Government Technology - April 2008 - (Page 12)

the last mile Group Publisher: EDITORIAL Editor: Associate Editors: DON PEARSON dpearson@govtech.com BY C HA D VA NDER VEEN TECHNOLOGY AND POLITICS EDITOR STEVE TOWNS stowns@govtech.com EMILY MONTANDON emontandon@govtech.com JESSICA JONES jjones@govtech.com MIRIAM JONES mjones@govtech.com KAREN STEWARTSON kstewartson@govtech.com JIM MCKAY jmckay@govtech.com CHAD VANDER VEEN cvanderveen@govtech.com ANDY OPSAHL aopsahl@govtech.com MATT WILLIAMS mwilliams@govtech.com CORTNEY TOWNS ctowns@govtech.com TOD NEWCOMBE tnewcombe@govtech.com MERRILL DOUGLAS, REID GOLDSBOROUGH, PATRICK MICHELS, EVELINA MOULDER, VICKI POWERS KELLY MARTINELLI kmartinelli@govtech.com CRYSTAL HOPSON chopson@govtech.com MICHELLE HAMM mhamm@govtech.com JOE COLOMBO jcolombo@govtech.com TOM MCKEITH tmckeith@govtech.com STEPHAN WIDMAIER swidm@govtech.com JOEI HEART jheart@govtech.com JUDE HANSEN jhansen@govtech.com Chief Copy Editor: Managing Editor: Justice and Public Safety Editor: Technology and Politics Editor: Features Editor: Staff Writer: Editorial Assistant: Contributing Editor: Contributing Writers: A Punch in the Interface was sitting at my desk recently, stupidly staring at an empty Word document. I’d been racking my brain for an hour (all part of the creative process, Boss) trying to come up with a good subject for this column. Soon I gave up, slumped over and held my head in my hands. I was staring at my keyboard — my mind almost blank. The only thought I had was trying to identify the countless bits of junk that had made their way between the keys. As I pondered how all that disgusting detritus got in there, I sensed an idea developing. Suddenly a question popped into my brain. Why are we still using keyboards? I us off the keyboard teat. Touchscreens, for example, have revolutionized many industries — from the movie theater box office to your local Burger King. The Apple iPhone is also a wonderful example of what can be achieved with some imagination, engineering and hundreds of millions of dollars. Other technologies that pledged to change our relationship with computers have failed to meet their potential. For example, highquality voice-to-text software for consumers is tough to come by. There are some well regarded products out there, but shouldn’t we be able to just tell our computers what we want to do by now? For a hilarious example DESIGN Creative Director: Graphic Designers: Illustrator: Production Director: Production Manager: Internet Director: PUBLISHING VP Strategic Accounts: VP Bus. Development: JON FYFFE jfyffe@govtech.com TIM KARNEY tkarney@govtech.com EAST PAM FYFFE pfyffe@govtech.com WEST, CENTRAL LESLIE HUNTER lhunter@govtech.com EAST SHELLEY BALLARD sballard@govtech.com WEST, CENTRAL KRISTA O’SULLIVAN kosullivan@govtech.com WEST, CENTRAL MELISSA CANO mcano@govtech.com EAST ERIN HUX ehux@govtech.com WEST, CENTRAL GLENN SWENSON gswenson@govtech.com SHANNON DURHAM sdurham@govtech.com SABRINA SHEWMAKE sshewmake@govtech.com ANDREA KLEINBARDT akleinbardt@govtech.com WHITNEY SWEET wsweet@govtech.com LANA HERRERA lherrera@govtech.com KARIN PRADO kprado@govtech.com STACEY TOLES stoles@govtech.com JIM MEYERS jmeyers@govtech.com VIKKI PALAZZARI vpalazzari@govtech.com PETER SIMEK psimek@govtech.com MICHELLE MROTEK mmrotek@govtech.com JULIE DEDEAUX jdedeaux@govtech.com GOSIA USTASZEWSKA subscriptions@govtech.com Sr. Director of Sales: Regional Sales Directors: Account Managers: There are some well regarded products out there, but shouldn’t we be able to just tell our computers what we want to do by now? The QWERTY concept has been around since the 1870s. Since then, the way we interface with typewriters, computers and mobile phones has remained largely unchanged. Indeed, many mobile phone makers call attention to the fact that their device features a standard, albeit tiny, keyboard. Of course, a few innovations, such as the mouse and the stylus have come along, but almost all of our devices still demand we type to accomplish a task. If you recall, back in the early and mid1990s, virtual reality (VR) was going to change the way we used computers. Soon, we were promised, we’d all don special VR goggles and manipulate technology with virtual hands. None of that really panned out, which is why I write this column on a cheap, unsanitary keyboard. There are a number of promising technologies out there that may one day wean APR_08 of a Microsoft voice recognition demonstration gone wrong, visit www.youtube.com/ watch?v=2Y_Jp6PxsSQ. Though Microsoft may struggle with voice recognition, the company is also responsible for the most impressive new interface I’ve ever seen. Microsoft Surface, a tabletop PC with no mouse or keyboard, takes touchscreen to a level many might wish it had been years ago. Surface is much more than tapping virtual buttons. The interface recognizes the touch of not only humans, but other machines as well. Place a digital camera on Surface and the computer recognizes the device, allowing users to create and explore with their fingertips. But it will be some time before technology like Surface makes its way to my desk. So if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got Doritos crumbs I need to pick out from under C, V, B, N, M and the space bar. Business Development Dir.: National Sales Administrator: Regional Sales Administrator: Dir. of Marketing: Dir. of Custom Events: Custom Events Manager: Custom Events Coordinator: Dir. of Custom Publications: Custom Publications Writer: Dir. of Web Products and Services: Web Services Manager: Proj. Manager, Web Products and Services: Web Advertising Manager: Subscription Coordinator: CORPORATE CEO: Executive VP: Executive VP: CAO: CFO: VP of Events: Marketing Director: DENNIS MCKENNA dmckenna@govtech.com DON PEARSON dpearson@govtech.com CATHILEA ROBINETT crobinet@centerdigitalgov.com LISA BERNARD lbernard@govtech.com PAUL HARNEY pharney@govtech.com ALAN COX acox@govtech.com DREW NOEL dnoel@govtech.com Government Technology is published by e.Republic Inc. Copyright 2008 by e.Republic Inc. All rights reserved. Government Technology is a registered trademark of e.Republic Inc. Opinions expressed by writers are not necessarily those of the publisher or editors. Article submissions should be sent to the attention of the Managing Editor. Reprints of all articles in this issue and past issues are available (500 minimum). Please direct inquiries to the YGS Group: Attn. Erik Eberz at (800) 290-5460 ext.150 or governmenttechnology@theygsgroup.com. Subscription Information: Requests for subscriptions may be directed to Circulation Director by phone or fax to the numbers below. You can also subscribe online at www.govtech.com. 100 Blue Ravine Rd. Folsom, CA 95630 Phone: (916) 932-1300 Fax: (916) 932-1470 www.govtech.com PRINTED IN THE USA 12 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Y_Jp6PxsSQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Y_Jp6PxsSQ http://www.govtech.com http://www.govtech.com http://www.govtech.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Government Technology - April 2008

Government Technology - April 2008 Contents Point of View Big Picture The Last Mile On the Scene Four Questions for... Freeze Frame How Safe Is Your Data? Easy Street Gadget Overload Indiana Overhaul First Person: A Better Bill Data Defense Strength in Numbers Public Storage Products Two Cents Spectrum Personal Computing signal:noise

Government Technology - April 2008

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