On The Net - Computing News

with Chris Goh

No substitute for humanity

I have spent many hours in emergency rooms in the last 12 months, though luckily I was not the one needing treatment. When you spend enough time in them (and believe me you do in just waiting) you realise just how expensive it must be to keep people alive and more importantly how poorly resourced we are in dealing with it. It is a stark contrast in this day and age when you see people surrounded by the best equipment and they are still in agony.

We often hear about doctors making mistakes yet we never hear about the long hours they keep daily. Every doctor that I have dealt with in emergency rooms worked in excess of 10 to 12 hours and I am amazed they would remember what they did an hour ago. The pressure they deal with amazes me, and it doesn't help when anxious patients, and even worse, family members, cause tension that can only be appreciated if you face it every day of your working career.

I often look at the equipment in these rooms knowing that many cost within the hundreds of thousands of dollars, but they do so little compared to the actual medical teams, because they don't make the key decisions or even provide the final diagnosis. It's only then you realise all the technology in the world cannot solve a problem by itself and often doctors have to run multiple tests before any sense can be made of what they are seeing.

I've worked in a number of government agencies, and it always surprises me that the most important areas; health, education and utilities, are the most poorly resourced, the most stressed, and the most under appreciated sectors. Why? Because these were never designed to raise revenue, they were designed to work at a loss and communities need to appreciate this.

As I sat with an elderly friend, who had begged for water for the last 10 hours and wasn't allowed any, it was such a relief when a male nurse finally gave him a shot of water. His chest was still in pain and he was still shaking but, a simple small cup to moisten his lips finally brought a smile and he could finally lie back. You realise after this that no amount of money, technology or government policy can replace a simple act of humanity.

HotNews

Microsoft put up a $250,000 bounty for the writer of the Sasser virus, and before long a German teenager from a little small town called Waffenson was arrested due to tip offs. The teenager is also suspected for creating the NetSky virus that is still roaming around the Net. The funny part about the Sasser virus is that it was so problematic because the teenager couldn't write the code properly. This new bounty strategy of Microsoft has been given a budget of $5,000,000.

Red Hat has launched a new version of Red Hat Desktop, as statistics are showing that Linux is about to take over the number two position over Apple for the most installed operating system on personal computers.

Heather Robinson, a customer service operator for America Online, used her access in the company's database to track down Hollywood celebrities and used their personal details to bait them. She then hunted them down online and through manipulation courted them, both on and offline. The sad thing is, she has been rewarded for her manipulative talents by getting a script she wrote produced in Hollywood.

HotSites

www.budget.gov.au

Well, some of you will not be interested one bit in this, but the federal budget is now released.

www.cancercouncil.com.au

The NSW Cancer Council website offers some higher level information about cancer and the support networks available to individuals and carers.

medlineplus.gov
www.fda.gov/cder/index.html

To see how poorly the government has addressed information on health compare health sites created by the Australian Government and check what these two US sites have done. Medline is a comprehensive health portal with an extensive database of illnesses and treatments. The FDA has a comprehensive database on drugs, what they are and their issues. Truly amazing.