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The WAVE Report on Digital Media
3D --- Media Creation --- Shared Space ---Published by 4th Wave, Inc.--- Issue #0501------------------1/7/05 |
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0501.1 U.S. Economics
0501.2 Messaging Industry Predictions
0501.3 Software Updates
0501.4 Free Cordless Telephony
VTech Partners With Skype to Launch First U.S. Cordless Phone for Free Global Telephony
0501.5 Online Government Commerce
eBidboard Used by Over 250 Major Government Agencies Posting Construction Projects
0501.6 Disk Drive Development
Hitachi's Hard Drive Family is Expecting Two New Babies - Baby ''Mikey'' and Big Brother ''Slim''
0501.7 Color Printer Technology
KONICA MINOLTA Introduces the Color Laser Alternative to Inkjet Printers
0501.8 High Tech Mice
Logitech Adds World's First Laser Mouse to Its Cordless Desktop Lineup
0501.9 Flash Drives
MedicAlert Personal HealthKey to Use SanDisk's USB Flash Drives
0501.10 Networking
Mirage Networks Offers Free, 1-Day Network Assessment to Law Firms
0501.11 System Diagnostics
0501.12 Wireless Broadband
Sensoria Corp. Launches the EnRoute400 Wireless Mesh Router for Wireless Broadband to Go
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***U.S. Falls out of the Index of Economic Freedom's Top 10
WASHINGTON
Jan. 4, 2005
For the first time ever, the U.S. does not rank among the world's 10 freest economies in the Index of Economic Freedom, published annually by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal.
The U.S.' score in the 2005 Index did not change from 2004. But improvements in the economies of Chile, Australia and Iceland enabled all three to surpass the U. S., leaving it in a tie for 12th with Switzerland and out of the top 10 for the first time in the 11-year history of the Index.
As in previous years, the Index ratings reflect an analysis of 50 different economic variables, grouped into 10 categories: banking and finance; capital flows and foreign investment; monetary policy; fiscal burden of government; trade policy; wages and prices; government intervention in the economy; property rights; regulation; and informal (or black-) market activity. Countries are rated one to five in each category, one being the best and five the worst. These ratings are then averaged to produce the overall Index score.
World-wide, the scores of 86 countries improved, the scores of 57 declined and the scores of 12 are unchanged from last year's Index.
The U.S. recorded an overall score of 1.85 for the second consecutive year, making it one of 17 countries rated as having "free" economies. Another 56 countries finished between 2.0 and 3.0 and are considered "mostly free," 70 finished between 3.0 and 4.0 and received a "mostly unfree" rating, and 12 were considered "repressed."
With top scores in property rights, banking/finance and monetary policy, the U.S. is still a vibrant and dynamic economy, the editors note. But a 4.0 rating in fiscal burden of government, which ranks worse than all but 30 countries in the survey, held it back. This reflects poor scores in the area of taxation. The U.S. corporate tax rate ranks 112th out of the 155 countries scored, and its top individual tax rate ranks an only somewhat better 82nd. The fiscal burden rating also reflects the fact that federal spending has reached levels not seen since World War II and now costs the average household more than $20,000 per year.
0501.2 Messaging Industry Predictions
***Ferris Research Offers Predictions about Messaging in 2005
SAN FRANCISCO
Jan. 4, 2005
Phishing, compliance, VoIP, and spam will be major themes for the messaging industry in 2005, according to predictions offered today by Ferris Research, a San Francisco-based consultancy specializing in messaging and collaboration technology.
The predictions, described more fully in a report, Key Messaging and Collaboration Trends, 2005, were gathered by Ferris Research's analysts from its enterprise user panel, and are:
1. By the end of 2005 90% of all mailboxes that are experiencing a spam problem with be protected by an commercial anti-spam solution. Organizations will, in many cases, deploy second generation solutions to products that they feel aren't effective enough.
