Wi-fi pioneers creating a social movement
June 27, 2006 Posted by Clare in : Bristol , 1 comment so farBBC NEWS has a story today about Spanish company Fon who are trying to sell subsidised routers as part of a plan to turn domestic wi-fi networks into public hotspots.
Fon will sell wi-fi routers, which allow people to surf the net wirelessly, for $5 (£2.75).
The company, which has financial backing from Google and Skype, aims to create public wi-fi networks street by street across the US and Europe. The company is hoping to create a “social movement” as well as a business.
Wiki Bristol
Posted by fluffylogic in : Bristol , 5 commentsWiki technology is here! Bristol based technology company, FluffyLogic, have just completed an article for the Indepdendent newspaper on wikis;
Many believe that the web has entered its newest and most exciting phase: a communal era, which looks to both its altruistic beginnings as well as to its most powerful aspirations. The media technology leading this phase is known as the wiki. This approach to technology, based on sharing information and technology, is echoed among a wider group of web users, the open-source community. Ben Green, from a co-operative called Bristol Wireless, says: “We are starting to see open-source technologies replacing proprietary software and some envisage wikis replacing academic knowledge systems in the same way.”
Wiki’s are an important new concept and once more Bristolians are helping to put this technology onto the national agenda!
National Judging
June 16, 2006 Posted by Stephen Hilton in : Digital Challenge, Bristol , 1 comment so farYesterday Carolyn Hassan from Knowle West Media Centre, Dick from the Watershed, Council Leader Barbara Janke and I presented Bristol’s Digital Challenge bid to the national judging panel and … we did great!
The presentation took place in London’s Guildhall Art Gallery, a very impressive location - the sort of place designed to remind you who is really in charge. Stephen Dodson and Helen Goulden, the Challenge Directors were charming and welcoming, helping to put us at ease. The judging panel appeared to warm considerably as we made our presentation. Their questions were direct and insightful.
So will we go through to the next round? I think so but whatever happens, we presented Bristol's bid clearly, confidently and credibly - we could have hoped for no more.
We now have to wait untill 12th July when the Minister will announce the ten lucky winners – and by default, the eight ‘runners up’ – can you type with your fingers crossed?
Thanks to everyone for their support
Stephen
Open Source Bristol
June 14, 2006 Posted by fluffylogic in : Bristol , add a commentOpen Source is in the news one more as the world's first ever open source film was released, Elephants Dream:
"The short film was created by the Orange Open Movie Project studio in Amsterdam during 2005/2006, bringing together a diverse team of artists and developers from all over the world."
If you're not sure what Open Source is, it means; "…practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's sources. Some consider it as a philosophy, and others consider it as a pragmatic methodology….The open source model can allow for the concurrent use of different agendas and approaches in production, in contrast with more centralized models of development such as those typically used in commercial software companies."
In short is means sharing the know-how and ideas behind technology.
Communication is an intrinsic part of what the Internet was, is and will be. Open Source is an idea firmly wedded in communication, it is all about communication of ideas and is a vital part of the technology revolution going on around us. What's great about Open Source is that we can all get involved in it – its inclusive.
In Bristol you can see the Open Source spirit all around…the council has move to Open Source software with Open Office, Bristol Wireless are promoting Open Source (and Free-as-in-freedom software) with great results..and Green Bristol has its technology opened up for all to grow the ideas. There are plenty more examples, but this gives a flavor…
