GCN Lab Reviews

• With all-in-one PCs, one size doesn't fit all

  The GCN Lab reviews five desktop systems where everything is bundled together -- for better or worse.

• Zinstall lets you take XP with you when upgrading to Windows 7

  With Zinstall, you don’t have to leave your old desktop behind when moving from XP to Windows 7.

• DVD can save on training costs when getting users ready for Windows 7

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GCN Lab Impressions

• DHS wants to make your cell phone a 'smell' phone

  

  The Homeland Security Department is working on developing a cell phone with an artificial nose that can detect and warn of chemical attacks.

• Lab puts new iMac to the test
• For whom does the bell toll? It tolls for thee, IE6

More Impressions

Tech Product News

• With fusion centers, privacy is a serious — and touchy — subject

  Agencies involved in fusion centers say they take privacy seriously. But they're reluctant to say much else about the subject.

• Abilene leaves the '80s behind with integrated ERP system
• The handicapper's guide to the FOSE conference

More Tech Product News

Tech Blog

• E-books: It's not the medium, it's the message

  

  In response to a recent column by GCN's Trudy Walsh, regarding the rapid spread of electronic books, many readers praised the convenience of books in electronic form, emphasizing that content is what counts, regardless of the format. But a few did tackle Walsh’s larger question about what might be lost in a world of constant electronic information.

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Interviews

• The revolution will be televised — online

  

  Cisco CTO Padmasree Warrior sheds light on the evolution of collaboration, networking, social media, video and the concept of a media experience platform.

More Interviews

Another View from Industry Thought Leaders

• Cyber ShockWave exposed missing links in U.S. security

  

  Former DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff, who took part in Cyber ShockWave, says the exercise showed that the United States lacks the ability to effectively respond to a catastrophic cyber event. He identifies a few steps government and the private sector need to take.

• DOD social media policy fails to answer security questions

  Former Director of Defense Information Paul Strassmann questions how DOD's new directive, permitting NIPRNet access to the Internet, will work without more explicit security direction.

• Private sector lessons in modernizing government

  President Obama's meeting with leading technology executives reaffirmed the importance of tackling challenges in smaller chunks, holding leaders accountable, while still respecting regard for privacy, writes Robert Holleyman, CEO of Business Software Alliance.

Guest Columnists

CyberEye | Bill Jackson

• P2P file sharing could leave you with your slip showing

  

  The recent announcement by the FTC that sensitive information from nearly 100 organizations had been compromised through peer-to-peer file-sharing networks underscores the risks of this technology.

Editor's Desk | Wyatt Kash

• Fulfillment of the cloud's promise requires congressional action

  

  The residence of clouds and data will become increasingly important -- and so will the aging and conflicting laws that govern data.

Internaut | Shawn P. McCarthy

• If virtual servers can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen

  

  It's important to correctly estimate the strain virtualization will put on your servers. Is your data center more like a sporadically utilized home workshop? Or more like an occasionally very busy kitchen?

CISO Perspectives | by (ISC)2

• How a process model can help bring security into software development

  A secure software development life cycle requires a process model wherein process improvements are managed from a common framework. This disciplined approach will not alleviate all vulnerabilities but will increase the likelihood of building secure software to meet users’ needs in a cost-effective fashion.

Reality Check | Mike Daconta

• 10 flaws with the data on Data.gov

  

  Even a cursory examination of Data.gov's newly released high-value datasets revealed 10 types of quality deficiencies, says columnist Mike Daconta.