CityLeaves digital city guide concept

CityLeaves has brought a concept that opens the internet to businesses and city activities based upon their location, a unique comprehensive travel guide but much much more.
There are a series of CityLeaves being rolled out throughout the country see
http://www.cityleaves.com/manchester for example,
and they offer free support for agents to build their own and share in revenues.

The principle works on the theory of location based marketing and the strengths that are drawn from building business communities and city hubs built around a location. They cover pretty much everything as long as it has a location based emphasis such as food and drink in Aberdeen, shopping, places to stay, travel but also have a strong emphasis on content for the locals such as council and city services.

The FACEBOOK Bubble Effect

Everything is coming up - SOCIAL NETWORK on the IPO radar due to the FACEBOOK EFFECT.
FACEBOOK is quoted as being valued at $50 Billion! So everyone is scrambling to build copycat services or ad on projects, or linkages into and out from FACEBOOK.

  

Our own Public DataWeb systems are a Social Network with city centre locations providing Internet access and importantly direct access to our Websites that are CITY FOCUSED giving hot links to local services; our next services will be much more local population focused.


FACEBOOK creates associations of friends whilst ours connects local people with each other and with local services: the NEXT STEP FOR SOCIAL NETWORKING.


Our networking methods existed before FACEBOOK and can integrate with FACEBOOK upon our soon to be upgraded online network.


Our services are real world, and have physical attributes (Street PARASOL'S) + WEB PRESENCE.

So if the Bubble inflates and even bursts our strengths will remain.
Such bubbles are about investment and company value and not allways about the effect of the services.
 Internet focused businesses should know about the FACEBOOK EFFECT I would recommend that anyone interested or concerned about the direction of the future movements in Internet ideas and their surrounding business paradigm and associated funding should read this book but first see this HUBPAGE about it: http://hubpages.com/hub/The-FACEBOOK-Effect




Other recent commentators on the FACEBOOK EFFECT:

The Reasoned Sceptic

Is The Online Social Network Sector Another Investment Bubble?

http://pra-blog.blogspot.com/2011/01/is-online-social-network-sector-another.html

Warren Buffet FACEBOOK WARNING!

http://socialmediaworld.com/?p=1582

A Products Place in the Digital Universe

The POINT of marketing is to REACH THE CUSTOMER: to do so seamlessly you must remove the barriers between a potential client and the service or product they need.
Would you charge customers an entry fee to come into your store?
Most marketing has been interruptive - it stops people doing what they were doing; like watching a TV programme, listening to music on the radio, looking through your email inbox - interrupted by the advert... by SPAM.

Billboard advertising is less interruptive but not interactive.
No advertising has been interactive, until the age of the Internet; NOW IT IS.
The age of the Internet has given us the means for a product or service to become an interactive element that the potential purchaser can interact with, to some extent, before making a purchase. This is better for choice and provides an amount of certainty in decision making; especialy if recommended by a freind e.g. from a Social Network.
Digital systems enable this activity, from existing customer recommendations, to product demonstrators on a product website or YouTube etc. and for digital order placing: the circle is complete.
It is now an accepted fact that every business needs a website, as increasingly the way that the public locate and learn about products and services is by investigating such items on the Internet.

THE POINT OF MARKETING IS TO REACH CUSTOMERS
Barriers in the way are make a product become a product lost in GOOGLESPACE
Access systems that stop seamless connectivity: e.g. fee paying and registration operations which put off potential customers, barriers that ask for personal details before getting to the service or product. Barriers that require the public to pay telecom and connection charges to begin with, before the product can be reached are providing intermediaries with revenue and halting the rapid connectivity that the public need, from a service or product perspective that is ready and waiting contact, such procedures are all barriers.

You wouldn't ask customers to pay a fee to enter your store.
You wouldn't charge tourists and visitors a fee to learn about your city services.

Entrance charges and sign ups contribute to erecting marketing barriers, and the battery life in mobiles is not limitless and often just runs out when a Google search turns positive!

