2006.11.27: November 27, 2006: Headlines: COS - Colombia: Computers: Internet: Headquarters: Planeta: Colombia RPCV John Shores writes: Computer use at Peace Corps Headquarters in the 1980's
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2006.11.27: November 27, 2006: Headlines: COS - Colombia: Computers: Internet: Headquarters: Planeta: Colombia RPCV John Shores writes: Computer use at Peace Corps Headquarters in the 1980's
Colombia RPCV John Shores writes: Computer use at Peace Corps Headquarters in the 1980's
"Peace Corps was using a minicomputer/terminal system for word processing of reports in Washington DC when I came back from overseas in 1978. There might be four terminals on a floor, and people had to sign up for a time-slot to use the machines. At least it was better than typing and retyping with a typewriter. There were a few Compaq portables around. This was the model where the keyboard snapped in place to cover the 6-inch screen. Luggable, but hardly portable. Since the office where I did some consulting work needed transportable computers, they ordered a few IBM-compatible desktops and a few heavy laptops. Then Peace Corps chose Macintosh as their standard computer. That must have been in the mid-1980s. My office continued to use legacy Leading Edge Model D desktops for a few more years after I joined them in 1989, but eventually we got Macs too."
Colombia RPCV John Shores writes: Computer use at Peace Corps Headquarters in the 1980's
Raising Standards on the Web
A Conversation with John Shores
by Ron Mader
PLANETA FORUM
John Shores is the kind of practical guru who has used both cyberspace and grassroots forums to discuss and question and develop practical forms of ecotourism, environmental conservation and community work.
[Excerpt]
How did the Peace Corps use -- or not use -- computers and Internet technology?
Peace Corps was using a minicomputer/terminal system for word processing of reports in Washington DC when I came back from overseas in 1978. There might be four terminals on a floor, and people had to sign up for a time-slot to use the machines. At least it was better than typing and retyping with a typewriter. There were a few Compaq portables around. This was the model where the keyboard snapped in place to cover the 6-inch screen. Luggable, but hardly portable. Since the office where I did some consulting work needed transportable computers, they ordered a few IBM-compatible desktops and a few heavy laptops. Then Peace Corps chose Macintosh as their standard computer. That must have been in the mid-1980s. My office continued to use legacy Leading Edge Model D desktops for a few more years after I joined them in 1989, but eventually we got Macs too.
Recognizing that most volunteers come straight out of college, and that most college students have Internet access, Peace Corps started its external web page -- http://www.peacecorps.gov -- primarily as a recruiting tool. I was chomping at the bit to get an intranet site set up to supply information to staff and volunteers in the field and promote broader exchanges, but the agency was very reluctant to put up an intranet. In fact, only recently did it finally come on line, after many years and several earlier attempts and frantic late-night shutdowns. The largest stumbling blocks seemed to be the office of communications and the office of general counsel. Finally their fears were assuaged and the intranet is up and running. At least that's what I'm told. Earlier in 2000 it was still limited to people inside the building in DC. I hope that by now it has become a global intranet for staff and volunteers wherever they may be. In the medium-term I could see it being open to all sustainable development practitioners. But that's many more years away.
The World Wise School program, which links schools in the US with volunteers serving overseas, has used web, video, CD, ICQ, and different live-video-over-Internet systems to increase the exchanges between volunteer in one country and a teacher and classroom somewhere in the US.
One area where we never succeeded very much was the idea of email discussion lists for topics such as agroforestry, environmental education, ecotourism, parks and biodiversity, sustainable agriculture, youth and environment, and any other topic in which volunteers are working. I envisioned this as a way for volunteers in different countries to exchange ideas and experiences, and for staff to monitor and advise as needed. These would be different from the public global lists on these topics, because many of the challenges of projects in Peace Corps are unique to Peace Corps.
For example, a volunteer is only on the site for two years. So we'd need to link them in, warm them up, and support them in internet time -- and that might be different from the normal pace of life in a rural community.
Volunteers usually do not have internet access in the towns where they work. They have to travel to a regional city, or wait until they get to the capital before they read their email. That creates a delay in their correspondence, but it's still usually a smaller delay than international snail mail to these towns.
Some volunteers with better computer skills have been asked by the agencies where they work to help set up web pages or email. And many of the volunteers are asked to teach English and computer skills, especially word processing. These are seen as basic skills that will be needed for the economies developing in these countries.
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Headlines: November, 2006; COS - Colombia; Computers; Internet; Headquarters
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