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Khan Academy: from a B to an A*
by robert yawe 23 Aug '13

23 Aug '13

Hi Listers, This post is intended to serve to objectives, the salient one which is to brag that my son pasts his Year 11 exams with flying colours 5 A*, 4 A and 2 B and two of those A*s were in Mathematics, he could have made it 11 As but that would have meant sending him to Kumon/boarding school instead we opted to allow him to develop his film making skills, skate boarding skills, basketball hock shots and world of warcraft/Assassins Creed gaming levels. The second and less salient point, from my point of view, is that this might not have been possible if it was not for the availability of the Khan Academy web site and pocket friendly fixed price Internet access in this case provided by Zuku (thanks Kamande for picking my calls when I needed to vent, the link works brilliantly). Before putting my son on a strict regiment of Khan Academy he was a strong B performer especially in Pure Mathematics, a few times I was forced to burn the midnight oil polishing my rusty mathematics to be able to assist him with some of the difficulties he would encounter. All this ended after Khan came to the rescue and I am proud to say that I have been having my recommended 8 hours of sleep, at least 4 days a week. As my son started appreciating that going to Khan Academy instead of playing world of warcraft with his European based team, at least for an hour every day, was more to his benefit than mine, he would come home after school and go through the lessons on Khan that related to what was covered in class to re-enforce the learning after which he would watch a video or two on the topic to be covered the following day. This increased his grasp of the subject much faster and also provided him with a private tutor called Salman Khan (MIT (BS, BS, MS), Harvard University (MBA) for revision at a price of roughly Kes. 5,000/- which includes amongst many other items electricity, dedicated internet access and 72 cable TV channels) My son's use of Khan Academy at no time undermined the teachers in school but instead provided them with a better focused and value adding student, as we raise issues about the cost of electronic devices for class 1 and beyond let us make sure we do not loose the true return. Regards PS. For those who might not know but Salman Khan is also the tutor for Bill Gates children, yes the one of Microsoft fame. Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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Govt: Children will not take laptops home
by Grace Githaiga 23 Aug '13

23 Aug '13

The government now says schoolchildren would not be allowed to walk home with laptops once they start using them from next year.Ministry of Education officials Monday told a stakeholders’ forum in Nairobi that lessons from other countries indicate there would be many cases of lost gadgets if school children are allowed to go home with them. http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/1944834/-/vlrgegz/-/index.html

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CyberBullying: What it is and what the law says
by Ali Hussein 22 Aug '13

22 Aug '13

Listers CIO East Africa has an article on the above subject. May be important to read it. http://www.cio.co.ke/news/main-stories/what-does-kenyan-law-say-about-cyber… Ali Hussein CEO | 3mice interactive media Ltd Principal | Telemedia Africa Ltd +254 713 601113/ 0770 906375 "The future belongs to him who knows how to wait." - Russian Proverb Sent from my iPad

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Legal streaming of music/video
by Adam Nelson 22 Aug '13

22 Aug '13

Are there any sites that will stream to Kenya legally? iTunes, Spotify, rd.io, Pandora, none of them will stream here. I presume it's because Kenya is not part of any international IP agreements but I was wondering if there is a legitimate solution. https://www.spotify.com/int/select-your-country/ http://www.rdio.com/availability/ http://support.apple.com/kb/ts3599 Is this something that people should be agitating for with GoK or with the companies? Otherwise, I guess it's strongvpn.com ... Cheers, Adam -- Kili.io - OpenStack for Africa: kili.io Musings: twitter.com/varud <https://twitter.com/varud> About Adam: www.linkedin.com/in/adamcnelson

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Lifting barriers to Internet development in Africa: suggestions for improving connectivity
by Grace Githaiga 21 Aug '13

21 Aug '13

This 2013 ISOC Report may be of interest to some of you. Lifting barriers to Internet development in Africa: suggestions for improving connectivity http://www.internetsociety.org/sites/default/files/Barriers%20to%20Internet… RgdsGG

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[ANN] devops and other positions in Nairobi
by Adam Nelson 21 Aug '13

