In Defense of Friction. 1903 telephone operator (John McNab on Flickr) There is no doubt that technology has made my life much easier. I rarely share the romantic view that things were better when human beings used to do the boring tasks that machines now do. For example, I do not think there is much to gain by bringing back the old telephone operators. However, there are reasons to believe social computing systems should not automate social interactions.
In his paper about online trust, Coye Cheshire points out how automated trust systems undermine trust itself by incentivizing cooperation because of the fear of punishment rather than actual trust among people. Cheshire argues that: strong forms of online security and assurance can supplant, rather than enhance, trust. Leading to what he calls the trust paradox: assurance structures designed to make interpersonal trust possible in uncertain environments undermine the need for trust in the first place Like this: Like Loading... Brazilian Ideas » Blog Archive » The Hacker Bus. InShare3 In Brazil, a group of “friendly hackers” – Transparency Hacker – came up with a quite creative idea called “the hacker bus”. They raised money through a crowd-funding platform to travel in a tech-equipped bus around the country and Latin America. They want to use the idea of hacking (and open data, free software, etc.) to empower regular people, especially those less sophisticated with computers and technology.
The group says they aim to “promote more transparent and accountable government institutions” and “push the citizens to create and experiment on bills of popular initiative.” For those who want to follow the itinerary of the bus, simply click here. Cheers, Marcelo Brescia Source: JWT Intelligence Tags: Brazil, Brazilian, Hacker Bus, idea This entry was posted on segunda-feira, agosto 8th, 2011 at 3:13 am and is filed under Entrepreneurship, Social&Cultural, Technology. Development Studies Association. Information, Technology and Development This group covers all aspects of the relationship between the development process and "informatics" (meaning information, information systems, knowledge, and ICTs). It covers both strategic/policy and tactical/project levels; and encompasses all lifecycle aspects: readiness, design and development, transfer and adoption, use and impact. News Using Actor-Network Theory in Development Research We have just launched a new “Actor-Network Theory for Development” working paper series: arising from the study group meeting on the same topic held in 2012.
The foundational paper – Development Studies Research and Actor-Network Theory – provides a primer on actor-network theory including pros and cons; explores ANT’s relevance to current trends in development thinking and practice; and outlines development research questions that ANT may help address. Previous meeting: New Models of Innovation for Development View the report View the list of presented papers. Paper Search. ICT4D Kenya: "ICT and Community Development Is Real"
Jonathan Mativo, whom I first met in Kenya in December at our Social Media for Social Change workshop was one of our core FrontlineSMS trainers last month. In January, Mativo left Plan to found his own organization called ICT4D Kenya which operates in the Kilifi and Machakos districts in the Southern Coast of Kenya. He was motivated to move beyond the commercial ICT sector to ICT4 community development by his 4 years of work at Plan.
“Previously I didn’t have any background on ICT4D. I only looked at ICT from the operational point of view but Plan really inspired me to work with children to see them realize their full potential.” ICT4D Kenya envisions young children confident in participatory media, children that see ICTs as enablers for development rather than just tools to perform work. “We also foresee a changed community – people who are socially together.”Photo: Mativo is the founder of ICT4D. We're not talking old, slow computers though. Photo: Simplifying ICTs for people. Wandering the World… » From Kenya - 5 Most Dangerous Trends in ICT4D.
Human touch and the mobile experience. Notes on Sustainability. Notes on Sustainability Kenneth Keniston The conjunction of the “information age” with the idea of “development” has brought an apparently irresistible world-wide push toward “closing the digital divide”, or, as it is now known, “ICT4D.” Involved here is the union of the newer electronic information and communication technologies, chiefly computers, email and internet-web, on the one hand, with the idea of development through technological progress and innovation on the other hand.
Joined together, these two ideas have proved persuasive to virtually every international and global agency, to almost every national and state government, to small and large nongovernmental organizations and to new organizations and affluent individuals. Translated into concrete projects, ICT4D has meant, over the last five or six years, two major kinds of commitments. More relevant to my discussion here is a second meaning of “ICT4D.” The importance of sustainability is nonetheless obvious. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 6x2 Methodology for Intranets: provides a project planning methodology for developing and enhancing intranets. The 6×2 methodology provides a unique and innovative approach to growing corporate intranets. Recognising that the list of potential improvements always exceeds the resources of the intranet team, this methodology provides a practical way of choosing the activities that will have the greatest impact on the organisation, and on the team.
Intranets must succeed. The organisational need to improve business processes, share knowledge and support staff in their daily work is constantly growing. Most organisations have already realised that they cannot operate without an intranet (whatever it might be called). Yet the real challenge is for intranet teams to gain the support and resources to meet these business needs and demands. The 6×2 methodology works within these constraints to provide a practical approach for intranet planning that simultaneously delivers additional intranet functionality while building support for the intranet team. The 95 page 6×2 methodology for intranets contains: Our Primary Research: Understanding How People Use Mobile Phones in Rural India. Understanding user motivations and intentions is critical to designing good experiences. In most cases the users we speak with are comfortable with products with complex interactions and deep functionality.