2. Phishing and spyware will be demonstrated as a problem not limited to consumer mailboxes in the coming year. Phishing attacks will attempt to steal organizational credentials and spyware will increasingly be viewed as a corporate threat.
3. Regulatory compliance will be top-of-mind for many messaging managers. As legal judgments and court decisions are handed down in 2005, it will become much easier for organizations to determine what they must do to be in compliance than it is presently.
4. The new regulatory climate will drive an increasing interest in messaging archiving. As archiving becomes a higher priority, investment in archiving companies will increase, though further vendor consolidation in the sector is virtually certain.
5. Organizations will continue to resist major upgrades or platform migrations. Weak business justification and the massive effort sometimes involved suggests that only those running the most outdated systems, or involved in mergers will find good reasons for major changes.
6. Wireless access to email, IM, calendar and tasks -- once reserved for the techno-elite -- will become much more mainstream in the coming year. Better devices, better network coverage, and better economics will all play a part.
7. Tools to help address email information overload such as searching, filtering and automated categorization will receive strong interest in 2005. The need to monitor compliance monitoring will provide one significant justification, but the really payoff will be in dramatically improved access to information.
8. Secure messaging. In 2005 workable solutions to inter-enterprise message encryption should finally emerge. While it's not yet clear what organizations are willing to pay for this capability, the increased awareness, regulatory requirements, and need for security in general suggests that products and services in this category will at last be viable.
9. Use of Voice over IP (VoIP) services from conventional phones, between PCs, and between PCs and conventional phones, will continue to expand and prices will fall. Existing telcos will offer flat rate VoIP services as add-ons to their DSL broadband offerings, cable providers will offer flat rate VoIP services as one of a set of bundled (television+broadband+voice) offerings, and Instant Messaging vendors will work harder to integrate voice services.
10. Calendaring. Interoperability between electronic calendars will remain problematic. Though standards (iCAL, iMIP) have been set and implemented by many electronic calendar system vendors and service providers, their commitment to interoperability will remain lukewarm.
***Adobe Announces Acrobat 7.0 Software Availability; Beta Customers Applaud Higher-Value Uses of Adobe PDF
SAN JOSE, Calif.
Jan. 5, 2005
Adobe Systems Incorporated has announced the immediate availability of Adobe Acrobat 7.0 software, a family of desktop applications that enables workgroups to manage a range of essential business activities. Acrobat 7.0, the latest update to the Adobe Intelligent Document Platform, provides users the ability to assemble documents from multiple sources, create intelligent forms, and collaborate on projects inside and outside the firewall, among other capabilities.
The Acrobat 7.0 family offers different functionality to address specific customer workflows. Acrobat 7.0 Professional provides more advanced control over engineering and design documents for technical and creative workgroups that rely on specialized software, including computer-aided design applications and publishing solutions such as Adobe Creative Suite. Acrobat 7.0 Standard is ideal for business professionals in organizations of all sizes, where the ability to effectively find, use and manage vital information--from emails and Web pages to everyday application files--is key to getting work done on time and budget. Acrobat Elements is a license-only product that allows enterprises to put Adobe PDF creation capability on every desktop for more secure document distribution.
Adobe also announced the immediate availability of Adobe Reader 7.0, including a public beta version for the Linux(R) operating system. The company's free client software can be downloaded at
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
In addition to the ability to reliably view and print Adobe PDF files, Adobe Reader 7.0 now offers more powerful capabilities. Users can participate in document reviews, have Yahoo! Search capabilities at their fingertips and can interact with 3D objects placed in PDF. Adobe has distributed over half-a-billion copies of Adobe Reader since its 1993 introduction.
Acrobat 7.0 Professional and Acrobat 7.0 Standard for Microsoft Windows 2000 (with service pack 2), Windows XP Professional, Home and Tablet PC Editions, and Mac OS X v10.2.8 and v10.3, are immediately available in English. French, German and Japanese language versions are expected to be available in early 2005.
