Monthly Archives: April 2007

Heritage of Foley “Gets Connected”

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This is an article from Benton County, one of Blandin Foundation’s Get Broadband communities.

66 year old Judy Nybakke can now look forward to the e-mails and digital pictures she will soon receive from her 4 grandchildren living in Paso Robles, California.

“We don’t see them very often, but now I hope we can e-mail and see more pictures of them playing baseball this spring,” said Nybakke.

Milton and Judy Nybakke live at Heritage Place independent senior apartments in Foley. The Heritage of Foley Campus was awarded a technology grant to contribute to the costs for two computer stations. One station is available at the Foley Nursing Center for residents and their families to use. The second station is located at Heritage Place apartments and is available for tenants and their families.

The computers are welcomed additions to the campus. The added benefit to long-term residents, short-term residents, and apartment tenants is priceless. The computers will provide a chance to research any topic on the internet, check e-mail, play computer games, and an endless list of other functions that computers fulfill.

In addition to the grant, “Get Connected” provides the opportunity for networking within our own community. Heritage of Foley, a campus which provides many services to seniors, will also benefit from the connection made with the Foley School District.

As part of his administrative internship, 2nd grade teacher Curt Rock is working with the Foley Nursing Center and Heritage Place to pair up the tenants/residents with a Foley High School student. The students will be helping the tenants/residents with e-mail, doing research, and sending and receiving photos.

“I think this is a great opportunity for the students to build community bridges with the seniors in Foley,” says Rock. There were over 40 Foley High School students interested in participating in this program. Some students have started working with the tenants/residents and more will begin as soon as they can. Rock adds, “I see this partnership continuing into the summer and moving into the next school year with the addition of other high school students.”

What is Exaflood?

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According to the Internet Innovation Alliance, Exaflood “refers to the torrent of data the Internet will have to handle in the very near future. The amount of information we upload, download and share is growing at an exponential rate.”

The Internet Innovation Alliance is an association that believes in the power of the broadband Internet to improve Americans’ lives. They are committed to enabling Internet-based innovations by identifying and generating consumer support for wise public policy decisions.Broadband Factbook

They have created a Broadband Factbook that outlines broadband use, users, and growth in the United States. It starts with a basic definition of the Internet, cool map of “just about every router” in the US, flagged by provider, and moves into statistics benefits of broadband. (Did you know that the government saves $3000 for every telecommuter?)

The IIA chairs are both consultants in the telecommunications industry but each has worked for the government; one as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the other as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Technology Policy.

Connecting Renville County to the rest of the world

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By Shelby Lindrud Staff Writer (Originally published by the Olivia Times Journal)

Annie Tepfer, the county’s “Get Broadband” Consultant, paid a visit to the Renville County Kiwanis meeting and the county HRA/EDA meeting April 19 to discuss broadband in the county and what it can do for the communities. I’m really pushing increased awareness and education,” said Tepfer.

“We have some really neat opportunities to bring education to our rural communities.”

“Get Broadband” is sponsored by the Bladin Foundation, which is running a matching funds drive. The foundation will match the funds raised by the county up to $15,000.

At the Kiwanis meeting, Tepfer and Mark Glesener demonstrated what a broadband connection could bring to Renville County.

Podcasts, which are like radio broadcasts for the web, allow people from all over the world to hear the message. “Get Broadband” is specifically aiming toward the agriculture business. Seed companies, FFA and farmers could educate interested listeners about what is happening on the farm, possibly bringing more attention and interest to Renville County.

There are also webcasts, which are video clips created and produced by individuals. Webcasts have really taken off with the help of web video sharing sites like You Tube.

All someone needs to create a webcast is a camera, a computer and a high-speed internet connection.

Like podcasts, webcasts can be about anything, from farming to schools to advertising clips. The RCW FFA is planning on taking a camera to its convention this spring and posting the clips online. Technology like webcasts would enable the school to reach out to parents and actually show them what their children are doing in school.

