This bus, like many others, has been transformed into a mobile internet centre, and it travels around Tunisia teaching students of all ages how to log on, surf the net, and obtain information electronically that can help them in their studies and in finding jobs.
Interesting approach to digital divide issues...
By 2012, for instance, Rwanda wants every child in the country between the ages of nine and 12, 1.3m children in all, to have a laptop, each with an internet or intranet connection to download free educational software and electronic books. “We estimate the start-up cost will be $313m,” says Richard Niyonkuru of Rwanda’s education ministry. If all goes well, the programme will embrace children between six and eight by 2015.
OLPC!
Wenn man crossmediale Projekte an- und durchdenkt, ist ja immer auch die technologische Grenze zu berücksichtigen. Deswegen heute früh ein Abstecher zum Management Club, wo sogenannte Innovationssprecher der Regierungsparteien sich mit Mobilfunk und Fernsehfunk austauschen sollten. Zum Thema der "digitalen Dividende" nämlich.
Diese digitale Dividende meint das refarming der im FS1/FS2-Fernsehzeitalter dem ORF zur Verfügung gestellten Frequenzbereiche um 800 MHz, die in der Perspektive frei werden – und die ideal wären um die weder in der Großstadt noch in kurzer Entfernung vom nächsten "Wählamt" lebenden Bürger, die dort produzierenden Unternehmen, die dort praktizierenden Landärzte wieder herein in die Infogesellschaft zu holen. Trotz toller Beiträge von Michael Krammer (Orange), Robert Chvátal (T-Mobile), Günther Singer (Liwest) und Michael Wagenhofer (ORS) möchte ich hier nur mal die Statements der politicians einspielen: Kurt Gartlehner, SPÖ, und Karin Hakl, ÖVP. Vielleicht erklärt sich daraus, warum ich so gern das tag "Internet aussitzen 2.0" vergebe. (h. e.)
'Home Access' is a UK Government initiative, in England, to provide computers and online access to disadvantaged learners to enable them to have access to online resources and services when outside school. It follows on from the earlier Computers for Pupils (CfP) initiative in which schools, backed by Government funds, provided computers and access to their most disadvantaged learners. On one level, Home Access is the continuing Government attempt to close, in England, what has become known as the 'digital divide'. Home Access, like CfP, seeks to provide disadvantaged learners with a 'taster' of online access as a means of demonstrating to the learner, their parents or carers, the advantages of online access as an aide to learning. The term, 'taster', is used here because, while the computer is expected to have a life of around 3 years, the government initiatives would generally only provide online access for 1 year; the intention, or hope, being that having experienced the benefits for one year, the parents themselves would fund further access. The digital divide, however, is more than just having or not having internet access from home; it is also about the way in which that access is used. Home Access provides the kit and the connectivity, which is just the first step in closing the divide, it also recognises the further issues surrounding use. It is the provision of hardware, though, which is likely to grab the headlines. How likely is Home Access to succeed, though? Well, it already has the experience of the Computers for Pupils initiative to build upon, it has run pilot programmes in Oldham and Suffolk, and it has just completed the Home Access for Targeted Groups project (which provided kit and connectivity for looked-after children and  learners educated out of school). So it does have a fair amount of experience to build upon and help it succeed. All the projects, past and present do rely, though, upon learners and parents becoming convinced of the value and benefits of online access for their learning. Why do it though? Why go to all these leangths and expense to provide learners and their families with online access? Well, the programme is supported by the Government's own findings which appear to indicate that having and using online access has a beneficial effect upon learning; it can improve examination grades, lead to better financial reward and faciltate better learning opportunities for all learners. The underlying purpose of Home Access is therefore to improve the learning and future financial situation of current learners and their families.
