[DDN] news: DDN list has moved
Hi everyone, The DDN list has officially moved to a new address: digitaldivide@digitaldivide.net Please direct all posts to this address; the old address of digitaldivide@mailman.edc.org is being retired. Users will be able to subscribe and unsubscribe here: http://www.digitaldivide.net/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide You will also be able to update your membership by changing the settings of your member account at www.digitaldivide.net, if you have one. thanks, andy Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Audioblogger.com shutting down
Hi everyone, Earlier this week I got an email from Odeo.com, which runs Blogger's mobcasting tool Audioblogger.com. Apparently they're shutting down the service at the end of the month. More info about why here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/10/blogger_odeo_get_out.html With the departure of Audioblogger, podcasters are left with slim pickings when it comes to free tools to create podcasts with a telephone, particularly with the closure of audlink.com earlier this year. The email sent out by Odeo announcing Audioblogger suggested several alternatives, including gcast.com, gabcast.com and hipcast.com, but these services don't allow you to embed your podcasts directly into your blog (at least not without paying a monthly fee, in the case of hipcast). This leaves phone-based podcasters between a rock and a hard place - and tells me, at least, that it's more important than ever to develop open source mobcasting tools that won't disappear due to the cyclical economics of the dot-com universe -andy Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] google's new literacy web site
Hmm... Surprised at how limited it is, both in terms of usefulness and in its definition of literacy -andy --- Phil Shapiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: hi DDN community - google has launched a literacy web site. i haven't looked into it yet, but it looks like it might have value. http://www.google.com/literacy/ - phil Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Video conference on pc's for free?
Video bloggers sometimes use stickam.com to do this. I haven't had much luck with it, but I'm also using a Mac, so PCs may fare better. -andy --- James Lerman [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: We have 4 people, in 4 separate locations who each have an audio-enabled webcam connected to a pc on a high speed internet connection.. We want to be able to video conference together simultaneously and we want to do it for free. We know if we all had macs we could do it on iChat, but we don't all have macs. So, does anyone know of a service where the 4 of us could have a video conference gratis? Thanks. Jim Lerman ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] My new job at NPR
Hi everyone, I sent this message to the list about a week ago just before I discovered the listserver had crashed. It appears to be working again, albeit very slowly, so here's another copy of that email. -andy Original Message Hi everyone, I just wanted to let you know I've just accepted a new job at National Public Radio in Washington DC, where I'll be serving as senior product manager for Web 2.0-related activities. I'll work with them to develop new projects potentially involving things like online social networks, citizen journalism, wikis, blogging and vlogging. This also means I'll be moving from Boston to DC in the next couple of weeks. We'll be living in Silver Spring, MD, just across the northeast border of DC. I'm planning to continue blogging for PBS, as well as staying involved as moderator of WWWEDU and the DIGITALDIVIDE list. I've written more about the job here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/my_new_job_at_npr.html thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- -- -- Andy Carvin andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] please don't reply to test messages
Hi everyone, This is just a request for you to not reply to test messages. The list is still running very slowly, and there's no need to reply since I'm monitoring list traffic and can see if it's posted. thanks, ac -- -- Andy Carvin andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] testing the list
Hi everyone, The listserver crashed last week; I'm testing to see if it's working again. -- -- Andy Carvin andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- 11:20am wed ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Web 2.0 predictions for the upcoming school year?
Hi everyone, A few days ago I posted a blog entry on my learning.now blog offering some Web 2.0-related predictions for the upcoming school year, which is just beginning here in the US. I'd be curious to hear your own predictions, too - what tools will be hot, which ones won't, what policy changes may impact edtech, etc. For myself, I offered five predictions and a waffle: 1. The Cell Phone Wars Will Heat Up Across the Country Until a Number of Parents and School Board Members Spontaneously Combust 2. MySpace Loses It-Girl Status To Some Upstart Punk 3. Cyberbullying Gets Worse Before It Gets Better 4. Moodle’s Meteoric Rise Become a Hurtling Asteroid 5. Vlogging Becomes the New Podcasting Waffle: Web 2.0 Hits a Brick Wall - Maybe - Because of DOPA Please check out the blog for more thoughts on each of these. http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/08/back_to_school_five_prediction.html And if you're a blogger, I'd encourage you to respond by tagging your post with this tag, so it'll be easier for people to follow the meme: a href=http://technorati.com/tag/2006-2007+edtech+predictions; rel=tag2006-2007 edtech predictions/a thanks, ac -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg
I talked about this in a recent post to my learning.now blog. Here's a snippet: For some rural communities in the developing world, Internet access will be intermittent at best, so it would be possible to develop some kind of “wikisync” tool that would sync the laptops with the latest Wikipedia, just like you would sync your mobile phone with your computer’s address book. But this leads to another problem: as more and more educators encourage students to become Wikipedians themselves, how will the Wikipedia community dynamic be affected by these intermittent updates? For example, let’s say a group of kids in a rural Nigerian community update a batch of entries as part of a class project. They don’t have consistent Internet access, so they make a series of edits locally. Meanwhile, those same Wikipedia entries are probably evolving online, as other Wikipedians enter them. To complicate matters further, another group of students in Massachusetts work to edit the same entries, but aren’t allowed to participate in the discussions for those entries because of the school’s concern over online predators. How will the different versions of the same entry be reconciled when the students’ entries are updated? Will the online Wikipedians feel slighted when the students’ content suddenly overrides their content without building consensus? Wikipedia, when it’s at its best, works well because a community of people come together around an entry and use their collective knowledge to craft it. It’s the interplay that takes place between these people that leads to a consensus document - a consensus that remains a work-in-progress, but a consensus nonetheless. Would having students that lack regular Internet access editing Wikipedia entries offline make it impossible to achieve that consensus? full text: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/08/will_wikimaniacs_change_educat.html andy David P. Dillard wrote: The problem with having copies on a computer hard drive of the Wikipedia or any other electronic book is that this is then a static copy of that tool. The whole idea of the Wikipedia and of a Wiki in general is that anyone in the audience of that Wiki can modify, rewrite or improve the content already there. There may be hundreds of changes to the Wikipedia daily. A static copy of this tool rather than accessing the Wikipedia on the web would become an outdated copy in very short order, unless a mechanism is going to exist to connect to the Wikipedia website to have the content revised online. Sincerely, David Dillard Temple University (215) 204 - 4584 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Net-Gold http://groups.yahoo.com/group/net-gold http://listserv.temple.edu/archives/net-gold.html General Internet Print Resources http://library.temple.edu/articles/subject_guides/general.jsp http://www.learningis4everyone.org/ http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/ringleaders/davidd.html Digital Divide Network http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/jwne Educator-Gold http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Educator-Gold/ On Sun, 6 Aug 2006, Andy Carvin wrote: Well, that's the long-term plan of Wikipedia ac Subbiah Arunachalam wrote: Why should we not have a free copy of Wikipedia in all low-cost computers meant for individuals, schools and other public access centres in the rural areas of developing countries? Arun - Original Message - From: Andy Carvin [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, August 04, 2006 7:31 PM Subject: [DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg Today at the second annual Wikimania conference, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales announced that MIT's $100 laptops will all include a copy of Wikipedia. He also announced the launch of Wikiversity, an online community for generating learning materials, and Wikiwyg, a easy-to-use interface for editing Wikipedia, developed in conjunction with SocialText. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/jimmy_wales_announce.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message
Re: [DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg
Well, that's the long-term plan of Wikipedia ac Subbiah Arunachalam wrote: Why should we not have a free copy of Wikipedia in all low-cost computers meant for individuals, schools and other public access centres in the rural areas of developing countries? Arun - Original Message - From: Andy Carvin [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, August 04, 2006 7:31 PM Subject: [DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg Today at the second annual Wikimania conference, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales announced that MIT's $100 laptops will all include a copy of Wikipedia. He also announced the launch of Wikiversity, an online community for generating learning materials, and Wikiwyg, a easy-to-use interface for editing Wikipedia, developed in conjunction with SocialText. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/jimmy_wales_announce.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg
Today at the second annual Wikimania conference, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales announced that MIT's $100 laptops will all include a copy of Wikipedia. He also announced the launch of Wikiversity, an online community for generating learning materials, and Wikiwyg, a easy-to-use interface for editing Wikipedia, developed in conjunction with SocialText. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/jimmy_wales_announce.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Jimmy Wales announces Wikipedia/$100 laptop alliance, Wikiversity, Wikiwyg
I've posted more info about his presentation, including my notes and a podcast. Notes: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/notes_from_jimmy_wal.html Podcast: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/podcast_of_jimmy_wal.html Andy Carvin wrote: Today at the second annual Wikimania conference, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales announced that MIT's $100 laptops will all include a copy of Wikipedia. He also announced the launch of Wikiversity, an online community for generating learning materials, and Wikiwyg, a easy-to-use interface for editing Wikipedia, developed in conjunction with SocialText. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/08/jimmy_wales_announce.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Wikimania, anyone?
Hi everyone, I was just wondering if anyone on the list was planning to attend Wikimania in Boston this weekend at Harvard Law School. It's the second annual Wikipedia summit. I'll be there all weekend, as well as at Dan Gillmor's citizen journalism retreat on Monday. Drop me a note if you're planning to attend. http://wikimania2006.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Introducing DOPA Watch
In light of the US House of Representative's overwhelming vote yesterday in support of the Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA), I've set up an online news digest called DOPA Watch. DOPA, if enacted into law, would force all schools and libraries receiving federal E-Rate subsidies to filter out interactive websites, including blogs, bulletin boards and online social networks. DOPA Watch automatically aggregates the latest blog entries and news stories referencing DOPA, courtesy of the blog search engine Technorati and Google News. It also includes legislative updates generated by GovTrack.us. For those of you who don't wish to visit the website often, you can subscribe to the news feed via email, or via RSS. I created the aggregator using FeedDigest.com, FeedBurner.com and Movable Type blogging software. -andy website: http://www.andycarvin.com/dopa.html rss: http://feeds.feedburner.com/dopa thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] OLPC's new power system - strings
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Apparently, the OLPC folks have dropped yet another original design idea, the hand crank, and now are talking about powering the $140+ laptop with a string - you pull it like a lawnmower starter of old. http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17194ch=infotech http://www.engadget.com/2006/07/24/olpc-will-be-powered-by-pulling-a-string/ What next? Gerbils on a wheel? Well, yes. http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2006/07/make_podcast_weekend_projects_1.html -- -- Andy Carvin andycarvin [at] yahoo com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] user demand for openoffice 2.0 books
Speculating something might be happening isn't necessarily slanderous, but it's certainly a low blow, and unless you have evidence about something going on it really doesn't have any business on the list. If I hadn't been moderating the list from my cellphone I wouldn't have posted it. Executive Director wrote: microsoft in the past has resorted to all sorts of underhanded tactics. i don't know if they're resorting to paying barnes and noble to not stock openoffice.org books, but it would not surprise me if they were. Phil, Saying something like this as fact and not as an opinion, not to mention no factual backup, is irresponsible and slanderous. It has no place on this list in my view. Mike * Michael F. Pitsch [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Phil Shapiro Sent: Wednesday, July 19, 2006 10:25 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [DDN] user demand for openoffice 2.0 books hi Digital Divide Network community - the most talented author of books about openoffice, solveig haughland, blogs that barnes and nobles is telling her publisher that there is no real demand for openoffice books and that they won't stock her excellent new openoffice 2.0 book. see http://openoffice.blogs.com/ microsoft in the past has resorted to all sorts of underhanded tactics. i don't know if they're resorting to paying barnes and noble to not stock openoffice.org books, but it would not surprise me if they were. you can do something about this if you live in the united states (or canada.) simply call your local barnes and noble bookstore and inquire if they sell any books about openoffice.org you can bet barnes and nobles keeps track of what books people are asking for. please don't call barnes and nobles unless you actually would buy an openoffice book. i'm not asking folks to create an artificial demand for the book. i'm just asking folks to speak up if this new openoffice.org book (and other openoffice.org books) are something you would want to see on a barnes and noble bookstore shelf. - phil Digg http://tinyurl.com/fknbx Phil Shapiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/pshapiro http://philsrssfeed.blogspot.com http://www.his.com/pshapiro/stories.menu.html Wisdom starts with wonder. - Socrates Learning happens through gentleness. ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- Andy Carvin Program Director EDC Center for Media Community acarvin @ edc . org http://www.digitaldivide.net Blog: http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] youtube web site serving 100 million videos per day
The YouTube website says they serve 70 million a day, so it's not too far off the mark. -ac --- Phil Shapiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: hi Digital Divide Network community - this quote in the boston globe newspaper might possibly be off, but it's impressive all the same. even if youtube were serving 100 million videos per year, that would still be fairly noteworthy. http://tinyurl.com/l36ta - phil -- Phil Shapiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/pshapiro http://philsrssfeed.blogspot.com http://www.his.com/pshapiro/stories.menu.html Wisdom starts with wonder. - Socrates Learning happens through gentleness. ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] my new email address
Hi everyone, Just wanted to send out a quick note to let you know I'm no longer using my edc.org account. You can now reach me at andycarvin /at/ yahoo /dot/ com instead. thanks, andy Andy Carvin andycarvin at yahoo com www.andycarvin.com www.pbs.org/learningnow __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Making Mobile Phones Mandatory in Schools?