21 Aug '13

Hello All, I've already reached out to some of you regarding the fact that Kili, a startup cloud infrastructure company built on OpenStack, is finally in a position to hire. Here is some information about the open positions. Feel free to forward this email to friends. Cheers, Adam --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- # Open Team Positions Kili is a funded startup focused on building cloud infrastructure to help local developers focused on East Africa to deploy their apps close to their end-users. We are building this solution to support fast, high quality apps that are the future of the economy. We will be a core part of the startup ecosystem in Nairobi and anybody who joins the team will find this to be one of the most edifying roles of their career. Applicants should send a cover letter and resume to Adam Nelson ( adam(a)kili.io) Plain text with minimal formatting is fine and the primary focus is on a well-written explanation of what you will bring to the team. Anybody who sends a cover letter will get a response. ### Front-end Web Developer Integrating Bootstrap themes, editing LESS or Sass files, doing the latest things with HTML5 or CSS3 … these things should excite you. We'll NEVER make you support IE9 or any old-fashioned garbage like that. You're going to focus on highly refined responsive designs that delight the customer. This position leans towards design so if you have a background in typography, or color theory, or fine arts - those are all pluses. ### Python Developer Writing extensible code, deploying every day, working on a high quality codebase … these things should excite you. We'll NEVER make you develop low quality code and pair programming will be part of the process. This position absolutely requires knowledge of UNIX fundamentals and comfort on the CLI. You will learn a ton more about working effectively on the command line and managing Linux but it's expected that you are already proficient in these areas. Interest in other languages like Go is a plus. ### DevOps Engineer Deploying systems via a configuration management solution, managing Linux kernel versions, juggling network interfaces and VLANs … these things should excite you. We'll NEVER make you work on a 3 year old OS or jump through hoops to backport a fix that's already been addressed in a current stable release. We're forward thinking and want you to be too. It goes without say that the successful candidate for this position will be spending virtually all of their time in a Linux terminal or a text editor. Advanced knowledge of Linux and storage concepts is critical. If you don't have this knowledge but are extremely confident that you can learn quickly, let us know. ### Choose Your Own Position We can't do it alone. If you have a special background, aren't capable of filling the other roles, and feel that you can bring something to the team, let us know. You could be the one who acts as a catalyst for the rest of us. You should definitely apply to join - it might just be a great partnership. ## Benefits We work in one of the best and newest spaces for tech work in Nairobi (88mph) and aside from being part of an amazing startup team, you will also benefit from the larger community here with regular startup mentors giving talks as well as many other startup teams with which you can interact and learn. You will also be supplied with a budget for high quality gear so you can get high quality work done. All team members will be expected to contribute back to the community via open source projects, speaking at events, and contributing to the company blog. -- Kili.io - OpenStack for Africa: kili.io Musings: twitter.com/varud <https://twitter.com/varud> About Adam: www.linkedin.com/in/adamcnelson

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On ICT Board & the New ICTA
by Matunda Nyanchama 21 Aug '13

21 Aug '13

Friends Some of us were privy to the formation of the board, right at the start. My involvement was from a Diaspora engagement perspective. With the board slated to market the country as a technology destination and attract investment, it was felt (at least in the beginning) that involving the Kenyan Diaspora was a good thing. Indeed, 2 slots in the board were slated for the Diaspora. With a colleague, we offered input including on what we thought would be the strategy for tackling certain markets, given our experience out there. Personally, I was interested in seeing us compete for business that was heading to India, the Philipines, Costa Rica, among others. And having worked in financial services (some that were outsorcing IT services - design, development, testing, operations) and services company like IBM, I felt that I could contribute. I felt that, we could offer insights into the thinking of some of these outsourcers and how we can win their business, let alone offering linkanges in our reach. Well ... long story short ... when the Board was gazetted, the said Diaspora slots disappeared. Inquiries we made hardly got any responses. As for its achievements, I am not here to say. I reserve my opinion. Going forward, ICTA needs to do things more transparently. Searching for a board and CEO should be a competitive process (btw: I haven't seen the ads for the available positions: selection panel, the board, management, etc); and as much as we have some "famous" names in ICT, it doesn't mean there are no others that can bring freshness to the table: in the manner of leadership, strategy, vision, style. Old hands, as much as we can value them, can be culprits of tunnel vision, and hampered by their histories and relationships. Cheers. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Agano Consulting Inc.; http://www.aganoconsulting.com/; Twitter: nmatunda; Skype: okiambe ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Manage your ICT risks! We are the experts you need! The trusted partners you deserve! Call: +1-888-587-1150 (Canada) +254-20-267-0743 (Kenya) or info(a)aganoconsulting.com Licensed by Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The best revenge is massive success" - Frank Sinatra----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail, including attachments, may be privileged and may contain confidential or proprietary information intended only for the addressee(s). Any other distribution, copying, use, or disclosure is unauthorized and strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply e-mail and permanently delete the message, including any attachments, without making a copy. Thank you.

