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I think it may be time to broaden my view of the accepted correct spelling for certain modern English words. My first indication was reading the recent announcement by Tony Long, Copy Chief for Wired News, that they will no longer be capitalizing the “I” in “internet.” Likewise, they chose to de-capitalize “web” and “net.” Following this, I read a thread of debates on various listserv message boards regarding this decision. That lead me to look up a few words on Dictionary.com using all the various spellings. I discovered any of them are now acceptable, although the more popular versions are gaining in usage.

You won’t be wrong using “Internet” or “internet,” although some background provides insight from a time prior to 1990, the year the original ARPANET pipes were shut down (NSFNet became the backbone in 1986). In those earlier days, there were other contenders/internets, but there was only one “Internet” with a capital “I.” Today, there is no longer any competition.

Also, “Web site,” “web site,” or “website” are all correct, but “website” has become the most popular usage by far for a term derived from World Wide Web (always capitalized). The reason is thought to be similar to what is happening with other technological expressions when they become the more popular usage. So, “email,” “e-mail,” and “E-mail” will all be considered correct spelling for electronic mail.

All this is not to say there is anything wrong with sticking to a purist’s version of spelling “Internet,” “Web site,” or “e-mail.” It just may be considered a little old-fashioned, which shows keeping up with the changing spelling of modern technological words is as difficult as keeping up with the evolution of the English language itself.

Articles in this Fall 2004 issue of TMIS eNewsletter cover some new developments in the area of wireless technology. Some major security issues have been resolved with the IEEE’s approval of the 802.11i Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) extension to the 802.11 wireless LAN standard. New improvements to wireless products will now include the Advanced Encryption Standard, peer-to-peer communications security, and preauthentication of users for fast, secure roaming.

Another important area of needed improvement is in Wi-Fi-to-cellular roaming agreements between telecom companies and ISPs. The goal is to avoid dropped calls and dead areas by allowing the cellular radio signals to converge with or switch over to IP-based voice over Wi-Fi.

Other news articles provide the latest efficiency reports from top research firms concerning the areas of e-government, the IT industry, and outsourcing trends. There is also an interesting report on defining what constitutes a “world-class” company in contrast to a “median company,” and why the distinction is increasingly critical in today’s global economy.

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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Major Wireless and ISP Providers Announce Wi-Fi Roaming Pact
Overland Park, Kansas

Sprint and SBC Communications Inc. today announced a reciprocal Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) Internet service roaming agreement that will provide their customers access to each other's public Wi-Fi networks. Under the agreement, customers will be able to roam on the Wi-Fi networks of each company using their existing user ID's and passwords. Service charges will be billed according to the customers' current billing agreements.
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Regulation of Operator Obligations and Wireless Interconnection Issues Dominate Global Agendas
Boston, Massachussetts

According to the Yankee Group's new Global Wireless Interconnect Regulatory Dashboard, national regulators across the globe are applying significantly varied approaches to the regulation of operator obligations and wireless interconnection rate setting. "Wireless interconnection issues now dominate both regulatory agendas and industry lobbying efforts around the world," says Dianne Northfield, Global Regulatory Strategies program manager. "Interconnection between wireless operators, or between wireless and fixed network operators, is central to the development of competitive mobile markets. Regulators are dictating requirements on operator agreements that were previously commercially negotiated. This creates enormous operator anxiety about operational and cost implications of different interconnection carrier compensation models."
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VoWi-Fi: Another Part of the WiFi-to-Cellular Roaming Solution
Oyster Bay, New York

Wireless LAN switch vendors once promoted their solutions as ways to centralize management of wireless LAN, to manage security, spectrum, access points and users. More recently, they have reinvented themselves as purveyors of VoWi-Fi platforms, according to ABI Research Senior Analyst, Phil Solis. "Using these vendors' technologies," he says, "you can allow users to connect automatically to access points experiencing lower traffic." Such solutions also help users achieve various kinds of Quality of Service. As users move from place to place, they can also better enable handoffs and roaming, by pre-authenticating them on the next access point. "In one sense it's an opportunity for such switch vendors to differentiate themselves," adds Solis, "but so many of them are now taking up this opportunity that the question really becomes, 'who does it better?'"
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D-Link Announces Business-Class 802.11g Wireless Access Point With Integrated PoE and 802.11i Security Support
Fountain Valley, California

D-Link, the global leader in the design and development of connectivity and communications technologies, today introduced a new D-Link AirPremier Access Point (DWL-2200AP), a business-class 802.11g AP that delivers instant Power over Ethernet (PoE) for remote placements where power outlets are not within reach. Speed enhancing options and robust security and management feature sets round out the new AP. With robust management capability, the D-Link AirPremier Access Point complies with 802.1x user-based authentication and supports WPA, AES encryption, as well as the upcoming 802.11i security standard.
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E-Government Success Likely to Fuel More, Better, Broader Online Government Services, Especially Transactions
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Users of online government services tend to be highly likely to return to the sites they use and to recommend them to others, according to an analysis of findings from the special e-government version of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). The latest Index shows a significant improvement in the quality of e-government over the past nine months, but continues to show a very wide disparity among agencies and types of sites in terms of how well they deliver overall user satisfaction.
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Market Metrics Measure IT Spending Expectations and Foreshadow Future IT Growth
Framingham, Massachussetts

Market intelligence and advisory firm, IDC, has announced the launch of FutureScan, a set of market metrics that measure supply and demand in the IT industry based on leading indicators and customer surveys. Values reflect expectations of future growth, with an index value of 1000 indicating zero growth and each 10 points representing roughly 1% of expected growth or contraction. For September, the FutureScan Buyer Intent is 1085 with the Market Indicators at 1032.
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State & Local E-Government Spending to Double by 2008; Waning Spending Rebound Predicted in 2005
Reston, Virginia

The state and local market for e-government products and services will reverse its dramatically declining growth trend in 2005 and more than double 2004 spending levels by 2008, according to a report released today by INPUT, the leading provider of government market intelligence. Fueled by integration and consolidation of government-to-government back-end systems, this growth will be preceded by two years of measured compound annual growth rate of 8 percent, accelerating rapidly in 2006 and 2007.
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Critical Performance Measures Show Gap Between World-Class and Median Continues to Widen
Atlanta, Georgia

The gap between world-class performers and median companies continues to widen across a range of critical performance measures including costs and staffing, according to 2004 Book of Numbers research into world-class performance from The Hackett Group, a business advisory firm and an Answerthink company. This gap should be seen as a potential danger sign for companies that allow themselves to lag behind, according to Hackett.
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Eighty Percent of Organizations to Outsource Operations by 2005
Stamford, Connecticutt

Eighty percent of organizations will outsource at least one function by 2005, according to research by META Group, Inc., a leading provider of information technology (IT) research, advisory services, and strategic consulting. While 70% of that group will renew their outsourcing contracts, many will reduce both the scope and the duration of the original agreement.
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Free SMILE Labels Help Stamp out Rudeness
St. Louis, Missouri

To help stamp out rudeness, Telephone Doctor, an international customer service training company, is offering FREE SMILE labels. Nancy Friedman, President of Telephone Doctor, reminds us: "It's difficult to be rude when you're smiling."
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