I. What's New
A. IT Budgeting for Nonprofits
B. Virus information
II. Resources
A. MIT OpenCourseWare Pilot
B. Web Site Usability and Accessibility for Nonprofits
C. Discountech Ebase
D. National Science Foundation Grant
E. Broadcast Institutions, Community Values
F. Free Computers
G. New Online Community Building Tool
H. RED-Hat release
I. Historical note

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I. What's New
A. "IT Budgeting for Nonprofits"
Co-sponsored by TechFoundation & Teaming for Technology at United Way
of Southeastern Pennsylvania

Learn how to apply and develop IT budgeting best strategies and
practices:

- Understanding how to factor long-term costs and benefits into
technology decisions

- learning a step-by-step outline for developing a workable budget
for your agency

- explore the preparation of an IT budget that controls for costs but
expands the effectiveness of your agency's IT system

Speaker:
Peter Blau
President and CTO
IT Data

Date: 010/9/2002 09:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Location: Seven Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia
United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania

Who should attend?
All are welcome, but this presentation will be particularly useful
for board members, CEOs, COOs, CFOs, and other nonprofit executives.

What is the format for this event?
There will be a presentation, with time allotted for questions,
announcements, and shoptalk. Refreshments will be provided.

Do I need any technical expertise to benefit from attending this
series?
No. This is a non-technical presentation designed for professionals
who are experts in other aspects of nonprofit administration,
planning, and implementation.

How much does it cost to attend? It is absolutely free to T4T
members. The cost will be $20 for non-T4T members. Contact
teamtech@uwsepa.org for more information about how to become a member.

Do I need to make reservations?
Yes. Seating is limited. Please send an email to
techconnect@techfoundation.org, complete the online registration
http://techconnect.kintera.org/philadelphia or email
teamtech@uwsepa.org for a faxable or mailable form. Please include
your title, organization, and full contact information.

Any questions? Email techconnect@techfoundation.org.

B. Virus Information
There is a new virus "Bugbear" spreading through email and over
networks. To find out more about how it is transmitted and signs
your computer is infected visit
http://www.mcafee.com/anti-virus/viruses/bugbear/

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II. Resources
A. MIT OpenCourseWare Pilot
http://ocw.mit.edu/index.html/
MIT and the OpenCourseWare team are excited to share with you a first
sampling of course materials from MIT's Faculty. We invite educators
around the world to draw upon the materials for their own curricula,
and we encourage all learners to use the materials for self-study.

As you explore this pilot version of MIT OCW, we invite you to send
us your feedback. Your comments will help to ensure that future
editions of MIT OCW will be ever more useful.

B. Web Site Usability and Accessibility for Nonprofits Jakob Nielsen:
In this interview, the author, speaker, and Web design evangelist
discusses the importance of making Web sites that are easy for
everyone to use, and not just theoretically accessible. Learn some
lessons that will help your site be more usable:
http://www.techsoup.org/btc.cfm?
file=articlepage.cfm&ArticleId=412&topicid=5

C. Discountech now has EBASE
Ebase is available free from www.ebase.org, however this version
cannot be modified unless you own FileMaker Pro. Available on
Discountech are versions that include FileMaker Pro for approximately
160 dollars. See www.discountech.org for exact prices.

D. Broadcast Institutions, Community Values
http://shirky.com/writings/broadcast_and_community.html

E. National Science Foundation Grant
Information Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST)
ITEST is designed to increase the opportunities for students and
teachers to learn about, experience, and use information technologies
within the context of science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM), including Information Technology (IT) courses. It
is in direct response to the concern about shortages of technology
workers in the United States and builds on the earlier NSF program
for youth entitled After School Centers for Exploration and New
Discovery (ASCEND). Supported projects are intended to provide
opportunities for both school-age children and for teachers to build
the skills and knowledge needed to advance their study, and to
function and contribute in a technologically rich society.

ITEST has three components: (a) youth-based projects with strong
emphases on career and educational paths; (b) comprehensive projects
for students and teachers; and (c) Resource Center(s) that engage in
research related to funded projects, provide technical support and
have responsibilities for national dissemination of project models,
instructional materials, and best practices.

Preliminary deadline is October 17, 2002.

For more information, go to
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2002/nsf02147/nsf02147.htm

F: The Harmonious Volunteer Center is providing Free Computers,
Monitors, Printers to Nonprofits, Community Based Organizations, and
Day Care Centers.
The Free Give Away Days are: Thursday, October 3rd; Friday, October
4th; and Saturday, October 5th. The Times are: 10:00a.m. until
4:00p.m..