On the positive side these digital operations can mean that the customer CHOOSES to come to the product rather than the other way around, which has been the dominant method for a long time, but this has now past. When a customer chooses to reach a product over half the job is done!

For a product to succeed in the digital age it has to be, recommended by others (Social Networking) it has to be valuable, it has to be competitive, these are givens, but most of all it has to have the ability to be found on the Internet.
A huge amount of product sales will be increasingly performed on the Internet.

If a product cannot be located it will fail.

Public DataWeb systems are very advanced public access Social Networks with touch screens and overhead digital displays:

OUTDOOR INTERACTIVE BILLBOARDS with WIFI MESH

A Single Unit can flood the streets with Internet access and provide quick links to services and products.

Each & every product needs its own web-space with the capacity to be found.

However in the vast GoogleSpace a product is a tiny pinprick of light.

It needs to be illuminated and this is achievable by WEB-Presence.

On the Internet this means SEO - Search Engine Optimisation: methods that tilt the Google focus at your pinpoint of light: your product. So gaining INCREASED visitors to a products website.

Public DataWeb methods provide all our content clients with very specialised SEO techniques that enhance the website and individual products + the unique capacity to put products without barriers (free to use) onto the digital landing menus of a FREE Internet service on their mobiles; directly in the streets from our broadcasting Hubs- PARASOL's.

These interactive street billboards have captive products that are rapidly linked too by the public, on touch screens in the billboard or associated screens, and on the public's personal mobiles via a WiFi connection directly to the digital billboard; quite a unique service.

When other public services are included everyone benefits.
A product, a service etc. living within a digital envelop of public services about the location: the city and its events, services, amenities, sponsored by the product advertising and its interactivity provides a valuable public utility; a social network gateway to the digital world, appreciated by the public. So they are well disposed to the onboard services. General public traffic from such social networking public infrastructures will get your product noticed in the location and simultaneously better positioned on the Internet search engines and within systems such as FACEBOOK.

Interactive billboards are predicted to change the way that the public intereact with products; when Outdoors.

They generate advertising but give a genuine value back to the public a FREE Internet access service which simultaneously also provides INSTANT access to products and local services: FREE, no barriers.

Such new technologies provide the means for a products place to be found within the vast web-universe of an increasingly competitive and huge Internet.

You have a website - now you should obtain WEB-PRESENCE. And in your city you need PUBLIC DATAWEB - Presence!

The PARASOL Generating FREE WiFI PUBLIC SERVICES of the VERY NEAR FUTURE!

    PARASOL:  Interactive billboards in an airport.

The Next Wave: a revolution or an evolution coming to the Internet?

The Next Wave: a revolution or an evolution coming to the Internet?

There is a revolution developing on the Internet a new wave of possibilities that will transform today’s methods into tomorrow’s new service access. Products like the IPAD2 are leading the way with touch screen navigation and ease of use: usability + access + Social Networks are the drivers bringing about new levels of change.

Within this vast environment – the Internet – being noticed, being located is essential.

Be part of it or be out of it! It’s going to be as important s having a website: having Web-Presence: an interconnected presence that is also instrumental in getting found on the Internet. This is essential for any business.

First business did not see a reason for a website, then when they had one; they were not aware of the requirement to be FOUND on the Internet. This is now being realised; with the huge growth of the SEO businesses on the Web proving this requirement. But things move fast and the next revolution is gathering a pace alongside awareness that they - businesses - everyone - need to get noticed on the Web.

 

The web will be moving en-mass, soon, towards integrated Social Networking in all things, even the BBC are adopting Social Networking news feeds and changing the old options of barrier pages requesting log –in notification before viewer comments or live video news can be added…. Such content obtainers simply go elsewhere to post their live news feeds and the ‘Beeb’ are getting wise to the fact…

The trends are plain to see and set by observations of the SEO industry that is built around the operations of Google and other search engines; focused on services to get their clients NOTICED and higher ranking on search engine results pages.

