Business Automation Bulletin 96.4 / April 1996

This issue's new Glasbergen cartoon:

Bulletin 96.4 NEWS

HUMOR IN YOUR E-MAIL: FREE

The Internet is a great resource for speakers and others who can use a good joke or a humorous observation now and then. The editor of this Bulletin is constantly looking for items, suitable for mixed audiences, to use in his speaking engagements. Therefore, about once or twice a week, the Bulletin passes these jokes along to an e-mail list of subscribers, clients and friends. If you would like to be included in this elite(?) group, send e-mail to brooks@bizauto.com asking to be put on the humor list. Questions about the availability of speaking dates can be sent to the same address.

Also, because of printing logistics, the Business Automation Bulletin is always out on the Internet before it goes into the mail. Humor list members receive notification every two months, as soon as each new Bulletin comes up on the Web.

PERISHABLE KEYBOARDS

Ryoki Inoue of Brazil wears out his computer keyboard every five months. According to a Wall Street Journal report, he has authored 1,039 books and counting, as of March. The editor of this Bulletin has written one book and is still struggling to wear out a single keyboard.

ARE YOU UP TO 2000?

The millennium is nearly upon us and, as has been reported elsewhere, the changeover from "year 99" to "year 00" will cause major havoc for old programs that used only two digits for that purpose.

The highest-risk businesses are those with software that was originally written ten or more years ago. However, even the newest software could have been carelessly programmed or have embedded sections (incorporated from prior versions or other programs) with two-digit dates. Therefore, every organization needs have its software audited (preferably by the authors) to ensure that all of its date calculations take the year 2000 into account.

The cost of coping with this "Millennium (or Year 2000) Problem" has been estimated at over $200 billion, most of which will be borne by firms with large mainframe computers.

BEWARE GETTING "WIRED" ON JAVA

Nearly every major Internet software firm will soon be delivering "Java" technology to provide video, audio and other special effects. The popular Netscape 2.0 browser already does. Yet many experts fear that users who run those Java applications do so at their own peril. The danger stems from the fact that Java arrives over the 'net in the innocent guise of data, but it includes small program applications (called "applets"). These applets have the theoretical potential to monitor (or even change) the computer's operation, to destroy data and to compromise security. This can even occur long after an applet's use appears to have ended.

Sun Microsystems, the inventor or Java, says all the risks have been eliminated, and has gone so far as to challenge the Internet community to "break" Java. But the respected National Computer Security Association (NCSA) and Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) expressed concern about Java's vulnerability. Sun fixed the specific problems found by NCSA and CERT, but many cautious users responed by simply disabling the Java capabilities in their software anyway.

ON THE "I-WAY"

Computer systems can now be backed up over the Internet. Several new services now offer off-site business data back-up via the Internet. Designed for small organizations that do not already have off-site back-up procedures, they work by linking up to the client's system and transferring data to a secure remote location daily. The data can then be retrieved quickly whenever necessary. Security is a concern, but it can be handled by encrypting the data before it is transferred.

California passed a law that makes it legal for not-for-profit organizations to have Board meetings on-line. Proponents of the law testified that on-line participation qualifies as equivalent to an in-person appearance.

Microsoft has jumped on the Internet computer bandwagon. After initially criticizing the concept, Microsoft apparently decided buyers really will want "bare bones" computers for Internet access. It has come up with a specification it calls the SIPC (for Simply Interactive PC) that will use a version of its Windows software. Microsoft discussed the specifications with several computer-makers and expects some will begin building SIPC models later this year.

COMPUTER CRIME WATCH

"Over 90% of [security] penetrations have nothing to do with technology. They are just the result of management negligence." Paul Strassman, a former Pentagon Information Director, debunked convention wisdom in Computerworld recently. He said firms should first analyze their security needs. Then, once they have determined how confidential their data needs to be, they can select from many capable security products that have costs and protection levels consistent with those needs.

COMPUTER UPDATE

This section covers developments of potential interest to buyers of high-performance PCs and small computers. Computer Update appears in every issue of the Bulletin.

Nine months after Windows 95's debut, Windows 3.1 may still be outselling it. Because most corporate networks have declined to upgrade to Win 95, nearly all of the big PC-makers still offer commercial models with "dual load" options. PC-makers are expected to continue this until early next year, when Windows NT Desktop is scheduled to come out. Corporate buyers can then skip the intermediate Win 95 step altogether, and many plan to do just that. The date may be delayed, however, because Win NT Desktop has turned up with several serious problems during user tests, which are currently being conducted.

Computer memory prices dropped 40% to 50% since the first of the year. The biggest drop has been on 4 megabyte (MB) modules. However 16 MB modules, in great demand to run new PC software, have dropped too.

Intel lowered the price of its top-of-the-line Pentium Pro while other chip-makers rushed to bring out competitors to the original Pentium. AMD's 5K86s (equivalent to the lower-speed Pentiums) will be out in the fall; and Cyrix's 6x86 chips--out now--compete with the higher-speed Pentiums. Only Intel produces a Pentium Pro-class chip.

"Plug and Play", one of Windows 95's major attractions, still has problems. When working properly, "PNP" allows any printer or other device to attach to a Win 95 system without all the trouble that often occurs with Windows 3.1. But Win 95 has not fully achieved this promise because many manufacturers have delayed adoption of the PNP standards for their current products (much less updated their older ones).

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