(ISF) Re: Seeking feedback on Humanitarian/Emergency Software application and deployment

Hi Don

thanks for sharing your considerations

I have heard about the system before - met Sanjay  from Ibm
in Phuket last year whom I associate with the tool  -
although I have not looked at it closely

Maybe I am thinking a little far, but based on prior
emergency experience, I would say, in addition to what you
mention, a good one click idiot proof installer or set up
wizard - so that it should not be necessary to fly the main
engineer to Pakistan to make sure the system is set up
properly - and a lot of browser compatibility and online 
data exchange facilities, so that whatever data is collected
can be transferred using IP if required with relatively
built in interoperability

Also, it would be good if the system could automatically
'suggest'  to the system user to adopt standard data formats
and agreed xml schemas, and even translate the data
automatically into machine readonable formats,  thus saving
a lot of work hours to process the data after it has been
gathered.

Thinking ahead sometimes can pay off, not sure if you have
already taken up some of these ideas, but basically:

- make sure it s easy to install (istaller can detect system
configuration and autoselect appropriate choices even_

- make sure it s easy to import/export data using a variety
of communciation protocols

-  ensure the data formats adopted by the system are as
optimal as possible, in the absence of standards, as liquid
as possible

Let me know if you need a hand with any of the above

Paola Di Maio



-----original message-----
>>Sahana (http://www.sahana.lk/) is
the free and open source Disaster Management System to
facilitate management of missing people, disaster victims;
manage and administer various organizations, camps and
requests and assist in the distribution of disaster
resources. > As part of the project development team I am
leading a port of Sahana from Linux to Microsoft Windows,
and would seek the feedback of individuals or organizations
involved in emergency or humanitarian work on several
options currently under consideration>>


--
Paola Di Maio

www.content-wire.com
www.cmpros.org
www.p2paid.org




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Hi Paola,

Great to touch-base and thanks for the input - a few inline
comments:

>> I have heard about the system before - met Sanjay 
from Ibm in Phuket 
>> last year whom I associate with the tool - although
I have not looked 
>> at it closely

Snajiva - yes - I was also in Phuket a few months after the
Tsunami to
gather information for this project. Pitty we did not
catch-up.

>> a good one click idiot proof installer or set up
wizard - so that it 
>> should not be necessary to fly the main engineer to
Pakistan to make 
>> sure the system is set up properly (sn) browser
compatibility (sn)
>> online  data exchange facilities

Agree and very important points. We are in the process of
developing
inport/export modules and are working towards a Disaster
Management Ontology
compiled from input of systems used by the Red Cross and
Interpol etc.
Hopefully not too far away from completion. Being AMP based
a full
installation on Windows is not really required, (Sahana and
all
pre-requisites can run stand-alone), so a 'one-click'
install is quite
feasible and this is what we are working towards. 
  
>> Also, it would be good if the system could
automatically 'suggest' to
>> the system user to adopt standard data formats and
agreed xml schemas,
>> and even translate the data automatically into
machine readonable 
>> formats

A desireable outcome of the Ontology...

>> make sure it s easy to install

Yes - a fundamental design pre-requisitte

>> make sure it s easy to import/export data using a
variety of 
>> communication protocols

Within reasonable boundaries this is feasible

>> ensure the data formats adopted by the system are
as optimal as 
>> possible, in the absence of standards, as liquid as
possible

Again agree - Discussed above. 

>> It would be helpful if there was a hosted
installation of the system

We currently have two hosted demo's available, one in Sri
Lanka
(http://www.sahana.lk/sa
hana2/) and one in Australia
(http://test.sahana.lk/).
Both are currently under development and require
further work before they could be utilized for 'real-world'
purposes -
however this is an objective.

>> it would be useful if the data could be sent also
via mobile 
>> devices/sms, so to have an API already installed
for this purpose
>> would be smashing 

Already done  - Only
yesterday I was testing
http://www.sahana.lk/sa
hana2/ on my Blacberry WAP hand-held with pleasing
results. Still more work to do but we are getting close...

>> Let me know if you need a hand with any of the
above

Fantastic - We have a forum for discussing development tasks
and it would be
great if you would like to join - to subscribe please send a
message to:
humanitarian-ict-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Best regards, Don





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her end of things.  

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