MuniWireless

Software industry pioneer Mitch Kapor — the father of Lotus 1-2-3 and chair of the Open Source Applications Foundation — believes open source will play a key role in digital inclusion initiatives.

During a keynote today at Ubuntu Live — an open source conference in Portland, Oregon — Kapor noted that the open source movement has achieved more than most anyone could have expected.

“When software is free and open, it doesn’t matter who you are, how much money you have,…

Opinion: Ubuntu, a fast-growing version of Linux, could emerge as a prime platform for mobile devices and digital inclusion over the next year. Here’s why. Opinion: Ubuntu, a fast-growing version of Linux, could emerge as a key platform for mobile devices and digital inclusion over the next year. Here’s why.

Ubuntu Linux now has roughly 6 million to 12 million users, according to Mark Shuttleworth, CEO of Canonical — the company behind Ubuntu Linux. Shuttleworth delivered the estimate during Ubuntu LIVE,…

A pending decision by new EarthLink CEO Rolla Huff could dramatically impact the municipal wireless market — for better or for worse — within the next 60 to 90 days. A decision by new EarthLink CEO Rolla Huff could dramatically impact the municipal wireless market — for better or for worse — within the next 60 to 90 days.

To be sure, focused municipal broadband deployments (those leveraging applications like public safety, automated meter reading and video surveillance) have thrived…

Emy Tseng, Project Director, Digital Inclusion Programs of the San Francisco Department of Telecommunications and Information Services, asked me to post the city’s Digital Inclusion Strategy, to share with other cities and also to get feedback from Muniwireless readers. The city’s Digital Inclusion program is intricately tied into the citywide Wi-Fi network that EarthLink and the city want to roll out soon.

Here is a summary of the program:

The San Francisco Digital Inclusion Strategy focuses on six major programmatic areas…

The District of Columbia is seeking responses to a Request for Information and Comment (RFI) issued last week for a digital inclusion initiative that would provide computers and computer training, free Internet access to low-income residents and tech support to public schools. The District of Columbia is requesting information only from organizations that have experience in municipal broadband solutions and digital inclusion projects. Information received from organizations that do not have experience in these areas may not be reviewed due…

Through the hard work of folks like Michael Maranda and many others, the Chicago Digital Access Alliance has formulated an extraordinarily useful 10-point statement of principles applicable to every city engaged in expanding digital inclusion. Through the hard work of folks like Michael Maranda and many others, the Chicago Digital Access Alliance has formulated an extraordinarily useful 10-point statement of principles applicable to every city engaged in expanding digital inclusion. Tackling the multi-faceted nature of the digital divide, the CDAA…