November Minutes

ITAC MEETING MINUTES

Attendees:
Frieda Artis, Reginald Brown, Niamh Darcy, and Gloria McNeill

Due to work schedules, Darryl McGraw, John Killebrew, and Shannon Schelin could not participate.

Wake County:
Velvadine Wallace and Lib Wanner

The meeting began at 9:00 am and the Oracle Collaboration Suite and Meet Me Conference technologies were used to enable ITAC members to participate from remote locations. Lib Wanner stated that Bill Scanlon had other obligations so she would continue the discussion of the Strategic Thinking.

Lib stated that the meeting would be free form and that she encouraged their creative thinking. She asked the group as leaders and visionaries of IT what major initiatives would they be exploring over the next 3 to 5 years. Lib stated that at the last meeting Niamh and Reginald mentioned .NET applications/HTML, Open Source, Java, XML, Skype and VOIP. Niamh stated in her organization to cut costs they used Open Source. She also mentioned that other countries are not as sophisticated to use Open Source so they use MS Office for their applications.

Niamh stated for their medical records applications (which has over 15,000 patients) they use My SQL. She stated for their prenatal patients they use 3 Tier, Java, and My SQL. Frieda mentioned that she was a technical writer so her job wouldn’t involve exploring new initiatives. Gloria stated that she works for the Department of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention and they use Java for their software applications. Gloria also mentioned that ITS have put together a framework package for their software quality assurance, which consisted of: Quick Test, Load Runner, Win Runner, and Perf. Certification. She also stated that Load Runner uses a tool called “Mercury” for performance testing.

Lib then stated that she would like to change gears and ask them as citizens what major services would they like to access via the web in the next 3 to 5 years. She stated that in the October meeting, it was mentioned they would like to see email notifications for bills, events, etc. Reginald stated that having the flexibility of paying their vehicle tax bills electronically is very beneficial and would like the option of paying bills permanently online. It was also mentioned that receiving email reminders of upcoming events and major happenings for important meetings would be helpful for citizens.

Lib then asked the group what their thoughts were on cell phones and the various features a citizen can utilize for technology. Reginald stated the iPods are what young people are using today and is growing rapidly. Niamh agreed and stated that most people get busy during the day so they download information and then listen to it later. She also stated that they should keep an eye on other types of communication such as MS Blog and Pod Casting and see how they evolve in the next 3 to 5 years.

Lib said she wanted to change gears and asked the group as government advisors, what are the major services that you think would benefit from automation technology? Lib then gave an example of electronic medical records. Niamh stated that Wake County would first need to take a look at the number of people attached, look at the impact for return on investment, and maybe determine if they could partner with others. She stated they use Open Source for the medical records.

Lib then asked as geeks, what major technology shifts does Wake County need to prepare for the near future. Reginald mentioned that Wake County should look into interface technology such as SLCD, which is almost paper thin. Frieda and Gloria both agreed that the government as a whole is not that granular to the citizens or others in the government. They stated that it would be beneficial if the government had a call center for all boards/agencies not just the county to assist the citizens and to let them know it is available.

Lib thanked the group for the input and valuable feedback. She stated that in our next monthly meeting (12/21) she would give them an overview of the IS Business Plan and the Election of Offices.

Lib asked if there were any other questions or comments. There were none. Meeting adjourned at 9:55 am.