They all have a FACEBOOK strategy!

There are big changes ahead. Because the methods that people use to find items on the Internet is moving away from the current common practices of just typing in a descriptive keyword, many users of the Internet are fed up with multiple search engine results that do not reflect their request; whereas current and new and evolving Social Networks can be far more accurate: with recommendations and purchase goods and services that are validated by others. Of course a lot of this is going on now, but its going to increase with the introduction of new integrated Social Networking search systems.

Surprisingly there are huge numbers of websites; public, commercial, government and businesses that have little thought for or ideas about optimising their website so that material can be easily located by potential users. This is very important especially within an evolving and increasingly huge Internet where competitive elements and Spam sites do indeed take advantage of SEO techniques to put their message higher up the ‘pecking’ search order. Many websites advertise on Radio and TV but what is needed is an accurate method within the structure of the Internet itself.

Social Networking + better more accurate search methods + simpler access + easy build web-services and re-organising the Internet into ‘Clumps’ that exhibit new service sets of communities; communities of interest and activities are set to evolve….soon.  So it’s set to be more of an evolution as more users get frustrated with Spam and inaccurate results from their searches, they will migrate to alternatives, and such ideas can go viral, rapidly - never underestimate the power of friends recommendations. The more linked in with integrated sites that connect also with Social Networks the more chance that a move from a Google search to a ‘Facebook’ environment + search etc. will occur. And move beyond what we have today: converging or conflicting or merging into something new? This view is generating an expected new Internet investment bubble of new Social Networking ideas. 

Complexity levels are set to diminish. Complexity of any level stops user activity.

A few indicators showing a movement to convergence towards simplicity, better access and further social user empowerment:

BLEKKO - V -   GOOGLE

Better more accurate search results with BLEKKO.

The movement has huge momentum and convergence will generate new simple integrated networks that are very simple to use, and importantly to build: utilizing ‘Crowd Build Source’ operations to do it: people building relationships and common indexing to data and search results.

AMAZON – V – Independent Authors

Could independent authors break the monopoly by generating their own individual sales sites and link to emerging Social Network enterprise sites? Authors produce the content but currently get the least return, whilst publishers and sales sites get a huge percentage.

Government Web Silos - V - Citizen webs

People building up their own clusters of relevant data from government content; building better utility sites that obtain government feeds and statistics and feed these into citizen composed site’s that re-organise the data and services into more valuable and usable outputs. E.G. Crime location maps with citizens demanding extra police focus upon such areas.

BBC News –V – independent news feeds

It may not be validated by any authority, it may be less than perfect with camera shake etc, but frontline news from people at the centre of things happening and posting direct to Social Networks, cuts out mainstream news broadcasters, who may have lots of lost arguments about quality, independence and validity: the BBC policy is beginning to change as a result. And the public carry video cameras within their mobile phones, wherever they go; coverage that no news organisation can compete with.

Old democracy –V – New democracy political systems

They work for us, but politicians don't get this and set up their own power systems: citizen pressure groups online can change everything and make policy and issues become driven by the interconnected citizen networks; rather than a single change once every general election: evolution and changes on policy can be directed throughout a parliaments lifetime by constant contact and guidance from the Voice of The Electorate.

Corporate ASP.Net types of web-system build - V -  PHP – Drupal: to do it Free and with more Webwise interconnections.

Is there any need for top heavy proprietary software? When very complex systems can be joined up using far simpler tools? Is there any continuing need for a Windows platform full of bugs when they had years to fix them? No the future is Internet server side driven applications, everything to run on and through the Internet, using simplified plug in tools for free and common open source build platforms.

    The results of everyone going in the current direction

Just a few pointers for the reasons for change:

What about combination, cross platform search results: type in a search word / description and results come back from Google + Blekko + YouTube + Flicker + Facebook + PLUS OTHERS?

Why must I search each individual location for the same data content? Its time consuming.

Why do websites halt potential contributors in there tracks?

