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Seminar presented in July 2009 at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Nicaragua (UNAN), in Managua (Nicaragua), in the framework of UNAN - UNIMIB (University of Milano Bicocca) agreement.
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Perché un nuovo laboratorio?UNAN – UNIMIB Meetingon ICT
Roberto [email protected]
UNAN, 31 July 2009
My goal
Share with you the philosophy of my present activities in UNIMIB
Learn about you and learn from your comments
Understand how we can cooperate, in the framework of UNAN-UNIMIB relationship
Proposed agenda
The context at UNIMIB Who I am TangoLab@DISCO The “new” Internet as an enabler Some tentative conclusions Your comments
1. The context at UNIMIB
DISCO
Dipartimento di Informatica, Sistemistica e Comunicazione of UNIMIB: www.disco.unimib.it
About 110 persons: 12 full prof 15 associate prof 22 researchers 30 PhD students 20 contract researchers 12 admin employees
DISCO: activities
Education: Laurea in Informatica Laurea magistrale in Informatica Laurea magistrale in Teoria e tecnologia della
comunicazione (with Faculty of Psycology)
Research:
Wide range of research, from theoretical computer science to system architecture, to software engineering, to artificial intelligence to bioinformatics
Info: www.disco.unimib.it (in Italian)
Corso di laurea magistrale inTeoria e tecnologia della comunicazione
Started 5 years ago Multi-disciplinary, “maestria” level (2
years) Joint venture between DISCO and Faculty
of Psycology Focus: how new technologies can support
human communication Students come from Informatics or
Communication Sciences
Corso di laurea magistrale inTeoria e tecnologia della comunicazione (II)
2. Who I am
Who I am
My background: Software Engineering Associate Professor since 1974, first at
UNIMI, since 1999 at UNIMIB 35 years experience in software services
industry in Italy
Who I am - presently
Director of Corso di laurea magistrale inTEORIA E TECNOLOGIA DELLA COMUNICAZIONE
In charge of courses on- Human-computer interaction- Web Design- The “new web” (Web 2.0)
Director of the new laboratory TangoLab@DISCO
My story
Engineering methods for software quality
Quality of human-computer interaction
The Internet and the Web to support human activities and communication
(Now) The “New Web” to support non-profit orgs and international cooperation
Who I am NOT
A system engineer (too old…) An expert in International Cooperation An expert of Nicaragua (but own an
home in Managua since 2007) A Spanish-language speaker
Therefore…
This is not a “lesson”, is a basis for discussion
Ideas are still in draft, and need to be refined
I am very interested in your help
3. TangoLab@DISCO
TangoLab@DISCO
“Technology Assistance to Non-Governmental Organizations Laboratory”
Started beginning 2009 Container of thesis in Informatics & Teoria
e tecnologia della comunicazione
TangoLab Mission
Identify, design & prototype innovative, effective, low-cost and sustainable ICT solutions, for no-profit orgs and their “customers” – and promote their use
TangoLab: motivation (1)
Too many emphasis on ICT gadgets around…especially in Human-Computer Interaction
Information & Communications Technologies must concentrate on important goals
ICT students must understand it, and be able to choose their goals accordingly
Almost half the world — over three billion people — live on less than $2.50 a day
http://www.globalissues.org
Do we really want to design ICT solutions only for these?
TangoLab: motivation (2) ICT used by Non-Governmental Orgs often “rudimentary”
- no money- no know-how- focus on main organization goals
But ICT can produce powerful “leverage” effects- web site- domain specific applications- communications, communications, communications
Example
TangoLab survey of the quality of web sites of the Italian ONG recognized by Foreign Ministry (About 240)
No site
Rudimentary
Acceptable
Good
Very good
17%
23%43%
13%3%
“Now”, change we can!