Hi everyone, The AP had an interesting story this weekend about universities now requiring students to participate in school-sanctioned mobile phone services: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060709/D8IOKONO0.html I've posted an analysis of one of the more cutting-edge programs (MSU Connect at Montclair State University) on my learning.now blog: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/07/making_mobile_phones_mandatory.html The Montclair program includes a variety of campus-specific services on their phones, including classroom management tools and real-time public transportation information. It also includes a controversial tracking program called Rave Guardian that allows the university to pinpoint the exact location of all students using GPS. In my blog I take a look at the service and ponder whether or not it might have relevancy some day in the K-12 universe as well. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Podcast: Governor Angus King on the Maine laptop initiative
Hi everyone, Last month I recorded a podcast of former Maine governor Angus King talking about his role in creating Maine's middle school laptop initiative. I just received permission from him to post it publicly, so it's now on my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/07/podcast_angus_king_o.html It's about 50 minutes long and 45 megabytes. I've also included a link to notes I wrote during his presentation for those of you who'd prefer not to download the audio. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Getting to know Wikipedia
Hi everyone, I've just written an intro to Wikipedia on my learning.now blog. It's the first in a series of posts on the role of Wikipedia in education. http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/06/getting_to_know_wikipedia_1.html I'm hoping to discuss examples of Wikipedia being used in the classroom for future entries; if this might apply to your work, please feel free to post a comment on the blog and sum up what you and your students are doing. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] podcasts from the anytime, anywhere learning summit
There may be some at AALF.org. Also, it appeared that Gary Stager was recording sessions, but he's the only other person I noticed doing this. andy Hi Andy, Do you know of anyone else who is making recordings of this conference and putting them up anywhere? I wanted to attend, but circumstances prevented that. Thanks for this work. Best, Jim Lerman ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] MOPGEL at Buduburam Refugee Camp (Ghana): Needs ICTs and Advice
Please also read an article by Andy Carvin about his visit to MOPGEL/SHIFSD and Buduburam in July 2005: http://www.digitaldivide.net/blog/acarvin/view?PostID=4921. Actually, I'd recommend you visit the original version of this article, since it has pictures and a better layout: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2005/07/life_in_a_liber.html I also produced an eight-minute documentary about MOPGEL and other ICT projects in Buduburam, which you can download here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2005/11/refugees_the_li_1.html thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] podcasts from the anytime, anywhere learning summit
Hi everyone, I've recorded a series of podcasts at the anytime, anywhere learning foundation summit (aalf.org) here in Boston. Each podcast is about 45 minutes long, between 15 and 20 megabytes. Ben Shneiderman: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/06/ben_shneiderman_on_m.html Ben is the author of Da Vinci's Laptop, and is a computer scientist/edtech researcher at the University of Maryland. He talks about the need to make students ecstatic about learning, using authentic, interactive learning experiences that positively affect the community. He also talks about his work with Hive Group (http://www.hivegroup.com/), developing web-based visualization tools for exploring complex data sets. Mike Furdyk: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/06/mike_furdyk_takes_it.html Mike is one of the founders of TakingITGlobal.org, the global youth activism network. He talks about his life growing up with technology from the time he was a toddler, and how it led to him creating an online community where young people can come together to affect positive social change. Tim Magner: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/06/tim_magner_laptops_a.html Tim is the director of the Office of Education Technology at the US Department of Education. In his presentation, he offers a broad overview of emerging technologies, from mobile devices to nanotechnology, and examines the role these tools should play in education and educational management. Hope you enjoy the podcasts. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] bill gates transitions
Consider this thread over. Please take it off-list if you wish to continue it. I think this thread has in fact seen better days. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Angus King: An Insider's History of the Maine Laptop Program
Hi everyone, Former Maine governor Angus King gave a fascinating, entertaining speech today at the Anytime, Anywhere Learning Foundation (AALF.org) conference here in Boston. I've posted detailed notes from the speech on my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com/ permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/06/angus_king_a_brief_h.html I also recorded a podcast and have asked the governor for permission to post it; waiting back to hear from him. Here's a taste of my notes: By 2000, our finance people said we'd have a $70 mil surplus in the state budget that no one anticipated. It hadn't been earmarked for anything. So I put these insights together and said I want to do something that helps people compete, isn't incremental, and should involve edtech. We could have used the money for anything, but I wanted to do this. My chief of staff said that we could create an endowment to give laptops to every 7th grader forever. And I said, wow. We worked on this idea and announced it six weeks later. Other people plan projects like this for more than a year - that's better. But if we had waited, the legislature would have spent the money. If we didn't get our mitts on that money, it would get parceled out and been used incrementally. A reporter then asked a question we hadn't thought of - will the kids or the schools own the laptops? I had no idea. I could have said I don't know, but I blurted out, the kids. Wrong answer. Huge political mistake. People hated the idea that the govt would give these tools to kids. Seventh graders became the most hated minority in the state. So that was a big mistake. It was referred to as Governor King's Laptop Giveaway. Why don't more politicians try projects like this? It's because I got the shit kicked out of me. Ten to one of all emails were against it. Governor, what were you smoking? Governor, we are a poor state, let someone else lead. Yes, and they will still lead. One guy even suggested it would be better to give kids chainsaws ...What did we learn? If you're thinking of doing something like this, go to one vendor. Don't spread it around - you want one throat to choke. When something goes wrong, you don't want the computer company blaming the network company. Get one vendor who can deal with the whole issue and be your partner. For us, Apple was a real partner. They moved people to Maine, were fantastic with repairs, a real partner. Things also have to work. If you're gonna do this, the damn things have to work. If something doesn't work more than once or twice, the teachers will fold up the laptops and go back to the book. Reliability is a huge factor in this. A teacher just isn't going to put up with it otherwise. Third - you can't spend too much time or money on professional development. The best thing we did was focus on professional development from the very beginning, starting with a grant from the Gates Foundation. This is not a hardware project. It's an educational project. This device is something that assists teachers, not replace them. So you need to help teachers integrate it into the curriculum. If all you're doing is buying hardware, it's going to be a failure, and I don't want that to happen because my name is associated with this kind of project. Fourth - assessment. This obsession with testing is focused on rote knowledge. It's not capturing what these tools can really do. It's a tool that helps you solve problems, which is what life is all about. It's not for memorizing what year Columbus discover America. But the tests are testing that kind of knowledge. So do not - do not - promise your school board that one-to-one laptops will improve test scores, or you'll be out of a job. You can say they improve writing skills - all the research is showing this. But it's really about problem solving thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] bill gates transitions
There really isn't any point in me continuing the 'Missing the point' thread when rational debate has gone walkies. Well said. Let's wrap this up. For those who have been a part of this discussion, feel free to post a concluding thought, but please take any new tacks or followups off-list -andy -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] AALF conference, anyone?
Hi everyone, Is anyone planning to attend the Anytime, Anywhere Learning Foundation Conference in Boston later this week? Looks like I'll be there for at least part of it, baby emergencies notwithstanding. conference info: http://www.aalf.org/ -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Add yourself to the DDN world map!
We wouldn't be able to use Frappr, then - we would have to set up our own Google Map from scratch. Technically this is possible. But there's no way this could be a priority in the short term, because the limited money DDN has is going to transferring DDN to TakingITGlobal, and hopefully offering stipends to editors. Anything after that will have to be decided by the TakingITGlobal team after I'm gone. andy Dave A. Chakrabarti wrote: Andy, A great resource, and one that is much appreciated. Would it be possible to include a location field in our profile information, which automatically adds us to the map? I know this is possible in some content management systems, but not sure how hard it would be to add this functionality to DDN...but it'd be great! Other ideas: adding website URL information to the map information popup, so it's easier to find information on people we find. I just found a fellow Chicagoan on DDN who I didn't know, but there's no easy way to find out more about his organizations / work... A lot of requests, I know...but thanks for the map! Dave. --- Dave A. Chakrabarti Projects Coordinator CTCNet Chicago [EMAIL PROTECTED] (708) 919 1026 --- Andy Carvin wrote: Hi everyone, I've just added a new DDN community for hosting a copy of the map: http://www.digitaldivide.net/community/map You can use this page to explore the map or add your on pin to the map. It's also a featured community, so there's a link to the community on the homepage, under the name DDN Member Map. andy Andy Carvin wrote: Hi everyone, Just for kicks, I've created a new DDN member map on Frappr.com. Frappr uses Google Maps to let you create a map showing the locations of people affiliated to a community of interest. With the Frappr map, DDN members can pinpoint their location in the world and let others know where they're located. Please feel free to try it out here: http://www.frappr.com/digitaldividenetworkmembers Would be curious to hear from any regular Frappr users if they think the tool could be useful to DDN. thanks, andy ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Are online social networks a fad?
Hi everyone, I just wanted to let you know about a blog entry I just wrote in response to a C|NET News article that debated whether or not online social networks are a fad. In it, I look at the history of online community building, from the earliest bulletin board systems and email lists to community networks and online social networks. Here's a snippet from the blog: In a June 14 article for C|NET News, Stephanie Olsen examines whether online social networks like MySpace are here to stay or are a passing fad. The article, which looks at the issue mostly from a business perspective, suggests the jury is still out. But from a human perspective, history suggests otherwise. The Internet has always been about community. Sure, when it was developed in the late 60s, the idea was to have a decentralized computer network that could survive a nuclear holocaust. But even when the very first computer network was set up, there was at least one person behind each of those computers. And when you connect two people together, you have the minimal requirements for forming a new community. And in this case, the more the merrier: as Metcalfe’s Law suggests, the value of a network is intrinsically connected to the number of people communicating over it. More people, bigger network. Bigger network, bigger community. Bigger doesn’t always mean better, of course, but it does help you reach critical mass. Of course, for many years the Internet didn’t seem like a community because it was so research-oriented, but that didn’t stop people from using the technology to forge bonds with each other. As Ethan Zuckerman recently pointed out in his lightning-fast history of the Internet at the Harvard Beyond Broadcast conference, the first email discussion list was created more than 30 years ago, in 1975. By the late 70s, we had USENET bulletin board discussions, which continue today in the form of Google Groups. And in 1982, France introduced the Minitel interactive TV system - which just happened to have a chat feature, presaging the development of instant messaging. snip Now, of course, you can barely turn on the TV news (or check your RSS feed) without hearing about an online social network. They’re certainly the “big thing” in many circles, which is why venture capitalists are debating their future, as is the case in the aforementioned C|NET article. Whether or not they continue to be the darling of investors remains to be seen. But their fundamental purpose - giving people a platform for congregating, interacting and creating new things - isn’t going to go away when the fad is over. That’s because congregating, interacting and creating new things is what the Internet is all about. It’s what communities are all about. And pioneering educators, like always, are right in the middle of it. The question, though, remains whether the rest of the K12 community will embrace these tools or shun them snip http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/06/are_online_social_networks_a_f.html thanks, ac -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] What's the Fuss about FOSS, Part 2: A Chat with David Thornburg
Hi everyone, I've just posted the second part of my two-part essay, What's the Fuss About FOSS?, which explores the role of free and open source software (FOSS) in K-12 education. In the second installment, I interview author and edtech expert David Thornburg, who's just released a new book about FOSS and education. http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/06/whats_the_fuss_about_fosspart_1.html digg it: http://digg.com/software/What_s_the_Fuss_About_FOSS_Part_2:_A_Chat_with_David_Thornburg thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Add yourself to the DDN world map!
Hi everyone, Just for kicks, I've created a new DDN member map on Frappr.com. Frappr uses Google Maps to let you create a map showing the locations of people affiliated to a community of interest. With the Frappr map, DDN members can pinpoint their location in the world and let others know where they're located. Please feel free to try it out here: http://www.frappr.com/digitaldividenetworkmembers Would be curious to hear from any regular Frappr users if they think the tool could be useful to DDN. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Add yourself to the DDN world map!
