Grandpa Ham – Grandpa Can do IT!

DM-OPEN in particular is designed to be a great enabler for NIEM and NIEM based messaging. DM-OPEN is based on the EDXL-Distribution Element (DE) which is a NIEM approved external standard for “packaging” content for distribution. The following link is to a recorded presentation from 19 August 2009 (last week) to the DM-OPEN Special Interest Group SIG. This recorded presentation is from a live demonstration of the use of DM-OPEN to transport NIEM IEPD defined content from an originator to a separate display application. It also shows how (when a NIEM IEPD also has the associated style sheet that is now part of NIEM IEPD requirements) that the NIEM content and is associated presentation can be shipped in the same message to recipients. The recording is 40 minutes long. The recording is a little rough in spots, but the content is both illustrative and thought provoking.
http://www.disasterhelp.gov/disastermanagement/library/archive/open/090819present.wmv

The new DM-OPEN (out this fall) will be even more useful as it will allow queries using NIEM compatible keyword and type structures within the DE’s ValueListURN structure (a categorization scheme for metadata about message content). This will make retrieval and re-distribution of NIEM Content more practical and more efficient for DM-OPEN participant applications.

Interesting phenomena.  I put out a tweet likening the NIEM Naming and Design Rules Document to a cross between Leviticus and IRS regulations.  Almost immediately, I was followed by 1) a Bible Study Group asking for money 2) a NIEM consultant, and 3) a Tax Consultant.  Apparently they each have some sort of bot in place that looks for key words. They then follow in tthe hope of being followed.  It worked for the NIEM consultant, not the others. Shortly thereafter, I was folowed by ithe IJIS Institute, a justice related non-profit with a strong interest in NIEM.  I now follow them as well.

It is always nice to know that you web services are up and running strong.  Since Twitter is the current rage, I though I would see if it could actually be useful. I set up a new Twitter account, wrote a poller to DM-OPEN that pings it on a regular basis and sends me a direct message to my grandpaham Twitter account upon the first instance of a successful ping,  the first instance of a failure following a series of successful pings, and the first instance of a successful ping after one or more failures.  Failures do not happen often, but now I will be the first to know if they do. Cool.

Nothing special about this post except that it is being done from 36,000 feet in a Virgin America Flight from Dulles to San Francisco.  Ain’t Technology great?

If your really think about it, the world has not changed a whole lot since 1964.   Here is how I thought about it back then: The Caves

You may think that my contract holder is a big downtown DC firm. Not so, although they do have offices near Dulles, VA. This office, however, is my favorite. And it really is rural. You can see cows from the window. As long as you have big internet pipes, you can work anywhere. Yes, that is me standing out front.

It has been a while since I posted anything. Lots has been happening. The world is good, if a bit stressful.

I am working hard for FEMA defining interoperability system requirements. It is a way back to my fish cannery days.  Wow, started working full time in 1973 and have not stopped yet. When you love what you do, and can be surrounded with people you respect, you want to work forever. It is better than play. Life is good.

Also working hard to support my wife in her convalescence from surgery. The new kidney is working well. Praise God. And thank the wonderful team at Walter Reed.  May God’s blessing be with all of my friends and colleagues for the new year!

Today is my last day with the Virginia DMV Systems Redesign Team. I will miss them. On the other hand, I leave them in good hands: their own home-grown expertise. Hopefully, the “fertilizer” I have provided over the past 18 months will help them grow as their re-engineering effort continues. I look forward to their success.

For those of you who wonder if Grandpa Ham is really a grandpa, here they are! Two of my three sons and all 5 grandson on the same couch. What a bunch of Hams!

I just just singed an agreement to go back to work for DM-OPEN.  I will be sad to leave my friends at the DMV.  They had truly become family to me.  But the Virginia Commonwealth budget issues were just to much to overcome.  Still, I believe they will carry on with a successful redesign project.  I always said that my goal was to become dispensable.  I guess It happened just a little earlier than we planned.

Luckily, I have been able to return to my roots in Emergency Management.  I am now working with the folks at Eyestreet Software to revitalize FEMA’s Disaster Management – Open Platform for Emergency Networks.  More later on this very real mission in life.