Rebounding From KatrinaRebounding From Katrina

In the wake of the wreckage from Hurricane Katrina, information technology is seeing service in a wide variety of applications connected to the recovery from the disaster and the assistance of survivors.

While news organizations have covered the hurricane in broad strokes, bloggers and citizen journalists have posted first-person reports on the devastation while living its consequences.

Thanks to the Internet, millions have been able to access never-before-seen perspectives the disaster, via satellite images posted by Google, the Associated Press, and others.

Web sites have been launched to help locate survivors. DirectTV on Friday started a 24-hour Hurricane Katrina information channel that broadcasts a continuous stream of email messages from family and friends of hurricane victims.

Silicon Valley has also jumped into the act. Intel, Cisco, Microsoft and others are working with Red Cross to build networks for recovery and relief operations.

One Internet registrar whose staffers refused to leave New Orleans and instead hunkered down in their offices, have not only kept their business up and online, but have provided some of the most stunning images and commentary from inside the chaotic city.

Sadly, even before the hurricane roared ashore, scammers and hackers began using the disaster to distribute phishing attacks and worms to unwary computer users.