Global Reproductive Health IT Support list

["William Lester" <wlester AT engenderhealth.org>]

From the GKD listserv, a follow-up to the conversation about the VSAT Buyers Guide.

>>> bfillip AT smtp.aed.org 4/6/2006 4:28 PM >>>

Dear Steve,

I really like the fact that the online version of the Guide is
commentable. It should make it relatively easy to collect feedback and
integrate them through updates perhaps. I also think that these
practical "How To" guides are in high demand. A key challenge is to
keep the data in the toolkit/guide up-to-date and allowing experts and
practitioners to comment directly on the online version makes it
possible. Now the remaining challenge is probably to get the right
incentives going so that people do comment and add their expertise...

A while ago, we (AED/dot-ORG) create the "POWERING ICT" toolkit within
our USAID-funded dot-ORG program. Winrock International had done a very
thorough job of developing a "Guide to Energy Options for Small Scale
Rural ICT Projects" and we worked with them to transform what was a
document into a very interactive and user friendly online toolkit which
can also very easily be put on a CD-ROM. The Powering ICT toolkit is
similar in structure to the VSAT Buyer's Guide (Basics/primer, followed
by step-by-step approach, followed by case studies) but it provides
calculation tools integrated within the toolkit. That was the tricky
and fun part to develop.

Visit the POWERING ICT Toolkit at:
<http://www.dot-com-alliance.org/POWERING_ICT>

In my experience, the primary investment is really in the research and
writing of the materials, but the real value of the output is realized
when the materals are presented in a very accessible and usable online
environment (with a CD version available - though obviously there are
cost implications).

If there are ways to combine resources and collaborate across agencies
to develop relevant, very practical toolkits, I would very much like to
explore them.

Best regards,

Barbara Fillip, Ph.D.
Evaluation & Communication Specialist
DOT-COM Alliance
http://www.dot-com-alliance.org
(202) 884-8003

Academy for Educational Development (AED)
Center for Applied Technology
http://acat.aed.org



On 3/28/06, Steve Song wrote:

> Members of this List may be interested in the recently completed "VSAT
> Buyer's Guide" available at <http://ictinafrica.com/vsat/>
..snip...
> The guide is available in PDF format for download and is also readable
> online. The online version is "commentable" so please feel free to add
> your own perspectives, revisions, comments.



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