Yes, many websites put barriers up for sign-in, for contributors; the answer is to stop such inappropriate messages attempting to catalogue and verify users. With a more honest open, transparent and genuine I.D. based Internet (Facebook lead with this concept) such a need is diminished.

Websites that ask for sign ups when they could use the Facebook Ap-ID to just let people in, barriers, restrictions and other variations of need for ‘sign in’ input from potential contributors, makes 80% of potential contributors leave the site; and Email is becoming outdated and will increasingly be within Social Networks and that stops Spam-Mail.

Company’s pay Spam e-mailers to load up our inboxes with useless garbage, trying to sell; but annoying us because 99% are not applicable. So more and more people move onto networks that only interlink with known friends and already accepted favourites. E-mailers must evolve their marketing towards becoming much more useful and accurate.

FACEBOOK can identify their users by all sorts of groupings and search parameters: all from the users own self descriptive tags, this is very accurate for advertisers who will go in droves to Social Networks over Google Spammy searches.

IPAD2 Touch screen simplicity is replacing click mouse and keyboard navigation: The future navigation interface will be speech recognised instructions – voice command and A.I. techniques. But for now touch the screen environments will dominate and this means that websites - all websites need to upgrade to accommodate touch navigation – as well as mouse point and click.

These converging movements, mentioned and there are many many more reasons, that should indicate to businesses that its no longer good enough to have a website, and now its no longer good enough to simply try to obtain web-presence using SEO. To be able to sell to customers in the near future you will have to be within their locations offering real value as bad value will be quickly notified and such products, services and businesses will be out of business. Businesses have to get clients to come to them through new techniques and offering better services, rather than interuptive marketing methods that are really in the face SPAM.

On the horizon are new methods that interlink all these operations that will be bringing forth a better easier, faster accurate and really valid Internet. Soon!

Eye-tracking technology opens alternatives to computer interaction

New technology developed allows users to navigate a screen with nothing but their eyes. The setup works by two mounted cameras detecting infrared light reflected off a users eyeballs and retinas. These pinpoint where a user is looking on screen.

A brilliant piece of technolgy which no doubt will be a subtle addition to anyones computing set up in the future.

I also remember reading an article on Stephen Hawking's interest in this field going back some time now in hopes of moving from his current method of communication with cheek movements, I'm not sure of his current methods of communication but this would certainly be a move he would head. No doubt there will be substancial publicity around this fact if he does.

iPad 2 launched

It's always exciting for us to see technology progressing in the way of WiFi enabled devices. Companies such as Apple are constantly setting th benchmark and as a result more and more users are making the move to have the internet at their hands.

Such developments is fantastic for us who are striving to get every city offering a FREE WiFi network for it's public. Not only does this allow the public to access high speed FREE INTERNET via our networks but it allows them to access city collected and streamlined content that we build.

The new iPad offers cameras on back and front, is thinner than the previous model and has doubled it's speed since the original model.

Good to see Jobs commited to showcasing the new model considering his recent health issues!

City Wifi Landscaping

This is a very cool project in Oslo, Norway by a group of 3. They set out to evaluate the flow of WiFi within their city by using a 4m LED rod, the stronger the wifi signal the longer the length of the rod lights up. By use of photography they managed to very uniquely show the invisible network within their city.

Immaterials: Light painting WiFi from Timo on Vimeo.

Originally seen at trend hunter

New Materials for Outdoor Kiosks

Public DataWeb have spent some years developing outdoor kiosks from the basic metallic appearance to more interesting and feature laden architecturally designed street furniture units. These systems exhibit new features, have new market potential and use new materials, incorporate lighting effects and provide a unique mix of digital public services.

Our mix of locally focused onboard and outboard broadcast (WiFi) digital public services is unique. These new units combine digital panel advertising displays and so offer our clients and service providers with a modern and valuable service with great scope for revenue generation when located in strategic viewing positions.

Public service platforms that stand out in the streets.

