After running a campaign based on technology, the Obama Administration was met with tech shock when they entered the White House. When President Obama and his staff came into the White House to set up for the next four years, the Obama Technology train came to a screeching halt.
The current system in the White House is outdated and in no way ready to support the needs of a tech savvy administration. No outside email login, no Facebook, no instant messaging. These are all technological musts for the Obama camp. President Obama’s staff could not get their MACs to attach to the network and were forced to use the outdated Windows 2000 operating system. Laptops were scarce, assigned to only a few people in the West Wing.
“It is kind of like going from an Xbox to an Atari,” Obama spokesman Bill Burton said of his new digs”.
The big first day issues included: Calls to lines in the West Wing were met with a busy signal all morning and those to the main White House switchboard were greeted by a recording, redirecting callers to the presidential Web site. A lost security clearance list keep many reporters shut out of the White House. There were big issues updating the http://www.whitehouse.gov web site. Updates were not making it to the site or disappearing hours after they were posted.
And what about Presidents Obama’s Blackberry? It is rumored that a government agency has provided the president with a special, highly encrypted mobile which would satisfy security demands.
Only a limited number of devices are sanctioned for top secret government use – among them the Sectera Edge by Virginia-based General Dynamics. The handset is a heavy-duty highly secure mobile and has been certified by the National Security Agency and costs $3,350. So look for a Sectera Edge in President Obamas hands soon.
Great story Brad! Made me lol..thanks for the smile. Spark :)