24-7 @ VDOT

Philip A. Shucet, commissioner of the Virginia Department of Transportation:

"We’ve demonstrated a strong belief in open government. The (VDOT Web site) is available to the public . . .24-7,’ and lets anyone, anywhere, see how we’re doing with ongoing construction projects.

"The quarterly report card that we developed two years ago measures our progress on completed projects, and is also publicly available on our Web site. "

http://dashboard.virginiadot.org

Online minutes/agenda packets

Virginia school systems are buying so-called turnkey software to put agendas, minutes, news releases, policy proposals and other official documents on the Internet -- some for public viewing, some not.

The Board.Docs software, pedaled by Emerald Data Solutions in cooperation with the Virginia School Boards Association, is said to cut agenda preparation from two days to under four hours -- a claim that met with some school board skepticism in Radford.

Radford bought each of its board members a $1,100 laptop for use with the commercial package. Laptops must be returned to the city when members leave the board.

The software is said to make school data more accessible to city residents -- if school systems choose to put important information online

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/radford/board.nsf/Public?OpenFrameSet

The Accomac County School Board bought the same product, which includes a "padlocked" area where only board members can see confidential staff and student documents. The school superintendent said electronic distribution of agenda packets would provide unprecedented public access to the information board members use to make decisions.

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/accomack/Board.nsf/Public?OpenFrameS

The basic software is available for a $450-600 monthly fee.

Two officials honored

Two Virginians recently were honored by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers.

Steve Marzolf, Virginia’s E-911 coordinator, was presented the award for the state ’s Wireless E-911 Deployment Project.

Bob Rike, a member of the Virginia Geographic Information Network (VGIN) Division, accepted the award for the Virginia Base Mapping Program.

"These combined projects are not only a smart use of technology dollars -- they could also mean the timely difference that could save a life or catch a criminal, " Gov. Warner said.

For more information on E-911 and the Public Safety Communications Division, visit:

http://www.va911.org

For more about VGIN and the Virginia Base Mapping Program, visit:

http://www.vgin.virginia.gov

APS School Talk

Arlington Public Schools sends out e-mail updates to anybody who signs up. The information, sent to home or work, includes emergency closings, inclement weather alerts and school board updates, and can be tailored to subscribers’ interests. For extreme emergencies, text messages can also be sent to cell phones or pagers.

Meanwhile, Arlington public libraries have set up wireless Internet service at the central library. That means patrons with laptops no longer need to wait in line for access to a wired Internet computer.