Information about the availability of other language versions of the Acrobat 7.0 family, as well as further details on pricing, upgrade and support policies, is available online at
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/
0501.4 Free Cordless Telephony
***VTech Partners With Skype to Launch First U.S. Cordless Phone for Free Global Telephony
Consumer Electronics Show
LAS VEGAS
Jan. 4, 2005
VTech Communications, Inc., has introduced the usb7100 VTech Skype cordless phone that provides users the benefits and features of Skype's Internet telephony without being tethered to their PC.
Skype is a free Internet telephony software that offers a peer-to-peer network connection to make free voice calls to anyone in the world. Users connect to both their existing telephone line and Skype's free Internet telephony service from VTech's "all in one" handset, which enables them to place and receive free, unlimited global voice calls.
The 2.4 GHz cordless usb7100 phone is expandable up to four handsets, providing crystal clear calling over the Internet from any room in the home without the need for extra wiring. In addition, users will enjoy all the advantages of cordless phone technology, including caller ID, call waiting, intercom and conference call features. Users can also view on the cordless handset display which contacts are online, as well as being able to set a presence status, for example, showing if users are online, away or do not want to be disturbed. Finally, with each call automatically encrypted by Skype, security is not a concern.
The VTech usb7100 is an affordable and logical solution for the college student who can not always afford to call home often or the family who is frustrated with their high phone bills.
VTech's usb7100 and other VoIP offerings are being featured January 6-8, 2005 at Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino, Florentine Ballroom, in conjunction with the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The products will be available in all major retail outlets and online in Spring 2005.
0501.5 Online Government Commerce
***eBidboard Used by Over 250 Major Government Agencies Posting Construction Projects; Company Adds Huge Los Angeles Unified School District to Agency Roster
SAN DIEGO
Jan. 4, 2005
Construction Bidboard, Inc., announced a milestone by reaching a dominant position in the public works marketplace. By radically streamlining the bid solicitation process with direct links to public agency bid information, a variety of powerful communications tools and a database of historical bid information, eBidboard has been adopted by the majority of major public agencies in California.
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is the latest in a notable roster of public agencies that have embraced eBidboard. The addition of LAUSD adds to a tally of $14.4 billion in project postings since the company's launch in August 2002.
The Los Angeles Unified School District is currently engaged in the largest building program in their history. Over the next eight years they will complete construction of 243 new construction projects to accommodate explosive growth in their student population. The road map, the 2004 New Facilities Strategic Execution Plan, will accommodate over 150,000 students on a 2-semester basis. New schools and site expansions will require the acquisition of over 450 acres of land, 98 percent is already acquired. The total estimated cost of the New Construction program is approximately nine billion dollars.
To manage and track the bidding process of this massive new construction undertaking, LAUSD has migrated to eBidboard to improve the quality and efficiency of preparing and distributing the massive volume of bid information, updates and project changes.
LAUSD is now attracting better-informed bidders with the eBidboard system. First, projects are advertised to a much wider contractor base. Individual contractors can automatically receive bid information specific to their work interest.
eBidboard solves a serious problem for the $200 billion public construction sector. The industry, comprised of public agencies, contractors, subcontractors, suppliers and service providers, has historically relied on a paper-based inefficient bid solicitation process that introduces substantial business risk for all parties. Burdened by inaccurate information, and archaic communication methods, projects are frequently compromised before the work begins.
eBidboard is an intuitive cross-agency database that allows public agencies to post project data to solicit bids. The contracting community can then access real-time detailed project information including plans, specifications and addenda; retrieve historical bid information, including line item pricing and subcontractor listings; communicate online with owners and prospective bidders; and find and solicit disadvantaged businesses. By incorporating eBidboard, agencies benefit from an increased number of bids, lower bid costs, efficient outreach to the disadvantaged business community, more effective project cost forecasting tools, effective document dissemination, better project update notification, and fewer project disputes. As a result, eBidboard saves its clients substantial time and money, facilitates better quality bids and proposals, minimizes business risks, and increases competitive awareness.