Hi everyone, I've just added a new DDN community for hosting a copy of the map: http://www.digitaldivide.net/community/map You can use this page to explore the map or add your on pin to the map. It's also a featured community, so there's a link to the community on the homepage, under the name DDN Member Map. andy Andy Carvin wrote: Hi everyone, Just for kicks, I've created a new DDN member map on Frappr.com. Frappr uses Google Maps to let you create a map showing the locations of people affiliated to a community of interest. With the Frappr map, DDN members can pinpoint their location in the world and let others know where they're located. Please feel free to try it out here: http://www.frappr.com/digitaldividenetworkmembers Would be curious to hear from any regular Frappr users if they think the tool could be useful to DDN. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] What's the fuss about FOSS? (Part 1)
Hi everyone, I've just posted the first of a two-part blog essay about free and open source software (FOSS) and its role in education. The first part explores the basics, offering definitions of open source software, freeware and free software, which many people erroneously use interchangeably. My next post, which will appear on Wednesday, will be an in-depth interview with award-winning edtech expert David Thornburg, who's just published a new book about the role of FOSS in education. Part one can be found here: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/06/whats_the_fuss_about_fosspart.html Part two will appear this Wednesday on the blog's homepage: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow Digg it: http://digg.com/software/What_s_the_Fuss_about_FOSS_Part_1_of_2 thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] introducing DDN's new senior editor
Hi everyone, I'd like to introduce you to Adam Clare, DDN's new senior editor. http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/adamclare Adam is based at TakingITGlobal in Toronto, where he's working with IDRC on the telecentre.org initiative. Telecentre.org has been kind enough to donate some of Adam's time to coordinate the DDN website and its new team of volunteer editors. I'm sure Adam will post a note to say hello in the near future, but I just wanted to let everyone know about him coming on board. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me or Adam (adamclare @ takingitglobal.org). thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] overview of Pew report on broadband access and online publishing
Hi everyone, I've just posted an overview of the latest report from the Pew Internet American Life Project, which focuses on home broadband access in the US and who's posting content to the Internet. Broadband access is up across the board, with middle income family access growing at the fastest rate. English-speaking Latinos are now almost as likely (41%) to have broadband at home as white families (42%), while African American families lag a bit behind (31%). Income and education levels continue to remain major barriers, though growth was seen at all levels. DSL access has become more affordable, though many more households cite speed as their reason for getting broadband (57%) compared to the lowering of cost (3%), suggesting that more people are willing to pay for it in order to gain the benefits of high-speed access. To me, though, the most interesting part of the report focuses on online content publishing. Overall, 35% of Internet users - 48 million people - have posted content to the Internet. Broadband users are more likely to post online content than dialup users - 42% versus 27%. This is especially true of bloggers and people who manage their own websites. While an average of eight percent of Internet users publish their own blog, 11% of broadband users had blogs, compared to only four percent of dialup users. And amazingly, lower-income users were a bit more likely to post content online than higher-income users, while whites _lagged_ behind African Americans and English-speaking Latinos - 32%, 39% and 42% respectively. You can download the 26-page report here: http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/184/report_display.asp My overview of it can be found here: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/06/new_report_says_broa.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Punishing Students for Extracurricular Online Activities: Crossing the Line?
Hi everyone, Last week, an Illinois school district adopted a new policy towards student online activities that’s already stirring up a lot of controversy. All students in the Libertyville-Vernon Hills Area High School District 128 participating in extracurricular activities will now have to sign a pledge saying they will not post inappropriate content on the Internet or they will face disciplinary action. The catch, though, is that the pledge also applies to online activities done _outside_ of school. I've just written an analysis of the policy, based on previous research I've done over the last decade on student online freedom of expression. I take a look at a variety of legal precedents that might be relevant to the policy, including US Supreme Court cases (Tinker v. Des Moines School District and Board of Ed v. Earls) and local court cases such as the Paul Kim Case, the Brendan Beussink case and the Nick Emmett case. In all three of these local cases, schools punished students for online activities that occured outside of school; the schools were then forced to settle out of court or were ruled against by a judge for attacking the student's free speech rights. To read more, please visit here: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/05/punishing_students_for_online.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Microsoft: Open source 'not reliable or dependable'
I'm done with this thread. If you want to bash me, proceed with vigor. It's unhealthy to hold in aggression. Actually, if anyone wants to bash Taran or anyone else, take it off-list. I'm all for a vigorous debate about open source and proprietary software, but I won't allow it to be an excuse for flinging insults at each other. Play nice or play somewhere else. ac -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] video from a day of out(r)age protest in Boston
Hi everyone, This afternoon I shot some video at today's Day of Out(r)age protest at the Massachusetts State House, where community media and digital divide activists gathered to protest the telecom legislation that's currently working its way through Congress. The video includes commentary from Ada Robinson of Boston Neighborhood Producers Group and Mauro DePasquale of WCCATV. http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/05/a_day_of_outrage.html More videos are going to be posted to blip.tv here: http://blip.tv/posts/?topic_name=dayofoutrage thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] video from last week's UMass public media roundtable
Hi everyone, I've just uploaded the videos from last week's public media roundtable in Boston's Chinatown. The videos include commentary from Fred Johnson of UMass/Boston, public media advocate Alyce Myatt, Dan Coughlin of Manhattan Neighborhood Networks, and myself. We talk about a range of issues threatening public media, including the COPE Act. http://www.andycarvin.com thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] DDN web community approaching the 10,000 member mark
Phil Shapiro wrote: hi Digital Divide Network community - over the weekend, the DDN web site registered its 9,775th person -- Dr.S.S.D. Pandey. see http://digitaldivide.net/profile/ssdpandey that's some achievement to have gathered that many people together in less than 2 years. (the DDN web site officially launched in january, 2005, if memory serves.) kudos to andy carvin, cedar pruitt and all the current DDN members for this accomplishment. Thanks, Phil... The current version of the site launched in December 2004. At that point we actually had over 3,000 members. This included everyone who was an active member of this discussion group, going back to late 1999, as well as everyone who had registered to our old website's newsletter. So effectively, we've tripled our membership in less than 18 months. now that we're within striking range of the 10,000 member mark, thanks for thinking about which colleagues you know to invite onto the site. i can think of 3 people i recently met who would find this community interesting and valuable. i'll be inviting all 3 to join. Phil beat me to it, but I was going to suggest something similar. As DDN makes its transition from EDC to TakingITGlobal.org, it would be great if we could start off with a bang and reach the 10,000 member level. So for all of you who blog or participate in other email lists, I'd encourage you to invite people to join DDN. As always, it's free and open to the public. DDN membership allows you to participate in this forum, as well as have your own blog or online community on the DDN website. Here's the form to join the site: http://www.digitaldivide.net/members/add.php Please be sure to tell people that joining DDN is joining an online community, and this includes having a personal profile on the website. You can control how much info you show publicly, but people should know ahead of time, because lately I've been surprised by how many people have emailed me and asked to have their accounts canceled because they didn't want their name appearing anywhere on a website. Anyway, I hope we'll reach the 10,000 member mark very soon. Maybe we could even place bets on what day we'll reach the milestone. :-) andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Boston, May 17: Apocalypse Soon for Public Media?
Hi everyone, I'm going to be participating in this event here in Boston this Wednesday night; all of you are invited to participate in person or online. -andy Apocalypse Soon for Public Media? A Community Discussion http://tacticalmedia.blogspot.com Wednesday, May 17th, 2006 6:30-8:30 p.m. Encuentro 5 33 Harrison Ave., 5th Floor Boston, MA 02111 http://www.encuentro5.org/ corner of Harrison and Beach St. in Chinatown three blocks from Boston Common For more information, contact Jason Pramas at [EMAIL PROTECTED] __ The Community Media and Technology Program at the UMass Boston College of Public and Community Service, The Tactical Media Project, and Massachusetts Global Action are presenting a communications policy discussion and community meeting. Public media and the Internet are in deep trouble. We are currently seeing the emergence of the communications and media systems we will live with for the next several decades. And, as we write, there are proposals in Congress that dramatically threaten the public interest, and the potential for innovation and media justice in those emerging systems, in the US and around the world. At stake are: * local control of our communications infrastructure, * the survival of the Internet as an open and affordable communications network [a.k.a. net neutrality], * maintaining and expanding public access to cable and other media production and distribution resources, * our communications rights to receive and create media, * the democratic and equitable provision of telecommunications access to low income communities and communities of color, * the future of public service media, * the ability of local government to assure the communications infrastructure is present to support progressive economic development. The current debate in Congress is symptomatic of a much larger surge of social changes arising from global economic and technological shifts in communications sectors. It is no accident that just when we are seeing the media landscape tilting in the direction of communications rights, many-to-many communications, and the hope for media justice glimmering somewhere on the horizon, powerful commercial and private political interests are moving to secure the communications future for themselves. Now we are hearing about the roll back of public access to cable, slashed funding and political chicanery for public service broadcasting, privatizing the Internet, fast information lanes for the wealthy, and slow lanes for the rest of us. Hanging in the balance are crucial issues of global communications rights, media justice, democratic political and economic development around the world. Please join our group of experienced communications and media commentators, and a live and virtual audience, for a discussion of these issues, and what can be done about the current proposals in Congress. For more information, contact Jason Pramas at [EMAIL PROTECTED] Partial List of Commentators: Andy Carvin: Founding Editor, Digital Divide Network, Blogger, PBS Learning.Now (pbs.org/learningnow) Dan Coughlin: Director, Manhattan Neighborhood Network http://www.mnn.org/ Alyce Myatt: Strategic communications planner and advocate for independent media organizations and the philanthropic community. http://www.democraticmedia.org/ddc/PublicMediaCaucus.php Fred Johnson: Director, Community Media and Technology Program, College of Public and Community Service, UMass Boston. http://www.cpcs.umb.edu/cmt/ http://www.mwg.org Chuck Sherwood: Principal, Community Media Visioning Partners, a Public Sector consultancy serving Local Franchising Authorities and PEG Access Management Organizations. Other to be announced. In an effort to make this discussion accessible for those interested but notable to be here in person Wednesday night, we'll ask in-person participants to blog their notes, including photos, video, and audio. To tune into these blogs/podcasts, check out the list of participant's blogs addresses (a.k.a. a blogroll) that will be available on http://tacticalmedia.blogspot.com. People are invited to send in questions ahead of time by commenting to this blog and we'll also be recording full video/audio of the event over the course of the evening to be available later. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] blogging from the Beyond Broadcast conference
Hi everyone, Today and tomorrow I'm blogging from the Harvard Beyond Broadcast conference, an amazing gathering of around 300 leading thinkers focused on online social networks, media, journalism and the digital divide. I've posted a dozen or so blog entries already and a couple of Second Life Machinima (virtual reality cinema videos) here: http://www.andycarvin.com Be sure to read the entry on Eszter Hargittai's talk about her research on how college students use the Internet. Meanwhile, other bloggers' posts are being aggregated here: http://www.beyondbroadcast.net thanks, andy -- --- Andy Carvin Program Director EDC Center for Media Community acarvin @ edc . org http://www.digitaldivide.net Blog: http://www.andycarvin.com --- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] New legislation would require schools and libraries to block access to online communities
Hi everyone, Many of you may have heard the news that the US Congress has just introduced legislation that would require all schools and libraries receiving federal Internet subsidies to filter out student access to online social networks. Here's the full text of the legislation: http://tinyurl.com/z8vu3 According to the proposed legislation, the bill prohibits access by minors without parental authorization to a commercial social networking website or chat room through which minors may easily access or be presented with obscene or in- decent material; may easily be subject to unlawful sexual advances, unlawful requests for sexual favors, or repeated offensive comments of a sexual nature from adults may easily access other material that is harmful to minors. If you’re wondering what would qualify as an “online social network,” the bill defines it as “a commercially operated Internet website that allows users to create web pages or profiles that provide information about themselves and are available to other users and offers a mechanism for communication with other users, such as a forum, chat room, email, or instant messenger.” That definition is rather broad, of course, though apparently it would not apply to noncommercial websites. My guess is that commercial blogging tools and email list services could be subject to this legislation as well - though I do not know if it would block access to these services writ large or on a blog-by-blog/list-by-list basis. More on my blog here: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/05/new_federal_legislation_would_1.html digg: http://digg.com/technology/New_legislation_would_require_schools_to_block_access_to_online_communities -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] should students carry cell phones in the classroom?
