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Have you ever looked up at a clear night sky and considered how many stars there must be? Or, played on a fine sandy beach and wondered how so many grains of sand could ever be counted? It would be a huge number, too awesome to imagine. Now consider if there existed enough Internet addresses for each of those grains of sand on the beach to locate and communicate with each other grain of sand on the beach. That would be really amazing wouldn’t it, especially since over the past thirty years, the current IPv4 protocol for Internet addresses has reached the natural limit of its reach and efficiency to serve the ever-increasing world-wide demand for connectivity. There just aren’t enough addresses to go around using the 32-bit IP address space. There hasn’t been for a long time now, but thanks to IT engineers who figured out how to implement stopgap measures using CIDR, NAT, and DHCP technologies in spite of bloated routing tables everyone seems to have the Internet addresses and connectivity they need. For now.....

Many of the articles in this Winter 2004 issue of TMIS Newsletter deal with the ongoing testing and implementation of transition from IPv4 to IPv6 strategies among private companies and governments. IPv6 uses a 128-bit address space, resulting in a literally astronomical number of IP addresses. It is inevitable that IPv6 will become in widespread mainstream use, but for awhile yet it will require undergoing a transition stage whereby the existing IPv4 addresses will be tunneled through the new IPv6 network as encapsulated packets until they reach their destinations. There will be several methods for both protocol stacks to exist on the newer systems during the transition. The entire transition to IPv6 for all users will take some time because not everyone will want to undergo the expense.

The main motivators for adapting an IPv4 to IPv6 transition strategy are a need for more globally accessible IP addresses than are currently available, and a need for real-time or multimedia data flows. Security, multicasting, and multimedia streaming are all implemented as an integral part of the IPv6 protocol.

Several new IT outsourcing corporations have sprung up to meet this new demand for personnel who understand the new IPv6 protocol and can help businesses and organizations complete a smooth and cost-effective transition to the next generation Internet protocol. You can read more about them in this issue.

In keeping with our own dedicated theme “Better Living Through Technology,” this issue shares reports on ways fuel cell power is being used on a large scale industrially. Direct FuelCells (DFC) are like continuously operating batteries that utilize a fuel such as natural gas or methane to generate electricity. This high-efficiency technology generates more electrical power from less fuel and with less carbon dioxide emissions than traditional combustion methods. Also, there are some tips for successful software delivery, an exciting announcement of speech recognition software now available over open source Linux systems, the release of the first handheld PC for the blind, an analysis of ways to optimize the hotspot business, and advances in Semantic Web technology to help meet the growing need for biological data networks that help humans and machines understand about diseases, therapies and drug development.

We’re wishing everyone a delightful time over the holidays, and hoping that we all roll well into the new year!

I am grateful to be in a collaborative business with many talented and skilled professionals. Additional feedback and recommendations for our products and services at TM Information Services http://www.tminformationservices.com are always welcome.

- Mary M. McLaughlin

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High-End IPv6 Training & Integration Services Readies Military and Fortune 500 Companies for Next Generation Internet
Seattle, Washington

Native6, Inc., the leader in professional services for IPv6 education and integration, announced a comprehensive update to the popular course, Building IPv6 Networks, the completion of a major IPv6 training program for Cisco Systems, the IPv6 Accelerate Program, and the availability of a new Native6 course, IPv6 for Programmers. A key leader in the IPv6 community, Native6 delivers high-end IPv6 training and provides critical integration services to help some of the largest IT and government organizations complete a smooth and cost effective transition to IPv6, the next generation Internet protocol.

" Native6 provided a premium training experience that played a significant role in helping us in educating Navy program personnel who have requirements for transitioning to IPv6, and did so at a competitive price," said Mark Evans, IPv6 Transition Lead, and Navy IPv6 Project Office. "In particular, Native6's ability to provide professional IPv6 experts and engineering talent as well as high quality instructor staff to deliver educational content at our facility was instrumental in the success of our recent training initiative."
Full Story

IPv6 Vendors Test Voice, Wireless and Firewalls on the Moonv6 Next-Generation Internet Network
Durham, New Hampshire

A new round of tests on the Moonv6 network stretching from New Hampshire to California has pushed IPv6 testing into new territory by venturing into voice, wireless, firewalls and a host of advanced network and application-layer tests, the North American IPv6 Task Force (NAv6TF) and the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) have announced.

