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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, OCTOBER 04, 2002 Microsoft Says Reporting Service Improving Software Stability Microsoft Issues Four Security Bulletins Pentagon Says Wireless Is Insecure AND Initial MIT Coursework Goes Online New Pricing Schemes Focus on Value Sensenbrenner Withdraws Bill MICROSOFT SAYS REPORTING SERVICE IMPROVING SOFTWARE STABILITY On Wednesday, Microsoft released data showing that its online error-reporting service, called Watson, has led to significant improvements in the stability of the company's software. The Watson system records and transmits real-world data about customer crashes, and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said the service has notified the company of many bugs that have been fixed. According to Ballmer, the data from Watson show that 50 percent of the system crashes reported by users were caused by one percent of the software errors. Data from the Watson system is also accessible by outside developers, who can use the resource to address problems on their own. Some software experts said that a self-reporting system like Watson can only be effective if accompanied by fundamental changes in the programming techniques a company uses. New York Times, 2 October 2002 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/03/technology/03SOFT.html MICROSOFT ISSUES FOUR SECURITY BULLETINS Late Wednesday Microsoft issued four security bulletins involving flaws in its operating systems and in SQL Server software. The flaws vary in severity, with some potentially allowing hackers to take over users' systems. Microsoft has issued patches for the four flaws covered in the latest bulletins, which came close on the heels of a Microsoft announcement that its new focus on the security and stability of its code has seen substantial results. This year Microsoft has issued 57 security alerts, including the latest four. CNET, 3 October 2002 http://news.com.com/2100-1001-960639.html PENTAGON SAYS WIRELESS IS INSECURE The Secretary of Defense has banned the use of many types of wireless in the Pentagon and in most armed-forces applications, saying that the technology is too insecure to safeguard national secrets. Personnel are not allowed to connect wireless devices to classified networks or computers, according to the new ruling. Wireless access will still be allowed for some unclassified networks. The new wireless security policy document does make exceptions for certain devices and situations, including emergency and receive-only devices. The Office of the Secretary of Defense has asked the National Security Agency to identify a "Wireless Technology Vulnerabilities Database" and to develop a strategy to deploy secure wireless technology. PCWorld, 3 October 2002 http://www.idg.net/ic_953465_1794_9-10000.html AND ***************************************************** INITIAL MIT COURSEWORK GOES ONLINE This week MIT began placing courseware online as part of its OpenCourseWare project (http://ocw.mit.edu/). MIT opted not to develop a for-profit learning initiative, as some other colleges and universities have, choosing instead to make its courseware open to the public online. MIT plans to put lecture notes, assignments, syllabi, tutorials, video simulations, and reading lists from over 2,000 courses on the site over the next ten years, though no credit will be offered for those who complete the assignments. Questions remain about technology tools for the site and intellectual property issues, but a representative of the program said that so far the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Critics said the offerings so far are limited and that merely posting such resources online does not substitute for an education at MIT. Officials from OpenCourseWare agreed that the experience of learning at MIT is not replicated by the program, but they hope that it will serve as a model for other institutions to disseminate their own resources. Wired News, 4 October 2002 http://www.wired.com/news/school/0,1383,55507,00.html NEW PRICING SCHEMES FOCUS ON VALUE Under IBM's new "Pay as You Save" program, IBM will find ways to make organizations more efficient, and the money saved through those efficiencies will then be used to pay IBM to find further efficiencies. It's the latest of a new breed of high-tech marketing campaign focused on the bottom line. Hewlett-Packard, for example, has announced a new line of printers that begin at $999, which is $1,000 less than products in the category used to cost. According to researcher Stephen Baker, money is no longer being spent "willy-nilly" on technology. Now, he said, companies want to know what sorts of short-, medium-, and long-term returns they will see on their investments. According to Gartner, spending on high-tech projects increased by about 15 percent annually for the past 15 years, growing to about 30 percent per year in 1999 and 2000. Last year, said Gartner, high-tech budgets increased by about 1.5 percent. Washington Post, 3 October 2002 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35421-2002Oct2.html SENSENBRENNER WITHDRAWS BILL Rep. James Sensenbrenner has withdrawn a bill he submitted last week that would have delayed implementation of royalties for music Webcasters. Some Webcasters had complained about the royalties, saying they were too high for many small Webcasters to stay in business. Sensenbrenner said he withdrew the bill because Webcasters and the music industry had made progress in their negotiations to establish new royalties. College radio stations, however, said they have been left out of the negotiations. Will Robedee, vice chairman of Collegiate Broadcasters Inc., said they were not invited to the negotiations. He said, "College Webcasters are really a small piece of change." Chronicle of Higher Education, 3 October 2002 http://chronicle.com/free/2002/10/2002100303t.htm ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change your settings, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For past issues of Edupage or information about translations of Edupage into other languages, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE PUBLICATIONS EDUCAUSE publishes periodicals, including "EDUCAUSE Quarterly" and "EDUCAUSE Review," books, and other materials dealing with the impacts and implications of information technology in higher education. 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