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'The Next 50' - Barcamp Nairobi 2013 - Sat 24 Aug
by Josiah Mugambi 20 Aug '13

20 Aug '13

Hi listers, BarCamp Nairobi 2013 will be held on Saturday, 24th August, 2013 from 8 am. The event will be co-hosted by the iHub, the Nailab, m:lab East Africa and SkunkWorks at the Bishop Magua Centre on Ngong Road. *The theme for Barcamp Nairobi 2013 is ‘The Next 50’. We aim to get the conversation going on where tech in Kenya will be in the next 50 years. As Kenya celebrates 50 years of independence this year, we have the unique and enviable opportunity to dream and contemplate what the next 50 years should look like and what role technology will play. As thinkers, technologists in various sectors, and citizens of this country we can begin the process of visualizing the future and shaping it.* * * *Challenges such as access to healthcare, quality and equitable education, food security have their answers in technology and the possibilities are endless. There will come a time in the next 50 years when these issues will be non-issues so to speak. What will that future look like? What technologies will be pervasive? How will people interact and how will lives be affected and improved?* Come to Barcamp Nairobi 2013. Let us begin the conservation. The event is free to attend. Please register here<https://barcampnbo2013.eventbrite.com/> . -- Josiah Mugambi

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Kenya Open Data (KODI) article in Foreign Policy]
by Grace Githaiga 19 Aug '13

19 Aug '13

On July 8, 2011, President Mwai Kibaki officially launched the Kenya Open Data Initiative at a public event attended by more than 3,000 people. The new Internet portal compiled previously scattered or hard-to-access government information and made it available to the public for free. Kenya launched its initiative at a time when a number of countries were also putting government information online. The United States led the global open data movement, launching its site in 2009. Britain’s official data site went online a year later. Within three years, 31 countries — including Australia, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Moldova, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Uruguay — had created similar portals. Multilateral organizations embraced the concept as well; The World Bank inaugurated its own open data website in 2010. Read on. http://www.africahot.com/en/2013/08/17/bridging-kenyas-data-divide-by-rushd…

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Re: [kictanet] Laptop project: Pre-bid Conference
by Ray Keller 19 Aug '13

19 Aug '13

http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/ktn/video/watch/2000068926/-government-sets-… This video talks about three points: a) Bidders want to extend the timeline: Why would government like to extend the timeline? Will they still meet the delivery timeline? How many laptops per minute one would manufacture to meet the delivery timeline of two months after award of the contract? Do they have existing inventory of exactly same specs? b) Bidders would like the government to test the solution: Is there a specific procedure that government(MOE) will use to test the offered solution in real situation before paying so much money? I think that it's important to get the laptop, software and content piloted in real schools/situation before we spend 14.7 Billion Ksh tax payer money. Why is this step skipped? Is it not important? I also read an article that government refused to give benefit to the youth under this transaction claiming that it's an international tender. Members? Thoughts? Ray Keller On Fri, Aug 16, 2013 at 3:12 AM, Grace Githaiga <ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com>wrote: > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHjrghroGiU#at=40 > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/raykeller8%40gmail.com > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform > for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and > regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT > sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors > online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, > share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do > not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. >

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