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HEADLINES
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MAY
26 - MAY 31, 2004
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East Grand Rapids: Paperless
efforts pay off with school district's new online look
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Clawson: Clawson
website recognized as outstanding
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Battle Creek: City
removes e-mail addresses from Web site
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Menominee Township:
Plan to put property information online raises concerns
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Holland: BPW
restructuring OK'd as city nears fiber-optic crossroads
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Battle Creek: City
hopes Web will cut costs and improve access
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Tecumseh: Tecumseh
tech courses begin
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Flint: Physician's
medical records program draws attention
JUNE
1 - JUNE 7, 2004
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Iosco County: Computers
will help deputies fight crime
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Kentwood: East
Kentwood biology class opts for computer program, saves
frogs
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Cedar Springs: Schools
could get life-saving devices if they take the ads
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Livingston County:
Let's light up Livingston County (opinion)
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Saginaw: Physicians
test new technique in bus
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Rose City: Wireless
network brings technology to rural Michigan
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Woodhaven: Cellphone
users face strict policy
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Oakland County: Web
site to list test results
ANNOUNCEMENT
Cyber-state
has released the results of the 2004 statewide technology
survey
This survey is the fifth in a series developed and
conducted by Public Sector Consultants. Previous surveys
were conducted in 2002, 2001, 1999, and 1998. Results reveal
Internet use and computer ownership are similar to 18 months
ago, but ownership remains heavily influenced by race,
presence of children in the home, and educational
attainment. Most respondents report at least one cellular
phone in the household (73 percent), an increase of 10
percent from the 2002 survey. To view other major findings
and the content of the full report, visit www.cyber-state.org
or www.pscinc.com.
The report is accessible from the home page of both sites.
Related
stories:
* Landlines
losing ground to cell phones in Michigan (Detroit Free
Press)
* Exclusive
cell phone use on the rise (Ann Arbor News)
* Computer
Ownership In Michigan Similar to 18 Months Ago, But Cell
Phone Use Up To 73 Percent of the Population (MITechNews)
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cyber-state.org
3520
Green Court, Suite 300
Ann
Arbor, MI 48105-1579
phone:
(734) 302-4755
fax:
(734) 302-4996
Cyber-state.org,
a member of the Altarum family, is a non-profit, nonpartisan
organization that is committed to ensuring that all Michigan
residents are able to benefit from information technology
(IT). One of our priorities is to assist state and local
policymakers as a resource for their creation and
deliberation of IT policy. With these email news briefings,
we hope to increase the awareness of the importance of
information technology for Michigan's local
governments, schools, health care, nonprofits, and the
economy as a whole.
OTHER
IT NEWS SOURCES
*
Detroit
Free Press / tech
*
Detroit
Tech News
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Michigan CrainTech
*
Great
Lakes IT Report
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Michigan
Technology News
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Federal
Computer Week
*
Government
Computer News
*
Government
Technology
*
New York Times: Technology
*
Washtech.com
(Washington Post)
*
eGovernment
Resource Centre
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MAY
26 2004
* East Grand Rapids: Paperless
efforts pay off with school district's new online look
An effort by local schools to go paperless through methods
including an overhauled Web site is meeting with success,
according to district leaders. Doug Jenkins, director of
technology for East Grand Rapids Public Schools, gave a
report to the Board of Education Monday night on the
paperless initiative, which was designed to save money while
maintaining a high level of communication with parents and
the community. Jenkins said his department is continuing to
make strides in helping the district go paperless, including
the transition of Board of Education members to using
laptops during meetings and receiving agenda items via
email.
Source:
Advance Newspapers, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-0/108558840120460.xml?advancenewspapers?NEC
MAY
27 2004
* Clawson: Clawson website
recognized as outstanding
SchoolCenter, a company that develops website programming
used by schools across the nation, has recognized the
Clawson Public School's website as an Outstanding Site
Winner. 'SchoolCenter has allowed our teachers to build
websites that not only provide information but are exciting
interactive tools for students and parents alike,' said
Technology Director Tina Hayes.
Source: Clawson Mirror, http://www.hometownlife.net/berkley/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=35073
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Battle Creek: City removes e-mail addresses from Web
site
The city was being inundated with junk e-mails, commonly
referred to as spam, so officials decided to remove nearly
all e-mail addresses from the city Web site in order to
alleviate the problem. The move was made a couple of months
ago, but the addresses remain absent from the site while Dan
Ryan, Battle Creek's chief information officer, is trying to
figure out a way to repost them in such a way to foil
spammers who use software to harvest e-mail addresses from
Web sites. While most e-mail addresses have been pulled --
city commissioners still have their addresses listed --
telephone numbers for city departments still are available
on the site.
