Standardizing Sinhala for IT Part 4

Posted on August 22, 2006  /  204 Comments

Please continue your discussions on the above topic here. The previous thread is archived here.
Developing countries have tended to focus on disaster relief and rehabilitation at the expense of strategies to prevent or mitigate effects of disasters in the first place. To a politician, the political payout from handing out relief materials to the disaster affected appears greater than investing in a national early warning system that may not yield any political reward during his/her tenure. Political expediency coupled with a mix of fatalism, laziness to undertake the hardwork required to implement mitigation/prevention strategies, low valued assigned to human life in developing countries have all contributed to the callous acceptance of natural disasters as a “fact of life.” Hence, the allusion to a “paradigm shift” referred to by the Indian minister, hopefully marks a policy shift rather than just a rhetorical one. ———— India, others work on region’s first disaster management policy The Hindu, August 22, 2006 New Delhi, Aug 22.
The Network Readiness Index is out. All the measured South Asian countries saw their rankings decline, but Sri Lanka, dropping 12 positions, was the worst peformer from the region this year. Indonesia, dropping 17 positions, was the worst in Asia. “The Report uses the Networked Readiness Index (NRI), covering a total of 115 economies in 2005-2006, to measure the degree of preparation of a nation or community to participate in and benefit from ICT developments. The NRI is composed of three component indexes which assess: * the environment for ICT offered by a given country or community * the readiness of the community’s key stakeholders – individuals, business and governments * and the usage of ICT among these stakeholders” Top 15 plus Asia rankings at: Asia NetReadiness Rankings More details

$100 laptops to debut with Thai kids

Posted on August 17, 2006  /  0 Comments

Thursday, August 17, 2006 Posted: 1431 GMT (2231 HKT) (AP) — The ambitious project to provide low-cost laptop computers to poor children around the world is about to take a small step forward. More than 500 children in Thailand are expected to receive the machines in October and November for quality testing and debugging. Read the rest of the article on CNN

More on Google’s Wi-Fi service

Posted on August 16, 2006  /  1 Comments

In developed markets where the foundation of a high-capacity data transmission network exists, WiFi overlays are likely to be very effective. In emerging economies, where the foundation is yet being built, the same solutions may not as effective. But it is worth following the action, described in the NYT article below. “Google has deployed 380 lamppost-mounted Wi-Fi transceivers in Mountain View to make wireless Internet service available to anyone who has registered for a Google account, which is free. The company has invested a significant amount in promoting the benefits of wireless Internet access.
The article raises some interesting points with regards to the potential impacts of regulatory intereventions (in this case on the issue of LLU). Subsequent to being forced to reduce its LLU fee, Telstra stock has stumbled. Can anyone with more regulatory experience on this blog share their thoughts on this article? Is this a case of over regulation? The article can be found at HERE A related International Herald Tribune article can be found HERE

Talk is cheap and getting cheaper

Posted on August 15, 2006  /  1 Comments

With so many options becoming available to consumers to circumvent their mobiles and fixed phones, I wonder how much longer we can expect a single tier internet. The linked BBC article examines some new VOIP companies which are providing last mile access (for PC/PHone to phone communication) for free.
In the 1990s, I was involved in intense debates in the US about how to incentivize telcos to bring fiber closer to the home. It’s finally happening, and guess what is driving it? Competition. “Verizon will spend about $20 billion by the end of the decade to reach 16 million homes from Florida to California. But it is in New York City where Verizon has the most at stake, because New Yorkers are some of the nation’s biggest buyers of video, Internet and phone services.

PC turns 25

Posted on August 13, 2006  /  0 Comments

Personal Computer or PC turned 25 on August 12. May 2007 will be my 20th aniversary of using PC. This story of CNN (http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/biztech/08/11/ibmpcanniversary) may take many of us to “those” days.
Media use patterns are shifting in developed markets. Will similar things happen in emerging markets?Excerpt from BBC story on OFCOM study. It is noteworthy that the regulator is studying time use. This would not have happened if not for the introduction of converged regulation in the UK.
Bridging the digital divide is important. It may not be as important as ensuring safe water for all, or adequate healthcare, in terms of meriting investment of scarce public resources, but it is definitely important enough to merit concerted action to remove the artificial barriers to private supply. One of the best ways this can be done is by improving the knowledge that is brought to bear on the process.   The optimal way to achieve this is to create an environment within which international best practices are adapted to local circumstances by in-situ policy intellectuals. Some of these local experts could be in regulatory agencies and in government; but the optimal results will be achieved through participatory processes where all stakeholders, including the consumers are represented by knowledgeable experts.

Iraqi mobile use

Posted on August 8, 2006  /  2 Comments

Iraq is an Asian country. While LIRNEasia is unable at this time to work in Iraq, our hearts are with the people of Iraq as they use ICTs to cope with the crazy murderousness of their world. A excerpt from today’s New York Times story: “Your call cannot be completed,” it says, “because the subscriber has been bombed or kidnapped.” Cellphones have long been considered status symbols in developing countries, Iraq included. But in an environment where hanging out is potentially life threatening, cellphones are also a window into dreams and terrors, the macabre local sense of humor and Iraqis’ resilience amid the swells of violence.
LIRNEasia was invited to a meeting by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Mahaveli Development to discuss dam safety, based on the concept paper we developed last year in collaboration with a large number of partners. Work is underway to develop a project for World Bank funding that includes dam safety and the upgrading of hydrological and metereological information systems connected to the Sri Lanka’s water resources. The World Bank task managers present emphasized that the project development as well as its implementation must be done in adherence to the principles of consultation, participation, ownership of the project by all parties, and transparency. LIRNEasia was the only non-governmental entity at the meeting that had 30-40 attendees. In my comments, I expressed our appreciation of the invitation and offered to share our expertise in the handling of public consultation projects and community involvement in last-mile disaster warning.
A journalist report on Google\’s mesh network that is now operational in Mountain View, CA: \”In the first week in August I drove down to Mountain View on a sweltering afternoon looking to test out the promise of free or cheap phone calls and ubiquitous internet access over a city-wide wi-fi network. Thanks to Google, the city has been blanketed by wi-fi, which will soon allow its residents to connect to the wireless internet all over the city for free. Using a technology called mesh, Google has placed hundreds of wi-fi nodes on lamp posts around the city that can connect your laptop or handheld device to the internet. For a town that gets the service, it\’s like living in a giant wi-fi hotspot.\” Full story
By Frank Ling Washington 03 August 2006 Scientists expect more deadly earthquakes and tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. Countries in the region are making progress towards a regional warning and alert center. Wolf says that relaying the warning from central governments to their people remains a major challenge. “The technical side is quite easy to install because this is just technology we know,” he explained. “Once the warning shows up in the national warning system in a country, the difficult part is for a country to set up an internal civil defense system to get the warnings to the endangered areas and to the last mile.
Sri Lanka’s Department of Census and Statistics will be conducting a household computer literacy survey in October 2006. The questionnaire for the survey has been posted on their website for comments. Comments have been requested by August 14, 2006. The document can be found HERE The documents includes instructions on how to send comments.