***Hitachi's Hard Drive Family is Expecting Two New Babies; Baby ''Mikey'' and Big Brother ''Slim'' Expand Biggest Small-Form-Factor Family
2005 International CES
LAS VEGAS
Jan. 5, 2005
Hitachi Global Storage Technologies will christen a smaller one-inch Microdrive product and a slimmer 1.8-inch hard drive later this year. These two miniature drives are designed to meet the accelerating demand for ultra-portable handheld devices -- such as mobile phones and digital music players -- that don't compromise on storage capacity.
Hitachi will deliver on these requirements by re-engineering its one-inch Microdrive to create a 20-percent smaller version with the highest capacity at 8-10 gigabytes (GB) of storage. The new smaller Microdrive is affectionately called baby "Mikey" for its diminutive size.
Applying a similar approach to a new 1.8-inch Travelstar product, Hitachi will trim 30 percent off the thickness of the drive to create a 5 mm version, nicknamed "Slim." With a slighter profile equivalent to that of the Microdrive, "Slim" will be the world's smallest and lightest 1.8-inch drive, beating the closest competitor by 10 percent in total volume.
The new babies in the Hitachi family represent a novel approach to the hard drive industry's continuing quest for high capacity in smaller and smaller form factors. Hitachi is retaining the one-inch and 1.8-inch disk size for maximum capacity, but trimming the package footprint for greater agility. "Mikey" is expected to make his debut in the second half of 2005 at a mere 14 grams and in an embedded-only design. "Slim" will also make his entrance in the latter half of the year with 30-40 GB of capacity on the one-disk version.
Smallest, Biggest One-Inch Drive
"Mikey" will be the industry's smallest one-inch hard drive with the highest storage capacity, between 8-10 GB. With a physical dimension of 40 x 30 x 5 mm, it is designed for the smallest handheld devices with needs for ample, yet, affordable storage. In addition, through an integrated chipset, "Mikey" will enable up to a 40-percent reduction in power consumption over the existing Microdrive product.
"Mikey" is being tailored for the CE industry and will employ a new ZIF connector, which has been traditionally used by CE device manufacturers for ease of integration. In addition, the ZIF connector on Hitachi's new drive may also result in lower design and integration costs and greater reliability for device manufacturers.
Because the applications for which "Mikey" is intended are highly portable devices, Hitachi has provided for additional methods of shock protection beyond the drive's internal mechanisms, which will offer more than a 100-percent operating-shock improvement over the current Microdrive product. Hitachi has also designed "snubbers" or drive bumpers that could be mounted around "Mikey" to supply additional shock protection.
With more than five years of experience and five million one-inch drives under its belt, Hitachi has gained incomparable knowledge in manufacturing a reliable design in high volume that has been successfully field-tested in a variety of consumer electronic devices. This is made possible by an established supplier base, a highly-efficient manufacturing process and a meticulous quality-assurance procedure.
"Slim"
At 49 grams, "Slim" is not only thin, but also light. The combination of these will result in a lean product with large storage capacity. "Slim" will come in one- and two-disk versions, offering 30-40 and 60-80 GB of storage, respectively. "Slim's" physical dimensions are expected to be 71 x 54 x 5 mm on the one-disk model, while the two-disk model will differ just slightly with an 8-mm height instead of 5 mm.
The litheness of this drive is due, in part, to Hitachi's implementation of the femto slider, which was first used in 2003 on Hitachi's Travelstar 7K60 2.5-inch hard drive for notebook computers and later on the one-inch Microdrive family of products, including "Mikey." The femto slider -- or the tiny flying wing supporting the read/write head above the surface of the disk -- represents a 30-percent size reduction over the previous pico slider technology and is also responsible for the higher shock robustness on "Slim." Hitachi anticipates "Slim" will offer a 10-20 percent shock improvement over its predecessor, making it the most rugged drive in its category.