Source: Battle Creek Enquirer, http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/news/stories/20040527/localnews/510363.html
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Menominee Township: Plan to put property information
online raises concerns
A plan to make property information available
online drew questions Wednesday from some township
residents. Township officials want to create a Web site that
would make such information available, along with additional
information about the municipality and links to related
sites. Jill Schwanz of Great Lakes Valuation Service, who
handles township assessment duties, sees the online access
as a real advantage, especially since township offices are
not open 8 hours a day, five days a week. The information is
already available to anyone under Freedom of Information
laws.
Source:
Eagle Herald, http://test.eagleherald.com/ntwp0527.asp
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Holland: BPW restructuring OK'd as city nears
fiber-optic crossroads
More than a decade ago, the city of Holland was on
the cutting edge of technology when its launched a publicly
owned fiber-optic system. But the high-speed communication
system has been anything but fast when it comes to growth.
'We haven't been able to offer the customers the things we
wanted to,' Councilman Bob Vande Vusse said. The Holland
City Council approved a restructuring plan Wednesday that
would consolidate the fiber-optic system with its Electric
Transmission and Distribution utility.
Source: Grand Rapids Press, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-4/1085669354282260.xml?grpress?NELK
MAY
29 2004
* Battle Creek: City hopes Web
will cut costs and improve access
With the Battle Creek city budget continuing to be tight,
any cost savings are appreciated by public officials. That
goes double for a cost-cutting maneuver that improves public
access to government information. The recent addition of
full City Commission agenda packets to the city's Web site
fits both criteria. 'I think if we can improve the
availability of information to the public and save money in
the process we ought to,' said City Manager Wayne Wiley. 'If
we can make fewer copies we can use less paper, ink and save
some wear and tear on our copy machines.'
Source: Battle Creek Enquirer, http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/news/stories/20040529/localnews/527388.html
MAY
30 2004
* Tecumseh: Tecumseh tech
courses begin
This summer, the Tecumseh schools are starting a new series
of technology courses that can lead a student to careers in
computer networking, computer maintenance, Web site design
or computer repair. The Tecumseh Tech program will start
with a four-week summer school program that will prepare
students to become 'student technical assistants' for the
coming school year. The entire range of courses is part of
the high school business curriculum. 'It's an opportunity
for kids to really do some meaningful activities designed to
prepare them for the work world that doesn't yet exist,'
Superintendent Todd Bingaman said.
Source: Lenawee Connection, http://www.lenconnect.com/articles/2004/05/30/news/news04.txt;
Related Story: Tecumseh Herald, http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11848115&BRD=2078&PAG=461&dept_id=380356&rfi=8
MAY
31 2004
* Flint: Physician's medical
records program draws attention
Dr. Ayman Haidar never writes anything down. Instead,
he uses his tablet PC to take notes during exams and write
prescriptions, using EMR, the new electronic medical records
program he developed about three years ago when he started
his practice at Genesee Urgent Care Clinic. When they opened
the clinic in 2001, they were 90 percent paperless. Today,
with the help of this new program, no paper is used. Office
Manager Margaret Osborn said Haidar's software is simple and
efficient. 'It's much more convenient,' she said. 'If you go
to a filing cabinet, that takes a lot of time and that has
to be in order, this is so much quicker.' The program also
adds an element of safety to prescriptions since pharmacists
no longer have to decipher his handwriting.
Source: Flint Journal, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-21/108601713333790.xml?fljournal?NEF
JUNE
1 2004
* Iosco County: Computers will
help deputies fight crime
After decades of filing prints the old-fashioned
way, the Iosco County Sheriff's Department is installing a
new computer scanning machine that will record fingerprints
electronically. Sheriff's departments in Arenac and Ogemaw
counties also are getting the new scanning machines this
spring, Iosco Sheriff Michael Fischer said. Fischer said
Wednesday that the new 'live scan' fingerprinting device
reduces the chance of errors because the machine rejects any
prints that aren't clearly scanned. The computer also helps
law enforcement because it is connected to a central
fingerprint filing system maintained in Lansing by the
Michigan State Police.
