Technology

• NSA Launches New Digital Recruiting Tools

  The National Security Agency has launched two new digital communications efforts. Both are designed to educate prospective employees on career opportunities with NSA. It\'s part of an overall push to recruit workers to support NSA\'s cyber security initiatives. NSA officials anticipate this year will see the agency\'s largest hiring effort of cybersecurity workers to date. They\'ve targeted communications tools they hope will appeal to today\'s tech-savvy generation. The NSA Career Links Smartphone application is available for download through the iTunes platform. Career Links delivers real-time job updates directly to a user\'s iPhone. This includes information about available jobs, career fairs, and Agency news. NSA is also employing Smartphone tagging on many of its printed recruitment advertisements. Users with Smartphones equipped with Android or other operating systems can scan the tags and launch a video related to the ad.

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• New Fiber-Optic Cables Offer Upgrade for Warplanes

  Military aircraft are typically burdened with miles of heavily shielded copper wire cables that connect many types of components. The cabling is often heavy, yet fragile, subject to deterioration, as well as expensive. More modern aircraft employ multimode digital fiber-optic cables. A network program created by DARPA - the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency - aims to replace current aircraft wiring with a single-mode fiber-optic network, where each fiber can carry multiple digital and analog signals. The program will develop prototype photonic transmitters and receivers - and will support advanced electronic warfare, radar and communications systems. Such systems have the potential to save the Defense Department billions of dollars over the lifecycle of an aircraft fleet. Prototype digital transmitters are designed to support tuning over 32 wavelength channels, each carrying 10 gigabit-per-second data rates.

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• IRS Expands E-File Program

  The Internal Revenue Service has opened its 21st season of electronic filing. The agency has sent reminders to taxpayers saying e-file remains the best way to get fast refunds and ensure accurate tax returns, particularly following several changes in the tax law. A number of tax deductions and credits for were extended for 2011 and 2012. To date, the IRS says it\'s processed over one-billion returns through e-files. In 2010, nearly 100 million people - or 70-percent of taxpayers - used IRS e-file. IRS commissioners anticipate that more tax return preparers will be using e-file this year. They anticipate starting to process tax returns impacted by December\'s tax law changes by mid-February. Even with the delay, the IRS says e-file remains the fastest option. It will take less than two weeks to process an e-filed return, but as many as four to six weeks to process a paper return.

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• Justice offers tips for transitioning to the cloud

  When the Recovery Act passed, the Justice Department knew it would need to upgrade its IT infrastructure to keep up with the demand that was about to be placed on its systems. “We knew we could not support the transactions that would hit us, so we had to look at a solution,” said Angel Santa, [...]

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• VTC Opens New Hailing Channels Between Congress and Military Field Commanders

  Amidst all the other turbulence on Capitol Hill last year, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) was renovating - on a scale not seen in over fifty years. That project brought two hearing rooms into the twenty-first century, replacing bare-bones 1960-vintage microphones and equipment with state-of-the-art audio and video systems. This new gear provided the Committee with greatly-improved capability to broadcast hearings and markups, and added new powerful features as well. The new setup includes multi-function touch screens for members at their places on the dais, which lets them follow Floor action, quickly access PowerPoint, memos and documents presented during hearings, get messages, and pull up additional reference materials. But the biggest change is the new video teleconferencing built into the system. \"Tandberg CODEC gear with multipoint capabilities can be routed to these Committee rooms as required. The House of Representatives\' Recording Studio coordinates all our inbound and outbound broadcast and teleconference requirements ,\" explained a senior committee staffer who spoke with us on background. \"That now allows HASC Members to speak directly with forward-deployed military units or commanders as the situation might require.\" Staff are confident that use of this VTC capability will increase as a complement to Congressional Delegation (CODEL) field trips. \"On a VTC, you can talk to a few people and a couple of field commanders. When members go on CODELS, they talk to hundreds of people, from generals to field specialists. VTC can\'t replace that spontaneous interaction, but it does mean that, in an urgent situation or on very short notice, the members can speak face-to-face with forward-deployed commanders who might not otherwise be easily accessible, or are too far away to travel easily and quickly to Capitol Hill.\" All 62 committee members can access the system at once, but it can also be used by just one or two at time. \"The members are still getting used to new technologies, but with every election cycle the HASC - members as well as staff -- get more comfortable with using these new capabilities.\"

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• What is the government’s role in cloud computing?

  The Commerce Department and the National Institute of Standards and Technology are trying to figure out what the federal government’s role in cloud computing should be. The agencies are hosting a panel discussion Tuesday with industry leaders and experts from academia to discuss this as well as other national needs. A media advisory from the [...]

  Technology

  January 23, 2011
• HHS driving electronic health record standards

  The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology wants to make exchanging electronic health records as easy as sending an e-mail.

  All News

  January 21, 2011
• City of Copenhagen shares info with idea map

  The city of Copenhagen\'s Tine Malm shares how the idea map allows citizens to offers suggestions to the local government.

  Technology

  January 21, 2011
• Report: Social network threats taken lightly

  The survey finds the lack of concern is even more troubling because of a more than 20 percent hike in attacks from 2009.

  Technology

  January 21, 2011
• Army releases social media handbook

  The handbook offers tips to maintain security while online.

  Defense

  January 21, 2011
• Army sees smart phones as force multipliers

  The smart phone is about to go from practical to tactical. We learn more from Lt. Gen. Michael Vane, director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center.

  Federal Drive

  January 21, 2011
• BAE secures F-35 software contract

  BAE Systems has signed a $3.8 million contract to continue supplying the secure operating system that runs the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter\'s mission-planning software.

  Federal Drive

  January 21, 2011
• HHS promotes simpler e-health record exchanges

  The Office of National Coordinator for Health IT will spend the next year making it easier for health care providers to share patient data. Data sharing and interoperability are one of four major barriers the federal government is helping doctors and hospitals overcome.

  Technology

  January 21, 2011
• 6 ways to fail in the cloud

  As more and more federal agencies and companies in the private sector ramp up their use of both private and public clouds, the Fed Cloud Blog thought it would be interesting to look at potential pitfalls they should try to avoid. Lucky for us, Information Week has put together a list of ways companies can [...]

  Technology

  January 20, 2011