Like his smaller brethren, "Mikey," "Slim" will also feature a ZIF connector for easy integration into consumer electronics devices. Applications expected to benefit from "Slim's" small foot print and large storage capability include external storage, high-capacity portable video and audio devices, sub-notebooks and tablet PCs, and navigation devices.
Attention to Standards
Both "Mikey" and "Slim" are expected to be compliant with the CE-ATA interface, which is now being defined by an Intel-led consortium, of which Hitachi is a founding member. The consortium is working to develop an interface that is tailored to the needs of handheld and portable consumer electronic devices such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants and MP3 players. Other interface standards are also expected to be supported, depending on customer requirements.
0501.7 Color Printer Technology
***KONICA MINOLTA Introduces the Color Laser Alternative to Inkjet Printers; magicolor 2400-series Targets Home Office Users and Small Business Environments
MOBILE, Ala.
Jan. 5, 2005
KONICA MINOLTA PRINTING SOLUTIONS U.S.A., INC. has introduced its color laser alternative to inkjet printers: the magicolor 2400W and the magicolor 2430DL. Designed for the home office user and the small business environment, the magicolor 2400-series makes color laser technology as affordable as inkjet printers.
The magicolor 2400-series offers all the benefits of color laser technology--such as faster print speed, higher resolution "laser quality" output, more durable prints, and less frequent user intervention--in a compact but robust and reliable design. Starting at $399, the magicolor 2400-series is well within the budgets of most home office and small business users.
Smaller Sized but Powerfully Packed
Replacing KONICA MINOLTA's award-winning magicolor 2300 family of printers, the magicolor 2400-series is nearly 20% smaller, almost 30% lighter and 25% faster than its predecessor--measuring just 16.9" x 15.6" x 13.4" (W x D x H) and weighing only 48 pounds. Despite their smaller footprints, the magicolor 2400W and 2430 DL are packed with the kind of high-end features that are commonly found on larger, more expensive color printers. Both models print up to 2400 dpi resolution on any type or grade of paper, at speeds of 20 pages per minute in black and white and 5 pages in color. Unlike inkjet printers, the magicolor 2400-series consistently prints at its fastest rated speeds, even in the highest resolution mode with full-page coverage. The magicolor printers can handle up to 8.5" x 14" (legal) size sheets of various types of media, including plain paper, letterhead, thick stock, glossy stock, OHP transparencies, laser-quality labels, and envelopes.
With a monthly duty cycle of up to 35,000 pages per month, the magicolor 2400-series bests many of its challengers' reliability ratings. Its' high-capacity toner cartridges yield many more pages per unit than inkjet cartridges, resulting in a low overall cost per page and less workflow interruption for toner replacement.
Technologically Advanced but Easy to Use
The magicolor 2400's feature KONICA MINOLTA's polymer toner technology which uses tiny, uniform-sized particles that are encapsulated in a proprietary compound to improve fusing on most media--even coarse, recycled paper. As a result, prints are more durable, with images and text that don't smear or fade. It also yields less waste, in the form of toner dust that remains on the surfaces of drum cartridges, transfer belt units, and rollers after a page has printed. This toner technology, along with the printer's automatic color calibration, produces smoother halftones, finer lines, more consistent colors, and crisper text--regardless of print quality selected or media type used.
The print head on the 2400-series has been developed with new optical technology which allows for a wider angle. This greatly reduces the distance between the print head and the drum, and contributes to the printer's smaller size. The combination of these technologies gives the magicolor 2400-series unparalleled performance and reliability.
Like all KONICA MINOLTA color laser printers, the magicolor 2400W and the magicolor 2430 DL are designed for ease of use. They come with factory-installed consumables which make initial printer set-up fast and hassle-free. All operating functions, as well as toner replacement and paper jam recovery, are accessible from the front of the printer. There are only five consumable items that users must replace: the cyan, magenta, yellow, and black toners, which last up to 4,500 prints; and the drum cartridge, which can print up to 45,000 pages. And, the desktop status display allows users to check the print job queue, control the printer operation, and check consumable levels, right from their workstations.