Hi everyone, I've posted a blog entry seeking feedback from educators about the current debate in NYC over whether students should be allowed to carry cell phones in the classroom. Leading policymakers argue that cell phones are a distraction, while parents and community leaders say they're a necessity because of safety concerns. What do you think? You can read more and chime in here: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/05/should_students_be_allowed_to.html Thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Scientific Publishers Leery of Cornyn-Lieberman Open Access Legislation
Hi everyone, Last week, US Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Joseph Lieberman (D-Connecticut) proposed the Federal Research Public Access Act of 2006, a groundbreaking bill that will shake the foundations of scientific research publishing. The bill proposes that scientific articles based on research funded by the federal government must be made freely available to the public over the Internet within six months of publishing. If enacted into law, the bill would force scientific publishers to release the full text of articles that would otherwise be accessible to libraries and professionals who pay hefty fees for access. All federal agencies that spend at least $100 million a year funding scientific research would require its grantees to participate in the program, hosting the research texts online in a stable digital repository. Tax payer-funded research should be accessible to tax payers, said Sen. Lieberman in a statement. Our bill will give researchers, medical professionals and patients in Connecticut and throughout the nation access to scientific discoveries and advancements that can help bring new treatments and cures to the public. Unfortunately, as it stands now, most Americans have little - to no - timely access to this wealth of information, despite the fact that their tax dollars paid for the research, said Sen. Cornyn in a speech on the Senate floor. Our bill simply says to all researchers who seek government funding that we want the results of your work to be seen by the largest possible audience. It will ensure that U.S. taxpayers do not have to pay twice for the same research - once to conduct it, and a second time to read it. Read more on my blog here: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/05/scientific_publisher.html Digg it: http://digg.com/science/Scientific_Publishers_Leery_of_Open_Access_Publishing_Legislation thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Network Neutrality and the COPE Act (fwd)
For those of you not familiar with the network neutrality debate, please read below. Potential changes in the law may soon exacerbate the digital divide significantly here in the US. -andy Original Message Subject:[AFCN Members] Stopping COPE (HR5252) Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 01:39:20 -0500 From: Michael Maranda [EMAIL PROTECTED] Organization: AFCN To: 'The AFCN member list' [EMAIL PROTECTED] All Friends here in the States, As most of you are aware, the COPE Act (HR 5252) emerged from committee without the hoped for Network Neutrality language proposed by Rep. Markey. I highly recommend that you review materials at _http://www.saveaccess.org_, and take the actions requested on their top node, today. Please also reach out through your networks, asking others to take action. Unless the legislation is significantly modified, fundamental Internet principles such as Anti-Discrimination or Network Neutrality will be cast aside. Community Access networks are likewise at stake. Local governements, where the public has the greatest hope for accountability will no longer be able assure full service coverage in their communities. Read up on the materials at _http://www.saveaccess.org/readings_ and other sources such as the Benton Foundation _http://www.benton.org_, Common Cause _http://www.commoncause.org_ or _http://www.savetheinternet.com_.. We need to take a stance on these matters and leverage our networks. Please spread the word today! Michael Michael Maranda President, The Association For Community Networking (AFCN) _http://www.afcn.org_ Executive Director, CTCNet Chicago Chapter _http://www.ctcnetchicago.org_ Co-Chair, Illinois Community Technology Coalition (ilCTC) _http://www.ilctc.org_ -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Subbiah Arunachalam on India's Open Access movement
Hi everyone, Blogger Richard Poynder has a great interview with DDN member Subbiah Arunachalam about the Open Access movement in India, specifically focusing on open access to scientific research. http://poynder.blogspot.com/2006/05/why-india-needs-open-access.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] An introduction to del.icio.us for educators
Hi everyone, I've just posted an introduction to the community bookmarking tool del.icio.us on my new blog, learning.now: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow permalink: http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/learning.now/2006/05/tag_youre_delicious.html It explains the basics of del.icio.us and how it's used to share bookmarks among a community of users. I'll also be following it up with a post interviewing educators who use del.icio.us actively in the classroom. If this happens to include you, please feel free to drop me an email off-list - I'd love to hear from you. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Re: test
Could you post something rather than a test? I don't want 3,000 people receiving this. Please post a message you actually want list members to see, then we'll figure out if this is working -ac Sully, Morgan wrote: testing... Morgan Sully AmeriCorps CTC VISTA http://www.cpcs.umb.edu/vista/projectbasics.htm Community Technology/Youth Digital Media Coordinator more about me: http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/memeshift *The Center* 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.497.2920 x106 --- /In collaboration with:/ The San Diego LGBT Community Center http://www.thecentersd.org http://www.thecentersd.org/ 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.692.2007 The San Diego Community Technology Coalition http://www.sdctc.org/ 8799 Balboa Avenue, Suite 120 San Diego, CA 92123 619.692-2077 x107 If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it. - Margaret Fuller -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Re: looking for a Drupal CMS host
Isn't this the same message Xavier posted? Sully, Morgan wrote: Hello Digital Divide Members, I am currently in the process of looking for a hosting service for a content management system for my organization (http://www.sdctc.org). We are looking for a Linux based hosting plan with a decent front end (CPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin etc.). php safe mode off, mod-rewrite enabled in Apache, and something like phpMyAdmin. We would like to install Drupal. Any hosting plans friendly to CTCs or Drupal communities is a bonus. Does anyone know of any? thanks in advance, morgan Morgan Sully AmeriCorps CTC VISTA http://www.cpcs.umb.edu/vista/projectbasics.htm Community Technology/Youth Digital Media Coordinator more about me: http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/memeshift *The Center* 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.497.2920 x106 --- /In collaboration with:/ The San Diego LGBT Community Center http://www.thecentersd.org http://www.thecentersd.org/ 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.692.2007 The San Diego Community Technology Coalition http://www.sdctc.org/ 8799 Balboa Avenue, Suite 120 San Diego, CA 92123 619.692-2077 x107 If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it. - Margaret Fuller -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Re: test
Oops. My bad, everyone. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy. :-/ ac Andy Carvin wrote: Could you post something rather than a test? I don't want 3,000 people receiving this. Please post a message you actually want list members to see, then we'll figure out if this is working -ac Sully, Morgan wrote: testing... Morgan Sully AmeriCorps CTC VISTA http://www.cpcs.umb.edu/vista/projectbasics.htm Community Technology/Youth Digital Media Coordinator more about me: http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/memeshift *The Center* 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.497.2920 x106 --- /In collaboration with:/ The San Diego LGBT Community Center http://www.thecentersd.org http://www.thecentersd.org/ 3909 Centre Street San Diego, CA 92103 619.692.2007 The San Diego Community Technology Coalition http://www.sdctc.org/ 8799 Balboa Avenue, Suite 120 San Diego, CA 92123 619.692-2077 x107 If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it. - Margaret Fuller -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] digital camcorder donation
Hi Phil, What exactly do you mean it's been donated to DDN? How would one share a piece of equipment over an international network? It's great to know someone would want to donate a video camera to DDN, but I'm just not clear on the logistics -andy Phil Shapiro wrote: hi Digital Divide Network community - some happy news to share. a digital camcorder has been donated to the DDN community for us to use in whatever way we please. this camcorder is a canon zr500. it comes with a lavalier (clip on) microphone. one possible use of this camcorder might be for interviews between DDN community members. such interviews could be conducted over the internet using the free gizmo internet phone service. with both people in the interview capturing their own video and audio, internet latencies become a non-issue. the two video files can be merged into a single quicktime file using quicktime pro (or final cut.) this kind of interview conducted over the internet has become commonly known as a “rosetime,” in honor of charlie rose, who conducts a popular interview program on public television, here in the united states. rosetimes can be uploaded for free to the internet archive, which provides free, permanent web hosting. (http://www.archive.org) here within the DDN community there is a treasure trove of interesting stories from members in our community. we're not going to wait around for anyone else to tell these stories. we're going to tell them ourselves. sorry i don't have some rosetimes to share with you today, but i hope to have a couple uploaded before the “Beyond Broadcast” conference in cambridge, mass., later this month. the rosetime genre owes its existence to the DDN community. some of the people involved in bringing this genre to life include - Daniel Bassill http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/dbassill1 Bonnie Bracey Sutton http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/bbracey Taran Rampersad http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/Taran Felicia Sullivan http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/Felicia Rich Jaeggi http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/rjaeggi Father Jeff Putthoff http://www.hopeworks.org Morgan Sulley http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/memeshift Nettrice Gaskins http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/Nettrice Daniell Krawcyzk http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/daniell and of course, cedar pruitt and andy carvin, played an important role, too. some folks outside the DDN community who played a role in bringing rosetimes to life include - kenyatta cheese ryanne hodson jay dedman michael verdi steve garfield j.d. lasica dan gillmor hal cauthen brewster kahle for those of you who are new to the Digital Divide Network, here is a quick overview of some of the folks you might see in rosetimes in the coming months. http://www.his.com/~pshapiro/ddnprofiles.html if you're interested in appearing in a rosetime (or would like to volunteer time to conduct some), thanks for sending me an email with the word “rosetime” in the subject line. i'll be sending some follow-up emails explaining the process for creating rosetimes using imovie and quicktime pro. (quicktime pro sells for $30 from apple computer.) phil btw, if you're new to the Digital Divide Network and have not yet filled in your profile on the DDN web site, you bring value to the movement by doing so. since it is never easy to write about yourself, you might get some ideas from some of the existing profiles (above.) some of the most interesting ideas within the DDN community come from folks outside of the united states. it would be a good thing for the DDN community to find a way to get some digital camcorders to loan to people outside of the united states. if you're interested in helping with that, thanks for sending me an email with the subject: international -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] Ghana - Follow up on study of Adolescents and the Internet
I was just starting to read this report, actually. For those of you who haven't seen it yet, the latest issue of Developmental Psychology focuses on the impact of the Internet on children and adolescents. It's a treasure trove of youth-related Internet research. I just posted a blog entry about another article in the journal focused on the impact of at-home internet access on the academic performance of low-income youth. There's also a link to the full journal articles, including the Ghana study. http://www.pbs.org/learningnow andy Borzekowski, Dina wrote: Just a follow up... Over a year ago, I asked members of this list serve to contribute some background information for a study examining Ghanaian adolescents' use of the Internet. Well - the results are now published in the latest issue of Developmental Psychology. The Hopkins press release is below. Let me know if you would like me to send you the entire article. Regards, Dina Dina Borzekowski, Ed.D. Assistant Professor Department of Health, Behavior and Society Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health May 1, 2006 Internet May Be the Way to Send Youth Health Messages In a study of Ghanaian teens and their Internet usage, Dina L.G. Borzekowski, EdD, assistant professor in the Bloomberg School's Department of Health, Behavior and Society, and her Ghanaian coauthors, Julius Fobil and Kofi Asante, learned that approximately 53 percent of teens from Ghana's capital city of Accra used the Internet to find health information, regardless of their school status, gender, age or ethnicity. The study is one of six articles about teens published today in a special issue of Developmental Psychology. In a world where we can sometimes be quick to point out the negative, this is a great example of the media being used in a positive way. The Internet can be a good educational and public health tool for hard-to-reach populations, said Borzekowski. The authors surveyed a representative sample of 778 15- to 18-year-olds living in Accra, Ghana, who were either in school or out of school. Participating youth completed self-report surveys of their media use. Whether it was for school, work or personal reasons, 52 percent of out-of-school Internet users had tried to get health information, while 53 percent of in-school Internet users had done the same. Of important social significance, said the authors was their finding that teens who were not in school used the Internet as an alternative to talking to their parents, who may have less formal education than the parents of teens in school. A lack of parental education or cultural taboos regarding sexual topics may make it more difficult for many of these [out-of-school] teens to get information on health and sex, said Borzekowski. The Internet is making great strides for youth in developing countries, said Borzekowski. The far-reaching and positive use of the Internet is invaluable for adolescents who want to find out more about personal, sensitive and embarrassing issues related to their bodies, relationships and health. Online Access by Accra's Adolescents: Ghanaian Teens' Use of the Internet for Health Information was authored by Dina L. G. Borzekowski, Julius N. Fobil and Kofi O. Asante. The study was supported by grants from the Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health. Public Affairs media contacts for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: Kenna Lowe or Tim Parsons at 410-955-6878 or [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] TSUNAMI ALERT: New Zealand and Fiji
I just received this notification from CNN: -- Tsunami warnings issued for Fiji and New Zealand after earthquake measuring a magnitude of about 8.0 shakes southern Pacific Ocean. and from the AP: The temblor, classified by the USGS as a great quake, struck 95 miles south of Neiafu, Tonga, and 1,340 miles north-northeast of Auckland, New Zealand. The U.S. Pacifi Tsunami Warning Center issued the tsunami warning but said it was not known whether the quake generated a potentially deadly giant wave. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.andycarvin.com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.pbs.org/learningnow -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Introducing learning.now: a new PBS blog on education and technology
Hi everyone, I'm very excited to announce the launch of a new blog, learning.now: http://www.pbs.org/learningnow The blog, which I'll be writing and editing for PBS Online, will focus on the intersection of Internet culture and K-12 education. One of the primary goals is to help guide educators through the ins and outs of what's often referred to as Web 2.0, including blogging, podcasting, vlogging, RSS, social software and community networks. I'm planning to explore some of the creative ways students and teachers are using interactive technologies to improve learning, as well as dissect the controversies that often occur when classroom culture and online culture collide. The website officially kicks off Tuesday, but I wanted to give you a sneak preview of the site. And please feel free to offer any suggestions on the types of subjects you'd like me to tackle on the blog. I'm hoping this will be an engaging discussion in which I can learn from all of you and share some of the exciting work that's going on in classrooms today. Thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: Correction Re: [DDN] comparison of video blogging compression techniques
Yeah, I noticed that soon after sending it out. I corrected it on my blog but hadn't gotten around to sending a note to the list, so thanks for being on top of it. ac Dave Pentecost wrote: Hi Andy Others may have caught this. But you got my attention when your post listed the extreme compression example as 292 bits. Wow! Actually, I show 288 kB once I downloaded it. Good work! Dave On 4/25/06, Andy Carvin [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi everyone, One of my video blog viewers asked me for an explanation of various quicktime compression techniques I use to make my online videos smaller for different audiences. I've just published my response: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/andys_video_blogging.html In this demonstration, I start with a 10 megabyte video shot in avi format, 30 frames per second, 640x480 pixels, 16 bit stereo. I then produced seven compressed versions of it, including ones that utilize varying frame rates, screen sizes, compression codecs, and audio compression. The most compressed version I created is 97% smaller than the original avi video, and is potentially quite suitable for video blogging in low-bandwidth situations around the world. Some examples: Original uncompressed video (10 megs): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-nocompression.avi Significant compression (1.8 megs, 82% reduction): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-3ivx.mov Extreme compression (292 bits, 97% reduction): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-3ivx8bit160.mov Here's a chart featuring all of the videos and their settings: http://www.andycarvin.com/compressiontable.html Anyway, I hope this is useful for those of you exploring the world of video blogging. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- The Daily Glyph http://www.gomaya.com/glyph Usumacinta http://www.gomaya.com/dams Cell 917 312 9733 ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] employment: Global Voices seeks Persian/Dari editor
