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BusinessWeek: February 12, 1996 |
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Bits & Bytes
AN ARMY MARCHES ON ITS DATA BANKS
What's unusual is that the recipient of the data controls the flow. One prototype uses three off-the-shelf components: a pocket pager, a ruggedized Apple Newton personal digital assistant, and a global positioning system receiver. Gobs of constantly updated information are entered into a central database, but people in the field can program the TASR to filter out unwanted data. Here's how the TASR would work: The soldier or driver sets it to receive information about what's happening within a 10-mile radius. But since the user is moving, what's within that radius will change. The GPS receiver will tell the TASR where it's located and will alter the data filtered out to reflect the new location. The Air Force, which is developing the system, could order thousands--at less than $5,000 a pop. The gizmo could be ready for use in Bosnia in three months for such things as minefield avoidance. If it's not rushed into production, the bidding may be a year off. Return to top   Return to top OH, WHAT A PRICEY WEB WE WEAVE IN CYBERSPACE, YOU CAN'T hear the cash registers ring--not yet, at least. That may be why one out of five companies now maintaining a presence on the Internet will pull the plug this year, predicts International Data Corp. (IDC) of Framingham, Mass. Pioneering companies that have gone a step further--by selling their goods and services on the Net's World Wide Web--are finding that it's tougher and costlier than they expected. A survey by IDC based on the experiences of 20 Webmeisters over a period of six months, including InternetMCI, Dell Computer, Barclays Bank, and Industry.Net, reveals that the average commercial Web site costs $1 million to set up and takes a year to launch. That's about four times as expensive and twice as long as senior executives at the companies had anticipated. Where are the hidden costs? Survey results show that the expense is not in installation and setup but in maintaining the site once it's up and running. And the biggest chunk of that--up to $800,000--is spent on paying the salaries of programmers and marketing specialists. By contrast, the hardware for a typical site costs about $200,000, says IDC. Even though actual sales have been slim, the early adopters represented in the survey remain bullish about their forays into electronic commerce. Dell Computer Corp., for instance, has sold $15 million worth of equipment since March. Says Dell manager Ken Hill: "The return on investment we're building on the Internet is not based on some mathematical equation. We want to make doing business with us easier." Ka-ching. Return to top PRESTO! YOUR HOME PAGE IS UPDATED NOW THAT YOU HAVE A HOME page on the Internet, how do you manage to keep it continuously up-to-date--especially if you wish to provide such detailed information as stock prices, airfares, or changes to a parts catalog? After all, entering fresh information daily, weekly, or monthly can be nearly as time-consuming as building the original pages. THISoftware Co. has an answer. The Houston outfit devised its WebSite Maker with a database, Microsoft Corp.'s FoxPro, at its core. The company says that the Windows-based program, which is priced at around $50, will be in stores by March. It lets novices build their Web pages by filling out a template that draws on the software's database to generate a picture-perfect home page. For businesses, a $120 professional version called WebSite Director lets programmers put the database to more sophisticated uses, such as having the price or catalog portion of the home page automatically updated via network downloads or by joining with outside databases. Return to top | |
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WILL LOTUS GET THE JUMP ON JAVA? WHILE SUN MICROSYSTEMS INC.'S JAVA PROGRAMMING language has the digerati buzzing, Lotus Development Corp. may beat Sun to market with applets, or limited-use programs, based on Microsoft Corp. technology. The stripped-down spreadsheet and graphics programs will appear by June. Java, which has been widely adopted by Lotus' parent IBM, will figure in later versions of the Lotus applet suite. On Jan. 22, company officials gave customers a preview, performing simple tasks with the applets and showing how they can be launched quickly from within a program--say, word processing--without requiring users to exit, then develop a chart in a different program, and paste it back into the document they are working on. Lotus will price the applets aggressively: $49 will buy a "starter pack," including spreadsheet and graphics programs, while volume buyers will pay $19--or even get programs for free. Return to top |
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