Source: Bay City Times, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-1/108610296264720.xml?bctimes?NENE
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Kentwood: East Kentwood biology class opts for
computer program, saves frogs
A few more frogs can continue hopping now that
biology students at East Kentwood High School are using a
computer program to perform dissections. The interactive
tool guides each student through a dissection, giving them a
digital scalpel to learn how and where to cut and what to
remove, and allows them to fix their mistakes. 'The students
are probably learning more because it's more focused on
content, rather than the ick' factor,' said biology teacher
Stephanie Stevenson.
Source: Advance Newspapers, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1086283094124150.xml?advancenewspapers?NEK
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Cedar Springs: Schools could get life-saving devices
if they take the ads
District officials are torn over whether to accept an offer
of free defibrillators in return for daily access to the
eyes and ears of more than 3,000 students. Emergency Medical
Systems Inc. has asked the district to sign on for a
five-year program that would put as many as 12 automated
external defibrillators in campus buildings -- and the
company would pay Cedar Springs $900 per machine per year to
do it. The catch is that the defibrillators come enclosed in
an 'emergency medical station' that includes an 18-inch
monitor for showing 20,400 15-second video and audio ads
each month.
Source: Grand Rapids Press, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-15/108610137113970.xml?grpress?NEG
JUNE
2 2004
* Livingston County: Let's
light up Livingston County (opinion)
Should someone be able to bring together the right
parties - including our county government - a wireless
environment throughout Livingston County could become a
reality. What an amazing feat that would be: creating a
local wireless network serving residents, county
municipalities and school districts alike with the aim of
making information easier to obtain and the quality of life
here better. There could be a community bulletin board
created, sort of like the always-interesting Livingston
Online of the past. There could be several levels of billing
and service, with a lower price for county residents and a
higher one for visiting business people. It could be a way
to provide Internet access to county homes where such an
expense would be a budget-buster.
Source: Daily Press and Argus, http://www.hometownlife.net/berkley/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=35582
JUNE
3 2004
* Saginaw: Physicians test new
technique in bus
Inside a big blue bus parked Wednesday at the Michigan
CardioVascular Institute in Saginaw, doctors and technicians
practiced a new cardiac catheterization technique in a
virtual reality lab. It's part of a mobile training unit
that travels around the country with the computerized
simulation of the new FilterWire EX Embolic Protection
System made by Boston Scientific Corp. Only a few doctors in
mid-Michigan are using the actual filter device regularly on
patients, said Dr. William R. Felten, chief medical officer
of MCVI. The mobile trainer offers others a way to train in
a controlled environment, similar to a pilot in a mock
cockpit, he said.
Source: Saginaw News, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-11/1086274265104090.xml?sanews?NECN
JUNE
6 2004
* Rose City: Wireless network
brings technology to rural Michigan
From a farm in Ogemaw County outside the reach of cable TV
and cell phones, Glenn Wilson is bringing the information
age to the dirt roads and one-stoplight towns across
northern Lower Michigan. By giving businesses, homes and
schools electronic access to the same kinds of resources
that people in more developed areas take for granted,
Wilson’s company, M-33 Access, is opening the door to the
kind of economic growth the region has struggled to achieve
for decades. In fact, M-33 Access may be the only Internet
service provider in the country classified as an
“essential service” by the county government, on the
same level as police and paramedics. To promote expansion of
the network into dozens more communication-deprived towns,
the Michigan Broadband Development Authority recently
provided M-33 Access with a $1.3 million loan.
Source: Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com/2004/technology/0406/07/c01-174678.htm
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Woodhaven: Cellphone users face strict policy
City employees will have a harder time chatting on their
cellphones soon. The City Council recently approved a
stricter policy regarding the use of cellphones and other
electronic devices. The policy will become effective
tomorrow, according to City Administrator David Flaten.
There have been instances where employees have been seen
standing in the middle of the street talking on cellphones
when they should have been working, so the city adopted the
new policy, Mayor Karen Mazo said.
Source: The News-Herald, http://www.thenewsherald.com/stories/060604/loc_20040606033.shtml
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Oakland County: Web site to list test results
Sunscreen, flip-flops, large towel and sand pail
...The checklist before hitting the beach this summer should
include at least one more item: a look at the Oakland County
Health Division Web site. The Health Division will post
results of its annual summer beach testing program - which
starts Monday - on its Web site at www.co.oakland.mi.us/health.
Source: Oakland Press, http://theoaklandpress.com/stories/060604/loc_20040606041.shtml
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