The Free Give Away Location is at: North Penn Civic Association
Community Center, 29th Street and Chalmers Avenue, Philadelphia, PA
19132

Contact persons: Irvin B. Shannon, Executive Director; Elease Fisher,
Outreach Specialist. Interested organizations should provide a copy
of their mission statement; or a letter of intent of usage. Copy of
501(c)3 if available.
See you on the date/s above - Spread The Word. Telephone (215) 227-
3622. Visit our Website Link: www.Guidestar.org
G. New Online Community Building Tool (Oct 10)
The National Community Building Network (NCBN) is offering community
builders a unique opportunity to learn about the newest and most
innovative tools for changing public policy at local, state, or
national level: The "Electronic Showcase of Jim Shultz's Democracy
Owners' Manual" will take place on Thursday October 10, 2002 at 12:00
PM Eastern. It will consist of an interactive presentation that can
be viewed from any computer with an internet connection and a
corresponding audio presentation available through a toll free
number. Jim Shultz is the executive director of The Democracy Center.
The Democracy Owners' Manual: A Practical Guide to Changing the World
is a unique, hands-on, guide for people who want to impact public
policy. It is also a one-of-a-kind text for courses in political
science, public health, social work, environmental studies, urban
studies, and other fields that deal with public policy. If you are
interested in participating in the "Electronic Showcase" please
contact Charles Fields of the NCBN staff at 510-663-6226, ext.303 or
charlesfields@ncbn.org. Space is limited so we are asking interested
participants to RSVP by Monday, October 7. Once you have RSVP'd, we
will send you specific instructions about how to access the video
portion of the presentation via the internet and the audio portion
via teleconference. You can use the "Electronic Showcase" as a local
community building event by inviting your colleagues to join the
discussion around a single computer and speakerphone. This event is
organized by the Network members serving on NCBN's Expanding
Democracy Team. Charles Fields Social Action and Policy Coordinator
National Community Building Network: charlesfields@ncbn.org -
http://www.ncbn.org
H. RED-Hat release

RALEIGH, NC-September 30, 2002-Red Hat, Inc. (Nasdaq:RHAT) today
released Red Hat Linux 8.0, a highly versatile operating system
designed for personal and small business computing. Red Hat Linux 8.0
combines leading-edge Linux technologies with a new graphical look
and feel that offers users a polished, easy-to-use operating
environment.

"Red Hat Linux 8.0 is the perfect choice for small businesses and
enthusiasts looking for a reliable, easy-to-use operating system with
the latest productivity applications," said Paul Cormier, executive
vice president of Engineering, Red Hat. "This is a major step forward
for users of traditional operating systems who have been looking for
an easier-to-use, more versatile open source solution."

Red Hat Linux 8.0 delivers enhanced productivity tools and an updated
graphical interface that combine to create an easy-to-use operating
environment for today's personal and professional users. Key features
of the latest release include:

* New Red Hat BluecurveTM: Conveniently organized, user-
friendly
desktop with numerous graphical enhancements and icons.
* OpenOffice.org: Most advanced open source office suite.
* Robust suite of configuration tools: Tools to set up
configurations
for several system services and settings, including firewall,
peripherals, Apache, and small network settings.
* Personal firewall tool: Graphical tool to easily customize
your
security settings.
* Red Hat Network integration: Point-and-click utilities to
monitor
and integrate existing updates for your system.
* Upgraded core components: Updated C compiler, toolchain, and
kernel
deliver the latest Linux technologies.
* Web server powered by Apache 2.0: Powerful, flexible, secure
open
source Web server that powers the Internet.
* New accessibility features: GUI support for Braille and
mobility-limited language interfaces.

"With this release we have given more attention than ever before to
usability", said Erik Troan, senior director of product marketing at
Red Hat. "Red Hat Linux 8.0 demonstrates that we can deliver great new
functionality for hobbyists and professionals and at the same time
make
the product much more friendly for mainstream users."

Pricing and Availability
Red Hat Linux 8.0 is available at retail locations on September 30,
2002, and orders are currently being taken online at www.redhat.com.

Red Hat Linux 8.0 Personal for individual users has a MSRP of $39.95,
and includes 30 days of Red Hat Network Basic Service and Web-based
support.

Red Hat Linux 8.0 Professional has an MSRP of $149.95, and includes a
System Administrator's CD, an Office and Multimedia Applications CD,
60
days of Red Hat Network Basic Service, 60-days of Web-based support
and
telephone support.

For or download availability, please try the mirror closest to you.
The following mirrors have Red Hat Linux 8.0 available (list courtesy
Matthias Saou):

