Posted on Jul 23, 2014
What technology that was supposed to help is actually hurting us?
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The Department of the Army is relooking everything. From top to bottom it is looking for systems that were supposed to help us that jsut haven't panned out. Things that cause more harm than good. Things that waste time just for the sake of having more digitalia. A few come to mind, but I want to hear what the consensus is. What technology is actually holding you back. What burns your time? What is not doing what it was supposed to? If we can identify them from the bottom up, maybe...we can unburden ourselves.
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Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 21
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All of it. We're building things that pretty much think for us to the point where if we lose it, we're lost. No one takes notes, writes letters, sends cards its all eThis and iThat. Is there a retail clerk out there who can actually make change without looking at the register screen? Does anyone know when their next doctor appointment is if they forget there cell phone? Other than mostly grocery stores, how often do people go to a store, let alone buy anything? You don't need to carry a quarter to make a pay phone call but you need 3 of them in case your tire starts running low - and how do you know when this happens - when your car tells you.
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SFC (Join to see)
I have to agree. When I came back into the service (13B), I saw that most soldiers in the M777 units lacked the basic artillery skills. Granted this was National Guard, but still. They relied on the GPS and considered laying the gun, DAP and aiming reference points as something done after occupying a position. What I had in my head after 19 years, they needed a 6-50 for.
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COL (Join to see)
Considering that one of the biggest problems getting people through Ranger School today is Land Navigation, I have to concur. Land Navigation and orienteering used to be skills that every combat soldier absolutely knew. Now it's one of the toughest hurdles.
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Avoiding a general condemnation on technology (email/cell phones/etc sucks!!) and speaking just to COL (Join to see)'s question of those technological programs/systems within DoD that are actually worse than what we had before :
DTS - for those that have used it more than a few times, it's not bad. For those that travel once in a great while -- it's more of a resource drain than it's worth (rough guess based on experience is that the later group far outweighs the former group)
New OER system for Army officers - royal pain ... but I have to give it the benefit of the doubt because it's so new ... but it's still a royal pain.
USB Drives - http://www.eventtracker.com/2014-01-16-operation-buckshot-yankee-agent-btz/ ... now we have HBSS (along with senior leadership with false feelings of security that HBSS protects against everything), Snowden, etc.
Saw LTC Paul Mullins's post and just had to add it in ... I can not begin to tell you how many times I've been NMC because I left that @$#@ CAC plugged into the reader at home. I add that to the list because the capability to use a LOA1 credential (little or no confidence in the asserted identity - like your FaceBook or Google login) and elevate it to a LOA4 credential (very high confidence in the asserted identity - your CAC) exists ... we just have to put it in our business practices.
DTS - for those that have used it more than a few times, it's not bad. For those that travel once in a great while -- it's more of a resource drain than it's worth (rough guess based on experience is that the later group far outweighs the former group)
New OER system for Army officers - royal pain ... but I have to give it the benefit of the doubt because it's so new ... but it's still a royal pain.
USB Drives - http://www.eventtracker.com/2014-01-16-operation-buckshot-yankee-agent-btz/ ... now we have HBSS (along with senior leadership with false feelings of security that HBSS protects against everything), Snowden, etc.
Saw LTC Paul Mullins's post and just had to add it in ... I can not begin to tell you how many times I've been NMC because I left that @$#@ CAC plugged into the reader at home. I add that to the list because the capability to use a LOA1 credential (little or no confidence in the asserted identity - like your FaceBook or Google login) and elevate it to a LOA4 credential (very high confidence in the asserted identity - your CAC) exists ... we just have to put it in our business practices.
Looking back: Operation Buckshot Yankee & agent.btz
Lessons learned from Operation Buckshot Yankee and the agent.btz worm that infected U.S. military networks.
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LTC Paul Mullins
Agreed. DTMS is great when someone doesn't get antsy and decide that they need to create 7 layers of review in order to protect themselves and the government from travelers.
New OER system was pushed back too many times and it debuted right at the beginning of PCS/Annuals being due and the system couldn't handle it. Right idea, bad implementation so far. But, great response in attempting to fix the initial issues to include the bandwidth and server issues.
HBSS - exactly.
New OER system was pushed back too many times and it debuted right at the beginning of PCS/Annuals being due and the system couldn't handle it. Right idea, bad implementation so far. But, great response in attempting to fix the initial issues to include the bandwidth and server issues.
HBSS - exactly.
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COL Randall C.
MSG(P) Michael Warrick, agree ... once you learn the tricks of the trade. If you don't know them? Fuggedaboudit!
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COL (Join to see)
I concur that DTS is a good system, once you know how to use it...DTMS is another issue entirely. I really like ATN and CATS, but DTMS is the Devil, Bobby!
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SIR
This is a great question. Most of the responses are spot on. As far as technology hurting us, in my opinion, anything that is web related from web based training and education to ON LINE MANDATORY TRAINING!!! (my own personal pet peeve). Also any type of survey that hits my in box is a time waster. I also have to agree with MSG Carl Cunningham digital navigation may have it's place but, map reading and land navigation are fundamentals that must be mastered. I've never had a compass or map that ran out of batteries of failed to load information. Take care SIR and best to you.
CSM REED
This is a great question. Most of the responses are spot on. As far as technology hurting us, in my opinion, anything that is web related from web based training and education to ON LINE MANDATORY TRAINING!!! (my own personal pet peeve). Also any type of survey that hits my in box is a time waster. I also have to agree with MSG Carl Cunningham digital navigation may have it's place but, map reading and land navigation are fundamentals that must be mastered. I've never had a compass or map that ran out of batteries of failed to load information. Take care SIR and best to you.
CSM REED
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COL (Join to see)
CSM, spot on. I've said it a couple of times in here. While satelites and GPS have helped commanders visualize the battlefield, they have had a detrimental effect on basic soldier skills. I had two NCO's return from ranger school for bolo'ing land navigation. What a collosal waste of money and time. I take it as a failure on my part for not making it a priority, and I am rectifying those mistakes in training. I was shocked when my driver and gunner were impressed by my ability to land navigate using only a map when our FBCB2 was down. I told them that I learned that as a 2LT...the hard way.
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LTC Paul Labrador
And our future enemies, knowing how reliant we are on GPS, will surely have ways to either interfere or destroy that capability.
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SGM (Join to see)
SIR
I "AMAZED" a squad of Troops during a recent FTX by finding 3 land nav points on a course they set up by just using a map to navigate using map orientation and terrain features. I fear relying on technology because it is all bound to fail at some point. Take care SIR and keep doing the right thing and enforcing the fundamentals to include qualifying and familiarization with iron sights.
I "AMAZED" a squad of Troops during a recent FTX by finding 3 land nav points on a course they set up by just using a map to navigate using map orientation and terrain features. I fear relying on technology because it is all bound to fail at some point. Take care SIR and keep doing the right thing and enforcing the fundamentals to include qualifying and familiarization with iron sights.
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