(FORTUNE Magazine) – In terms of technology funding, the Clinton Administration puts its money where its mouse is. Take the Technology Reinvestment Project, which supplies $605 million in seed money for technologies with both military and commercial uses. Many of the 212 projects to be funded under TRP are helping build the info highway. Here's a look at three of them: -- CommerceNet, developed by a Silicon Valley coalition and backed by companies like Apple Computer and Sun Microsystems, has set up an Internet shopping center. Individuals and businesses can offer their wares -- from consulting services to microchips -- via CommerceNet's easy-to-use software. The shopping service uses licensed security technology to protect credit card numbers from electronic theft. It got $6 million in TRP funding, half its cost. -- Sonet, for Synchronous Optical Network, is a project by Rockwell International, Southwestern Bell, Tektronix, Bellcore, the Baby Bells' research arm, and others to develop next-generation fiber-optic phone lines. They would have four times the capacity of today's fiber-optic lines, allowing more video and data transmissions. The lines will have a sophisticated self- healing mechanism to lessen outages. Total cost: $14 million. -- NIII Protocols (National Industrial Information Infrastructure) is an attempt by a consortium including IBM, General Dynamics, and Texas Instruments to set manufacturing software standards. Engineers could swap designs, thereby cutting costs. This $70.7 million project is negotiating for TRP funding but won't say how much.