NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: GIBBS & BRADNER 08/31/04 Dear [EMAIL PROTECTED],
In this issue: * Backspin columnist Mark Gibbs says the medical device upgrade ��mess comes down to politics and economics, not computer ��technology and IS people * Links related to Gibbs & Bradner * Featured reader resource _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Statscout Blanket Network Performance Monitoring Monitor your entire network every 60 seconds with minimal impact on the network. Businesses and organizations seeking detailed performance and troubleshooting reporting on networks of 1000 to 200,000 network interfaces in size will benefit substantially from using Statscout. Request your 30-day trial now, click here http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=78749 _______________________________________________________________ See what's next in a wireless world. DEMOmobile puts the best of what's next in the palm of your hand. Hundreds apply, but only the most significant technologies are chosen to launch here. Register today to see them first. DEMOmobile 2004: The launchpad for a wireless world. September 8-10, La Jolla, CA http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=78018 _______________________________________________________________ Today's focus: Market factors meet medical gear, upgrades By Mark Gibbs After last week's Backspin rant ( <http://www.nwfusion.com/columnists/2004/082304backspin.html> ) about the upgrading (or lack thereof) of medical devices, feedback was prompt. Reader Don Dickerson was one of the first to write in: "Concerning any unpatched operating system in medical devices . . . the solution is so obvious. Why are they using a commodity operating system in the first place? I am quite certain that those made with proprietary operating systems in ROM don't have this problem, and since when does a device such as a drug-dispensing pump, defibrillator, EKG, etc., need an operating system like Windows!?" Dickerson went on to point out that while the GUI might be nice, it is "overkill [and even] Linux and other operating systems are rather inappropriate for this sort of application." He added that "MRI and CAT scan machines almost universally use their own [operating systems]. [The manufacturers] say they don't trust anyone's code but their own." Dickerson concluded with the observation that "an operating system in ROM cannot be changed or attacked. And patches are only needed if the manufacturer's programmers make a mistake or want to add a feature." Reader Rick Hampton was annoyed with me: "You have perpetuated all the stereotypes clinicians have of IS people. Namely, that IS types live in their own world and are not capable of understanding other people, the real world or how to solve a real problem." Perhaps my point wasn't clear. To all clinicians who read Backspin let me make this unambiguous: The medical device upgrade mess is not any single entity's fault and certainly not the fault of IS folks. What created this mess was the economics of the free market colliding with computer technology and the medical world. As I have discussed, the free market as it applies to computer technology votes as it does for a certain combination of values (such as cost of acquisition, implementation and return on investment), and the result is often at odds with political value (public policy and safety, the need to suck up to constituents and lobbies, and so on). Hampton noted that "it's not exactly like the vendor is in the dark about their system's environment. It is not uncommon for a manufacturer to refuse to sell you the equipment or install it unless you specifically agree to all of their terms and conditions. So if the manufacturers install the stuff, is it not reasonable to expect them to design it to function properly and be readily upgradeable when needed?" Interesting thought - I wonder how often the device vendors say, "Thou shalt not connect this device to a network or any other source of potential risk of malware or hackers." If the vendor doesn't say that, the onus of protecting the devices falls on owners. And if the vendor can't upgrade without the Food and Drug Administration's approval and the device is in a hostile environment and the owner can't protect it, then it is pretty easy to see where the responsibility lies. It all comes down to politics and economics. That is the way it is. . . . If you can't replace the equipment and can't get the manufacturer to upgrade it, then that is the status quo, and short of getting some laws enacted or modified (both probably not good ideas) it will remain the status quo. You could argue that the FDA is at fault. It is the authority that licenses medical equipment and has tied manufacturers' hands by making it a long, slow process for them to have upgrades approved. But the FDA is chartered with protecting public health, and that requires making sure manufacturers produce equipment that is safe (trusting manufacturers and commercial operating system vendors to get it right where lots of money is involved and liability is an issue seems unwise when lives are at stake). The reality is it is all about politics and economics, not computer technology and IS people. I just want everybody involved to stop whining. Dare I ask for responses to <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>? _______________________________________________________________ To contact: Mark Gibbs Mark Gibbs is a consultant, author, journalist, and columnist and he writes the weekly Backspin and Gearhead columns in Network World. We'll spare you the rest of the bio but if you want to know more, go to <http://www.gibbs.com/mgbio>. Contact him at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Statscout Blanket Network Performance Monitoring Monitor your entire network every 60 seconds with minimal impact on the network. Businesses and organizations seeking detailed performance and troubleshooting reporting on networks of 1000 to 200,000 network interfaces in size will benefit substantially from using Statscout. Request your 30-day trial now, click here http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=78749 _______________________________________________________________ ARCHIVE LINKS Gibbs archive: http://www.nwfusion.com/columnists/gibbs.html Bradner archive: http://www.nwfusion.com/columnists/bradner.html _______________________________________________________________ The Shifting Paradigm and Business Value of Effective IT Asset Management Today's IT organizations must evolve their asset management strategies to meet key objectives. Join our exclusive webcast, "Tackling the Business Challenge of IT Asset Management," to explore the asset management challenge. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=78019 _______________________________________________________________ FEATURED READER RESOURCE WONDERING IF YOUR PAY IS UP TO SNUFF? Check out Network World's 2004 Salary Calculator to see if you're getting paid what you're worth. Using data collected in the 2004 Network World Salary Survey, we've programmed this calculator with several categories that could affect your pay. Answer the questions and find out what the average salary is for your job category. Click here: <http://www.nwfusion.com/salary/2004/calculator.html> _______________________________________________________________ May We Send You a Free Print Subscription? You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered at your fingertips each day. Now, extend your knowledge by receiving 51 FREE issues to our print publication. Apply today at <http://www.subscribenw.com/nl2> International subscribers click here: <http://nww1.com/go/circ_promo.html> _______________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World e-mail newsletters, go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Changes.aspx> To unsubscribe from promotional e-mail go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Preferences.aspx> To change your e-mail address, go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/ChangeMail.aspx> Subscription questions? Contact Customer Service by replying to this message. This message was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please use this address when modifying your subscription. _______________________________________________________________ Have editorial comments? Write Jeff Caruso, Newsletter Editor, at: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Inquiries to: NL Customer Service, Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 For advertising information, write Kevin Normandeau, V.P. of Online Development, at: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Copyright Network World, Inc., 2004 ------------------------ This message was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> $9.95 domain names from Yahoo!. Register anything. http://us.click.yahoo.com/J8kdrA/y20IAA/yQLSAA/BCfwlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kumpulan/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