North America :
- ftp://redhat.dulug.duke.edu/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http, rsync)
- ftp://mirror.cs.princeton.edu/pub/mirrors/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://ftp.gtlib.cc.gatech.edu/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http, rsync)
- ftp://csociety-ftp.ecn.purdue.edu/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http,
rsync)
- ftp://rpmfind.net/linux/redhat/8.0/ (http)
- ftp://ftp.crc.ca/systems/linux/redhat/ftp.redhat.com/linux/8.0/
- ftp://chuck.ucs.indiana.edu/pub/linux/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://uselinux.org/pub/redhat/8.0/
- ftp://mirror.cs.wisc.edu/pub/mirrors/linux/redhat/8.0/ (http,
rsync)
-
ftp://carroll.aset.psu.edu/pub/linux/distributions/redhat/redhat/linux
/8.0/
(http, rsync)
- ftp://mirror.i-link.com/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://acs-mirror.ucsd.edu/linux/redhat/8.0/
- ftp://thales.memphis.edu/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/
-
ftp://mirrors.hpcf.upr.edu/pub/Mirrors/redhat/ftp.redhat.com/linux/8.0
/
- ftp://ftp.dc.aleron.net/pub/linux/redhat/ftp.redhat.com/linux/8.0/
(http)
- ftp://ftp.aklug.org/pub/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://mirror.pa.msu.edu/linux/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http)
- ftp://limestone.uoregon.edu/redhat/8.0/
- ftp://mirror.hiwaay.net/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http)
- ftp://mirror.mcs.anl.gov/pub/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http, rsync)
- ftp://ftp.freshrpms.net/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http, rsync)
- ftp://ftp.cse.buffalo.edu/pub/Linux/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://the-city.seas.upenn.edu/pub/mirrors/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://redhat.taygeta.com/pub/RedHat/redhat-8.0/
- ftp://redhat.eyetap.org/linux/8.0/
- ftp://ftp.webtrek.com/pub/mirrors/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://redhat.netnitco.net/pub/mirrors/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/
(http)
- ftp://mirrors.tummy.com/pub/mirrors/redhat/linux/8.0/
- ftp://mirrors.kernel.org/redhat/redhat/linux/8.0/ (http, rsync)
- ftp://linux.nssl.noaa.gov/linux/redhat/linux/8.0/

I. Historical note:
This was posted to a local listserve when a debate over the origin of
the term `computer bug' broke out. I found it informative.

Admiral Grace Hopper (an early computing pioneer
better known for inventing COBOL) liked to tell a story in which a
technician solved a glitch in the Harvard Mark II machine by
pulling
an actual insect out from between the contacts of one of its
relays,
and she subsequently promulgated bug in its hackish sense as a
joke
about the incident (though, as she was careful to admit, she was
not
there when it happened). For many years the logbook associated
with
the incident and the actual bug in question (a moth) sat in a
display
case at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC). The entire story,
with a picture of the logbook and the moth taped into it, is
recorded
in the "Annals of the History of Computing", Vol. 3, No. 3 (July
1981), pp. 285-286.

The text of the log entry (from September 9, 1947), reads "1545
Relay
#70 Panel F (moth) in relay. First actual case of bug being
found". This wording establishes that the term was already in use
at
the time in its current specific sense -- and Hopper herself
reports
that the term `bug' was regularly applied to problems in radar
electronics during WWII.

Indeed, the use of `bug' to mean an industrial defect was already
established in Thomas Edison's time, and a more specific and
rather
modern use can be found in an electrical handbook from 1896
("Hawkin's
New Catechism of Electricity", Theo. Audel & Co.) which says: "The
term `bug' is used to a limited extent to designate any fault or
trouble in the connections or working of electric apparatus." It
further notes that the term is "said to have originated in
quadruplex
telegraphy and have been transferred to all electric apparatus."

The latter observation may explain a common folk etymology of the
term; that it came from telephone company usage, in which "bugs
in a
telephone cable" were blamed for noisy lines. Though this
derivation
seems to be mistaken, it may well be a distorted memory of a joke
first current among telegraph operators more than a century ago!

Or perhaps not a joke. Historians of the field inform us that the
term
"bug" was regularly used in the early days of telegraphy to refer
to a
variety of semi-automatic telegraphy keyers that would send a
string
of dots if you held them down. In fact, the Vibroplex keyers
(which
were among the most common of this type) even had a graphic of a
beetle on them (and still do)! While the ability to send repeated
dots
automatically was very useful for professional morse code
operators,
these were also significantly trickier to use than the older
manual
keyers, and it could take some practice to ensure one didn't
introduce
extraneous dots into the code by holding the key down a fraction
too
long. In the hands of an inexperienced operator, a
Vibroplex "bug" on
the line could mean that a lot of garbled Morse would soon be
coming
your way.

Further, the term "bug" has long been used among radio
technicians to
describe a device that converts electromagnetic field variations
into
acoustic signals. It is used to trace radio interference and look
for
dangerous radio emissions. Radio community usage derives from the
roach-like shape of the first versions used by 19th century
physicists. The first versions consisted of a coil of wire (roach
body), with the two wire ends sticking out and bent back to nearly
touch forming a spark gap (roach antennae). The bug is to the
radio
technician what the stethoscope is to the stereotypical medical
doctor. This sense is almost certainly ancestral to modern use of
"bug" for a covert monitoring device, but may also have
contributed to
the use of "bug" for the effects of radio interference itself.

Actually, use of `bug' in the general sense of a disruptive event
goes
back to Shakespeare! (Henry VI, part III - Act V, Scene II: King
Edward: "So, lie thou there. Die thou; and die our fear; For
Warwick
was a bug that fear'd us all.") In the first edition of Samuel
Johnson's dictionary one meaning of `bug' is "A frightful object;
a
walking spectre"; this is traced to `bugbear', a Welsh term for a
variety of mythological monster which (to complete the circle) has
recently been reintroduced into the popular lexicon through
fantasy
role-playing games.

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T4T Assistance Program
Technology for Nonprofits: Affordable and Understandable
For more info call 215-665-2525 or email teamtech@uwsepa.org.

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