The “Get Broadband” program has four goals that it hopes to achieve by Dec. of 2007. The first is to increase the awareness and education about broadband and what it can do in the general community. This could include computer classes at libraries.

The second is to expand e-commerce for local businesses. An example of expanding e-commerce would be each local business having its own website connected to the city website, allowing potential visitors to see what the community has to offer. Bird Island, which has been growing its broadband presence for the past three years, is now starting to get the local businesses online.

Goal three is to get the youth of Renville County involved in developing the pod and webcasts.

“The youth can teach us about technology,” said Tepfer. The broadband program would give students a chance to become leaders in the community through podcasts.

The final goal is have wireless broadband internet access at internet cafés in each town, or at least have an access point in a public place.

This will allow everyone the chance to connect to the internet.

Broadband access is becoming easier to achieve in rural areas thanks to satellites and a growing coverage area.

With broadband access in the county, Tepfer and the rest of the “Get Broadband” task force hope to bring a better quality of life to the communities and the county’s economy.

Intro to Flickr Video Podcast

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As promised earlier today, Bill Coleman and I created a video podcast on Flickr. (That link goes to my Flickr page.) We used PodcastPeople to record the videocast. Then I posted it on YouTube, which makes it easier to embed the video into our blog. The nice thing about all of these tools is that they are free to use. All we needed was the computer, camera, and broadband connectivity.

I will fully admit that the format may surpass the content here – but it’s our first attempt. In the end I think we were both pretty impressed with how easy it was to do. You just might be seeing or hearing more video and audio podcasts from us in the future.

Technorati Post

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Today Bill Coleman and I are going to try to make a video podcast demonstration of various online tools, including Technorati. Towards that end I am posting an article to “claim my blog”. That just means that I’m including a link to my Technorati Profile so that Technorati knows that I really am connected to this blog.

Technorati is a directory of blogs – if you claim your blog you have access to information on your blog to help market and track the reach of your blog. More on the video podcast later, I hope!

OECD Says US is 15th

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The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently published an update to their broadband statistics. They rank broadband statistics by country. Last year the US ranked 12; this year we rank 15. Not such great news – but hardly surprising. Top rankers were:

  1. Denmark (31.9% broadband subscribers)
  2. Netherlands (31.8%)
  3. Iceland (29.7%)
  4. Korea (29.1%)
  5. Switzerland (28.5%)
    …12. US (19.6%)

Some people seemed to take issue with the research methodology. (Congressman Fred Upton says the methodology understates broadband in the US because they only count businesses with DSL, Cable, FTTP, satellite & wireless. The US Department of State is “concerned about the methodology.)

Some people think the numbers are good but the questions are wrong. (Andrew Schmitt thinks the question should include – who wants broadband and can’t get it?)

Some people think this is impetus to act. (Senator Daniel K. Inouye plans “to introduce two bills shortly.  Baller Herbst mentions their National Broadband Strategy.)

Finally some think we should do nothing. (The Citizens Against Government Waste urges the US not to create a policy as the current Internet has grown without one.)

I’m glad that it is at least getting people to think beyond how company A or B can get a larger part of an existing market share. I used to develop e-business curriculum and one of the things we talked about often was how the Internet increased your competition by removing geographic barriers and spurring innovation. Suddenly if you sold books your competition wasn’t just the independent bookshops, or Borders, but Amazon as well. I think it’s time that the US looked at new forms and news places for competition as well or we end up like many closed bookshops.

Community Space Online at the MCN Conference

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Earlier this week I was at the Minnesota Council on Nonprofits conference. I was there to give a presentation with my friend and colleague David Erickson from e-Strategy. We spoke about Web 2.0; you can see the PowerPoint slides online. (I’m working on a fun way to get the info on these new applications in the next Blandin eNews.)