fyi... Please contact Rachel if you are interested, as I am not involved in the selection process. -andy Original Message Subject:[GV-Authors] Job vacancy! Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2006 14:13:21 +0100 From: Rachel Rawlins [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] CC: Rebecca MacKinnon [EMAIL PROTECTED] We're looking to hire a Persian translator/editor to join the team here at Global Voices (http://www.globalvoicesonline.org). The job is to: - monitor blogs written in Persian (and Dari if possible - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dari); - post a small number of links to the most interesting blog entries each day, giving a short indication of what they contain but without needing to translate the entire entry; - write two longer posts each week giving an overview of blog discussions either by region or theme or interest with translated excerpts of the blog entries; - liaise with the appropriate regional editor/s and the managing editor about coverage of countries in their region/s; - attend fortnightly editorial meetings via IRC; - This obviously requires fluent Persian and good written English together with a knowledge of blogging and internet technology. The job is part-time. If you are interested in applying for the position please send me an e-mail me detailing your relevant experience and/or qualifications at either [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]. Or if you know anyone who might be interested please pass this mail on! Closing date a very swift 7 May. Thanks! Rachel --- Rachel Rawlins www.globalvoicesonline.org AIM: RachelRawlins1 MSN: [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Skype: rachelrawlins Blog: www.frizzylogic.org http://www.frizzylogic.org -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] comparison of video blogging compression techniques
Hi everyone, One of my video blog viewers asked me for an explanation of various quicktime compression techniques I use to make my online videos smaller for different audiences. I've just published my response: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/andys_video_blogging.html In this demonstration, I start with a 10 megabyte video shot in avi format, 30 frames per second, 640x480 pixels, 16 bit stereo. I then produced seven compressed versions of it, including ones that utilize varying frame rates, screen sizes, compression codecs, and audio compression. The most compressed version I created is 97% smaller than the original avi video, and is potentially quite suitable for video blogging in low-bandwidth situations around the world. Some examples: Original uncompressed video (10 megs): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-nocompression.avi Significant compression (1.8 megs, 82% reduction): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-3ivx.mov Extreme compression (292 bits, 97% reduction): http://www.andycarvin.com/video/demo-3ivx8bit160.mov Here's a chart featuring all of the videos and their settings: http://www.andycarvin.com/compressiontable.html Anyway, I hope this is useful for those of you exploring the world of video blogging. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Blogging from the Yale Access to Knowledge conference
Hi everyone, Right now I'm at Yale Law School participating in the Access to Knowledge. Several hundred attendees from over 40 countries are participating in the forum, which is focusing on strategies to broaden access to knowledge and knowledge-building tools, particularly for developing countries. There are educators, digital divide activists, intellectual property experts, free/open source activists, human rights campaigners and network neutrality activists participating in the event, among others. Yesterday there were half a dozen plenary speakers; I also moderated a panel on education technology and peer production of content, featuring Jennifer Corriero from TakingITGlobal.org, Saskia Harmsen and Jak Stienens of IICD.org, and Steve Midgely of the Stupski Foundation. I've posted a lot of notes on my blog, including a collection of questions I had planned to ask during my education panel before running out of time. One participant suggested I post the questions on my blog so people could continue the conversation online. All of this can be found here: http://www.andycarvin.com thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Network Neutrality: Perspectives from Developed and Developing Nations
Hi everyone, Right now I'm participating in a standing-room-only panel session at the Yale Access to Knowledge Conference on network neutrality, with perspectives from both developed and developing countries. Mike Godwin of the EFF is moderating, along with the following speakers: Susan Crawford, Cardozo Law Center Michael Geist, University of Ottawa Caio Pereira, FGV, Brazil Seán Ó Siochrú, Nexus/CRIS Campaign, (Ireland, but works in Africa) I've just liveblogged a ton of notes here: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/network_neutrality_p.html andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Creating a samizdat bloggers network using SMS text messaging
Hi everyone, Given all the discussions surrounding educational blogs that have been blocked capriciously by Internet filters, I started thinked about what it would take to create the online equivalent of a samizdat network, similar to the system used by Soviet dissidents to disseminate banned documents. It's simple enough to take the content of a banned blog and recreate it elsewhere using RSS aggregators, but what if that new site gets banned as well? So, I came up with a fairly simple strategy to announce new URLs to large groups of people using SMS text messaging. Essentially, I'm combining the functionality of Google Groups and the SMS relay system Teleflip.com, so people can subscribe to a mailing list and receive brief messages via SMS rather than email. While the idea was borne out of educational censorship, there's no reason why the same technique couldn't be used to relay message during other situations, such as public emergencies, protests and the like. For more info, please check out my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/creating_a_samizdat.html This particular method will only work in North America, but other SMS relays similar to Teleflip.com would theoretically work elsewhere. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] The Word that Will Get Your Blog Censored by Texas Schools Districts
Hi everyone, I've just posted a blog entry in response to recent posts by Wesley Fryer and Miguel Guhlin regarding online censorship in schools. Some school districts in Texas and elsewhere have started blocking all Web content that uses the word [EMAIL PROTECTED] (replace the @ with an a and you'll know the word I mean - I don't want this message blocked by filters either.) This website has become a magnet of controversy as of late, and it's reached the point where mere mention of it is taboo. This filtering is preventing educational bloggers and teachers from discussing [EMAIL PROTECTED] in any context, whether it relates to child safety, media literacy or another topic. Miguel has even started to organize an online protest campaign. A bit from my blog: As Miguel notes on his blog, important educational blogs like Wesley's site and the techLEARNING blog are getting censored arbitrarily because they are trying to raise awareness about sites like [EMAIL PROTECTED], encouraging critical examinations by educators and a greater emphasis on media literacy. To engage in a constructive debate about sites like this, you have to mention them. And preferably link to them. And these acts are getting bloggers banned by schools. While I strongly am against any form of censorship, I am thoroughly disgusted by school districts that allow their filters to prevent educators from engaging in professional discourse. I have lost track of the number of times that I've posted a message to my WWWEDU discussion list and received a bunch of autoreplies from school districts saying that teachers there won't be reading my post because they contain inappropriate content. Usually, these posts have to do with cases of school filtering censorship, controversial sites like [EMAIL PROTECTED] or other media literacy-related challenges faced by the modern educator. The filtering software used to supposedly protect children is preventing educators from taking an active role in understanding and discussing the complexities of Internet use in the classroom. Schools may claim in loco parentis when describing filters used to protect children. But what are they trying to protect teachers from? Being better users of technology? Being responsible, informed educators? ...The whole thing reminds me of Those We Don't Speak Of, the mysterious creatures in M. Night Shyamalan's film, The Village. The parents of the village were so paranoid about their children coming to harm's way that they wouldn't even say the name of the creatures that were supposedly lurking in the local forest. We seem to have reached that point in education - where politicians and administrators are so paranoid that educators can't even speak the names of things that may lurk in the virtual forest, lest their students be corrupted by mere mention of them The Internet is indeed our civic space - my space, your space. *Our space.* How can educators educate our children to use the Internet as responsible 21st century citizens when we can't even speak about the things that might affect them? Read the full blog entry: http://www.andycarvin.com Permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/the_mword_that_will.html digg link: http://digg.com/technology/The_Word_that_Will_Get_Your_Blog_Censored_by_Texas_Schools_Districts thanks, ac -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Thursday: talking about my new book at the Harvard Berkman Center
Hi everyone, At 7pm on Thursday, April 6, I'm going to be giving a preview of my new book, From the Ground Up: Evolution of the Telecentre Movement, at the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet Society. Every Thursday, a group of local bloggers get together to discuss Internet issues, and I'll be talking about the book for this week's meeting. The book, edited by me and Mark Surman of Telecentre.org, explores the diversity of public computing initiatives around the world, examining the common visions and goals that unite them. It's intended to inspire technology activists to realize that they're part of a worldwide movement to bridge the digital divide, rather than working in isolation. The book will be distributed this spring by IDRC in Canada, but for now you can review a very large PDF version (It's around 10 megabytes - a necessary evil given the hundreds of photographs in the book.) An accessible HTML version will be made available when IDRC begins distributing the book. http://www.andycarvin.com/from-the-ground-up.pdf I've also posted screen shots from the book on my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/04/talking_about_my_new.html If you happen to be in the Boston area, please feel free to join us Thursday evening at Berkman. It'll take place at 7 PM at Baker House, 1587 Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge, north of Harvard Square. Hope to see some of you there! thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Video Blogging Week 2006
Hi everyone, It's that time of year again - it's Video Blogging Week 2006, the second-annual showcase of video blogs from around the world. The idea behind video blogging week is to challenge bloggers to post vidoes to their blog seven days in a row - April 3-9. Last year, around 30 bloggers participated, and I expect the numbers to be much higher this time around. (Since Monday I've counted at least 50 participants, and we're just getting started.) How to participate: The basic instructions can be found at http://videobloggingweek2006.blogspot.com. All you have to do is post a video to your blog and tag it videobloggingweek2006 on Technorati. To do this, you post the following code in each video blog entry: Technorati Tag: a href=http://www.technorati.com/tag/videobloggingweek2006; rel=tagvideobloggingweek2006/a This will allow the public to access all of the videos in one place, which can be found here: http://www.technorati.com/tag/videobloggingweek2006 So if you're a video blogger or are just interested in the evolving world of video blogging, please join us! thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Race and the US digital divide: a current snapshot
Hi everyone, Today's New York Times has a feature story on the state of the digital divide in relation to African Americans and Latinos, emphasizing the progress that's been made in recent years. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/31/us/31divide.html The article notes recent data from the Pew Internet American Life project that suggests a stunning 79% of English-speaking Latinos have Internet access. This inspired me to blog about the issue, examining statistics from both Pew and the US Department of Commerce, which has tracked at-home Internet access for over a decade. http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/race_and_the_digital.html Some samples of what I wrote in response to the article: As I note above, the article mentions recent data from the Pew Internet American Life Project that suggests a surge of access, particularly by Latinos. According to their data, a whopping 79% of English-speaking Latinos access the Internet, beating out African Americans and whites - and perhaps even the Nordic countries, which generally have the highest Internet access rates in the world. However, it's worth noting that this 79% represents English-speaking Latinos only. According to the US Census Bureau, there are around 41.3 million Latinos in the US. Of these, nearly 14 million don't speak English well or at all. It's vital we collect better statistics about this community; otherwise, policymakers and philanthropists might hear a soundbyte that says four out of five Latinos are online and assume the problem is solved. Unless we address those who are most marginalized in our society - those that don't speak English - we're not tackling the problem adequately. Moreover, it's worth noting that the Pew data looks broadly at Internet access, asking respondents if they use the Internet at all, whether at home, school, work or elsewhere. These numbers are generally higher than the numbers of people who have Internet access at home. The US Department of Commerce's NTIA office has collected digital divide data for over a decade. In their surveys, the most recent of which was almost three years ago, they researched the percentages of households that had Internet access. According to their data, white households were far and away more likely to be online than African Americans or Latinos. For much of the 1990s, Latinos fared better than African Americans, but that pattern appeared to reverse in the year 2000, when African Americans surpassed Latinos. Why does any of this matter? As I suggested in the NY Times story, people may have Internet access, but if it's not at home, that access may be inadequate. Nearly 100% of US schools are online today, which would suggest that nearly all students would at some point or another have Internet access. But if some of them don't have access at home, they're at a severe disadvantaged when compared to their wired peers. Access through libraries and community technology centers are very important, but they don't solve all our problems, given the fact they tend to have limited operating hours and limited capacity. Some libraries are only open one or two days a week, and for a few hours at a time; imagine asking every kid in that community without home Internet access to complete an online course using such limited infrastructure. Read more here: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/race_and_the_digital.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Talkr: Creating Automated Audio Podcasts of Your Text Blog Entries
Hi everyone, I've just started experimenting with a rather funky tool called Talkr (http://www.talkr.com). Essentially, Talkr is a podcast generator for text blogs, and it has enormous implications for people with visual impairments and limited literacy. When you look at a typical blog, it's mostly text. This may be no problem for many people, but if you're reading skills aren't strong or you don't see well, text blogs can be quite a challenge. Meanwhile, thousands of Internet users create their own podcasts, which are basically blogs containing audio files. Apart from being really cool for everyone, podcasts are particularly useful for people who can't read or see well. But they're not exactly practical for the hard of hearing, either, who would benefit more from reading a text blog. Theoretically, it would be great if every person who wrote a text blog would record a podcast of it as well, but very few, if any bloggers bother to do this. Enter Talkr. Talkr is a Web-based speech synthesizer that takes the texts of blogs and generates and MP3 file, with a computer voice speaking the text. For people who just want to visit their favorite text blogs and listens to them, Talkr works as blog management tool; you simply add your favorite blogs to your account, and it will create a computer-generated voice mp3 for each entry. Meanwhile, for all of you bloggers out there, Talkr lets you embed a computer-generatd mp3 into each of your blog entries, and supplies you with an RSS feed for them. This means that users can either come to your blog and click a link to listen to the mp3, or they can use iTunes or another podcast management tool to subscribe to the feed and receive each new mp3 file automatically. Talkr is still a work in progress, but it's fascinated me to the point that I've decided to take a shot at integrating it into my blog. Each of my blog entries will now have a link at the bottom that says Listen to a computer-generated podcast of this article. Clickling the link will bring you to the mp3 file where you can hear the text being read aloud. (Note: I've noticed that the mp3 files don't work immediatley when you've posted a new blog entry; it takes at least a few minutes to generate the file.) For example, here's the MP3 file that was generated by my last blog entry, about race and the digital divide: http://www.talkr.com/audio/a/n/d/y/710679.mp3 Meanwhile, I've also added a new RSS feed that allows you to subscribe directly to the mp3 via iTunes or another podcast manager: http://feeds.feedburner.com/carvin-audiotext I will be very curious to hear what all of you think of this tool. The computer voice takes some getting used to - it's also a woman's voice, so don't expect to hear a radio-friendly baritone or anything like that. In practice, though, this tool could be used to help people who experience limited literacy skills or visual impairments, giving them a whole new way to participate in the blogosphere. Please let me know what you think. -andy http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/talkr_creating_audio.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] bogus new york times article
Hi Phil, My blog post earlier today is a response to some of the issues raised in the article. I was surprised by the tone myself; when I talked to the author about a month ago, I got the impression he'd be writing it somewhat differently. http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/race_and_the_digital.html Phil Shapiro wrote: hi DDN community members - the new york times botched it on this article covering the digital divide. although they include a quote from andy carvin, the whole tenor of the article is off. they're asking the wrong question. they don't get it at all. http://digg.com/technology/Digital_Divide_Closing_as_Blacks_Turn_to_Internet http://tinyurl.com/g4ern - phil -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] What does it mean to be a technology activist?