The Perfect PC Companion
Developed for the Windows environment, the magicolor 2400W is a personal color laser printer that's compatible with XP, 2000, Me, and 98SE operating systems. It features a hi-speed USB 2.0 interface for local connections, as well as an optional 10/100BaseTX network interface.
A Multi-Platform Partner
Boasting multi-platform capability, the magicolor 2430 DL is designed for Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems. An Ethernet 10/100Base TX network interface comes standard on the 2430 DL, along with a hi-speed USB 2.0 local connection. It also has an optional automatic duplexer for effortless two-sided printing.
http://printer.konicaminolta.com/usa
***Logitech Adds World's First Laser Mouse to Its Cordless Desktop Lineup; Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 Combines Powerful Keyboard Controls with Advanced Precision
2005 International CES
LAS VEGAS
Jan. 5, 2005
Logitech has announced that the world's first laser mouse will soon be available in combination with a cordless keyboard. Unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show, the Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 solution features Logitech's award-winning Logitech MX1000 Cordless Laser Mouse and the most powerful navigation controls available on a Logitech keyboard. The high-performance package makes it faster and easier to work and play in today's digital world.
Logitech's exclusive laser illumination and tracking technology instantly elevated the recently introduced Logitech MX1000 Cordless Laser Mouse to one of the company's best-selling products. Laser technology enables the mouse to see approximately 20 times more surface detail than typical red light-emitting diode (LED) optical mice, allowing it to track with more precision and work on more surface types.
Logitech's advanced navigation keyboard makes it easy to listen to music and Internet radio, use instant messaging, watch videos and view photos -- by putting more control at people's fingertips. The keyboard emulates the sleek look and feel of consumer electronics equipment with its polished media and navigation controls. The controls are tied to useful functions within various media and productivity applications, helping to simplify and enhance the digital experience. The keyboard's flat design and low profile help make computing more comfortable and ergonomic.
The Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 keyboard and mouse are complementary in every way -- from their advanced navigation and stylish design to the shared wireless receiver, which also serves as the mouse recharger.
Laser Tracking for Premium Performance
The laser tracking technology is the result of an alliance between Logitech, the world's No. 1 manufacturer of mice, and Agilent Technologies, the leader in mouse tracking technology. The nearly singular wavelength of laser light is capable of revealing much greater surface detail than the red LED found in today's optical mice. Hence, the laser can track reliably even on tricky polished or wood-grain surfaces.
The laser light of the Logitech MX1000 Laser Cordless Mouse is nearly invisible to the human eye -- and very safe. The laser beam emanates through a polished silver ring on the base, illuminates the surface beneath the mouse, and then reflects back up through the same ring where the surface detail is captured by the sensor. The sensor has the ability to capture 5.8 megapixels of detail each second. As the laser mouse is moved, the sensor sees minute changes in the surface detail, which are translated into cursor motion on screen.
Optimized Navigation and Media Control
For a long time, clicking with a mouse was the only way to navigate through text documents, menus, file folders, Internet pages, and other items on the computer screen. The Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 mouse and keyboard are designed for two-handed navigation with useful controls on the keyboard and mouse to make using a computer more convenient, more efficient, and more comfortable.
The keyboard includes a media panel with a full complement of controls that can be used with most popular media players. There are controls for ripping and burning music CDs, as well as audio preset buttons that can be tied to favorite Internet radio stations. Both the mouse and keyboard feature controls to enable horizontal and vertical scrolling. They also include controls to zoom in and out of documents, allowing people to easily move in to touch up a digital photo or perfect a presentation slide, or back out to view an entire document layout. The keyboard even includes a button that instantly returns the view to the document's original size.
The Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 solution also comes with Logitech MediaLife software -- an easy-to-navigate, full-screen interface that brings together all of the music, pictures and video on the PC. Using Logitech MediaLife software, people can quickly access playlists, play impromptu slide shows and watch video clips.
