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The initiative's launch on July 29th is accompanied by a Web-based survey examining the drivers, impediments, and technologies associated with Web Services. The survey is available for interested participants at http://cnt.ucsdx.net/news/websvc_surveyform.php. Participants will receive a summary of the results and discounts for future Web Services events.

"The survey will provide us with a good baseline on current Web Services deployments in San Diego," offered Monk. "A follow-up survey planned for Winter 2004 should provide us with a clear indication of the rapid pace of adoption of this critical technology within the local business community."

On September 24th, UCSD CONNECT, Extension's CNT department, and the San Diego Software and Industry Council (SDSIC) will unite to present the results of this survey and explore current local industry efforts at a lecture entitled "Web Services Deployment: Advice from our Early Adopters". Panelists at this event include Tony Fountain, San Diego Supercomputing Center; Tim Huckaby, Interknowledgy; Michele Leroux Bustamante, iDesign / UCSD Extension; Adam Joffe, Sony Online Entertainment; Frank Martinez, Blue Titan; Terry Mohn, SEMPRA; and Wade Williams, NetworkCar. Event costs are $25 for CONNECT and SDSIC members and Extension students; $35 for the general public; or $10 for individuals completing the survey.

UCSD Extension's CNT department will offer several new courses and certificates to complement existing Web Services classes. New programs will include a Web Services Architecture certificate beginning Fall 2003 and an Executive Seminar Series on "Managing Change" starting Winter 2004. The latter will provide senior managers with a forum in which to explore the opportunities and challenges of technology-driven change in their operations, including the effects on internal management systems and IT infrastructures, partner communications, customer care, business processes, personnel and other resources.

The Web Services initiative will culminate in a Convergent Technologies Seminar in April 2004. CONNECT created the Converging Technologies seminar series to show the region's businesses how to capitalize on critical trends and learn more about what is on the convergence horizon. The April 2004 Web Services event will be the fourth in a series of Convergent Technology workshops hosted by CONNECT, including seminars on Nanotechnologies (coming up September 16, 2003), SensorNets (April 2002), and Working Together for Homeland Security (February 2002).

"Web Services meets our definition of a critical, convergent technology" explains Anette Asher, director of programs at CONNECT. "It has the potential for generating significant revenues and reducing costs across multiple industries, as well as radically transforming business communications with both trading partners and customers."

Find out more about the current and future adoption of Web Services in the San Diego industry at the September lecture (http://extension.ucsd.edu/cnt), or contact infotech@ucsd.edu.

About UCSD CONNECT

UCSD CONNECT is a globally recognized, university-based non-profit organization fostering entrepreneurship in the San Diego region by catalyzing, accelerating, and supporting the growth of the most promising technology and life sciences businesses. Focused on assisting growth companies in the San Diego region, CONNECT has been directly involved with over 900 companies since its inception in 1985, these companies went on to raise more than $7.3 billion in capital. Part of the University of California, San Diego, CONNECT has a dual role in accelerating growth: it assists growth companies in the San Diego region and promotes the commercialization of technology from university-based research. CONNECT's programs also help business service providers, attorneys, accountants, bankers, investors, and marketing professionals with knowledge about emerging technologies and access to new business opportunities. CONNECT is entirely self-supporting and receives no funding from UCSD or the State of California. The organization relies on philanthropy and underwriting to fund its programs and community services. For more information, visit www.connect.org.

About UCSD Extension's CNT Department

UCSD Extension's Computing & Networking Technologies department offers more than 120 courses at UCSD locations in La Jolla, Sorrento Mesa and Rancho Bernardo and at corporate facilities. The mandate of the department is to ensure that UCSD Extension serves as an enabler of San Diego businesses and is at the forefront of workforce development in current and emerging sectors. Key areas of interest include: Web Services, Data Management (including data mining), and Software Engineering, in addition to an array of courses relating to programming languages, networking and security. More about CNT courses, the local event calendar, and the San Diego Jobs Compendium are available at http://extension.ucsd.edu/cnt.