Comments on: “Inappropriate” appropriate technology?

By: Blog it, Kenny: Most read posts of 2009 | Build it Kenny, and they will come...

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 08:44:40 +0000

[...] “Inappropriate” appropriate technology? 14. Why does this picture trouble me? 15. A glimpse inside social mobile’s long [...]

By: Renjish Kumar

Renjish Kumar — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 10:34:46 +0000

Ken,
I think you have answered on the question of whether Cloud is an appropriate technology for social development in the blog itself. The choice of technology indeed is, like you said, always based on the suitability to overcome constraints existing in a social scenario. Cloud is no exception. So, I really feel that discussion on whether cloud is appropriate or not is a non-issue. You need to assess it on a case-by-case basis and there is no one-size-fits-all. Besides, I haven’t seen the Cloud evangelists forcing it others in a social development context. Have you? As I understand, they are still in the process of getting it adopted in the mainstream…. Though proprietary solutions exist, the intiatives for standardization are in its early stage….

I must also add here that Cloud has different categories, as you may know… So, it’s not only about Internet as a Cloud, but also private Clouds or hybrid Clouds which if extended in a social context would mean that the NGO can establish a local cloud which can address the latency issues… of course other things need to be taken care of in this case, such as the management cost….

But, in summary, my view is that Cloud is simply another delivery mechanism which holds promise, and its suitability cannot be generalized but assessed on a case-by-case basis, as of now…..

By: Maji Water

Maji Water — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 18:21:34 +0000

@mtotowajirani that's Pro vs Against Cloud Computing for Africa discussion I mentioned - http://ow.ly/OEqL

By: Applying mapping technology to make spatial information useful in Africa « AgCommons

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:11:58 +0000

[...] on if cloud based infrastructures are appropriate technology for Africa which has been covered here and here but as a practical matter to build up and throw away machines rapidly it makes perfect [...]

By: The well oiled machinery and the autosave cog | labs.internews.eu

The well oiled machinery and the autosave cog | labs.internews.eu — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:36:12 +0000

[...] best for an intranet, or in high bandwith, always-on context, the AJAX based solution won't be as appropriate as a solution which continues to work even if the internet is down for a [...]

By: Mobile meets health on the margins | Build it Kenny, and they will come...

Mobile meets health on the margins | Build it Kenny, and they will come... — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:52:07 +0000

[...] kiwanja The timing of this article could not have been better, given the discussions last week on the merits of mobile-based “cloud computing” and the clarification of our position a [...]

By: shyder

shyder — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:38:34 +0000

@Caltech CRM . The same SMS which work along GSM was made for the western market as well. When Mo Ibrahim quit his job at BT and sought to build GSM networks in Africa which later bore fruit to Celtel Africa, people thought he was crazy! At the end of the day business is business and it involves the same ‘buy’ and ’sell’ transactions. Where there’s demand for services and approriate business models, technology will thrive.

By: Caltech CRM

Caltech CRM — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 12:36:26 +0000

As a rule the majority of technology is written for the mass market, the consumer with disposable incomes, largely the western market.

The real work to actually further progress is done by smaller groups that never recieve the recognition or support they need or deserve.

The Cloud is one of these examples, created for western business.

By: “Inappropriate” appropriate technology? | Build it Kenny, and they … | Today Headlines

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:41:57 +0000

[...] the rest here: “Inappropriate” appropriate technology? | Build it Kenny, and they … Share and [...]

By: kiwanja

kiwanja — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:20:07 +0000

@Merrick – Thanks for the comments. Suffice to say, I’m totally with you on this, too. Although I’m always pushing SMS, that’s because it’s the only thing that generally works today for most users I speak to, but as you rightly say it won’t be that way forever. When I built the first FrontlineSMS in 2005 I would never have thought that SMS would still be so dominant over four years on. We’re also adding cloud-based functionality, but it’s an add-on and not a show-stopper for non-cloud users. As for the rate of innovation, I agree that it’s rapid and accelerating, and some very cool stuff is going to emerge. I’ll leave others work on that for now, and just keep focused on our small section of the “long tail”

By: Merrick Schaefer

Merrick Schaefer — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:59:23 +0000

As a proponent of SMS based solutions that don’t rely on the cloud I must say I agree with Ken. That being said I am constantly surprised by the pace of technological change. Here in Zambia, there is Edge coverage where ever there is cell coverage. We have picked it up in remote clinics in the northern province of Luapula. And both Zain and MTN are rolling out 3G at the start of the new year. I think it is a lot less about network and more about the price and spread of handsets. All of the youth in Lusaka who can afford it have phones they can use facebook on. And here data is one order of magnitude cheaper than SMS for the same set of characters. A lot of the local developers would rather tweet or email a reply to us than SMS for cost reasons.

I think that Ken’s original definition of, “anything that is suited to the environment in which it is used” combined with “and solves the problem you are trying to solve” is the definition that I will stick by for now.

One of the amazing things about working in Africa right now is the pace of change and innovation. I hope that the solutions all of us are developing this year are obsolete in a year or two!

By: “Inappropriate” appropriate technology? | Build it Kenny, and they … | Kenya today

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:48:53 +0000

[...] See the rest here: “Inappropriate” appropriate technology? | Build it Kenny, and they … [...]