Happy Sys admin Day!!

System Administrator Appreciation Day, also known as Sysadmin Day, SysAdminDay, SAD or SAAD, is an annual event created by system administrator Ted Kekatos. The event exists to show appreciation for the work of sysadmins and other IT workers. It is celebrated on the last Friday in July.The first System Administrator Appreciation Day was celebrated on July 28, 2000.

What does a network administrator say when he gets back to home from work ?
There’s no place like 127.0.0.1!

exit $?

Finger Reader ring for the blind

(A model wears a FingerReader ring at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo Stephan Savoia)

Some of the Kenyan institution’s catering to the visually impaired use Dolphin pen as tool to enable them to interact with Technology. An example of the institutions is Kenyatta University that also provides Ipad and Ipods to enable the interaction. Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are developing an audio reading device(a prototype produced by a 3-D printer) to be worn on the index finger of people whose vision is impaired, giving them affordable and immediate access to printed words in real time.

The FingerReader fits like a ring on the user’s finger, equipped with a small camera that scans text. A synthesized voice reads words aloud, quickly translating books, restaurant menus and other needed materials for daily living, especially away from home or the office.

Developing the gadget has taken three years of software coding, experimenting with various designs and working on feedback from a test group of visually impaired people. he FingerReader would not replace Braille — the system of raised dots that form words, interpreted by touch. Instead, Shilkrot said, the new device would enable users to access a vast number of books and other materials that are not currently available in Braille.

Video http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/08/fingerreader-read-blind-mit_n_5565898.html

(Source Huffing post)

"Toa habari kwa polisi" is still analogue.Its a web-chain of incompetence!

With the recent “terrosim”attacks in Kenya, and with vigilant citizens using social media to report cases of corruption, incidents and accidents, to different ministries am wondering how the Cabinet secretary of Information technology is doing to help in monitor and help citizens report in collaboration with the security cabinet secretaries. There are so many tools that corporates use to manage their brands online, having a twitter handle doesn’t not necessary mean that you will be able to see a tweet during an emergency.

Two weeks ago, I saw a policeman at the Railways stage receive a bribe from the conductor manning the stage.The bribe allowed the conductors to pick passengers along Haile Selassie Avenue.It was very unfortunate that, all of us in the matatus, the pedestrians, the ones waiting for the matatus all saw, and did nothing. Five minutes later, Two GSU officers, came out of nowhere and beat the hell out of a group conductors who had parked on the road causing traffic.

I would like to assume that there is something very wrong with our security forces, from high poaching levels, to westgate seige lasting days  and no one gets arrested, to nothing being done in the courts when most poachers, terrorists are arrested, they always come out on bail.Below are a few of proposed solutions that could help in monitoring and escalating problems from when they are reported and promote collaboration.

Proposed solutions:

·         Through Huduma center, the government can have a response team that manages the government’s CRM. The team could/should be able to use systems with high tech algorithms that are able to identify when people/person is need, and use grps from the Phone signal to locate them. This could be also be in line with satellite usage to view real time information on the ground.(Confirmation of signals could be done through anything, even a “smart fridge”) The system could also work like helpdesk systems, first line of “firefighting” if it advances what are the escalation procedures?

·         The government telephone reporting lines don’t work, PERIOD. Also, if I am in Garrisa, why should I call Nairobi? The devolved government should be able to help citizens by coming up with different lines for different counties. For example: 999-1 for Nairobi county, and 999-45 for Kajiado county making it’s easy to report as well as help in data mining of information that could help police come up with trends, future predictions, help in deployment of police etc.Lets assume there are people who saw the the minibuses in mkepetoni?How were they supposed to inform the police?

·         As citizens, we need to speak up, these small things that we see police force doing right in front of us is deafening. I wonder if the police on YouTube videos who were caught receiving bribes have been punished. Or even Nocturnal neighbors who never see throughout the year? Or suspicious foreigners using PSV vehicles and cannot communicate in any Kenyan Language? Citizens can only be vigilant if they are backed by the Government. What’s the point of speaking up if the government also does nothing?

With the Government going digital, we dont need the "Toa habari kwa polisi" boxes outside police stations.Neither do we need to release detainees out of no evidence in courts, yet they are wanted criminals all over the world! Its a web-chain of incompetence from ministries to security divisions, to courts, and back to citizens.

Zuia Noma, Chagua Amani!!

Uber's Strategy: Kenyan Perspective

Around January a friend on social Media posted that Uber is hiring for the Nairobi office.

Uber is an app that connects riders to drivers with the aim of making cities more accessible, opening up more possibilities for riders and more business for drivers. I was actually surprised how they thought about opening an office in Kenya considering how Kenyans use Taxis.Most Kenyans use PSV (Matatus,buses and trains)Fares are subject to the weather, off peak and on peak hours as well as traffic on the roads as well as the distance to be covered.All these conditions are subject to change any day any time and do not wholly depend on one another.

Uber locations of existence are in towns with good infrastructure, laws and regulations and probably order.I read up a review of how users of Uber were disappointed when a cab came to pick them and they had hiked the fare due to the increased demand of the cabs at that particular time(Christmas Eve).In Kenya, fares change subject to nearly everything even a 1 Ksh change in petrol prices.

Nigeria, a country in West Africa, is the country where a homegrown app- Tranzit  is changing the Transport platform in the country.It has been named as one of the apps to look out for in Africa-2014 by Venture beat.Tranzit is a free web/mobile enabled transportation and delivery service that enables you to locate interesting, or required places and events based on your location. Its business model is one that will actually work for Africa where few have credit cards, its free, and offers more to the table as compared to Uber.