Ergonomic Features for Increased Comfort
The Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 keyboard features ergonomic characteristics that help make the digital experience more comfortable without changing the way people work. The keyboard has a low profile -- it is 22.3 mm in height when placed on a flat surface. The keyboard also incorporates Zero Degree Tilt, which means the primary rows of keys are all the same height. According to independent studies, the ergonomic benefit of a low-profile keyboard without any slope is that it may help minimize wrist extension. Repetitive wrist extension can be a cause of hand and forearm discomfort.
Availability
The Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100 mouse and keyboard will be available in Europe beginning in March -- on retail shelves and online. In the U.S., the product will be available beginning in April, initially at CompUSA and later at other retailers and online.
***MedicAlert Personal HealthKey to Use SanDisk's USB Flash Drives
2005 International CES
LAS VEGAS
Jan. 5, 2005
SanDisk Corporation announced that the MedicAlert Personal HealthKey will use USB flash drives from SanDisk. Powered by CapMed, the MedicAlert Personal HealthKey is a consumer health care application for the secure storage, maintenance and communication of personal health information.
The MedicAlert Personal HealthKey will enable secure storage and immediate access to emergency and personal health information. Updates to the personal health record can by provided by both the patient and those authorized by the patient such as a physician, specialist or pharmacist. First responders can easily access the critical emergency information by simply inserting the SanDisk USB drive into any computer equipped with a USB port. In the event that a patient is unconscious, this MedicAlert Personal HealthKey is designed to display select critical medical information as previously authorized by the patient. The MedicAlert Personal HealthKey will leverage the best-of-breed capabilities offered by three different entities:
-- MedicAlert Foundation, one of the world's largest non-profit organizations devoted to protecting and saving lives,
-- CapMed, a division of Bio-Imaging Technologies, a company dedicated to creating best-in-class personal health management solutions,
-- SanDisk Corporation, the world's largest supplier of flash memory cards.
The Personal HealthKey will be available for consumers to purchase directly through retail outlets in the United States in the first half of 2005, and available for direct purchase from both CapMed and MedicAlert in the first quarter of 2005. Membership will provide online backup of information on the secure MedicAlert database with 24/7 support from the MedicAlert Emergency Response Center.
***Mirage Networks Offers Free, 1-Day Network Assessment to Law Firms; Virtually In-Line Appliance Immediately Reveals Networks' Threats and Abuses
AUSTIN, Texas
Jan. 4, 2005
Mirage Networks, Inc., has announced a free, 1-day interior network assessment to qualified law firms. The appliance-based solution, CounterPoint, locates exposures to network threats and abuses that bypass traditional perimeter-based, signature-based, and agent-based security products. Five of the nation's most prominent law firms have moved beyond assessment and have fully deployed CounterPoint for full-time interior network defense.
By mirroring the traffic from a switch and monitoring for malicious behavior, CounterPoint immediately and surgically contains malicious behavior at its source as effectively as any in-line appliance. It also significantly reduces network scanning, discovers mis-configured firewalls, and increases the overall effectiveness of any network security policy. CounterPoint is switch vendor agnostic, and is deployed at the network interior -- normally at the access or distribution layer. Installation typically requires less than one hour and does not interfere with network performance as it resides virtually in-line, or physically out of band.
2004 was a record year for rapidly propagating threats (RPTs) with 263 recorded to date. Noteworthy RPTs include Sasser, Witty, Mydoom and new variants of Blaster, Gaobot and Welchia. Predictions for 2005 indicate a doubling or tripling of the number of RPTs from the 2004 level. While the forecasted increase in number of RPTs is alarming, of even greater concern is that worms are becoming more sophisticated in their ability to evade traditional security defenses, and with far more damaging consequences.