Hub communications units have to be very robust and operate continuously in harsh conditions; night and day.

PDWeb is once again doing the difficult things; this carry’s through to our methods for housing the outdoor physical platforms for hosting and outputting such services in public areas.

We are using modern new materials:

Tough multi-layer Polycarbonate provides a glass substitute that is strong and unbreakable, weather resistant and looks good. Furthermore it can be illuminated internally. The viewing screens are anti-glare and full sunlight viewable. The Hubs have internal thermal and cooling systems so can be used in extreme temperature ranges.

LED (Light Emitting Diodes) strip-arrays can be automatically controlled to provide various coloured illumination effects on the outer surfaces of PDWeb digital service Hub units: Street Furniture.

LED’s illuminate the Umbrella Communications Hub in Union Street Outside the famous Music Hall, Aberdeen. Photograph shows test illuminated poster advert.

PARASOL unit clad in LED Illuminated polycarbonate material

Designing the PARASOL an integrated outdoor Street Furniture The digital advertising Data Hub.

The newest addition to our range is the PARASOL it is self illuminating using the LED & Polycarbonate materials we have been experimenting with. It has a WiFi MESH output for FREE internet Access to surrounding areas and twin touch-screens (one each side) and above a twin sided digital billboard.

All the content services and digital billboard adverts are generated and updated from the Internet via our server side NOC (Network Operating Control computer). The polycarbonate material is just as robust as our Steel Umbrella unit but has extra properties of heat absorption (hot climates) and can have interesting illumination themes:

We are looking to provide different illuminating schemes.

We have 4 different zones:

• The side
• The roof
• The foot
• The front

Options for illumination and effects are:

1. Are LEDS the same type of single colour.
2. Dancing graphic animation.
3. Single colour changes.
4. Multiple colour changes & movement.
5. Slow movement pattern changes or static.
6. Each panel zone can have its own lighting controller.
7. Timed illuminating options; only when it is dark or all day
8. Dimmer to adjust the brightness: night/day.

All lighting is remotely controlled from the PDWeb NOC,PC. This also updates the content, the digital advertising displays, onboard CCTV, retrieves usage statistics etc.

Other features: 

• twin TOP digital advertising panels: direct sunlight readable
• fully equipped digital LED screen surface with a computer onboard the panel and necessary interface cards for the display panel: including WiFi Node MESH, 2 x loudspeakers, microphone and web camera
• A PA system can be built into each panel
• Optional: Solar Power, Refrigeration (Hot climate use). Solar panel -10w to 40w

A public access kiosk is only part of the story for the needs of the near future when always on overarching connectivity is demanded: Its all about great usability and service quality and content. A service that the public will require whilst in city centres and other public gathering places: units such as ours go into new frontiers of multiple services provision with a plus factor of outdoor operation. Significantly with the capacity to provide digital billboard platforms that generate revenue for the city / operator.

New Materials that will change portable displays – Graphene

Link … http://www.squidoo.com/computer-interfaces-of-the-near-future

Public Access Sytems

FREE public access systems...better cohesive digital services....citizen focused: stay tuned


The photograph shows users at the Umbrella Public Access Hub, it also provides a city information service on the touch screens plus a wide ranging mobile service via the top aerial WiFi City Centre MESH.

PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE INTERNET 

Free Internet Access

My definition of Public Access Technology is in the concept of free digital access to the general public.

Most hardware systems and devices such as mobile phones, the IPad etc provide access to the Internet.

The hardware has to be paid for and the connectivity too: line rental, mobile connection charges, ISP fees etc.

As the public obtain more and ever more mobile devices there comes an increasing need for always on, always connected options. Of course the telecoms companies rub their hands thinking of all the associated revenues when people sign up to get connected.

City's should be thinking about those who are 'socially excluded' those who for whatever reason are not able to be connected. Cities should also be aware that business in the city and its region, its visitors and tourists also have need for connectivity. A business in the local wants to reach certain sectors of the public, a tourist wants to know about amenities, places of interest, restaurants etc. These activities should be kept local for all the best commercial interests and public services access and notifications. Can these diverse requirements be left to the 'market' alone?