MN Council on NonprofitsI love this conference. It’s a great place to see a lot of people I have met online over the year or people who are primarily online buddies. The notion of the online social networks was a big theme this year.

MCN awarded the first annual .Org awards:

Rainbow Rumpus for Awesome Audience Awareness
Twin Cities Media Alliance’s Twin Cities Daily Planet for Journalism 2.0
Minnesota Historical Society’s Greatest Generation Project for Storytelling for the Ages
The Cedar Cultural Center for Community Convergence

Six Honorable Mentions
Textile Center
Youth Express
FamilyMeans
Minnesota Film and TV Board
Renewing the Countryside
PACER Center

It was noted that a common these on the sites was the ability to appeal to the target audience and create a community for/of that audience. Some were technically advanced and others were clever in their use of less technical resources.

One of my favorite moments in the conference was a conversation I had with Jeremy Iggers from TC Daily Planet, Mike Wassenaar from SPNN, Mary Treacy from MN COGI, and Rick Birmingham from MAP. We were talking about the need for public spaces online. That although Mike represented cable TV, Jeremy online newspapers, Mary online government, and Rick nonprofits – the goal was the same to give voice to the citizens. I feel like the tools are out there to do it – both “traditional” tools such as web sites but also new tools such as Twitter. The barrier to entry is getting lower but the requirement is the access to technology and the know-how to use it.

Statewide Cable Franchising (HF2351) Passed with no Recommendations

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I have tried (not really hard) to find the testimony from the Statewide Cable Franchising hearing on April 13. It wasn’t televised. There was no video archive. So tonight I listened to the audio archive. (I have blogged about previous hearings.)

I was urged to follow up for 2 reasons. First I emailed the Committee Administrator (Elizabeth Emerson) who kindly sent me the following update:

HF2351 was heard in the Telecom Committee over the course of 3 weeks, the last being April 13. On April 13, the Telecom Division moved to pass HF2351 with no recommendation to the Committee on Commerce and Labor. Over the interim, I will be working with the author and Telecom Chair (Sheldon Johnson) to put together a working group that will dissect the bill and hammer out details.

Second, I ran into Mike Wassenaar from St Paul Neighborhood Network at the Minnesota Council on Nonprofit conference yesterday. (More on that conference in a later blog post.) It was great to see him and he was able to fill me in a bit. He told me that AT&T suddenly came out against the proposed bill – which was a turn around from the first hearing I saw! It was enough to drive me to listen to the audio archive.

OK my usual stipulation – I’ve done my best to take notes. Readers are asked to please correct me where they can. Continue reading →

Wireless Broadband Annual Event June 12-15

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WCAI just got an invitation in the mail to the Wireless Communications Association Annual event. Unfortunately it’s in DC, not Minneapolis so I probably won’t be attending. But I always appreciate being asked.

Some topics were of potential broad appeal (Content as Killer App: What’s Next?); some were pretty industry specific (Breaking into the Major Carrier RFP Process). Overall the conference looks pretty good.

Against a National Broadband Policy

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In the last month or so I’ve blogged about people touting the need for a statewide or national broadband policy. Well, today I ran into an editorial from someone who thinks a “National Broadband Policy Would be Bad for Broadband.”

The author, Harold Furchtgott-Roth former FCC Commissioner, claims broadband does not require a national policy or any regulation to support increased deployment. He compares broadband to other consumer goods and says that the economics of broadband are similar – it relies on cost, availability and income. The US does not fare well in international broadband standing – but Furchtgott-Roth insists that there is no proven relation between broadband and economic development.