Here are some strategy questions I am still debating about in regards to Uber:

• what's Uber's strategy in Africa, where roads are PRO traffic :p ,poor road infrastructure(and at times people don't even know what street they are at O_ O) people nearly 90% use PSV. When people compare at times using a taxi to using a motorbike especially when one is in a hurry, or going to locations that PSV are prohibited?
• What changes are they going to make on their business model considering some of the changes are failing in India?
• How they are going to manage with the bad publicity due to the inelastic demand in the market?(Considering Kenya's social Media presence they might trend sooner rather than later)
• In Kenya for example people negotiate fares, wait for PSV vehicles to drop charges for them to board, how will they counter this?
• Most companies have a number of enlisted cab companies to use, where individuals have a *cab guy( This is whereby you have a number of a specific cab guy who you call when you need taxi services, and at times its on debt payable at the end of the month).How will this affect their business model?

Must have Business Apps in 2014

Lookout :

Features:
Security and Privacy: It acts as an anti-virus, protects the privacy of your device

Management: Keep all of your favorite Android, iOS and Kindle devices secure! Protect up to two devices with one Lookout account.
Missing device:

•     Instantly maps the location of your phone from any device with an internet browser and sound a loud alarm – even if your phone is on silent.
•     Signal Flare automatically saves your device'€™s last known location when your battery gets low, significantly improving your chances of finding your phone.
•     With Lock Cam you'€™ll know immediately if someone is attempting to access your phone. Get an email with the picture and location of anyone who enters an incorrect password five times into your Android lock screen.
•     If your device is in the wrong place at the wrong time, remotely lock it to block access to your personal data and post a custom message to get it back.If your device is gone for good, remotely wipe your device so your personal info doesn'€™t fall into the wrong hands.

Back-up:

•    Save a copy of your Google contacts in the cloud that you can download to your computer at any time.
•    Save your irreplaceable photos and call history to access them from any web browser. Premium features charges are $3 per month or $30 for a year for use on two Android smartphones

Free: available for iPhone, Android

Expensify –

Features:

• Clicking the SmartScan button will allow you to snap a picture of your receipt which will then be uploaded into your Expensify account.
• Click the expense button to add an expense on the go.
• The time button gives you the ability to add expenses that relate to time.
• The distance button allows you to create mileage expenses on the go.
• The trips section will automatically display trip information from any itineraries  
• The expenses page lists all expenses and receipts.

RingMindMe –You turn off your iPhone ringer for a meeting or a movie (that’s a good thing). Later, you miss calls because you forgot to turn your ringer back on (that’s a problem). RingMindMe is the solution

 CrowdCall – Conference calls made easy. It lets you launch conference calls simply by selecting members from your contact list and pressing “Call.” No PINs, no dial-in numbers.

  EasySign Mobile – Electronically sign documents. You won’t have to print out a form, sign it, and scan it back in. Just use your touchscreen to write your signature, size it, and place it electronically in any document

Appy Traveler – A photo and audio app, that does not allow files to be edited or changed in any way. You can record terrible travel experiences and have backup proof – photos with times and dates.

 

cloud based Subscription (Saas) Vs Traditional Licensing

Adobe creative and Microsoft Office 365 moved their licenses to saas cloud platform in the recent past.Adobe offers the "Value Incentive Plan (VIP)" which is Adobe's subscription-based licensing program for Adobe Creative Cloud that includes no minimum license purchase requirement. Organizations can subscribe to as few or as many Adobe subscription licenses as needed. Once enrolled, users receive a VIP number and access to Adobe Licensing Website (LWS), where they keep track of licensing and manage their accounts.(More details on Adobe licensing Link)

In addition, new customers may still purchase Adobe Creative Suite using one of two traditional licensing plans:

• Transactional Licensing Program: A perpetual license with a one-license minimum designed for smaller organizations with a single pricing level.
• Contractual Licensing Program (CLP): A perpetual license with a 10,000-license-point minimum requirement. Customers can purchase and download all Creative Suite desktop products, but support costs extra. The CLP is a two-year agreement.

 Adobe's Creative Cloud licensing model may change the nature and complexion of its audits significantly. One of the major benefits of a subscription-based VIP cloud license is automatic program updates and support, which greatly simplifies licensing compliance. Using a cloud-based service gives Adobe and other software vendors much greater control over the use of its software. It's reasonable to predict that as more organizations opt for the VIP subscription-based licensing program, the need for audits will decrease.

For the large global vendors, it is difficult to transition from a traditional license to a subscription-based model. If you look at the largest 10 global enterprise software companies including Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, and SAP, less than 2% of their revenues are derived from SaaS.

Here are some of the reasons we believe the transition has been so difficult:

1. It is hard to move away from the significant upfront fees earned through perpetual licenses to a much smaller recurring monthly fee.  This would decrease immediate earnings and negatively affect the valuations of the large public vendors.
2. The SaaS business model has not yet proven itself in any meaningful way to be viable given the limited number of software businesses that have achieved scale and profitability.
3. Most in-house development and implementation teams are not structured to build and deliver multi-tenant solutions through the web. This requires significant investment and time.
4. Traditional sales teams have not educated their customers to accept monthly recurring fees and are not structured to facilitate a low touch sales approach.
5. IT departments have been reluctant to share sensitive data through the web for security reasons.

However, the SaaS business model has some clear advantages that are compelling to its customers:

1. There are no significant upfront fees.
2. The client always has the most up-to-date version of the software.
3. The software is easily configurable and takes less time to implement than on-premises solutions.
4. Security has been less of a concern with the introduction of secure data sites and private clouds. Software is being audited to ensure it meets compliance guidelines.
5. Employee workflow is much more efficient, the software is mobile friendly and can be accessed from anywhere.

Source: Startup North and Techtarget