Hot stuff

What's hot this summer besides feature-rich PCs and network storage solutions? Here's what some government and industry executives had to say.

Information assurance and security: "A trusted business environment and making sure records are protected is really, really important" for agencies, said Al Edmonds, president of Electronic Data Systems Corp.'s Federal Government Information Solutions. "A solution without security built in is not a solution at all. It has become a way of life."

Remote access: Joel Lipkin, senior vice president of sales and customer support at GTSI Corp., said Tachyon Inc.'s solutions, which include two-way Internet access via satellite, have been generating great interest from agency officials who want high-speed Internet access in remote locations and areas where there's a long lead time in getting T1 lines set up.

Wireless connections: "Wireless is very hot, in vir.tually any application," said Gary Krump, deputy assistant secretary for acquisition and materiel management at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Handheld computers "are becoming very desirable, although there are some security concerns that are having to be dealt with. But I'd expect to see many more of those purchased in the very near future." And industry has taken notice. "It's a way of life," Edmonds said. Users "want the same capabilities in their vehicle, on the train or on the golf course" that they have at the office. "Doing things away from the office and working from home this workforce is determined to be connected 24 by 7."

New processors: Alan Lawrence, manager of strategic programs at Hewlett-Packard Co., said there's been a lot of government interest in the company's products based on Intel Corp.'s Itanium family of 64-bit processors. "Normally, there's six to 12 months of tire-kicking, but this is moving along much faster than that. We have received orders already" for projects agencies plan to start next year.