Technologies for the 21st Century Transmittal Letter

	Letter from John H. Gibbons
	The White House   Washington   Members of Congress:   I am pleased to forward with this letter "Computing, Information, and Communications: Technologies for the 21st Century," which was prepared by the Computing, Information, and Communications (CIC) R&D Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council's Committee on Computing, Information, and Communications (CCIC). This report, which supplements the President's Fiscal Year 1998 Budget, describes the interagency CIC programs.   America continues to lead the way into the Information Age with its preeminence in the development and deployment of information technologies. Under the CIC programs -- which are often cited as models for successful Federal multi-agency coordination -- academia, industry, and Government have developed and exploited leading edge computing and communications technologies to provide for more effective Government operations and to boost the economic competitiveness of the U.S.   The programs continue to amass an impressive array of accomplishments. These range from underlying technologies in computing and networking, to applications that meet the mission needs of the participating Federal agencies. The CIC programs' focus areas continue the sustained, long-term Federal commitment to accelerate the development of advanced technologies for the Information Age such as the Next Generation Internet initiative, which commences this fiscal year.   The successes of the CIC programs, coupled with the changing role of information technology, will be enhanced by the work of the Presidential Advisory Committee on High Performance Computing and Communications, Information Technology, and the Next Generation Internet. The CIC member agencies have developed numerous successful collaborative relationships with academia and industry. Many of these are highlighted in this document.     John H. GIbbons Assistant to the President For Science and Technology