Madam, - As someone with over 20 years' experience in the ICT area, I am astonished at the reports of the cost over-runs on the Health Service's PPARs system. Surprising as it may seem, these days many of the components of such systems are readily available via the "open source" computing model. Many public administrations in Europe are applying this model, with considerable success and cost savings.
To put the cost in context, the Comptroller and Auditor General's estimated final cost of about €230 million is approximately 4.3 per cent of Microsoft's global research budget ($7 billion) or 0.3 per cent of the estimated cost of NASA's next proposed moon landing ($104 billion), at current exchange rates. All of this for a relatively trivial application which does not work. - Is mise,
MARTIN KINSELLA, Luxembourg.
Madam, - The scandal of the health service payroll computer cost over-run may be a political watershed in this State. The Taoiseach said that claims of negligence, incompetence and rip-off were "erroneous, not true, unfair, incorrect". Have we finally ended the days of GUBU. and entered the age of ENUI? - Yours, etc,
DAVID O'CONNOR, Parkgate Place, Parkgate Street, Dublin 8.
Madam, - Homer Simpson's favourite exclamation upon making a mistake or clumsy error is "Doh!" - which just happens to be the initials of the Department of Health. - Yours, etc,
DECLAN CASHIN, Hogan Place, Dublin 2.