Retailers have adopted bespoke touch screen kiosks to promote their InStore goods catalogues, airports and rail stations use touch screens and websites for ticketing. These services are Free to use. Of course they pay for themselves in payback from sales.

Now a similar function could be provided for the general public in cities, beginning in the city centres where most people congregate. Such a system driven by a touch screen interface out in the streets can give easy access to everyone. Such public Access hubs can also provide a WiFi service. These operations can provide a FREE public service. Linking up to the internet and giving access to all. It can be very secure - only giving access to sites of value on the internet and banning perverse and illegal locations.

Such a free service promotes equality and builds a cohesive platform focused upon each city.

What is needed is the understanding that such a service is in everyone's interest and it should be encouraged if not funded by the city authorities.

An OVERACHING Public Network; that's what the service should provide.

What I mean is this: an inclusive service not an exclusive one.

Currently if you want to use your mobile you probably have to connect via GSM to the Internet if there is no overarching WiFi provided and cities mostly have intermittent hot spots only, whereas the public access network I envisage at least covers all the major city centre streets with a WiFi MESH and touch screen points at strategic street locations.

Also when you are connected on GSM to the internet and you want have everything that's about the location you are in, it can be costly due to repetitive searches for your need, and can be costly and if your battery holds out you might locate a few things for your itinerary; wouldn't it be great if your connection was free and the access to all you need was within a cohesive envelope focused upon all the best the city had to offer?

What I mean by this service is a showcase for all businesses thus encouraging local trade: restaurants, bars, transport, tourism, contacting a local official; everything. It's in the cities interest to keep trade local, to provide tourism services access and local government outreach facilities to its citizens.

Currently every website is there on the internet in its own right often without any interconnections of similar or parallel services connectivity so using that word again what is needed is an overarching system that brings all the city digital focused web- services cohesively together in a framework that is quick and simple without the need to make repetitive Google searches for each individually (isolated) website. Of course the current set up favours the telco's pricing as each separate Google then access linking to each website takes time and clocks up fees.

Every restaurant for example sees other restaurants in the city as a competitor when in reality people like to try many and different types and styles yet quite often there is no all inclusive restaurant guide. This example carries over for many sectors of business and information needs with nobody feeling a responsibility to do (that word again) an overarching and cohesive and all inclusive and free service. Some website like a local newspaper might put up some of this but mostly they look upon such a catalogue or directory as a fee generating operation and only those businesses that pay are included. This leaves a black hole of the digitally excluded businesses and services in the city.

The public using their mobile internet access technology will be frustrated by the lack of joined up rapid access coverage.

This sort of fiddling time consuming experience when searching to find city services whilst out and about in the city is frustrating and can be costly, in connection time charges, battery life etc and most just give up.

So its in the collective interest of ALL parties in the city to opt for a genuine technology based Public Access service. A Free joined up WiFi MESH wich prioritises a front access menu focused on the city location.

It might sound as though its something for the future but no.

It has already been provided as a pathfinder service in the City of Aberdeen in Scotland showing the way for others to adopt, from a grant from the Scottish government.

So it can be achieved and it can be provided free to the city as well as the public with a little lateral thinking by the city: cities have lots of street located advertising billboards.

The city should put in its own digital Public Access Technology infrastructure, using modern digital displays that incorporate large screens for outdoor advertising and rent the space to advertisers or the agencies that currently 'place' such adverts in our cities. Currently these advert sites are paper poster technology, old fashioned outdated and the replacement service is cheaper to operate and generates good revenues too the city operator.

Then on the back of this option the city can easily finance the same onboard technology platform to put out touch screen services for those without mobile devices and simultaneously generate a WiFi MESH to cover all the main streets with the free service.

