MACROMEDIA FLEX POWERS DASHBOARD PILOT FOR CALIFORNIA AIR NATIONAL GUARD
Macromedia Government collaborates with USAF Special Operations Wing to create rich Internet application for instant situational awareness
San Francisco - October 11, 2004 - Macromedia (Nasdaq: MACR) today announced the completion of a pilot project with the 129th Rescue Wing (RQW) of the California Air National Guard (CA ANG) and Aviamedia to develop a digital dashboard prototype for government agencies. Built with the Macromedia Flex presentation server, the digital dashboard prototype provides a rich media, command-level representation of key metrics across an entire organization. Combining data from disparate sources into a single, interactive, and flexible interface, the digital dashboard offers instant situational awareness to government decision makers.
"A rich, flexible interface with operational systems across the board has enormous value," said Lt. Colonel Jackie Parker, operations support flight commander, 129th RQW. "More accurate information directly translates to better mission performance, preventing erroneously canceled sorties, and provides aircrews with enough forward visibility to meet flight schedules."
Aviamedia, working in close collaboration with Macromedia Government and the 129th RQW at Moffett Field, California, developed the Flex digital dashboard pilot to highlight how new technology can rapidly speed information-to-decision cycles for critical groups such as the special operations community. For the 129th RQW, the resulting prototype demonstrates how a dashboard can effectively replace an extensive Microsoft PowerPoint presentation that takes, on average, four hours to compile from multiple data sources for an operational snapshot of health and deployment viability.
Beyond capturing and consolidating data from across the organization, the Flex digital dashboard transforms the viewer's relationship to the information, allowing the user to manipulate the data in real time rather than simply read static data as presented. The Flex presentation layer provides a rich, interactive interface that delivers visual representations of numeric and text data such as gauges and sliding bars. By focusing on the viewer's relationship to the data, it can be presented in any manner optimal for rapid evaluation and decision.
"Displaying operational metrics in a single interface, in real time, allows an organization to become proactive as opposed to reactive," said Captain Roxanne Stern, director of personnel, 129th RQW. "Rather than placing a series of phone calls before reacting to a situation, leadership is able to assess and respond dynamically, shaving hours off decision cycles."
The data utilized by the Flex digital dashboard can originate from any number of data sources operating throughout the agency. The data values, delivered in XML format, are linked directly to Flex objects represented on the user interface, creating a simple yet solid integration of multiple information silos.
"Decision makers need more than just data consolidation. They need distilled information that is readily accessible and visually intuitive," said Juliana Slye, director, Macromedia global government industry. "Instant access to enterprise-level data provides decision makers with the consistent, accurate information necessary to drive improved mission performance."
Client machines access the Flex digital dashboard using Macromedia Flash Player, already installed and active on more than 98 percent of Internet browsers, including those in the U.S. Department of Defense. With broad compatibility and a thin client footprint, the dashboard can be readily deployed and easily integrated into existing agency environments. As a result, Flex digital dashboard viewers experience the rich interface of a client-server application with the broad geographic reach of an Internet-based application and no additional client-side software to manage.
Aviamedia led the development of the Flex digital dashboard pilot concept. The project team drove the pilot from initiation to completion, testing and releasing it in less than three months based upon the efficiency and simplicity of developing rich Internet applications with the Flex presentation server.
"Creating patchwork, single-use connections to link data silos is the least efficient, most expensive approach for both agencies and vendors," said James Goudy, director, Aviamedia. "The flexibility of the Macromedia Flex application framework creates a more enduring solution, directly linking the data values stored in disparate silos and placing it - in a truly interactive way - into the hands of decision makers."
Flex blends the flexibility of services-oriented data access with the superior reach and effectiveness of a cross-platform rich client. The result is applications that are easier to build and maintain, use less bandwidth, deliver more functionality, and run on all leading server and desktop operating systems. Government agencies interested in rich dashboard solutions should contact their Macromedia Government representative, available at: http://www.macromedia.com/resources/government/contact/. For more information on Macromedia Flex, visit http://www.macromedia.com/go/flex.
About Macromedia Government
Macromedia Government helps federal, state, and local government agencies drive technology and business process transformation. Through innovative solutions, industry partnerships, and special purchasing programs, Macromedia Government enables government agencies world-wide to increase their time-to-knowledge in the critical areas of training, e-government, and information-to-decision superiority.
About Macromedia
Experience matters. Macromedia is motivated by the belief that great experiences build great businesses. Our software empowers millions of business users, developers, and designers to create and deliver effective, compelling, and memorable experiences - on the Internet, on fixed media, on wireless, and on digital devices.