Technology activist isn't really a new term; I've been hearing it for at least a decade. Do a Google search for it and you'll get at least 500 hits. I also searched google groups and found Phil Agre using it in a CPSR newsletter in August 1994. So it's more of an oldie-but-goodie than anything else... -andy Many thanks to you Taran for the term technology activist Actually, a lot of people don't realize it... but I believe that it's actually Andy who coined the term, at least in describing me. - I anticipate that those words will save me - and many other technology activists - lots of long complicated descriptions. Now we can simply say what we *are* - instead of having to describe what we are trying to do. Brilliant. Andy deserves a bow on that one. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] What does it mean to be a technology activist?
What Does it Mean to be a Technology Activist? Taran Rampersad has just authored an insightful essay on what it means to be a technology activist. Some highlights: Really - what is a technology activist? This has been something I've been trying to figure out, as it is presently a primary description of me... I joked about it, saying that the 'pay sucks' (and it does), and that there's little room for advancement And I still can't quite put a finger on what a technology activist is. At the end of the day, it's a very broad and ill defined area which is a bit scarey, because perception might lead people to believe that technology activism is limited to a select group, when in fact I believe it isn't. I believe that it's a part of the natural course of technology. For my part, I see it as an issue related to quality of life. I know that a lot of other people feel the same, though most I do know of would be categorized as Digital Divide Activists -- Taran goes on to say that technology activism in itself is a pretty poorly defined area. Generally speaking, he concludes, it means trying to bring about change with technology. I think that hits the nail on the head. Being a technology activist and working to bridge the digital divide isn't about putting an Internet PC so we can grow the market for e-commerce, online gaming or entertainment Instead, being a technology activist is something more basic: fostering equitable access to tools that will improve people's quality of life - quality as they define it, on their own terms At its root, it's not about the technology. Being a technology activist is being a community activist, a social justice activist, a political activist, an education activist, a development activist. We've got these amazing tools that are revolutionizing the way we all live, learn, earn and interact. Shouldn't everyone have the same opportunity to benefit from these tools, so they too can make a better life for themselves? Taran's essay: http://www.knowprose.com/node/11473 My response: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/what_does_it_mean_to.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] What does it mean to be a technology activist?
Ethan is an extraordinary blogger on development issues. He's the founder of GeekCorps and co-founder of Global Voices Online, as well as one of the leaders of worldchanging.com. Definitely a perspective worth reading. (full disclosure: he and I are also really distant cousins, but we didn't know that until after I formed this opinion of him, anyway.) :-) ac Malin Coleridge wrote: This may be a little off topic but a direct off shoot. I was directed to the following BLOG. It talks about the impact of the new technologies on activism itself. I think it is important for us all to remember that it is not only the technology (although it's really cool ;-)), but rather the potential for the technology. Check it out. It is pretty interesting. http://www.ethanzuckerman.com/blog/?p=452 -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] What does it mean to be a technology activist?
What link are you referring to? None of the links I'm aware of had small fonts. Sure it wasn't your browser? Peter S. Lopez de Aztlan wrote: Thanks for the Link Brother Andy ~ The font on that article was really small, especially for near sighted people like me and I am sure many of the elderly who do not usualy have young eagle eyes , so I will have to put it in a Document and will Blog it! -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Wikipedia Blocks School's Editing Privileges Due to Vandalism
Hi everyone, There's been so much talk among educators on whether Wikipedia should be banned from school, that it may come as a surprise to some that a school has actually been banned from Wikipedia. Since November 2002, an anonymous Wikipedia user had been vandalizing dozens of Wikipedia pages. Because of these vandalisms, the user's IP address has been blocked repeatedly as a way of preventing them for wreaking further havoc. It turns out that the vandalism was from a school computer, so now all users of that computer are unable to make edits to Wikipedia. This raises many questions about Wikipedia in the classroom and the need for engaging students to think critically about it. Here's a snippet from my blog, where I documented the incident: It's quite understandable for Wikipedians to want to block this IP address to prevent any more vandalism on the site. But it makes me wonder just what, if anything, about Wikipedia was being taught in the school where all of this took place. Since I didn't find any constructive edits made by the IP address in question, my guess is that there was no curricular activity in which students were encouraged to examine Wikipedia critically. In many ways, this incident should serve as a teachable moment for this school and others. Wikipedia is far from perfect, but that's what makes it such an interesting tool when it comes to teaching media literacy. By democratizing the role of editor, Wikipedia raises important questions regarding credibility, the wisdom of crowds vs the sovereignty of experts, trust and anonymity, among other topics. Students and teachers should debate Wikipedia and even contribute to it; remember, it's a work-in-progress, not a finished body of work. But all too often, the debate over Wikipedia's merits is left among the educators only, with students left out of the conversation and operating on a simple directive: don't use it. By ignoring Wikipedia rather than teaching critical, responsible uses of it, schools are practically inviting students to edit Wikipedia at their own peril. We should be preparing students for constructive participation in the Read/Write Web; otherwise it might as well be the Read/Vandalize Web. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com/ permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/wikipedia_blocks_sch.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] new Wikipedia category: Digital Divide activists
Hi everyone, Taran Rampersad recently posted a message to his blog, www.knowprose.com, about the fact that he's recently been added to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taran_Rampersad While reading the discussion on the entry's talk page, it occurred to me that there wasn't a category on Wikipedia for listing entries about digital divide activists. There are probably more digital divide activists in Wikipedia than I realize; just searching for a few DDN members and other colleagues I found others including Bonnie Bracey, John Maddog Hall, MS Swaminathan and Randal Pinkett. (I'm in there as well.) So, I went ahead and created a new Wikipedia page for Digital Divide activists: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Digital_Divide_activists This page is automatically updated whenever a wikipedia entry has a tag added to the bottom of the page designating that entry as a digital divide activist. For example, I was able to add Bonnie's name to the list by editing her wikipedia entry and adding this code at the bottom: [[Category:Digital Divide activists|Bracey, Bonnie]] As you can see, the format is fairly simple; you just edit the last section of it to include a person's surname, followed by their first name. So if you know of anyone who's a digital divide activist and happens to be listed in Wikipedia, please feel free to add this category tag to their wikipedia entry so they will be added to the digital divide activists page. And if you know a well-known activist who should be added to wikipedia, please feel free to create a new entry from scratch - the more the merrier... andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] new Wikipedia category: Digital Divide activists
Deborah Elizabeth Finn wrote: On 3/27/06, Andy Carvin [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi everyone, Taran Rampersad recently posted a message to his blog, www.knowprose.com, about the fact that he's recently been added to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taran_Rampersad Dear Andy, Very cool! And I love that photo of Taran. How does one get to be immortalized with a Wikipedia entry? There was one of me for a day or two, but then it was fastracked for deletion. :-( Otherwise, I would have wanted to be in the digital divide activists category. That's a really good question. I noticed on Taran's talk page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Taran_Rampersad) that there had been a debate as to whether his entry should remain on the site, and it hinged on whether Taran had been quoted or discussed by mainstream media. Since he'd be interviewed by the BBC and had taken a leadership role in several important online projects, the proposal to delete him got retracted. As for why yours got cut and his didn't, I'd be interested in knowing what yours said. Also, I hope you didn't create the entry yourself - self-created entries tend to get deleted as vanity articles very quickly. I hunted around the website to see what policies existed regarding this issue, and I found this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Deletion_of_vanity_articles Among the reasons so-called vanity articles get deleted: An article about a real person that does not assert that person's importance or significance - people such as college professors or actors may be individually important in society; people such as students and bakers are not, or at least not for the reason of being a student or baker. Of course, importance and significance are highly subjective. I'm guessing that when the wikipedia entry about you was created, someone came along and didn't see the importance of your work and proposed the entry should be deleted. If no one then came to argue in support of keeping your entry, it would be deleted quickly. Personally, I think you should be in there since you've done so much significant work in the nonprofit tech field. The key thing would be for someone to create a first draft that states quite clearly what makes you and your work important and significant. And I imagine it would help to be able to include links to media sources where you've been quoted, acknowledged, etc. And there should be more digital divide activists who are actings as wikipedians, too, since we know best who's done what, and what activities are deemed important to the movement. For whatever reason, Wikipedia seems to lack entries for a lot of people who've been instrumental in digital divide-related efforts. For example, I don't see an entry for Larry Irving, who as head of the NTIA during the Clinton administration almost singlehandedly raised the digital divide to a policy issue of national importance. It might be an interesting brainstorm to come up with a list of people who are leaders in the field that should be included. andy -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] add a DDN member badge to your blog
Hi everyone, I've just created a DDN member badge that you can add to your blog: http://www.digitaldivide.net/comm/docs/files/230.png It's done in the style of similar blog badges. I've added it to my blog already: www.andycarvin.com If you'd like to add it to your blog, edit your blog template and add this code: a href=http://www.digitaldivide.net;img src=http://www.digitaldivide.net/comm/docs/files/230.png; alt=DDN member badge border=0/a You could also edit this code so that it links directly to your member profile, like this: a href=http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/acarvin;img src=http://www.digitaldivide.net/comm/docs/files/230.png; alt=DDN member badge border=0/a Just change where it says acarvin to your user name and it'll link back to your member profile. Thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] my digital divide article in School Library Journal
Hi everyone, School Library Journal has just published a feature story of mine in their latest issue. It's called The Gap, and it examines how the digital divide, as a policy issue, has fallen off the radar screens of politicians and the media, while marginalized communities continue to be left behind. Some highlights from the article: This year, 2006, marks the 10th anniversary of the advent of the digital divide—a major societal challenge that, sadly, has been pushed aside and forgotten in recent years. Rewind to 1996: middle-class Americans were just beginning to explore the possibilities of the Internet as a tool for education, civic engagement, and entertainment. Yet less affluent citizens, lacking the necessary skills and exposure, did not enjoy the same access to these opportunities. The so-called “Digital Divide” made prominent headlines that year when high-profile pundits, from President Bill Clinton to network news anchors, popularized the term in addressing the growing inequities that appeared to accompany the technological revolution. Today, however, you’re not likely to hear much mention of the digital divide on the news or your favorite political blog. As with other political and social issues, conversation about the digital divide ebbs and flows—and for several years now we’ve been wallowing at a low watermark ... Unfortunately, the digital divide is rarely addressed as a major policy issue in America. But as the U.S. struggles to improve its schools, while dragging its heels at improving our national broadband infrastructure, countries like India and China are churning out highly skilled young people for their workforces. At the same time, Nordic countries and Korea deploy ubiquitous Internet access. Other nations are creating government ministries to spur technological and educational innovation, while American digital divide policies have fallen off the docket. America is losing its competitiveness because we’re not making the necessary investments in education and infrastructure. Fortunately, there is still positive work being done. The federal e-rate program continues to enable low-income schools and libraries to connect to the Internet, while nonprofit and private sector entities invest in local and national efforts dedicated to bridging the gap. Meanwhile, copyright initiatives like Creative Commons ease the way for people to publish their own content for broad public use. And open courseware initiatives from universities, such as MIT, are making some of the most coveted curriculum freely available, whether you can afford to attend the brick-and-mortar institutions or not Here's a link to the full text of the article in case you're interested in reading it: http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6312460.html -andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] video blog about the Fon wifi network
Hi everyone, I've just posted a seven-minute video blog featuring Martin Varsavsky, the founder of the Fon wifi network (www.fon.com), who spoke last week at the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet Society. Fon is a new global network of individuals who provide free or low-cost wifi to their neighborhoods. Those who provide a hotspot may in turn access any other Fon hotspot for free. If you charge users for access, you must limit their access fees to USD $2 a day, and share the revenue with local broadband providers. In the video blog, Varsavsky talks about Fon and foneros, the volunteers who make up the network. He also compares and contrasts Fon with municipal wifi networks like the one being deployed in Philadelphia. http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/fon_the_global_wifi.html The video is a Quicktime file, available in three formats. The high resolution version is just under 40 megabytes, the medium res version is around 15 megabytes, and the low-res version is just over two megabytes. Meanwhile, for those of you who use digg.com, I've submitted a summary of the video here: http://digg.com/technology/Video_Blog_about_Fon,_the_new_global_wifi_network thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Wikipedia surpasses one million articles
Hi everyone, Yesterday, Wikipedia reached a major milestone, surpassing one million articles for the first time. The one millionth article, Jordanhill railway station, was posted just after 23:00 GMT. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordanhill_railway_station Amazingly, the article has been edited more than 400 times in less than 24 hours by the Wikipedia community. Press release: http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Press_releases/English_Wikipedia_Publishes_Millionth_Article I also blogged about it here: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/03/wikipedia_surpasses_1.html ac -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] The Human Virus found in a School based Telecenter in Bangladesh
Hi Nazrul, As soon as I saw the title of this email, I knew exactly whom you were talking about. When I visited that telecentre in Comilla, a small crowd of people were standing around Sagar as he worked at lightning speed on his computer. He's even featured a lot in my photos and video of the telecentre: photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/andycarvin/sets/1285642/ video: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2005/10/scenes_from_a_b.html Thanks for such a pleasant flashback. :-) Donobad, andy Nazrul Islam (RI-SOL/BNGD) wrote: Hi all, Recently we have found a Human Virus in one of our school-based telecenter in Bangladesh. I am inviting you to read the inspiring story here: http://www.connect-bangladesh.org/content/view/252/101/ We have also featured The Human Virus in our February issue of monthly newsletter, if you are interested. Here is the web link to the newsletter: http://www.connect-bangladesh.org/content/view/52/59/ Happy reading ! Nazrul Islam -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] podcasts and notes from U/Missouri scholarly communications conference
Hi everyone, I'm in Columbia, Missouri today at the University of Missouri conference on scholarly communications, open content and the digital divide. I gave the opening keynote on the topic Open Content vs. Closed Doors (or Closed Minds?) I talked about the evolution of digital divide discourse, recent trends regarding content development, and how tools such as blogs and wikis are changing how content is created for marginalized communities. I've posted my powerpoint and a podcast of the session: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/podcast_open_content.html Additionally, I've posted notes covering Nancy Davenport, president of the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR), as well as a podcast from Anne Margulies, director of the MIT Open Courseware initiative. Nancy Davenport: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/nancy_davenports_key.html Anne Margulies: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/podcast_the_mit_open.html thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] [Multilingualism in Cyberspace] Perhaps more complex than that
, the country has a very lopsided rich vs. poor. Therefore the rich would not have problem with using English as defacto IT language since most of them would have had the chance of studying in the US, Australia, Canada etc. They have money. AND if they cannot speak the langauge, they can always hire someone to translate for them. I don't really know the percentage of rich vs. poor in that country. But I am quite sure it is something around the region of 10% vs 90% poor. So, what are we going to do with the poor? Ask all of them to learn another language? Forget about if it technically doable, is it ethically correct? After all we are talking about solving digital divide to leap-frog the poor. Why then the burden should be on the poor? OK. I am going to stop here. I will see if anyone would send in their arguement about the economic side etc. etc. Do not forget as well, Indonesia is one of the countries that are going to order 100 millions of the 100$ lap-top. Cindy [EMAIL PROTECTED] = [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Will a Medical Digital Divide Hasten the Extinction of the Neighborhood Medical Practice?