According to mi2g, Sobig accounted for the greatest worldwide economic damage in 2003 ($36.7 billion), followed by Klez ($19.4 billion), Yaha ($11.3 billion), Mimail ($10.5 billion) and Swen ($10 billion). This list does not include other well known viruses that rippled through the legal community such as Sasser, Mydoom, and Gaobot. Continued exposure to network abuses and RPTs leads to a high risk of data access blockage at critical times, missed filing deadlines, and ultimately, lost billable hours.
CounterPoint can be deployed at headquarters and/or remote office locations. This unique network defense solution provides day-zero protection against RPTs at the access/distribution layer -- where staff and guest computers regularly attach to a firm's network. If a local or remote staff member plugs an infected device into the network and attempts to propagate an infection, the appliance immediately identifies the traffic as malicious and logically removes that device from the network. The device remains fully functional on its own, but can no longer access the network. This is accomplished without client-based software, without network redesign, and without the need to continually update signatures.
To schedule a 1-day network assessment, please call 1-512-874-7800 and press 1 for sales or email sales@miragenetworks.com.
***DMTF Releases Final CIM Schema 2.9.0; Latest Update to the Common Information Model Delivers New Diagnostic Enhancements
PORTLAND, Ore.
Jan. 4, 2005
The Distributed Management Task Force, Inc. (DMTF) has announced the release of the final version of the Common Information Model (CIM) Schema Version 2, Release 9.0. With CIM 2.9, the DMTF has implemented new improvements to its technical release processes, meeting the time-to-market needs of DMTF members and end users by releasing incremental CIM feature sets as each set is finalized (rather than a single annual revision of the Schema). CIM 2.9.0 introduces the new diagnostic components needed for the DMTF's Common Diagnostic Model (CDM), version 2. With the inclusion of CDM 2.0's enhanced multi-vendor diagnostic capabilities, CIM 2.9.0 will play a key role in improving system reliability, availability and serviceability for end users.
CDM's standards-based diagnostics improve system test capabilities by leveraging multiple vendors' diagnostics in a comprehensive solution, enabling interoperability and the ability to reuse diagnostic tests across platforms. In addition, CDM creates diagnostic instrumentation at the driver level and generates fault events that can be utilized by platform management applications. In version 2.0, CDM delivers new standardized logging mechanisms and tighter synergy with the other models in CIM, enabling further integration of diagnostics into critical management functions, which will help further diagnostic interoperability.
With more than 3,000 active participants, the Distributed Management Task Force, Inc. (DMTF) is the industry organization leading the development of management standards and integration technology for enterprise and Internet environments. DMTF standards provide common management infrastructure components for instrumentation, control and communication in a platform-independent and technology neutral way. DMTF technologies include information models (CIM), communication/control protocols (WBEM), and core management services/utilities. Information about DMTF's standards and activities can be found at
The files for CIM 2.9.0 can be downloaded from the DMTF Web site at
http://www.dmtf.org/standards/cim
***Sensoria Corp. Launches the EnRoute400 Wireless Mesh Router for Wireless Broadband to Go for Public Safety, Physical Security and Other Wireless Sensor Networks
SAN DIEGO
Jan. 4, 2005
Sensoria Corporation has announced the launch of the Sensoria EnRoute400, a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) device for mesh communications that provides 'wireless broadband to go' for emergency response, homeland security, military and industrial applications. The first units have shipped and are available now.
Sensoria also announced that it has reached a technology licensing agreement with Intel to incorporate Intel's Xscale technology in Sensoria's mesh communications devices. Sensoria worked closely with Intel in the development of the EnRoute400.
The EnRoute400 is based on Sensoria's WirelessFabric mesh communications software, a radio-independent wireless networking software suite which enables each EnRoute400 to route and repeat network traffic creating a wireless virtual private network for peer-to-peer and peer-to-many communication. The EnRoute400 maximizes interoperability with other networks by supporting Internet Protocol (IP), multiple radios, and bridging to other networks.
In partnership with Exponent's military business unit, Sensoria has developed mesh communications for military deployments including Operation Enduring Freedom.
For more information, including white papers, see
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