From: technews <technews@ou.edu>
To: "'it-fyi@listserv.ou.edu'" <it-fyi@lists.ou.edu>
Subject: it-fyi: Edupage, 1 November 1999
Date: Tue, 2 Nov 1999 08:55:06 -0600
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Edupage is a service of EDUCAUSE, an international nonprofit association
dedicated to transforming education through information technologies.
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TOP STORIES for November 1, 1999
Computing Power on Tap
CD Software Said To Gather Data On Users
Global E-Consumer Rules Proposed
Awaiting Verdict, Microsoft Starts Lobbying Campaign
ALSO
Toshiba Agrees to Settlement on Laptops
Signatures on Cyberspace's Dotted Line
U.S. E-Commerce Soars by 127 Percent
Japan Advises Public to Buy Y2K Supplies
COMPUTING POWER ON TAP
Rented applications are changing the face of computing, creating greater
flexibility and customization. Rather than buy a software program,
companies can now rent an application for as long as it is needed. Already,
common desktop applications such as address books and calendars are
available on the Internet, and many more types of programs are joining them.
Startup Bidcom exemplifies this trend by creating a forum for all parties
involved in a construction project. Participants such as architects,
builders, and financiers can create and share via the Internet all of the
documents used in the project in one site, eliminating the time and effort
needed to distribute the documents via fax and e-mail. A new type of
company, the application service provider (ASP), has arisen to distribute
these applications. ASPs profit by charging by the hour for access to
software programs. The trend in rented applications is also creating
changes among traditional hardware and software distributors such as IBM.
IBM is positioning itself as a supplier to ASPs, offering reliable computing
power and software to help ASPs rent out applications. (Financial Times
11/01/99)
CD SOFTWARE SAID TO GATHER DATA ON USERS
RealNetworks' RealJukebox software collects and monitors users' personal
information without the knowledge or consent of the users, admitted the
company following accusations by a security expert. The software, which is
downloaded from the Internet, allows for compact audio discs to be stored on
a PC hard drive for later playback. RealNetworks posts a privacy policy
statement on its Web site but offers no mention of collecting users'
personal information. While the company now admits to surreptitiously
collecting information, it maintains that it is doing nothing wrong because
it does not store or release the information to others. Yet many privacy
advocates and security experts remain wary of RealNetworks' claims. "Either
they have been dazzlingly careless with their treatment of personally
identifiable information or they are completely disingenuous," said Jason
Catlett, president of Junkbusters, a privacy watchdog group. RealNetworks
says the information is used to provide more personalized service to
RealJukebox users. (New York Times 11/01/99)
GLOBAL E-CONSUMER RULES PROPOSED
The Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which
represents 29 countries including the U.S., has almost finished creating
consumer protection guidelines for e-commerce. The group has been working on
the guidelines for the past two years, and a final version of the rules
might be adopted by the end of the year. Federal officials say the
guidelines will boost e-commerce by encouraging consumer confidence, while
industry officials say the rules are possibly too specific and do not
address emerging technologies or services such as online auctions. The
guidelines aim to form common e-commerce standards in different countries
and call for an organization similar to the Better Business Bureau to
resolve conflicts. Although the guidelines are voluntary, OECD member
nations often convert the group's recommendations into law. (Computerworld
10/25/99)
AWAITING VERDICT, MICROSOFT STARTS LOBBYING CAMPAIGN
As Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson prepares to issue his findings on the
Justice Department's antitrust suit against Microsoft, both parties are
preparing a reaction to either verdict. The judge will issue a finding of
fact as early as Friday evening, declaring what he has concluded from each
side's argument. Soon afterwards, the judge will make conclusions of law,
based on the legal arguments and precedents. Findings of fact and
conclusions of law are both needed for a sustainable verdict. While
awaiting the decision, Microsoft is trying to preserve its "freedom to
innovate" by encouraging its two million shareholders to lobby Congress
through the company's Web site. The company claims the lobbying effort is
concerned with issues such as encryption, software piracy, and Internet
taxation, in addition to the antitrust trial. Microsoft maintains that its
lobbying effort will continue regardless of the trial results. Meanwhile,
both litigants are preparing responses to the judge's findings, whatever
they may be. (New York Times 11/01/99)
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TOSHIBA AGREES TO SETTLEMENT ON LAPTOPS
Toshiba on Friday announced that it will pay $2.1 billion to settle a
class-action lawsuit in Texas alleging that certain semiconductor chips that
control floppy-disk drives in the company's laptops are flawed. The flaw,
which affects over 5 million Toshiba products sold in the United States,
allegedly lies in the design of controller chips produced by NEC and Intel.