Moonv6 represents the most aggressive multi-vendor test and demonstration of products being developed for the next-generation Internet protocol, IPv6. The latest round of testing began at the UNH-IOL on Oct. 30 and wrapped up at the U.S. Defense Department's Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) in Fort Huachuca, Ariz. on Nov. 12. Test areas included interoperability in pure IPv6 as well as mixed v6 and IPv4 networks, IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs, voice over IP (VoIP), firewalls and IPsec (IP Security), dual-stack routing, Internet protocols such as DHCP, DNS and various applications and transition mechanisms.
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Organizations Team Up on Joint User Interoperability Communications Exercise & Joint Rapid Architecture Exercise for IPv6 Testing
Rockville, Maryland

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has asked Spirent Communications to participate in IPv6 demonstrations directly connected to the Communication Electronic Command's (CECOM) Joint User Interoperability Exercise (JUICE) and Joint Rapid Architecture Exercise (JRAE). The DoD's Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) has used Spirent Communications' test solutions to assess the status of IPv6 in three areas key to the DoD's migration from IPv4 to IPv6 for all inter and intra networking by 2008. JUICE '04 and JRAE help the U.S. military enhance the interoperability of systems and devices throughout the DoD community by assessing the impact of emerging systems and technology in an operational network.
Full Story

Ultra-Clean Fuel Cell Power Plant to Provide Base Load Power and Heat for Correctional Facility
Danbury, Connecticutt

FuelCell Energy, Inc., a leading manufacturer of large stationary fuel cell power plants for commercial and industrial customers, announced its first one-megawatt Direct FuelCell (DFC) power plant sale in California to Alameda County for the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, Calif. This is the first fuel cell project with its North American distribution partner, Chevron Energy Solutions.

FuelCell Energy will provide Alameda County a DFC1500 power plant and related operating and maintenance services. Chevron Energy Solutions will act as overall project manager and integrator, providing design, engineering, construction, and installation services to Alameda County. The DFC1500 power plant is expected to provide 90 percent of base load power requirements for the Santa Rita Jail.

"The addition of this 1 megawatt (MW) fuel cell power plant to the jail's existing 1.18 MW solar power system gives the County the most environmentally-sound distributed power system in the country. We are excited to be able to combine the base load capabilities of this fuel cell plant with the daytime peaking characteristics of photovoltaics. This will be the first-of-its-kind facility to take advantage of these two clean emerging technologies," said Alameda County's Energy Program Manager Matt Muniz.
Full Story

ThoughtWorks Author Highlights the Five Business Value Commandments for Successful Software Delivery
Chicago, Illinois

Many organizations struggle to realize the business value of their IT projects, often leading to dissatisfied business users. ThoughtWorks' Business Coach Chris Matts and Andy Pols, an independent consultant, provide business and IT project managers with a series of five tips to achieve business value. "IT professionals and project managers want what is best for the business," explains Matts, "however, oftentimes many managers end up focusing on the process, the documentation, or the software, rather than delivering value to the business."
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Wizzard Software Continues to Grow Speech Offerings with Addition of IBM TTS for Linux
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Wizzard Software announced they have added IBM TTS for Linux to their growing portfolio of licensable speech technologies. This new addition to the Wizzard family of offerings allows computerized text to be spoken "out-loud" while running in the Linux operating system environment. Users can utilize the TTS for a wide variety of tasks including having letters, instant messages and e-mails read out-loud and to help verbally guide visitors through web sites. In addition to assisting visually-impaired and mobility-impaired users on Linux it can make standard desktop programs more user-friendly for longer working baby boomers dealing with vision, hearing and mobility issues.