'Home Access' is a UK Government initiative, in England, to provide computers and online access to disadvantaged learners to enable them to have access to online resources and services when outside school. It follows on from the earlier Computers for Pupils (CfP) initiative in which schools, backed by Government funds, provided computers and access to their most disadvantaged learners. On one level, Home Access is the continuing Government attempt to close, in England, what has become known as the 'digital divide'. Home Access, like CfP, seeks to provide disadvantaged learners with a 'taster' of online access as a means of demonstrating to the learner, their parents or carers, the advantages of online access as an aide to learning. The term, 'taster', is used here because, while the computer is expected to have a life of around 3 years, the government initiatives would generally only provide online access for 1 year; the intention, or hope, being that having experienced the benefits for one year, the parents themselves would fund further access. The digital divide, however, is more than just having or not having internet access from home; it is also about the way in which that access is used. Home Access provides the kit and the connectivity, which is just the first step in closing the divide, it also recognises the further issues surrounding use. It is the provision of hardware, though, which is likely to grab the headlines. How likely is Home Access to succeed, though? Well, it already has the experience of the Computers for Pupils initiative to build upon, it has run pilot programmes in Oldham and Suffolk, and it has just completed the Home Access for Targeted Groups project (which provided kit and connectivity for looked-after children and  learners educated out of school). So it does have a fair amount of experience to build upon and help it succeed. All the projects, past and present do rely, though, upon learners and parents becoming convinced of the value and benefits of online access for their learning. Why do it though? Why go to all these leangths and expense to provide learners and their families with online access? Well, the programme is supported by the Government's own findings which appear to indicate that having and using online access has a beneficial effect upon learning; it can improve examination grades, lead to better financial reward and faciltate better learning opportunities for all learners. The underlying purpose of Home Access is therefore to improve the learning and future financial situation of current learners and their families.
Die Welt sieht nicht nur Dein Video, sie versteht es auch. Für alle interessant, die im Netz mit bewegtem Bild arbeiten, sprich Video. Youtube bietet seit neuesten eine automatische Zeit- und Untertitelfunktion an, mit Übersetzungsmöglichkeit in prinzipiell 250 Sprachen, wenn man ein einfaches Textskript mitliefert. Die Übersetzung vom Deutschen ins Englische ist erstaunlich gut. Wenn ich es richtig verstanden habe, ist das Video damit auch mit allen Worten, die im Videotext vorkommen "beschlagwortet", den Rest macht Google. In der Anleitung kann man es nicht sehen, aber im Prinzip könnte man das Video dann auch in 250 Sprachen "beschlagworten", oder nicht? Ein Distributionstraum.
Grad fahr ich heim in der U-Bahn. In einem von den üblichen Mistblattln, die die Wir-haben-das-Land-aufgebaut-und-brauchen-höhere-Pensionen-Generation in dem dreckigen Verkehrsmittel der Stadt Wien liest, plagt sich eine Dame 75+ durch die Nachricht, dass Dr. Heinz Fischer auf Youtube kandidiert. Mannerschnitten, eine goldene Füllfeder, ein dickes Buch, ein gerahmtes Foto – all die Insignien eines prototypischen digitalen Analphabeten sind zu sehen. Irgendetwas nur andeutungsweise mit Strom Betriebenes (ein Handy, ein Laptop gar...) ist weit und breit nicht auszumachen. Verkehrte Welt irgendwie. Ob man so street cred aggregiert? (h. e.)
Gibt es Ihre Sachen auch auf Kindle? Tja, diese Frage hätte ich auf der Buch Wien lieber nicht gestellt. Eine Antwort, die "Ja, natürlich!" gelautet hätte, war nämlich nicht zu ernten auf dieser zweiten, verbesserten Auflage der Verlegershow @ RX Messegelände Wien. Nach einer Begriffsklärung (durch Gegenfragen wie "Wie bitte?" / "Was?" / "Auf was?" oder "Was meinen Sie?" und Präzisierung der Anfrage durch Hinzufügung des Markennamens Amazon) kam in neun von zehn Fällen dann ein bescheidenes "Nein" heraus. Der zehnte Verlag meinte: "teilweise". Welchen Teil ich auf Kindle haben könnte, hat er mir trotzdem verschwiegen.
