January 2006 - Vol. 49 No. 1

January 2006 issue cover image

Features

Opinion Editorial pointers Jan 1 2006

Editorial Pointers

I recall a conversation with Gordon Bell a few months ago after he received reviewers’ comments for his article on MyLifeBits (page 88), a pioneering system he and…

Diane Crawford

Computing Applications

News News track Jan 1 2006

A new report alleges much of the used computer equipment being sent to developing countries for use in schools, businesses, and homes is not only unusable it is creating…

CACM Staff

Computing Applications

Opinion Forum Jan 1 2006

Although Peter J. Denning and Andrew McGettrick hit the nail on the head with their "The Profession of IT" column ("Recentering Computer Science,"…

Computing Applications

Opinion Hot links Jan 1 2006

Top 10 Downloads from ACM’s Digital Library

Communications of the ACM Volume 49, Number 1 (2006), Pages 15-16 Hot links: Top 10 downloads from ACM’s digital library Diane Crawford Table of Contents Tables…

Computing Applications

Opinion The business of software Jan 1 2006

Counting Boulders and Measuring Mountains

Accuracy and the measurement of peaks and projects.

Phillip G. Armour

Computing Applications

News Jan 1 2006

ACM Annual Report For FY05

A year in the life of ACM is always a study of progress and promise, but FY05 was truly exceptional. The Association recorded a third consecutive year of excellence over…

CACM Staff

Computing Applications

Opinion Staying connected Jan 1 2006

The Network of Life

Service providers must work together to ensure a fail-safe communication system.

Meg McGinity Shannon

Computing Applications

Opinion President's letter Jan 1 2006

New Directions For CACM?

Much has changed since the 1980s when the current format of Communications of the ACM was cast. What should be the mission of ACM's flagship publication in the 21st…

David A. Patterson

Computing Applications

Opinion Viewpoint Jan 1 2006

How to Think About Security Failures

Understanding complexity and feedback in security models highlights the need for better failure modes in solutions.

Scott Campbell

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Cheap and fast search and storage technologies help bring order to our messy personal information environments, freeing us to make the most of our information…

Jaime Teevan, William Jones, and Benjamin B. Bederson

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Digital Memories in an Era of Ubiquitous Computing and Abundant Storage

A lifetime of digital memories is possible but raises many social, as well as technological, questions.

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Personal Health Information Management

Integrating personal health information helps people manage their lives and actively participate in their own health care.

Wanda Pratt, Kenton Unruh, Andrea Civan, and Meredith M. Skeels

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

-sable Privacy and Security For Personal Information Management

The goal is a policy workbench enabling users to create and transform natural language policies into machine-readable code for enforcement and compliance audits.

Clare-Marie Karat, Carolyn Brodie, and John Karat

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Searching to Eliminate Personal Information Management

Search systems can alleviate the need to organize personal information by helping us find it no matter where we encountered it, what we remember about it, and even if we…

Edward Cutrell, Susan T. Dumais, and Jaime Teevan

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Keeping Encountered Information

Utility, serendipity, and the pleasure of encountering what we save relies on more than search alone when using PIM tools.

Catherine C. Marshall and William Jones

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Email in Personal Information Management

Email's conduit function means the inbox, folders, search, and sort are used to support core PIM functions of task management, personal archiving, and contact management.

Steve Whittaker, Victoria Bellotti, and Jacek Gwizdka

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

From PIM to GIM: Personal Information Management in Group Contexts

Sharing personal information with networked groups and institutions raises questions about privacy and control best addressed through a new field of inquiry: group…

Thomas Erickson

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Data Unification in Personal Information Management

Users need ways to unify, simplify, and consolidate information too often fragmented by location, device, and software application.

David R. Karger and William Jones

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Personal information management Jan 1 2006

Evaluating Personal Information Management Behaviors and Tools

How to study and understand the idiosyncratic PIM behaviors we exhibit naturally at home, at work, and in between, in the interests of developing future PIM tools.

Diane Kelly

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

MyLifeBits: A Personal Database For Everything

Developing a platform for recording, storing, and accessing a personal lifetime archive.

Jim Gemmell, Gordon Bell, and Roger Lueder

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Four Dynamics For Bringing use Back Into Software Reuse

Reuse is such a powerful tool---so why isn't it more popular?

Kevin C. Desouza, Yukika Awazu, and Amrit Tiwana

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Insight and Perspectives For Content Delivery Networks

Striking a balance between the costs for Web content providers and the quality of service for Web customers.

George Pallis and Athena Vakali

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Neo-Tribes: The Power and Potential of Online Communities in Health Care

Online communities deserve better than their current treatment---where they are largely relegated to the fringes of health care.

Grace J. Johnson and Paul J. Ambrose

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Seven Key Interventions For Data Warehouse Success

The success of data warehouses depends on the interaction of technology and social context. We present new insights into the implementation process and interventions that…

Tim Chenoweth, Karen Corral, and Haluk Demirkan

Computing Applications

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Budgeting Process For Information Security Expenditures

Empirical evidence shows that cost-benefit analysis is a sound basis for budgeting information security expenditures.

Lawrence A. Gordon and Martin P. Loeb

Architecture and Hardware

Research and Advances Jan 1 2006

Ethnocomputing: ICT in Cultural and Social Context

Although culture has recently been recognized as one factor in interface design, CS and engineering are generally thought to be culturally neutral. The approach presented…

Matti Tedre, Erkki Sutinen, Esko Kähkönen, and Piet Kommers

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Opinion Technical opinion Jan 1 2006

The First 10 Years of the ECCC Digital Library

Developing a balance between author control and traditional scientific publication practices in a global digital library.

Christoph Meinel and Volker Klotz

Computing Applications

Opinion Inside risks Jan 1 2006

Software and Higher Education

With software playing an undeniably critical role in our lives, one would expect that the best engineering techniques, such as rigorous specification and systematic…

John C. Knight and Nancy G. Leveson

Computing Applications

Recent Issues

Explore the Issue Archive