of information requests from federal agencies, Congress and the public.</FONT>

Video companies combine federal marketing

Two video distribution companies have rolled their product partnership into the federal sector, jointly marketing to agencies a packaged video streaming system.

A piece of the PIIE

<FONT SIZE=2>A new integration system developed with Defense Department funding can fit the functions of incompatible back-end applications onto a single desktop screen.</FONT>

Sailors ride info crest with iOra

<FONT SIZE=2>When the Navy issues a memorandum, personnel aboard ships at sea sometimes don't have it in their hands until several months later. A Navy base generally waits to collect enough memos or policy changes to fill a 650-megabyte CD-ROM. Then the copies must be burned, labeled and mailed. </FONT>

Will this marriage last?

<FONT SIZE=2>&#009;Joseph Kampf wasn't about to compete with the promises of six-figure salaries, nor with BMWs or assistants who'd pick up dry cleaning or wash cars. </FONT>

Report urges government to wade into wireless

Secure wireless devices have plenty of potential federal users, but first agencies must weigh their willingness to embrace the technology, according to professors who surveyed more than 200 federal workers.<br>