Hi everyone, I've just written a blog entry about a piece from today's Boston Globe describing the challenges faced by doctors incorporating electronic recordkeeping for patients' files. E-records help doctors provide better care, but the the systems used to track the records can cost tens of thousands of dollars, making it harder for small, neighborhood medical practices to compete against monolithic medical networks. More here: http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/will_a_medical_digit.html -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] FY 2007 federal budget's impact on education technology and the digital divide
Hi everyone, I've just spent a few hours going through the FY 2007 federal budget (http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2007) looking for line-items on various programs involving education technology, the digital divide, literacy and other areas of personal interest. A few programs went up or stayed the same, but most were cut or even eliminated. I've posted a more detailed summary on my blog; in the meantime, here are some highlights. A Quick Look at the Proposed 2007 Federal Budget and Its Impact on Things I Care About http://www.andycarvin.com/ permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/02/a_quick_look_at_the.html Education Technology State Grants This year: $279 million. Next year: Zippo. At one time in history, the US Department of Education awarded millions of dollars in challenge grants for improving access to education technology in America's schools. The No Child Left Behind Act revamped the way this money got doled out, essentially giving it to states in the form of block grants. We've already seen this number drop from more than half a billion dollars in 2005 to less than 300 million this year, and now the White House wants to shut it altogether. Edtech advocates, quite understandably, are furious. “The elimination of this funding – which allows all children access to technology and the Internet, helps train teachers how to use and integrate technology into the curriculum, and provides funding and support for core-curricular content – runs completely counter to the goals and vision outline by the President,” stated Sheryl Abshire in yesterday's press release from the Consortium for School Networking. I urge the Administration to rethink this grave misstep on education technology funding. 21st Century Community Learning Centers This year: $991 million. Next year: $981 million. The purpose of this Department of Education program is to provide expanded academic enrichment opportunities for children attending low performing schools. It's been touted by some as a community technology center initiative, but the main focus is on helping students prepare for NCLB-mandated standardized tests rather than technology education in general. Assistive Technology This year: $30 million. Next year: $22 million. The US Department of Education provides this money to states as formula grants so that students with disabilities have access to assistive technologies. Without these technologies, students with disabilities are left at a severe disadvantage when compared to their non-disabled peers. Vocational Education This year: $1.3 billion. Next year: 800 million. Half a billion bucks that were previously spent on vocational education are going the way of the dodo, including $105 million tech-prep education state grants, five million for tech prep demonstration funds and $23 million for incarcerated youth education. Adult Education This year: $579 million. Next year: $580 million. Adult ed basically dodged a bullet, with more than half a billion going for state grants, and the National Institute of Literacy remaining steady at seven million. Community Technology Centers This year: Zilch. Next year: Bupkus. Once a hallmark digital divide program of the Clinton Administration, the Bush White House killed it off last year. Why they bother to even list it in the budget even though it's been zeroed out two years in a row is beyond me. Twisting the knife, perhaps? Literacy Through School Libraries This year: $20 million. Next year: $20 million. Funds support competitive grants to local educational agencies to provide students with increased access to up-to-date school library materials and certified professional library media specialists. Contrast this with Literacy Program for Youth Offenders This year: $5 million. Next year: Nada. Improving your literacy is okay if your library doesn't have prison guards, it would seem. Or another way to look at it: Teaching young prisoners to make license plates, apparently, is more important than teaching them to read them. -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] My debut as a Rocketboom correspondent
Hi everyone, I just wanted to let you know that today is my first day as a correspondent for the video blog Rocketboom (http://www.rocketboom.com). For those of you who aren't familiar with it, Rocketboom is one of the most successful video blogs on the Internet, with around 130,000 viewers for its daily newscast. It's a mix of technology news, humor and off-the-radar stories from around the world. They've used clips of my video work in the past, but now I'll be producing segments for them in my free time on a regular basis. It's quite a fortuitous day to be featured on Rocketboom, as the show will make a cameo appearance on tonight's new episode of CSI. Anyway, I just wanted to share the news. thanks, andy -- -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com -- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Microsoft Would Put Poor Online by Cellphone (fwd)
The following story from the NY Times discusses the growing competition between Nicolas Negroponte's $100 laptop initiative and Microsoft's new proposal to low-cost Internet mobile phones for developing nations... -andy Microsoft Would Put Poor Online by Cellphone It sounds like a project that just about any technology-minded executive could get behind: distributing durable, cheap laptop computers in the developing world to help education. But in the year since Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Laboratory, unveiled his prototype for a $100 laptop, he has found himself wrestling with Microsoft and the politics of software. Mr. Negroponte has made significant progress, but he has also catalyzed the debate over the role of computing in poor nations — and ruffled a few feathers. He failed to reach an agreement with Microsoft on including its Windows software in the laptop, leading Microsoft executives to start discussing what they say is a less expensive alternative: turning a specially configured cellular phone into a computer by connecting it to a TV and a keyboard. Bill Gates, Microsoft's co-founder and chairman, demonstrated a mockup of his proposed cellular PC at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month, and he mentioned it as a cheaper alternative to traditional PC's and laptops during a public discussion here at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. Craig J. Mundie, Microsoft's vice president and chief technology officer, said in an interview here that the company was still developing the idea, but that both he and Mr. Gates believed that cellphones were a better way than laptops to bring computing to the masses in developing nations. Everyone is going to have a cellphone, Mr. Mundie said, noting that in places where TV's are already common, turning a phone into a computer could simply require adding a cheap adaptor and keyboard. Microsoft has not said how much those products would cost. snip http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/30/technology/30gates.html -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] New feature stories on DDN
Hi everyone, I just wanted to highlight a few new articles on the Digital Divide Network website. All three can be found on the DDN homepage: http://www.digitaldivide.net Facing the Digital Future in San Diego Technology resources are now a lot more accessible to San Diego County’s youth, seniors, veterans, disabled individuals and other community members. The San Diego Futures Foundation has accepted the challenge set by the county's e-government initiative to provide the citizens with better government services and more efficient use of public sector resources. RAIL Provides Access to Resources for Virginia Residents The Rockbridge Area Information Line (RAIL), a Virginia non-profit, maintains an information database of community resources and activities available to residents of Buena Vista, Lexington and Rockbridge County. These resources help residents lead more fulfilling and informed civic lives. InterConnection Provides Websites And Visibility Many great organizations are not visible to funders, clients, or allies. This is especially true of NGOs in the developing world. InterConnection is a nonprofit attempting to fix this problem by providing client organizations, the majority of which are in South America and Africa, with websites that provide organizations with greater visibility. thanks, ac -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] New Informal DDN Help discussion board - but help needed
I've added a link to the new community to the DDN homepage. It's now listed as a featured community. -ac Claude Almansi wrote: Hi All Some time ago, Andy Carvin asked for volunteers to help at www.digitaldivide.net. I volunteered for the animation of the discussion boards. But in one discussion thread - http://www.digitaldivide.net/discussion/viewtopic.php?p=813 - a tech problem crept up: someone had published an article, sharing it with his community, but the article didn't show in that community. I didn't understand why the article didn't show, so I jut made a link to it in the community resources. But I wanted to ask a question about it on the official Help discussion board, as I understand very little about tech. However, this board is one of those that were created before the November 2005 Hack By KuBRaT, and it is still unavailable. On the other hand, communities opened after the hack have a working discussion board. So, as a makeshift solution, I opened a new community, which I called Informal DDN Help Board http://www.digitaldivide.net/community/help2, in order to produce an Informal DDN Help Board discussion board: http://www.digitaldivide.net/discussion/viewforum.php?f=177, for tech questions about using DDN. So now the informal help board is there, but: a) it is not linked solidly anywhere in the other pages; i.e. its presence in other pages depends on there being recent messages in it. b) Moreover the index page that used to list all discussion boards, http://www.digitaldivide.net/discussion/index.php, is among those still unviewable due to the hack - So how should it be kept visible for people who wnt to ask questions about tech problems? Posting there just in order to bump it seems a bit silly. c) I'm still as tech ignorant as ever. - So would people who are tech competent please kindly check this board from time to time, to see if there are new unanswered questions? It would only be until TIG people fix the hacked bords and index page. Thank you in advance, cheers Claude -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] 20th anniversary of the Challenger disaster
Hi everyone, Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of the space shuttle Challenger disaster, which killed seven astronauts, including educator Christa McAullife. I've just posted some memories from that day on my blog; I witnessed the disaster from outside my junior high school that cold morning in Indialantic, Florida. http://www.andycarvin.com permalink: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/01/remembering_my.html For those of you who are members of Omidyar.net, I've started a bulletin board discussion where people can post their memories of the Challenger explosion and discuss the loss of the first and only teacher in space: http://www.omidyar.net/group/community-general/news/1136/ andy -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Students and Teachers, From K to 12, Hit the Podcasts (fwd)
The NY Times has a nice article about educational podcasting. Kathy Schrock and David Warlick are both quoted. -andy Students and Teachers, From K to 12, Hit the Podcasts Podcasting - posting an audio recording online that can be heard through a computer or downloaded to a mobile device like an iPod - is following blogs and online classes as yet another interactive technology catching on as a teaching tool. Currently, iTunes lists more than 400 podcasts from kindergarten through 12th-grade classes, while Yahoo has nearly 900 education-related podcasts. Some are produced by teachers wanting to reach other educators with teaching tips, while many are created by students, like the La Crosse seventh graders with their podcast, at lacrosseschools.com/longfellow/sc/ck/index.htm. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/25/technology/techspecial2/25podcast.html -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] phoneblog
I haven't tested it yet because there isn't a Movable Type plugin yet. I'll probably experiment with its FTP capability later. Basically it's doing the same thing that Audioblogger does and Audlink used to do (they've shut down) - let you record a voicemail and have it posted to your blog. They have call in numbers for the US and the UK, plus a VoIP number, which is very interesting. It currently supports Wordpress, Drupal, Bloger, LiveJournal, Serendipity and generic FTP upload. -andy Champ-Blackwell, Siobhan wrote: http://www.phoneblogz.com/index.php This is new the era of blogging. Keyboards are out. Remembering a situation for later recollection is history. Now you can blog wherever, whenever, even with no internet connection. PhoneBlogz allows you to blog by phone - to your own blogging software on your own server. We support direct posting and remote polling. Check out the rest of the site for more info. Has anyone used this before? siobhan Siobhan Champ-Blackwell Community Outreach Liaison NN/LM-MCR Creighton University Health Sciences Library 2500 California Plaza Omaha, NE 68178 402.280.4156/800.338.7657 option#1,#2, then #1 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://nnlm.gov/mcr http://medstat.med.utah.edu/blogs/BHIC/ http://medstat.med.utah.edu/blogs/BHIC/ http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/siobhanchamp-blackwell http://www.digitaldivide.net/profile/siobhanchamp-blackwell ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Chile: Bachelet Digital (fwd)
From Global Voices -ac Bachelet Digital (in Spanish) is a newly launched weblog by incoming president, Michelle Bachelet, which will serve as a measuring stick for her “Digital Agenda: 2006 - 2010″ program. The blog - with the tagline, “four years to digitalize Chile” - so far, concentrates on themes like internet access, open source software, and Creative Commons licenses. http://www.bacheletdigital.cl/ -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] my first story for the Associated Press/asap
