It [updating USDA systems] will not be easy. It's not easy because the way in which technology has been developed in the Department over time has been that each subcabinet area, each agency of the 29 agencies that make up the USDA, all of them have made, to a certain extent, independent decisions about the technology. And so one of the keys is to try to make sure that we work to develop a consistent system so that, for example, the Secretary of Agriculture can send one e-mail to employees on any issue as opposed to what happens today where multiple e-mails have to be sent because different agencies use different computer systems.Not sure he really wants to send an email with 100,000 addressees.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
One E-Mail System for USDA
From Vilsack's press conference:
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2 comments:
Heck we can't even access our email over the web any longer.
I've often thought the bureaucrats need for consistency is a vice and, without knowing anything about it, this may be an example. I can understand the need for security, particularly with people very conscious of the security of personal data. But I don't see why you couldn't have two email systems--use one reader on the PC to access both, use gmail or whatever is free and easy for 95 percent of the agency's work and a proprietary, secured system for the rest.
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