powdermonkey

MUST WATCH: OSS in DoD, A Culture Virus (only 5 min)

really great talk by Jim Stodgill about
Open Source in Defense: A Culture Virus

only 5 minutes long a must watch!

GOSCON 2008: Gov. Open Source Software Conf. Portland, OR

great lineup this year at GOSCON: OSS healthcare, State CIO's, international development to mention a few. I'm going see you there!!
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The Government Open Source Conference (GOSCON) 2008 and the International Open ICT Summit provide forums to explore both the business case and real-world applications for open technology to deliver the next generation of government services. Attendees will hear from industry experts and their peers. Extensive networking oportunities for CIO & IT directors, management, planning, legal staff.  October 20-23 in Portland Oregon at the Crowne Plaza.  For more info visit  www.goscon.org.

Quick Info

Dates: October 20 | International Open ICT Summit
October 21-22 | GOSCON 2008
October 23 | Field trip and tour of Oregon State University’s Open Source Lab
Location: Crowne Plaza Hotel Portland, OR USA

Description: The Government Open Source Conference (GOSCON) 2008 and the International Open ICT Summit provide forums to explore both the business case and real-world applications for open technology to deliver the next generation of government services. Attendees will hear from industry experts and their peers. Extensive networking opportunities for CIO & IT directors, management, planning, legal staff.

GOSCON 2008 Showcases Open Public Health IT

This year, GOSCON will feature a first-of-its-kind Open Public Health IT track designed to explore both a strategic direction for open source in the public health sector as well as real-world applications that are in use today by agencies around the world. GOSCON is bringing together leaders in government, open source, and public health who will share their deep, practical experience in public health, enterprise architectures, standards, as well as open source tools and methodologies as they are applied to this domain.

Can DoD use open source software?

Interesting post at ARS: How the DoD learned to stop worrying and love open source

The House draft of the annual defense budget reauthorization bill prominently lists open source software (OSS) among the objectives that should be considered in the procurement strategy for aerial vehicle technology and veteran health systems. If the bill passes in the House, it would be the first time that the National Defense Authorization Act explicitly expresses a preference for OSS. OSS has seen rapid public sector uptake over the past few years.

Governments around the world are streamlining their technological infrastructure and reducing their IT costs by using emerging open technologies. Adopters have reported a wide range of benefits, including greater interoperability, less dependence on any single vendor, more competitive pricing, and greater flexibility.

Can open source survive Congress? (or Lobbyists?)

Or can open source software survive lobbyists? from Joab @ GCN:

If the House's proposed 2009 Defense Department budget is any indication, Congress may want to see more open-source software (OSS) in defense systems. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (H.R. 5658) includes language that calls for the services to consider open source software when procuring manned or unmanned aerial vehicles. It's surprising to see a concept as technical as OSS in an actual congressional bill. But there it is. Whether it will remain in the final authorization is another question.

The House's version of the bill was passed in May; This week, the Senate is debating its own version of the bill (S. 3001). When the two halves of Congress come together, will the open source language survive in the resulting authorization?