The outcome is a better and far more modern less cluttered city advertising platform, which the city can obtain good fees from and at the same time fund and provide the always on overarching connectivity with a very useful overarching all encompassing web service and have spare funds to assist other worthy public services.

It's certainly possible: It's just up to enlightened city officials and the public to demand it!

The App wars: Google VS. Apple

Google has taken steps to undercut Apple in the big market of app subscriptions. Googles 10 per cent cut looks a lot more appetising than a 30 per cent cut currently taken by Apple. Not only this but it is looking a lot more publisher friendly compared to Apple which some experts are claiming are holding publishers to ransom in an anti-competitive way.

Let's see if Apple adjusts to this new competition and criticism.

Watson beats humans at own game!

Watson  super computer designed by IBM has defeated humans at their own game. The super computer specifically for questions and answers has beaten champions of Jeapardy moving computers one step closer to the ever chased true artificial intelligence. Over a three day tournament the human contestants proven no match for Watson to the excitement of it's engineers.

IBM engineers aim to implement the technology into automated bank and airleines phone services. It took 25 IBM scientists 4 years to create!

see more at here

Zambia pushes towards connected future

Zambia is pushing forward aiming to spread internet access to more Zambians, recognising the importance of connecting it's citizens to the world wide web, and with it, a wealth knowledge and resources.

see the full article on here: BBC News Zambia pushes towards connected future

AI apple detection for self service checkouts

Toshiba's research centre has developed Artificial Intelligence software that with the use of web cams can detect which type of apple is being scanned at a supermarket checkout.

Usually customers must search through on screen lists to select the apple type, but toshiba's software makes for a much speedier process.

An exciting new development that could lead to similar detection methods across a range of applications.

see full article at New Sceientist: Checkout AI uses camera to tell your apples apart

Public DataWeb’s definition of Public Access Technology

Public DataWeb’s definition of Public Access Technology is in the concept of free digital access to the general public.

Most hardware systems and devices such as mobile phones, the IPad etc provide access to the Internet.

The hardware has to be paid for and the connectivity too: line rental, mobile connection charges, ISP fees etc.

As the public obtain more and ever more mobile devices there comes an increasing need for always on, always connected options. Of course the telecoms companies rub their hands thinking of all the associated revenues when people sign up to get connected.

City’s should be thinking about those who are ‘socially excluded’ those who for whatever reason are not able to be connected. Cities should also be aware that business in the city and its region, its visitors and tourists also have need for connectivity. A business in the local wants to reach certain sectors of the public, a tourist wants to know about amenities, places of interest, restaurants etc. These activities should be kept local for all the best commercial interests and public services access and notifications. Can these diverse requirements be left to the ‘market’ alone?

Retailers have adopted bespoke touch screen kiosks to promote their InStore goods catalogues, airports and rail stations use touch screens and websites for ticketing. These services are Free to use. Of course they pay for themselves in payback from sales.

Now a similar function could be provided for the general public in cities, beginning in the city centres where most people congregate. Such a system driven by a touch screen interface out in the streets can give easy access to everyone. Such public Access hubs can also provide a WiFi service. These operations can provide a FREE public service. Linking up to the internet and giving access to all. It can be very secure – only giving access to sites of value on the internet and banning perverse and illegal locations.

Such a free service promotes equality and builds a cohesive platform focused upon each city.

What is needed is the understanding that such a service is in everyone’s interest and it should be encouraged if not funded by the city authorities.

An OVERACHING Public Network; that’s what the service should provide. An Interactive Outdoor infrastructure.

What is meant is this: an inclusive service not an exclusive one.

Currently if you want to use your mobile you probably have to connect via GSM to the Internet if there is no overarching WiFi provided and cities mostly have intermittent hot spots only, whereas the public access network I envisage at least covers all the major city centre streets with a WiFi MESH and touch screen points at strategic street locations.