The Mobile Literacy project gave us the opportunity to speak with people who live in rural areas of the developing world who bring a fresh, unblemished perspective on the devices we take for granted: mobile phones. For this project, our researchers Natasha Alani and Sebastian Heycke set out to uncover the needs of a population that product designers and manufacturers often overlook and who are not part of a typical product target market. Natasha Alani, our lead design researcher, describes her motivations: “Empowering the underserved is a long-held theme of my personal and professional life.
While living in both rural Uganda and China, I recognized that mobile phones had reached the most remote areas, yet people often turned to me and other westerners for help with basic actions. Dr. Definition Service Design | Service Design Network. Notes on Sustainability. Notes on Sustainability Kenneth Keniston The conjunction of the “information age” with the idea of “development” has brought an apparently irresistible world-wide push toward “closing the digital divide”, or, as it is now known, “ICT4D.” Involved here is the union of the newer electronic information and communication technologies, chiefly computers, email and internet-web, on the one hand, with the idea of development through technological progress and innovation on the other hand.
Joined together, these two ideas have proved persuasive to virtually every international and global agency, to almost every national and state government, to small and large nongovernmental organizations and to new organizations and affluent individuals. Translated into concrete projects, ICT4D has meant, over the last five or six years, two major kinds of commitments.
More relevant to my discussion here is a second meaning of “ICT4D.” The importance of sustainability is nonetheless obvious. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 4th International Conference on e ... Richard Heeks. Richard Heeks is Professor of Development Informatics in the Institute for Development Policy and Management, University of Manchester, UK. He is Director of the University's Centre for Development Informatics. Background[edit] Richard Heeks was born in Reading, England; studied natural sciences at the University of Cambridge, and completed an MPhil at the University of Leicester and a PhD at the Open University, UK. He worked as a software developer for ICL and a volunteer science teacher in Nigeria before taking research positions with the University of Leicester and then University of Loughborough. Contributions[edit] Heeks was one of the founding academics developing the field of "ICT4D": information and communication technologies for development.
Publications[edit] Books External links[edit] Webpage References[edit] eGovernment for Development - Causes of eGovernment Success and Failure: Design-Reality Gap Model. Causes of eGovernment Success and Failure: Design-Reality Gap Model Why eGov Projects Succeed or Fail: The Design-Reality Gap Model Central to e-government success and failure is the amount of change between 'where we are now' and 'where the e-government project wants to get us'. 'Where we are now' means the current realities of the situation. 'Where the e-government project wants to get us' means the model or conceptions and assumptions built into the project's design. eGovernment success and failure therefore depends on the size of gap that exists between 'current realities' and 'design of the e-government project'. The larger this design-reality gap, the greater the risk of e-government failure.
Equally, the smaller the gap, the greater the chance of success. Analysis of e-government projects indicates that seven dimensions - summarised by the ITPOSMO acronym - are necessary and sufficient to provide an understanding of design-reality gaps: Figure 1. Full Case Study Examples. Implementing and Managing eGovernment: An International Text (9780761967927): Prof Richard Heeks. IDPM publications. iGovernment Working Papers - IDPM Working papaers.
Richard Heeks. Citizens in a Knowledge Society: rethinking education from scratch. On April 12th, 2011, I was in Belgrade take part in the Quality standards in ICT education workshop, belonging to the Click to Europe, aimed at promoting and contributing to e-inclusion of people, businesses and communities in Serbia, thus improving quality of life, employability and social inclusion of citizens. Knowing myself very little about quality standards, I was asked to provide the participants — mainly telecentre administrators and other related profiles — with a general framework where they could situate their own e-inclusion projects and, most especially, what was the importance and role of ICT skills in the whole scenario. Keeping that in mind, and for something more than three hours, I began explaining what the digital revolution was about, that is, what was the outer framework, and went on zeroing in until I ended up talking about digital competence, e-portfolios and personal learning environments.
The workshop provided me with two positive feelings. eGovernment for Development - Success and Failure in eGovernment Projects. This section is dedicated to the analysis of success and failure in the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in governmental activities. It addresses a series of issues of potential interest to e-government practitioners and suggests solutions to these issues.
The solutions were developed through a mix of research at IDPM, research in local partner institutions, and discussions on the egov4dev email list. Success and Failure in eGovernment Projects is the first topic in a series of topics covered by the eGovernment for Development Information Exchange. Why Worry About eGovernment Failure? eGovernment projects can have three main outcomes: total failure; partial failure; and success.
This high rate of failure is a major problem. Failure could be used as the basis for learning and knowledge-generation; helping to improve later projects. Understanding eGovernment Success and Failure Practical Techniques: For eGovernment Projects Already Implemented Training Guide. Implementing and Managing eGovernment: An International Text (9780761967927): Prof Richard Heeks.