Chipmakers worldwide imitated the design of those controller chips, so the
flaw might affect products from many major computer manufacturers. The
defect randomly corrupts or destroys information and leaves the user with no
way of knowing a file has been altered, plaintiffs charged. Former IBM
engineer Phil Adams first discovered the flaw over 10 years ago, and
although several other suits are pending, Toshiba's settlement is the first
major impact of the alleged flaw on a large company. Government agencies are
now investigating widespread use of flawed chips, and state and local
agencies will be able to file their own damage claims if necessary.
Meanwhile, Toshiba maintains that its laptops are not flawed and denies
liability for the problem. (Wall Street Journal 11/01/99)
SIGNATURES ON CYBERSPACE'S DOTTED LINE
Congress is in the process of deciding how different e-commerce practices
will affect consumers. Generally agreed upon is the benefit of legally
recognizing signatures sent over the Internet by digital technologies
including encryption, fingerprint readers, and stylus pads. However, at
issue is whether Congress will amend certain notification rules that
businesses such as banks and insurance companies are now required to follow.
Currently, if an insurance company wants to cancel a client's policy or
change the premium it must first notify the policy holder by mail. Yet a
bill proposed by Sen. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.) aims to allow companies to
notify clients via e-mail or by posting notification on a company bulletin
board. Some consumer advocates feel that the proposed type of notification
is insufficient and advocate continued notification via traditional mail.
Proponents of the bill say electronic notifications would lower the cost of
businesses, which consumers would see in the form of reduced prices. (New
York Times 11/01/99)
U.S. E-COMMERCE SOARS BY 127 PERCENT
Electronic commerce for the first quarter of this year leaped 68 percent
higher than the same period last year, according to a study conducted by
University of Texas researchers and paid for by Cisco Systems that was
released on Oct. 27. The researchers concluded that as sectors of the
Internet economy--such as prescription drugs and groceries--grow, they
inevitably will steal market share from traditional storefronts, which will
cause fundamental changes to affected industries. The study also showed
that e-commerce companies created 400,000 new jobs during the one-year
period. Despite the obvious differences between the traditional economy and
the Internet economy, the researchers discovered that small business drives
growth in both areas; during the year in question, the top 10 Internet
companies only controlled 27 percent of the $507 billion in total revenues
for Internet-related companies. (E-Commerce Times 10/27/99)
JAPAN ADVISES PUBLIC TO BUY Y2K SUPPLIES
The Japanese government is now encouraging its citizens to buy two- to
three-day supplies of water, food, gasoline, and other goods to prepare for
Y2K. The Web site for the Prime Minister's Office has a page suggesting
that the public stockpile certain items, although the site also says
authorities expect no major disruptions to everyday life. In addition, the
government ran ads on Saturday in 75 newspapers with the same suggestions.
Only a few days before the warnings, the government announced that over 90
percent of companies in the finance, power utilities, telecommunications,
and airline industries were ready for Y2K. However, the recent advisories
suggest concern over how prepared Japan is for the date change. (Wall Street
Journal 11/01/99)
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UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS:
THE LEARNING MARKETPLACE: NEW RESOURCES FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING
Presented by the Leadership Forum of the Center for Academic Transformation
(An EDUCAUSE Affiliate)
November 11, 1999, Atlanta, Georgia
http://www.center.rpi.edu/LForum/LMWkshp.html
SC99: High Performance Networking and Computing Conference
November 13-19, 1999, Portland, Oregon
http://www.sc99.org/
For additional information on all EDUCAUSE conferences see
http://www.educause.edu/conference/conf.html
For information on other technology-related
educational conferences see
http://www.educause.edu/ir/events.html
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OTHER EDUCAUSE PUBLICATIONS
EDUCOM REVIEW is a bimonthly print magazine on information technology and
education. U.S. subscriptions are $18 a year.
CAUSE/EFFECT is a quarterly practitioner's journal about managing and using
information resources on college and university campuses. U.S. subscriptions
are $52 a year.
For additional information on these and other EDUCAUSE publications see:
http://www.educause.edu/pub/pubs.html
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Edupage Copyright 1999, EDUCAUSE
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EDUCAUSE, an international nonprofit association dedicated to transforming
education through information technologies