" We are pleased to be able to bring to market a Linux version of IBM's text-to-speech engine that had previously only been available for the Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh platforms," said Rich Schwerdtfeger, chairman of IBM's Accessibility Architecture Review Board. "We are happy to be able to strengthen our partnership with Wizzard and look forward to continue working with them making technology accessible for all communities."
Full Story

Personal Digital Assistant for the Blind and Visually Impaired Built Using VisuAide Assistive Technology and the HP iPAQ Pocket PC as a Platform
Atlanta, Georgia

Built on the HP iPAQ Pocket PC h4150 platform, Maestro is the most affordable and compact personal digital assistant available to the visually impaired. Maestro features text-to-speech technology and a tactile keyboard membrane over its touch screen so the visually impaired can use essential information-access and communication applications without using a stylus.

Maestro takes advantage of wireless communication networks, such as Bluetooth wireless technology, and can be operated with or without an external keyboard (Braille or standard). Also, the device readily integrates other VisuAide or third-party applications offering users the latest innovations in handheld PCs.
Full Story

How Does One Run The Hotspot Business In A Manner That Is Sustainable And Optimizes Overall Business Objectives Including Revenue, Differentiation, Customer Satisfaction And Retention?
Dublin, Ireland

In 2005 and beyond, the biggest question on everyone's mind involved in the public access WLAN business is "how does one run the hotspot business in a manner that is sustainable and optimizes overall business objectives including revenue, differentiation, customer satisfaction, and retention?" This is a large step in answering these questions through its research into the public access WLAN marketplace.

Research and Markets has announced the addition of Public Access WLAN Case Studies 2005 to their offering Coverage of 47 worldwide public access WLAN service providers Comparison and evaluation of global hotspot operator plans and best practices. See who has failed, who has survived, who has thrived and why. See their business plans and what their strategies should now be for growth.
Full Story

W3C Workshop on Semantic Web for Life Sciences Draws Broad International Support
Cambridge, Massachussetts

The World Wide Web Consortium hosted a Workshop on Semantic Web for Life Sciences in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA that brought together for the first time a diverse and international group of scientists, technologists, and health industry experts to discuss the ways in which Semantic Web technology can help meet the challenge of publishing and sharing complex scientific data. The workshop addressed the growing need for biological data networks that help advance human and machine understanding about diseases, therapies, and drug development. Through the use of new Web technologies that allow computers to do more useful work with complex biological data, researchers can more quickly advance human knowledge.

" The challenges posed by drug discovery can only be solved if we can integrate data across the many fields of life sciences," explained Tim Berners-Lee, Director of the World Wide Web Consortium. "As we have seen in other industries, when one field adopts standard technologies for data, the impact is that its data becomes accessible to those in other fields, and barriers to sharing information crumble. It's at the heart of the Semantic Web."
Full Story

Web Users Beware: Personal Online Activity May Pose Professional Risk; Survey Shows U.S. Adults Search Online for Information about Colleagues, Employees and Customers
Bellevue. Washington

In the digital age, you never know who might be checking out you or your blog -- including people connected to your job. A new survey commissioned by metasearch engine Dogpile and conducted by Harris Interactive(R) shows that nearly one in four U.S. adults (23 percent) have searched online for information about someone with whom they have a work relationship, including clients or customers, employees or potential employees, co-workers, and supervisors or potential supervisors.

Of the online U.S. adults who have searched for a co-worker online, the most common reason for searching was curiosity (71 percent), while of those who have searched for a client or customer, the most common reason was to look up specific information such as an address or phone number (85%). Among those who have conducted such searches, curiosity was cited as the reason by 52 percent when searching for employees or potential employees, and 63 percent when searching for supervisors or potential supervisors. The survey also revealed that men are twice as likely as women to conduct any of these types of searches.
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Government Technology and Plumtree Release Special Report Featuring Five State and Local eGovernment Case Studies
San Francisco, California

Leading public sector publication Government Technology and Plumtree Software released a special report detailing how leading state and local entities are effectively implementing Web technologies to drive operational efficiency, enable collaboration across organizational boundaries, and provide better constituency service. The white paper shares accomplishments and best practices of five state and local government organizations, including the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; Arlington County, Virginia; the City of Calgary, Alberta; the Richland Two School District, Columbia, South Carolina; and the Supreme Court of Louisiana. These innovative entities have used collaboration, Web publishing, search and security Web services, unified through a portal framework, to deliver new eGovernment offerings to constituents, new productivity tools to employees, and new collaborative workspaces for both audiences.
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