Welcome to the CIO Council's first online initiative to exchange ideas with the Federal community about IT issues. Your browser must have JavaScript enabled to use this forum. When you enter comments you will need to enter your name (First Name, Last Name) and your email address. Your name and the current date and time will be saved with your comment when you click on the Submit button. If you have a problem: Netscape: From Netscape Navigator's Edit menu, select Preferences, Click Advanced, Make sure the box next to Enable Javascript is checked. Internet Explorer: JavaScript is enabled by default. If it has been disabled to enable it in View menu, click Internet Options, click the Security tab, then choose "Internet zone" from the Zone drop-down list. If the Custom option is chosen, click the Settings button, then scroll through the list until you find Scripting. Click the "Enable" option under Active scripting. To get started, a user can simply browse through discussion topics and responses that others have contributed. This is particularly useful for users who need to come up to speed on important issues under discussion. The history of discussion about these issues is preserved in the group's discussion archives. A user can also take a more active role in the discussion by composing his/her own responses to others' comments and by proposing new main topics for discussion. You can think of a discussion forum as an informal meeting place, where the members of a community can share ideas and comments. Like a physical meeting, each member of the community listens to what others have to say and can voice his/her own opinions. However, unlike a physical meeting, the participants do not have to be in the same room at the same time to share information. People can participate when it is convenient for them to do so. And because it is easy for them to share information, they will do so. Our first on-line discussion is about the proposals that can be found on the joint Thompson-Lieberman web site. The site is an experimental effort sponsored by Senator Fred Thompson and Senator Joseph Lieberman to involve the citizen in the legislative process. On the Thompson-Lieberman web site, the citizen is asked to review and comment on dozens of ideas that have potential to advance the cause of e-Government. The Senators do not necessarily endorse any of the ideas; they are simply looking for citizens' opinions and ideas on these proposals. Since there are numerous discussion ideas to view and comment on, for ease of use, you may want to click on "by category" after joining our discussion, which can be entered from the top of this page. Who will use this forum? Anyone can join our discussions, but we are especially interested in the Federal workforce's ideas and opinions. We ask that you let us know what you, as Federal government employees, think about the ideas that the Senators have put forth. Their initiatives are posted here to provide you with a convenient way to share your opinions with the Federal executive branch community.