Die Verlage übrigens waren die großen Namen aus dem deutschen Sprachraum, von dtv bis Suhrkamp, von styria bis Residenz. (Das Ergebnis für Kleinverlage war vorhersehbar identisch.) Kommerzliteratur versucht es zwar seit einiger Zeit mit der Textwiedergabe per Ohrstöpseln und stellt Audiobücher neben ihre 1000-Seiten-Thriller; bei der elektronischen Druckerschwärze (e-ink) ist das Angebot aber eher rar. Dan Browns verlorenes Symbol scheint nur herkömmliche Leser anzusprechen, Stephen Kings Qual war hingegen auf dem Reader zu erspähen und blätterte sich wunderbar um, zumindest per Stift am Touchscreen (endlich – der ist dafür weniger "crispy" als früher, sondern eher ein bisschen "blurred"). Kindle ist mir überhaupt auf der ganzen Messe keines begegnet, und die Sony Reader waren praktisch auch nur am Sony-Stand zu finden – mit einer Ausnahme: im Handtäschchen einer deutschen Lektorin. Sie brachte mir bei, wie der kleine Reader (12 cm breit, 6-Zoll-Diagonale, verblüffend dünn und leicht, Kommentier- und Exportfunktion, jetzt mit Stift-Touchscreen, 300 Euro, demnächst auch in Rot) ihr professionelles Leben erleichtert: Das Ding fasst nämlich beliebig viele Manuskriptseiten, die ihr bisher als kiloschwerer Laserausdruck übermittelt worden waren. Akku aufladen: alle 7000 Seiten... Parallel zur Buch Wien war in der Nachbarhalle auch noch die Interpädagogica, die Tradeshow für Professionals aus dem Bildungsbereich. Bei den gezeigten Produkten taten mir die Schüler leid. Die Interfaces der digitalen Tafeln waren durch die Bank voller Schrott. Wenn das wirklich aus dem Bildungsbudget angekauft wird, sollte Transparency International hellhörig werden. Die digital divide und die media literacy gap Probleme werden mit derartiger Steinzeit-Software nämlich bestimmt nicht gelöst. (h.e.) @Sony-PMs: Habts ihr vielleicht ein Dauertestgerät vom PRS-600 für uns?
Newest blog article from the Social.Butterfly.Experiment. Topic: Hey, Mr. "I-want-to-stop-the-digital-divide", who are you really fighting for?
SIMON: We, as you know, have tried to work the use of social media into our program. We do get some resentment from people who, some people, not everybody has access to the internet or think that they have no interest in social media sites.
Mr. SHIRKY: The conversation around the digital divide, this gap between who can participate and who can't, has shifted. In the '90s, it was mainly about access to hardware and network connections. Right? Not everybody has a computer. But as computers have gotten cheaper and spread, as they started showing up in specific places like libraries, and as phones increasingly have, even just through SMS, these kind of functions, the conversation's really shifted from the question of access to a hardware to the sense of permission and to the sense of interest. And that's a much squishier, more social question.
So part of the digital divide question, the new digital divide question is, how do we go to people who don't sense they have permission to speak in public and offer them that permission? And then the other, as you say, is the interest. If there are people who are just uninterested in this stuff, how can you make an experience that's still satisfying for them as, you know, traditional consumers of media, without making them feel bad for not being the people posting the Flickr pictures of potholes or, you know, adding a comment to an NPR story?
This is from an interview of US National Public Radio with Clay Shirky. The Digital Divide issue is often seen in simple terms - those that can access and those that can't. However, I think Clay is right that the issue has shifted. While not discussed in this interview, another point is the gap between those that do want to engage online but in a particular domain are not given the chance (such as local government consultations that are only conducted face-to-face).
