<![CDATA[Gizmodo: Census]]> http://cache.gawker.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/gizmodo.com.png <![CDATA[Gizmodo: Census]]> http://gizmodo.com/tag/census http://gizmodo.com/tag/census <![CDATA[ HTC Census Device Revealed in New FCC Filing ]]> HTC's Census device first hit the FCC over a year ago, but it's just appeared there for approval again. The data-only device, complete with touchscreen and fingerprint reader, but lacking voice-calling capabilities and a camera, was going to be used in the 2010 census before technical issues led to it being ditched. But here it is again, with a prominent Harris branding and what looks like a hand strap across the back. What's going on? Is it back on the cards to aid Census Bureau staff, or is it getting a new lease on life targeted at other industrial users? Pretty confusing, especially since there's no info on the release date yet. [FCC and Reghardware]

]]> Tue, 06 May 2008 05:08:42 EDT Kit Eaton http://gizmodo.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=387479&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[ Pencil-Pushing Census Bureau Dumps Portable Tech for Pencils ]]> 250_CensusBag2-lo.jpgTo our friends at Treehugger, please look away as we report that the Census Bureau is ditching plans to go digital and will return to its sinful pencil-pushing, paper-crazy roots. Originally, the Bureau planned for workers to use 500,000 wireless handheld devices from Harris Corp. as a replacement for the paperwork used to collect information from Americans who do not respond to the census. The $1.3 billion program looked great on, well, paper, but was ultimately derailed by hardware issues and incompetence.

The biggest issue with the Harris handhelds was that they were more paperweight than PDA. They were too big (slightly larger than a cell phone), didn't transmit data very well, and at one point during testing there were 417 outstanding technical requirements not being met. "Reverting back to paper, which we've done in the past and know we can do, lessens the risk," says Stephen Buckner, a Census Bureau spokesman.

The silver lining to this story? The Bureau will still take delivery of 151,000 handsets "to check residential street addresses using the Global Positioning System." Kids these days call that Google Maps, but if the government wants to dole out billions for something we can do for free, then who is Gizmodo to argue? [The Washington Post]

]]> Sun, 06 Apr 2008 11:30:46 EDT Jack Loftus http://gizmodo.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=376558&view=rss&microfeed=true