home

INSIDE

TMF Deadline Announced
Datacamp Seattle
Public Access Computers
Broadband Speeds
Guard Your Info
PDF Options
Dollars
Linkage
Calendar
What's Hot

Mobile Computer Training for Refugees from Burma Starting in Jan, 2011, the Coalition of Refugees from Burma’s Mobile Computer Literacy Training team began delivering computer literacy training to newly arrived refugees from Burma in languages understood by refugees. The CRB provides weekly computer literacy training. Three hour long computer literacy classes are held in Tukwila on Saturdays, and in Seattle on Sundays. This project is supported by the City’s Technology Matching Fund. Photos from the first trainings are online. Find more information here, or on Facebook here.

Wilford “Will” Saunders has been appointed as Washington State’s new Director of broadband policy and programs. He oversees coordination and planning for state efforts to enhance high speed Internet deployment and adoption. This includes work with state and federal broadband grant recipients. Before he joined the state Department of Information Services (DIS), Will was previously with the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC). He can be reached WilfordS@DIS.Wa.Gov. See DIS Press Release for more. Will is going to be on a panel at the Washington Technology Alliance Innovation Summit on March 18th. More info.

The House Republicans proposal for $100 billion in cuts is online. See the initial press release here and the list of the major cuts in each area here.

The Department of Commerce, Department of Education and other federal agencies are getting ready for an April launch of DigitalLiteracy.gov, a national online portal designed to share and enhance the tools necessary to teach computer and Internet skills. They are previewing this in D.C. on March 16 at 2:00 p.m. EST. For more info, contact DeWolfe_Lauren@bah.com Digitalliteracy.gov is an Obama Administration initiative where practitioners in service-oriented organizations, such as libraries, schools, community centers, community colleges, and workforce training centers, will be able to share digital literacy content and practices.

Universalsubtitles.org is an amazing open source web tool that enables you to easily add subtitles in many languages to your video posted online. You go to the site, play your Blip.tv, YouTube, Vimeo or other video, type in your subtitles as you watch, and then align your new subtitles with what’s on the screen. Universal Subtitles will then provide an embedded code for you to use to enable viewing of the subtitles with your video. Universal Subtitles was developed by volunteers and the non-profit Participatory Culture Foundation.

Back issues of Brainstorm including techtips and linkage are now available in our online archives. Previous TechTips and Linkage are also available. Click to revisit all previous issues.

Free cable broadband Internet service is available for organizations providing technology training to community members. The free service is offered within the Seattle city limits, based on the City's cable franchise agreements with Comcast and Broadstripe (Millennium). For more information and to download a short form to make application, go to our tech web. If you have questions, email Derrick Hall or call (206) 233-5061.

To subscribe or unsubscribe to Brainstorm, please email us, and we'll add you to our email notification list, or subtract you per your request. If you have ideas for future stories, please let us know and we'll try to accommodate them. We encourage you to visit the City of Seattle's Community Tech pages, seattle.gov/tech.

q&a

Have a question for Mayor Mike McGinn? Join the conversation with Seattle Channel host C.R. Douglas as he sits down with the Mayor on Wednesday, March 30, at 7 p.m. for Ask the Mayor. Call (206) 681-8821 between 7:00 and 8:00 p.m. or email your questions. Also, follow their conversation on Twitter or Facebook with the Seattle Channel’s accounts. You can also submit questions through Twitter and Facebook as well.

Follow the Seattle Channel on Twitter.com/SeattleChannel and become a fan of the Seattle Channel on Facebook! Friends and followers get up to the minute info on new programs, behind the scene pictures of shoots and interviews and more!

Denny Terrace residents celebrate one-year anniversary of their computer lab.

The Technology Matching Fund will provide grants up to $20,000 for projects that support digital inclusion. The goals of the fund are:

1. To increase technology literacy and access;
2. To provide residents with access to computers, the Internet and other information technology; and
3. To increase residents' use of technology for community problem solving, civic engagement and community building.

Application and guidelines will be available online on April 6. Attend one of the workshops below for detailed information about the Technology Matching Fund and application guidelines:

Saturday, April 9, 10:00-11:30 AM
Solid Ground Community Room
1501 N 45th Street
Seattle, 98103

Monday, April 11, 10:30-12:00 PM
Douglas Truth Library Meeting Room
2300 E Yesler Way
Seattle, 98122

For more information and to RSVP, contact Delia Burke.

On Saturday, February 19, the fellows from Code for America's Team Seattle hosted a new kind of unconference/hackathon, a "DataCamp" at the Socrata Offices in Pioneer Square. More than 50 web developers, journalists, hyperlocal bloggers, City and County staff, and gov 2.0 advocates shared skills and developed web applications using open government data, like the datasets available on data.seattle.gov.

