Thursday, June 24

Tag: opensource

JPS Using Open Source Tools To Reduce Non-Technical Loss
4Jul By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News

JPS Using Open Source Tools To Reduce Non-Technical Loss

Source pexels.com   Internationally, Jamaica is well known for both sports, culture and the high cost of electricity; even Solomon Island is worried about their #1 spot. The high cost of electricity in combination with the other economic factors has resulted in an increase in the number of theft. It has been reported that theft by some residents and large co-operations are impacting the sole power provider, JPS. To tackle this problem, JPS partnered with World Bank, A data science firm (The Impact Lab), and Energy Sector Management Assistance. But that is the boring stuff and you can read more about that here. The interesting part is that they are using Machine Learning and Open Source tools to predict and identify perpetrators. This is a game-changer when compared to thei...
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Let’s Encrypt with Let’s Encrypt
18Apr By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News

Let’s Encrypt with Let’s Encrypt

Let's Encrypt is a not for profit company with a mission of encrypting every traffic on the internet. Based on recent news, they are on track of achieving their audacious target. They were able to disrupt the Certificate Authority (CA) industry in less than six (6) years. They turn industry on it's head by providing a low-cost, easy to use and widely trusted global solution. A CA (Certificate Authority) is an organisation that verifies internet traffic by issuing digital certificates. Think of them as a country issuing passports to its citizens. Right Timing In 2015, the internet was growing at a rapid pace and so was the hacking. Companies like Ashley Madison, IRS, Anthem were some of the companies got pwned by malicious actors. Users had their information stolen and were used ...
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How Can We Help The Open Data Initiative?
2Feb By Solomon1 Comment
Tech News, Caribbean Tech

How Can We Help The Open Data Initiative?

  As a country, we are very good at starting projects, but the challenge is in the maintenance phase. Are we under a spell? We tend to put little effort in maintaining projects for one reason or another. Take for example the JUTC bus park downtown or the multipurpose stadium. I'm seeking your help as we can't let the Open Data Initiative suffer the same faith. Jamaica has made some significant strides in getting the project off the ground. We are the first in a total of five (5) Caribbean countries to get the ball rolling. The purpose of this article is to reignite the debate around this critical piece of legislation and to encourage public debate.   Mic check. Mic check 1...3 After the official launch by the previous MSTEM Minister (A. Wheatley) of the Open Data P...
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Microsoft (Loves|Likes) Open Source
10Sep By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News, Opinion

Microsoft (Loves|Likes) Open Source

Microsoft over the years have been using Open Source tools and technology in driving their business and for that, I wish to highlight the shift in their business model and how they are adopting as a company - primarily due to the disruption of Open Source software. As the popular saying goes: if you can't beat them; join them. Dominant players in the IT space are experiencing major disruption to their business model. Microsoft is no exception, as they have seen their customers gravitates to more reliable, portable and efficient open source alternative. Before we highlight their pivotal moments, let me say that I was right. I hereby claim victory over those never-ending college debates we often had at UTECH SCIT gazebo. A group of us were engaged in a multi-year debate on which pl...
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Open Sourcing the Caribbean – St. Lucia Open Data Portal
10Jul By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News, Caribbean Tech, Featured

Open Sourcing the Caribbean – St. Lucia Open Data Portal

Open Source and Open Data initiatives taking the Caribbean by storm!   Good news, St. Lucia's Government started their Open Data policy which has been in the making for the past four years. This is part of the Government of St. Lucia in partnership with World Bank Open Data policy, Code for Africa and the SlashRoots Foundation. On Friday, June 8, the island well known for its French culture, pulled back the curtains and officially rolled out the red carpet on their open data portal (data.govt.lc).   Benefits In the words of Sheila Hyacinthe-Imbert - Department of Public in St. Lucia "This is our hope for Saint Lucia. Open data is part of that overall data revolution. It’s a stepping stone to some of the data-driven technologies that are over the horizon." The op...
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System76 Lemur: My Purebred Linux Laptop
31Mar By SolomonNo Comments
Gadgets, Tech News, Internet, Tech Reviews

System76 Lemur: My Purebred Linux Laptop

As an advocate for Open Source Technology, I've put my money where my mouth is and purchased a purebred-Linux based laptop, the System76 Lemur. I'm pleased with this purchase and I'll be sharing a few bells and whistle along with the deltas that I've noticed over the past seven months.   , you may not have heard of this company before but they are a US based computer reseller store with their primary focus on preinstalled-Linux notebooks, desktops and servers. They partner with the electronics manufacturer, Chicony, in packaging some beautiful hardware products for their customers.   Why I purchased it? First I'm not a fanboy for System76. But I do put my money where my mouth is and being a supporter of Open Source, it is incumbent upon me to support an organisa...
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Breaking News: “Government of Jamaica to Actively Pursue Greater Use of Open Source Software”
14Feb By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News

Breaking News: “Government of Jamaica to Actively Pursue Greater Use of Open Source Software”

  Let us declare February as the month of liberation. In this month, we celebrate Black History, Reggae Music, Bob Marley, Clarendon College founder's day,  Open Source (Happy Birthday!) and this liberating announcement about Jamaican Government looking to use more Open Source. In this press release, Hon. Andrew Wheatley (Minister of Science and Technology) highlights the need for the Jamaican Government to use more Open Source software. He emphasized the importance of Open Source in driving innovation while cutting the cost of proprietary software. He also made reference to the Open Source Policy Framework report done in 2016, which reaffirm the importance of Open Source software in driving growth in Jamaica and other developing countries. Things are already in motion as va...
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Geezam! Barcelona Declaring Independence from Proprietary software
22Jan By SolomonNo Comments
Tech News, Caribbean Tech, Editorial

Geezam! Barcelona Declaring Independence from Proprietary software

Just when I thought that the Catalonia referendum would have been the only surprise happening in Spain, the city of Barcelona is on a path to full technological independence. The mission has been dubbed the "full technological sovereignty" of Barcelona. According to Zdnet.com, they will be performing a full migration from proprietary to open source software by spring 2019.   What this migration entails? Their first step will be to target key application such as Microsoft Outlook and Exchange Server. Those will be replaced with Open-Xchange servers. Microsoft Office suite maybe replaced with the more powerful tool, LibreOffice and Internet Explorer will be kicked to the curve by Firefox. Operating system level migration will be done at a later date and Ubuntu is said to be th...
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