I completely disagree with Furchtgott. I’d be very interested in hearing other reasons against a national policy – because these don’t hold much traction with me. Continue reading →

Building the Broadband Economy 2007 – May 17-18

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GrantStationI just received the following from GrantStation:

Conference Focuses on Bridging the Digital Divide
Building the Broadband Economy 2007
Building the Broadband Economy 2007 is an international meeting place and idea exchange for local government officials, nonprofit executives and educators, and private-sector executives in telecom, IT, finance, real estate, and consulting. The conference offers a global perspective on the best ways to create broadband infrastructure, attract knowledge workers, foster innovation, and implement e-government programs that contribute to economic growth and bridge the digital divide. This is a unique opportunity to learn from the world’s experts how to adapt, at the community level, to today’s economic realities. The conference will be held May 17-18, 2007, in Brooklyn, NY. Visit the website listed above for registration information.

My favorite thing about the conference is the recognition that the digital divide is a broadband issue. We’re no longer talking about getting pokey connections to the hinterlands or inner city – we’re talking about broadband! Also I love the range of expected attendees – from nonprofit execs to real estate folks. It’s a sweeping topic that isn’t just for IT anymore.

Pre-Application Workshops for Light Speed Grant Program

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Blandin FoundationThe Blandin Foundation is pleased to announce the Pre-Application Workshop schedule for two new foundation grant programs supporting the development and use of broadband in rural communities in Minnesota. The new grant programs are:

  • The Light Speed Grant Program will provide matching funds to support project implementation of new community broadband applications, including but not limited to education and health care.
  • The Open Network Feasibility Fund will provide matching grants to communities for feasibility studies for Open Access Telecommunications Networks.

RFPs for both programs are available at Blandin Foundation.

The workshop schedule is as follows:

All workshops are scheduled from 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to attend one of these sessions.

Speed of LightTuesday May 15
Southern MN Initiative Foundation offices Owatonna
(Get Directions)

Wednesday May 16
Southwest MN Initiative Foundation offices Hutchinson

Monday May 21
Blandin Foundation offices Grand Rapids
(Get Directions)

Tuesday May 22
Beltrami Electric Cooperative Bemidji
(Get Directions)

Wednesday May 23
West Central Initiative Foundation offices Fergus Falls
(Get Directions)

Thursday May 24
The Initiative Foundation offices Little Falls
(Get Directions)

Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to attend one of these workshops. There is no fee, but we request that you RSVP by sending your contact information and seminar location choice to broadband@blandinfoundation.org. We encourage you to forward this announcement to your area health care and educational leadership as the Light Speed program might be just what they need to move forward on planned projects.

Please direct any questions to Bill Coleman at bill@communitytechnologyadvisors.com or 651-491-2551.

FCC Begins Inquiries on Broadband Data and Broadband Deployment

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On April 16, the FCC announced two proceedings focused on evaluating broadband deployment:

  • The first is a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) under Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 into whether broadband services are being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.
  • The second is a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) exploring ways to collect information the Commission needs to set broadband policy in the future.

Although people have questioned the FCC’s results in the past, this report proposes to take a look at how to define broadband, which I think/hope should help further fuel that discussion in other places as well.

Right now they are seeking comment on whether to modify collection of speed tier information and how to improve the data collected about wireless broadband Internet access service.

Kandiyohi County Broadband Survey

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West Central TribuneThe West Central Tribune recently reported that a telephone survey is being launched in April to assess the availability and use of broadband services. (The Economic Development Commission received a $15,000 matching grant last year from the Blandin Community Foundation to undertake the project.)

The findings from the survey will help the EDC develop a strategy to address the use of technology and high-capacity Internet services. You can read more on the West Central Tribune online, although a free membership may be required.

Why did the Sweens choose broadband?

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Roger & Pat SweenI got DSL in 1998. I was working for a project called Web, White & Blue and they pretty much said we can’t pay our going rate until you have broadband. The work would simply be too slow on dialup. Friends at the time wondered how I could have remained a modem person for so long.

I am always interested in why someone moves to broadband today. The post below comes from a friend, Roger Sween who recently upgraded to dialup. Roger and his wife are retired. They were nominated for a Minnesota Coalition of Government Information award this year. So they are librarian friends of mine. I was surprised their conversion to broadband was so recent.

Here’s their story:

Continue reading →