Projects included HearNear, an iPhone app that texts you when there's an event happening nearby, and awesome new features. Look for a calendar for the All About South Park blog. To read about all of the projects and see photos from the event, go here.

public access computer sites

Did you know there are several places around Seattle where you can drop in and check your email or access the Internet for job searches, pay your electric bill online, or search for entertainment options around city? See these listings on our site, but call ahead before you visit, as hours may vary. (NSC=Neighborhood Service Center)

South East NSC, 3815 S Othello Street, Ste 105, 98118, (206) 386-1931

South Seattle Police Precinct, 3001 S Myrtle Street, 98109, (206) 386-1850

Delridge NSC, 5405 Delridge Way SW, 98106, (206) 684-7417

Delridge Family Services Center, 4501 Delridge Way SW, 98106, (206) 684-7423

West Seattle NSC, 4205 SW Alaska Street, 98116, (206) 684-7495

Central NSC, 2301 S Jackson, #208, 98144, (206) 684-4767

Ballard NSC, 5604 22nd Ave NW, 98107, (206) 684-4060

University District NSC, 4534 University Way NE, 98105, (206) 684-7542

Lake City NSC, 12525 – 28th Ave NE, 98125, (206) 684-7526

This past month, the federal government released its national broadband map. Click on the “explore the map” button without entering any addresses to see a zoomable map. While it’s a start, there are many limitations to the quality of the map. The greatest issue may be that it only provides “advertised” speeds, not actual speeds. Usually, providers will advertise the greatest speed possible, rather than providing a minimum guaranteed speed. If you are a cable broadband subscriber, you share a “node” with many other households and one impact on your speed is how many others are online at the same time. Also the speeds listed are download only, and most Internet service is not symmetrical. That is, you can download much faster than you can post (upload) something. If you look up your address on the map, a provider may be listed because they provide service somewhere in the vicinity, but it doesn’t assure that you will be able to order that broadband service. Here are some observations about the federal broadband map from a blog.

s.e.c.u.r.i.t.y

protect your information

Some small steps you can take to protect your information while online. Courtesy of SANS.org

Take time to explore security settings
Whether it is financial management software, instant messaging or a social networking website, take the time to see what security settings are offered to protect you and your information. Follow these steps for all of the software you use, not just email.

1. Go to Options or Preferences.
2. Every program is different, so look for words like "Privacy," "Safety," or "Security," and click on them.
3. Select the most restrictive option (i.e., only let the people you approve view your information or contact you. Or select the one that best accommodates your business needs).
4. Save the settings.

Don’t leave thumb drives or other small devices lying around.
Laptops and handheld devices aren’t the only things that can be stolen. With their compact size, it’s tempting to put all our information on a thumb drive. But they are small and can be easily stolen. Take a moment and put them somewhere secure!

Passwords, passwords and more passwords
Make your password longer than eight characters; make it complex and something no one will thing of, and please, don’t use the same passwords for everything.

For more security tips, check out the techtalk blog.

Lots of documents go back and forth today via posted documents on websites or emails. You should send documents as a PDF when:

• You don’t want the receiver to edit your document.
• When you are sending a large document.
• When you want to ensure the formatting stays the same for all receivers of the document.
• If you want to make sure all receivers of the document can open it.

There are many ways today to save a document as a PDF. If you are using some of the latest versions of Microsoft Office or Open Office you have the option of saving your document as a PDF just by selecting "Save As." For those programs that don’t offer the option, you can still convert your documents to PDF. One of the more popular programs for Windows based machines is called Primo PDF. Their free version allows you to print almost anything as PDF. If you are a Mac user and have a software you like, let me know.

Agree or disagree with me? Drop me a note: Derrick Hall.

Department of Neighborhoods Small Sparks Fund
Have an idea for your neighborhood to encourage civic engagement? Projects are awarded up to $1000 to formal and informal neighborhood and grassroots community groups to build a stronger and healthier community in Seattle.
Deadline: None, available year-round.

Seattle seeks artist to develop artwork for West Queen Anne fire station. Seeking a northwest artist or artist team to develop a permanent site-integrated or free-standing artwork for the new Fire Station 20 in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood.
Deadline: Friday, March 25, 11:00 p.m.

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
The MacArthur Foundation U.S. Programs address issues in the United States, including community and economic development; housing, with a focus on the preservation of affordable rental housing; juvenile justice reform; education, with a focus on digital media and learning; and policy research and analysis on issues such as the implications of an aging society, America’s fiscal future, and the use of economic analysis in policy making.
Deadline: None, submit Letters of Interest.

Verizon Foundation
Verizon Foundation funds nonprofit organizations and schools in the following areas of priority: Education, Literacy, Domestic Violence Prevention, Healthcare and Accessibility and Internet Safety. Applications are made online.
Deadline: Unsolicited proposals are reviewed continuously between January 1 and September 30, 2011.

l.i.n.k.a.g.e

Sparked for volunteers. Sparked is a quick “microvolunteer” site for busy people, and for non-profits to solicit volunteers for special projects and skills.

My Home Learning offers a wide variety of educational games, brain teasers and links in areas of using technology, math, science, arts, social studies, computer programming and life skills, arranged by grade cluster. Try the online kaleidoscope generator for fun and take off from there.

Intel’s Easy Steps and Digital Literacy Programs include their computer clubhouses and a very clear, simple curriculum for digital literacy programs. Their EasySteps brochure [PDF] outlines workshops and courses and the materials that Intel has available.

CNET Newbie's Guide to Flickr has a great basic intro and a few tips for power use of the Flickr photo posting site.

c.a.l.e.n.d.a.r