September 2006 - Vol. 49 No. 9

September 2006 issue cover image

Features

Opinion Editorial pointers

Editorial Pointers

Ubiquitous objects and mobile communication devices are fast becoming part of the invisible fabric of everyday life. While each comes with a unique set of operating requirements, we’ve come to expect them to work autonomously as well as in concert with other devices already part of our personal operating needs. As a result, finding ways […]
News News track

News Track

An inexpensive, wireless, battery-free microchip that stores documents, audio files, or video clips and can be pressed like a Post-it note onto just about any surface is potentially two to five years from market, according to its creators at Hewlett-Packard. The San Jose Mercury News reports these "memory spots," as HP calls them, can be […]
Opinion Forum

Forum

The things Peter G. Neumann described as risks in his "Inside Risks" column ("Risks Relating to System Compositions," July 2006) I would generally characterize as stupidity. Unfortunately, too many software-oriented people, especially hackers and other free spirits, take an approach that is the equivalent of playing Russian Roulette, inevitably causing most of their own problems. […]
Opinion Hot links

Top 10 Downloads from ACM’s Digital Library

Communications of the ACM Volume 49, Number 9 (2006), Pages 23-24 Hot links: Top 10 Downloads from ACM’s Digital Library Diane Crawford Table of Contents Tables Back to Top Tables Table. The Top 10 Most Popular Papers from ACM’s Refereed Journals and Conference Proceedings Downloaded in June 2006 Table. The 10 Most Popular Courses at […]
Research and Advances Privacy and security in highly dynamic systems

Introduction

The IT community is accustomed to looking at the evolution of computers referring to the "laws" and "theories" of Moore and Bell. However, in the age of ad hoc and spontaneous networking and miniaturization, additional non-hardware-based dimensions may help to influence our conceptions of future developments in computing. The theory of computer-class formation from 1975 […]
Opinion A Wiki for discussing and promoting best practices in research

A Wiki For Discussing and Promoting Best Practices in Research

Dealing with the demands of escalating paper submissions is a daunting challenge for conference organizers and program chairs. ACM and IEEE have joined forces to create a forum for sharing ideas on the best ways to handle it all.
Opinion Inside risks

The Foresight Saga

In hindsight, the lack of foresight is an old problem that keeps recurring. The most prevalent situation seems to be "we had a backup system, but it failed when it was needed." For example, a power blackout shut down the Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center in Palmdale, CA, for three hours on the […]

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