In very recent years, entrance barriers to ICT have dramatically lowered Low-cost broadband internet connectivity Low-cost mobile telephony (services and devices) FLOSS (Free/Libre/Open/Source/Software) “Free” utility computing (software services over the net) “Web 2.0” applications Integration technologies Easy of use
TangoLab: Philosophy
No software development, but identification and integration of free software components
No set up of ICT infrastructures, but use of utility computing
The internet as the primary enabler Simple, usable, low cost and sustainable solutions Requirements and field testing through
partnerships with NGOs All results freely reusable
4. The “new” ICT as an enabler
Main points
Cellphones & PC penetration Broadband Internet connections FLOSS
(Free/Libre/Open/Source/Software) Utility computing Web 2.0 applications Integration (“Mashup”) technologies
The “explosion” of cellular phones
In 2007: 1 billion cellphones (vs 400 millions PC)
sold worldwide
In 2009: 90% of world population can have access
to a cellular phone
Source: United Nations
4.1 billions subscribers!
61% from 19% in 2002
Almost 1 out of 4 people
uses the Internet
Broadband still very low
No growth
Source: ITU 2009
MOBILE CELLULAR DIVIDE
IS SHRINKING
2008: 40% penetration!
Higher growth
(from 1% 2000 to 28%
2008)
+32% 2006/07
INTERNET PENETRATION IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES STILL LOW AT
13%
…especially in Africa at
5%
Internet broadband
Is “extremely” importantITU: “Many of the most effective applications and services that can foster development are only available through a high-speed Internet connection (e.g. e-commerce, e-government, e-banking)”
It is difficult to provide in developing countries, because of limited availability of fixed networks
But mobile broadband has a major potential to expand…
…even to provide broadband to PC
Fixed broadband subscribers
Mobile broadband subscribers
2% vs 20%
IDI (ICT Development Index) Developed by ITU to compare ICT
advancement in more than 150 countries worldwide
Recently calculated for 2002 and 2007 Can be found in
ITU, Measuring the Information Society, 2009 http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/publications/idi/2009/material/IDI2009_w5.pdf
ITU model3 stages in the evolution towards the information society
Source: ITU
1 2 3
IDI OF CENTRO-AMERICA COUNTRIES
Source of data: ITU
On IDI, Honduras moved 12 places up from 2002 Nicaragua moved 1 place up from 2002
Enablers: FLOSS
FLOSS=Free/Libre/Open/Source/Software
Important example: software tools to develop web sites No programming skills needed Free use, in some cases free hosting
Enablers: Utility computing Computing power delivered through the
internet No local infrastructure needed, except access
(low cost PC) and broadband internet connection
Evolution40
2. Web 1.0
Provider hosting my site with my data
1. Local infrastructure
My data and applications
3. Web 2.0
My data, and 3d party applications as a service
broadband
Low cost PC
Utility computing: examples
Traditional web hosting services Storage services
Examples: DropBox, … Online office applications
Examples: Google Docs Repositories
Examples: flickr, youtube, slideshare, … Online applications (any type)
Example: private social networks platforms
Example: www.ning.com Allow building of private social networks No programming skills needed Not FLOSS, but low-cost hosting service
Enablers: Web 2.0 applications The Internet of the past was essentially:
mail + read-only Web (“Web 1.0”)
Now the user can communicate, create and share content (“Web 2.0”)
From the web as a network of sites..… to the web as a network of people
Enablers: “mashup” technologies Software technologies to mix existing
software components and services to create new applications
Internet, circa 1990
- A “telephone network, with PC’s instead of telephones”- Main application: email
Internet, circa 1995+
- A network of linked web sites- Main application: read-only Web
Internet, circa 2005+
- A network of people- Main applications: social networks, user-generated content, cooperative work (e.g.Wikipedia)
48Example: a network of “friends” in Facebook
Internet, circa 2010+
“The network is the computer”
- A network of services
5. Some tentative conclusions
(as a basis for discussion)
One
ICT is changing fast…
My grandaddy (born 1883) typewriter: I learned typing on it
Two
People is changing slowly… …but the world is getting younger and
younger …and the new generations have grown
(and will grow) with technology
We must target the new generation
Three
The “new” Web can give a lot of value…
…for a low cost
Four
The main enabler is broadband mobile access
All this suggest the following strategy
Invest in broadband mobile access, not in software development
The software is there, and is (almost) free Develop skills to identify, mix and integrate
existing software and services Take advantage of utility computing to
avoid building local infrastructures Concentrate on applications requirements,
prototyping and experimentation Distribute results over the net
I would be very interested in working with you to improve
this analysis
Thank you