Stories by Computerworld Staff

Glossary

Authentication: Confirming the identity of a user requesting system access.

Briefs

Siebel Systems Inc. in San Mateo, California, this week announced that it will acquire OpenSite Technologies Inc., a Research Triangle Park, North Carolina-based maker of online auction software. The deal, which will involve a stock swap estimated at $444 million, will add dynamic pricing capabilities to Siebel's e-commerce software offerings, the company said in a statement. Siebel makes software that manages and automates companies' sales, customer relations and call center operations.

Briefs: Chiquita to Upgrade Infrastructure

Chiquita Brands International Inc. in Cincinnati will upgrade its information technology infrastructure at nine sites worldwide as part of its global expansion. The IT upgrade is part of an efficiency drive by the fruit and vegetable producer and distributor, which last year cut more than 200 jobs and in March reorganized its operations, for an estimated annual savings of $20 million.

Briefs: System Problems Spur Investigation

The regulatory arm of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) is investigating Banc One Capital Markets Inc. for possible violations resulting from systems integration problems that surfaced from the 1998 merger of Banc One Corp. in Columbus, Ohio, and First Chicago NBD Corp.

Recently Launched B-to-B Exchanges

Food Distributors International (FDI) in Falls Church, Virginia, and the Food Marketing Institute in Washington, whose members conduct $800 million in annual business, announced last week that they are teaming up to build a business-to-business Internet exchange. The buying exchange will let members pool their purchasing power to get lower prices on nonconsumer goods such as office supplies, said an FDI spokesman, who added that there will be an "auction component" to that service.

Briefs: Service Provider Marketplace Debuts

Business-to-business Internet service provider NewMediary.com Inc. last week launched an online marketplace (www.newmediary.com) dedicated to Internet-related services - from Web site design, hosting and e-commerce providers to Web-savvy law firms, public relations agencies and consultants. Access to Newtonville, Massachusetts-based NewMediary.com's site and request for proposal (RFP) service is free to users. Vendors also have free access to the Web site and can create a basic vendor profile. They can purchase vendor directory packages to respond to buyer-posted RFPs and add the information to their company profiles.

News Briefs: High-Tech vs. Visa Bill

Some high-tech lobbying groups are opposing a bill introduced last week by U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) that would lift the H-1B visa cap. Harris Miller, president of the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), said the bill is weighed down by "a whole lot of little anchors" that could thwart efforts to increase the 115,000-visa cap, including a provision that would tie additional visas to completion of delayed U.S. Department of Labor immigration regulations. The ITAA is supporting legislation that would increase the cap during the next several years to 200,000.

Glossary

Batch file: A file of commands that can be configured to run automatically at a specific time or under certain conditions.

News Briefs: Generation D Is Born

MCI WorldCom Inc. in Clinton, Mississippi, announced last week that it's pooling all of its Web activities under the name Generation D (for digital). The company said it would add another 12 data centers in the coming months and promote Web site and application-hosting services for large and small businesses.

Briefs

Motorola Corp., LM Ericsson Telephone Co. and Nokia Corp. last week announced a joint project to create an open industry framework for secure, mobile electronic transactions. The companies said the Mobile Electronics Transactions framework, which is based on existing and emerging global technologies, will be to commerce security what the Wireless Application Protocol is to the Internet.

Briefs

Poor communication with information technology staff was cited as the most common mistake made by companies in a study conductedby Menlo Park, California-based RHI Consulting Inc.

Briefs

EMC Corp. in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, Cisco Systems Inc. in San Jose and Oracle Corp. have announced they are integrating EMC's storage technology, Cisco's network technology and Oracle's database technology into suites to simplify and accelerate electronic-business infrastructure implementation. Product blueprints for the suites will be available at www.eECOstructure.com.

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