Hi everyone, The Associated Press asap news service is running a multimedia feature story of mine about Star Wars tourism in southern Tunisia, which was used in the movies for the scenes on Luke Skywalker's home planet. The story features text, photos and two video blogs, which document the night I spent sleeping in Luke's house, which is actually an underground hotel in a Berber village. I know this is a bit off-topic, but I promised lots of people I'd let them know when the piece was online. http://asap.ap.org permalink: http://asap.ap.org/stories/319404.s Enjoy, andy -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Reduce, reuse, recycle ... redial? (fwd)
From asap -ac ...Americans have more than 500 million old cell phones lying around collecting dust. That figure is based on estimates that consumers replace their phones about every 18 months, says Mike Newman, vice president of ReCellular Inc., a Dexter, Mich.-based firm that refurbishes old cell phones and resells them in developing countries Founded in 1991, ReCellular is finally seeing its business take off. Last year, it delivered old phones to 40 countries, from Ghana to Peru to Madagascar ReCellular is a for-profit business that works closely with nonprofit charities. In one campaign, the Boys and Girls Clubs receive $1 for every cell phone dropped off at a Best Buy store. Other efforts have raised money for shelters for battered women and Red Cross projects helping Hurricane Katrina survivors. snip http://asap.ap.org/stories/308025.s -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Students Expose Sex Offender Through Wikipedia Research
Hi everyone, For those of you who follow the in's and out's of wikipedia, here's an interesting story: a group of high school students in Minnesota successfully exposed a registered sex offender who was trying to tranfer into their school by tracking entries he had edited on Wikipedia. The 22-year-old sex offender came to the school on three occasions and identified himself as Caspian James Crichton-Stuart IV, 5th Duke of Cleveland. He spoke with an English accent and insisted on being called Your Grace. Students at the school had their doubts, so they began researching the Duke of Cleveland. Examining Wikipedia's edit logs for the Duke of Cleveland, they found that someone had anonymously changed the entry several times to include information about Caspian James, before other Wikipedians removed it. They then traced another wikipedia entry about Caspian James to a person named Joshua Gardner, whom they soon identified as a sex offender in the National Sex Offender Database. For more details, please visit my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com/archives/2006/01/students_expose.html -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] seeking bloggers attending the world social forum (fwd)
Hi everyone, This message comes from Solana Larsen, who's putting together a blog digest for bloggers participating in the upcoming World Social Forum. Please contact her for more info. -andy Original Message Subject: Re: world social forum Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2006 13:56:05 -0500 From: Solana Larsen [EMAIL PROTECTED] The World Social Forum begins in Mali next week, and I am putting together a group weblog for openDemocracy.net that will be covering the Forum as it progresses to Venezuela and eventually Pakistan. Global Voices and Civiblog.org are taking part in the project. I am urgently seeking people who are going to the Forum in either country who would like to write about their experiences there. Either in the blog or in the shape of a formal article for openDemocracy. People with their own blogs would be great, blogging novices welcome too. I'm looking to gather a variety of perspectives. The blog will launch around the 17th of January. Find it on http://www.openDemocracy.net If you, or someone you know is going to the Forum please contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] or US phone: +1 (646) 220-1459 Sincerely, Solana -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
[DDN] Launched: Google Earth for the Mac
Hi everyone, Google officially unveiled Google Earth for the Mac yesterday. You can download it here: http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html To run it you'll need the latest operating system - Mac OSX 10.4. If you try to upload it on OSX 10.3, you'll get a message saying they're still working on a 10.3 version. Looks like I finally found the excuse to upgrade. :-) ac -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] op/ed: Telecom reform needed to bridge Latino digital divide
providers and would love to slow them down with burdensome regulations. But presumably LULAC should want them to survive and thrive. I would guess that LULAC's constituents are in small but increasing numbers taking advantage of services such as Skype, Gizmo, Google Talk, and Free World Dialup that enable them to make VOIP calls within the U.S. and overseas without being charged for the service. In the quoted paragraph above, we see a LULAC position very much in sync with that of the phone companies. But just as LULAC thinks it efficient to skip municipal franchising, shouldn't it recognize that there are huge efficiencies to offering services at no cost, with no need to track and bill very minor payments. Does it really help achieve the goals of universal service to require services like Gizmo and Skype to bill each and every one of their users in order to send money to the universal service fund? And as far as the situations where those or other VOIP providers do charge some customers, shouldn't any call by LULAC for such companies to contribute to the universal service program be accompanied by a call for reforms to the universal service program itself, reforms that may be unappealing to the phone companies? According to David Hughes, the program has historically piled monies into the coffers of the wireline telcos while operating to the severe disadvantage of wireless broadband providers. http://www.comtechreview.org/summer-fall-1999/looking_at_erate.htm And Robert Atkinson argues, I think persuasively, that any universal service payments made by VoIP services should go to supporting the build-out of broadband telecommunications, not to the PSTN [The phone companies' public switched telephone network]. Atkinson writes that, Using these revenues to support the 20th century circuit-switched network will only delay that transition to a robust, packet-switched broadband network for the 21st century. As former FCC Commissioner Reed Hundt stated, this would be as if government responded to Henry Ford's new invention of the automobile by discouraging the construction of roads and, instead, tax[ed] cars in order to subsidize canals and railroads. http://www.comtechreview.org/spring-summer-2005/000316.html I wonder whether LULAC agrees with Atkinson's position and would promote it vigorously? 3) Finally, LULAC calls for, nondiscriminatory deployment of video services to every neighborhood to ensure that the process is competitive and fair. In short, any reform must ensure that Hispanic neighborhoods get access to these new services as quickly as non-Hispanic neighborhoods. Cheers to LULAC for staking out that position, which may clash with that of its major phone company sponsors. http://makeashorterlink.com/?D2E412C6C - Stephen Ronan [EMAIL PROTECTED] On Thu, 5 Jan 2006, Andy Carvin wrote: Hi everyone, Yesterday's Miami Herald featured an op/ed by Hector Flores of the League of United Latin America Citizens (LULAC) offering a Latino policy perspective on the digital divide. In 2006, Congress will set out to rewrite the nation's telecommunications laws, Flores notes. And if federal lawmakers get it right, Hispanic Americans, and consumers generally, could have much to celebrate. But if lawmakers misfire, the digital divide could explode into a digital abyss. Among his recommendations is to have more telecom companies contributing to the Universal Service Fund, source of the E-Rate funding used to subsidize school and library Internet access around the US. I've written about the op/ed on my blog: http://www.andycarvin.com The full text of Flores' op/ed can be found here: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/13553457.htm -- --- Andy Carvin Program Director EDC Center for Media Community acarvin @ edc . org http://www.digitaldivide.net http://katrina05.blogspot.com Blog: http://www.andycarvin.com --- ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] seeking feedback: DDN volunteer job descriptions
J Cravens wrote: Below are these job descriptions. I've tried to be succinct just to keep things simple. Most of the volunteer jobs are associated with a particular task on DDN, such as managing the events calendar, news editor or blog coordinator. Please review these descriptions and let me know what you think. Good job on the task descriptions. My comments/suggestions: -- these aren't paid positions, so try to avoid the word job whenever possible, to avoid any confusion. Talk about tasks and service. good point. hadn't thought of that. -- consider each task of a limited time-frame; none should be open-ended. Each should be limited to, say, three months, with each person being given the option, at the end of the term to either re-up for another three months, or, to quit, or, for the organization to say, Thanks, but we think it's time for a new volunteer in this position. It gives everyone a natural out. While we don't want the volunteers open-ended, three months is too short. It can take three months just to get adept at the task; I think six months minimum is best, with an option to re-up for another six months. Otherwise people will spending all their time recruiting rather than participating. -- each volunteer task should include a requirement to develop/update a manual that documents how the volunteer did the task, for the next volunteer when he or she takes over. You don't want a volunteer leaving and taking all the knowledge with him/her. This documentation should also have an estimate on how long tasks take (right now, there's no times associated with these tasks -- an hour a day? five hours a week?). Set a deadline for the first draft of this information, then a deadline for the updated draft. I had hoped to author a fairly detailed manual this month but it's now questionable whether EDC will pay me this month. Assuming my time at EDC is now officially over, that calls into question how much time I can spend doing this. So the bulk of this will probably have to evolve over time, as volunteers have experience with each task and can document it. Questions: -- will these volunteers be able to recruit other volunteers to help them? I don't see why not. Having volunteer apprentices, if you will, would make it easier to replace volunteers ending their term of service. -- who will evaluate the service provided by these volunteers, and who will communicate those evaluations to the volunteers? That would probably be Kate, the Senior Editor. -- consider recruiting more than one volunteer for some of these, with one volunteer taking the lead, and the other being the backup. Definitely. Some are only one-person tasks; for others, two or three people might make sense. But I'd like to keep the overall group of volunteers tight, so Kate doesn't become overwhelmed by numbers. Other potential jobs/roles: Technical support/customer support Media relations What about an interim volunteer manager, someone who works with the senior editor (who will, ultimately, the head volunteer manager) to: -- develop the volunteer policy/procedure manual/handbook -- develops a system for new volunteers to apply for positions -- works to make sure the aforementioned questions have been addressed -- identifies the support needs of volunteers and ways to possibly address them That would be great. I'd love to have someone do this, particulary since my role in all of this may be more curtailed than I would like. Any volunteers? :-) Thanks for the great suggestions, Jayne! -andy -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
Re: [DDN] op/ed: Telecom reform needed to bridge Latino digital divide
Andy: Why not avoid any appearance of sounding hypocritical by notifying readers when you contribute your criticism? How did you made sure that we could take positions on issues that were in opposition to some of our funders. . .? When we received funding from a private sector partner, we made clear to them we would keep editorial independence. So when AOL funded us, for example, nothing would stop us from writing an article critical of [EMAIL PROTECTED] We would always inform them of it, in case they wanted to write a public response. No funder ever interfered with our publishing, and they certainly never stopped DDN members from having their say on issues they cared about. It's also worth noting that DDN is now designed as a decentralized online community. I don't write the articles. DDN members do. They also post them directly to the site. So there's never been a situation where private sector entities interfered with that editorial independence. Ironically, the problem hasn't been private funding - it's been public funding. Because EDC is publicly funded, we were discouraged from picking fights with the federal government. And when DDN was based at the Benton Foundation, we were not allowed to lobby for policies we cared about because of Benton's legal status as a charitable foundation. But private funders never tried to interfere or discourage us from getting involved in one issue or another. On the topic you raised about whether one organization's funding is better than another's because it came from philanthropic sources, the answer should be obvious, I think. Corporate money is by definition given to any nonprofit project with but one goal in mind, that is, to further the image and thus enhance the corporation's profits. For example, any list that has Verizon as a contributor is fighting against itself, if it doesn't spell out the why's and wherefore's of the money contributed, so readers can understand the purpose of the partnership. Tom Sure, there's no doubt that companies give to make themselves look better. But as long as they don't dictate how that money gets spent and they don't interfere, why not? It never stopped us from writing about municipal wifi or another cause we thought relevant for greater public discussion or support. You're also forgetting DDN's original mandate - to create an online, multistakeholder, multi-sector network of activists seeking to bridge the digital divide. Multistakeholder and multi-sector, by definition, means working with the private sector. So it's not like this was some dirty dark secret - it was central to our founding and has always been a part of the mission. Like I said, DDN never have been created or lasted as long without support from various sectors, including the private sector. And what happened when we tried to focus on getting less money from the private sector and more from the public sector? We ran out of funding and lost our jobs. Sure, it would have been great if some noncommercial philanthropic benefactor had stepped up and bankrolled DDN so we could do our work and really mobilize, but that was never realistic. ac ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. -- Andy Carvin acarvin (at) edc . org (until Jan 31) As of February 1: andycarvin (at) yahoo . com http://www.digitaldivide.net http://www.andycarvin.com ___ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list DIGITALDIVIDE@mailman.edc.org http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
