Desktop Software Evaluations and Future Directions to Be Briefed 8 May, Legislatively Mandated Standards Needed

    WASHINGTON, April 19 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Claudia Porter,
 Principal Architect/Engineer and Project Lead for the Open Source Automated
 Link Analysis Tool (OSALAT) recently developed by Austin Info Systems (AIS),
 "The greatest obstacle to integrating various desktop software functionalities
 is a combination of content labeling, where XML appears to be a promising
 solution, and transparent Application Program Interfaces (API), essential if
 we are to achieve 'plug and play' functionality between disparate third party
 softwares. An industry commitment, perhaps mandated by legislation, to stable
 transparent APIs, is essential to optimizing desktop intelligence software."
     On 8 May 2001, in Washington, D.C., Porter will be one of several experts
 from the information industry briefing a conference of international
 government intelligence professionals looking at future investments in open
 source intelligence tools and related content sources.  Her presentation will
 evaluate all major desktop intelligence analysis softwares.  The event is open
 to the public for additional registrations.
     Robert Steele, author of the best-selling intelligence reference book, ON
 INTELLIGENCE: Spies and Secrecy in an Open World (AFCEA, 2000), strongly
 endorses Porter's view.  "In 1985 bright people at CIA identified eighteen
 desktop software functionalities needed by government as well as business
 intelligence analysts-from desktop publishing and collaborative work tools to
 integrated geospatial and data visualization tools, modeling and simulation,
 structured argument analysis, automated clustering and linking, statistical
 analysis to reveal anomalies, detection of change, automated foreign language
 translations, and multimedia data conversion-CIA published the specifications
 openly.  Today, fifteen years later, no progress has been made for the simple
 reason that Microsoft, among others, has been allowed to constantly mutate,
 migrate, and conceal its APIs.  Until there is an API standard that is open
 and stable, desktop software will continue to be fragmented and unproductive."
     The international government intelligence professionals will also
 celebrate the recent creation of two open source intelligence working groups,
 one within the U.S. military and one within the European political-military
 community.  Both working groups will be urged to press for legislated
 standards so desktop software can be easily integrated without requiring
 expensive configuration management.
     Information on the conference is at http://www.oss.net/OSS01 , by sending
 email to oss01@oss.net, faxing 703-242-1711, or by calling 703-242-1700.
 
 

SOURCE  Open Source Solutions, Inc.

    WASHINGTON, April 19 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Claudia Porter,
 Principal Architect/Engineer and Project Lead for the Open Source Automated
 Link Analysis Tool (OSALAT) recently developed by Austin Info Systems (AIS),
 "The greatest obstacle to integrating various desktop software functionalities
 is a combination of content labeling, where XML appears to be a promising
 solution, and transparent Application Program Interfaces (API), essential if
 we are to achieve 'plug and play' functionality between disparate third party
 softwares. An industry commitment, perhaps mandated by legislation, to stable
 transparent APIs, is essential to optimizing desktop intelligence software."
     On 8 May 2001, in Washington, D.C., Porter will be one of several experts
 from the information industry briefing a conference of international
 government intelligence professionals looking at future investments in open
 source intelligence tools and related content sources.  Her presentation will
 evaluate all major desktop intelligence analysis softwares.  The event is open
 to the public for additional registrations.
     Robert Steele, author of the best-selling intelligence reference book, ON
 INTELLIGENCE: Spies and Secrecy in an Open World (AFCEA, 2000), strongly
 endorses Porter's view.  "In 1985 bright people at CIA identified eighteen
 desktop software functionalities needed by government as well as business
 intelligence analysts-from desktop publishing and collaborative work tools to
 integrated geospatial and data visualization tools, modeling and simulation,
 structured argument analysis, automated clustering and linking, statistical
 analysis to reveal anomalies, detection of change, automated foreign language
 translations, and multimedia data conversion-CIA published the specifications
 openly.  Today, fifteen years later, no progress has been made for the simple
 reason that Microsoft, among others, has been allowed to constantly mutate,
 migrate, and conceal its APIs.  Until there is an API standard that is open
 and stable, desktop software will continue to be fragmented and unproductive."
     The international government intelligence professionals will also
 celebrate the recent creation of two open source intelligence working groups,
 one within the U.S. military and one within the European political-military
 community.  Both working groups will be urged to press for legislated
 standards so desktop software can be easily integrated without requiring
 expensive configuration management.
     Information on the conference is at http://www.oss.net/OSS01 , by sending
 email to oss01@oss.net, faxing 703-242-1711, or by calling 703-242-1700.
 
 SOURCE  Open Source Solutions, Inc.