Also when you are connected on GSM to the internet and you want have everything that’s about the location you are in, it can be costly due to repetitive searches for your need, and can be costly and if your battery holds out you might locate a few things for your itinerary; wouldn’t it be great if your connection was free and the access to all you need was within a cohesive envelope focused upon all the best the city had to offer?

What we mean by this service is a showcase for all businesses thus encouraging local trade: restaurants, bars, transport, tourism, contacting a local official; everything. It’s in the cities interest to keep trade local, to provide tourism services access and local government outreach facilities to its citizens.

Currently every website is there on the internet in its own right often without any interconnections of similar or parallel services connectivity so using that word again what is needed is an overarching system that brings all the city digital focused web- services cohesively together in a framework that is quick and simple without the need to make repetitive Google searches for each individually (isolated) website. Of course the current set up favours the telco’s pricing as each separate Google then access linking to each website takes time and clocks up fees.

Every restaurant for example sees other restaurants in the city as a competitor when in reality people like to try many and different types and styles yet quite often there is no all inclusive restaurant guide. This example carries over for many sectors of business and information needs with nobody feeling a responsibility to do (that word again) an overarching and cohesive and all inclusive and free service. Some website like a local newspaper might put up some of this but mostly they look upon such a catalogue or directory as a fee generating operation and only those businesses that pay are included. This leaves a black hole of the digitally excluded businesses and services in the city.

The public using their mobile internet access technology will be frustrated by the lack of joined up rapid access coverage.

This sort of fiddling time consuming experience when searching to find city services whilst out and about in the city is frustrating and can be costly, in connection time charges, battery life etc and most just give up.

So its in the collective interest of ALL parties in the city to opt for a genuine technology based Public Access service. A Free joined up WiFi MESH wich prioritises a front access menu focused on the city location.

It might sound as though its something for the future but no.

It has already been provided as a pathfinder service in the City of Aberdeen in Scotland showing the way for others to adopt, from a grant from the Scottish government.

So it can be achieved and it can be provided free to the city as well as the public with a little lateral thinking by the city: cities have lots of street located advertising billboards.

The city should put in its own digital Public Access Technology infrastructure, using modern digital displays that incorporate large screens for outdoor advertising and rent the space to advertisers or the agencies that currently ‘place’ such adverts in our cities. Currently these advert sites are paper poster technology, old fashioned outdated and the replacement service is cheaper to operate and generates good revenues too the city operator.

Then on the back of this option the city can easily finance the same onboard technology platform to put out touch screen services for those without mobile devices and simultaneously generate a free WiFi MESH to cover all the main streets with the free service.

The outcome is a better and far more modern less cluttered city advertising platform, which the city can obtain good fees from and at the same time fund and provide the always on overarching connectivity with a very useful overarching all encompassing web service…and have spare funds to assist other worthy public services.

It’s certainly possible: It’s just up to enlightened city officials and the public to demand it!

Evolution of Outdoor Public Access Internet Kiosks

Mountain Climbers and cross country skiers leave a fire grate loaded with paper and wood and with matches ready inside refuge centres: like the picture.

What has this to do with public access kiosks or more importantly Outdoor Kiosks? You might ask.

       It’s to do with thinking about the needs of others.

If you have frostbite its difficult to even remove your gloves, so knowing the possible situation of fellow climbers, they provide assistive usability considerations - maybe even life saving forethought. Such thinking can be applied in other areas.

The design needs to begin with USABILITY in mind; any barrier to use must be eliminated both in physical design and usage of the touch screens and associated WiFi operations for nearby local mobile users. After such considerations, finally the appearance needs to be modern and attractive.

Public access kiosks seem to those outside the industry to be a simple thing to do, however without the angle of approach that includes the usability view many mistakes can and have been made, here are some considerations and experiences of a real and useful deployment:

Don’t make the public think, they should just naturally know what its for. Far too many kiosks indoor and outdoor often put out a signal to people – ‘too technical’… ‘that’s not for me!

Once people are seen to be using the kiosk then others become intrigued and find it is for them! Everything must be simple, obvious straightforward, this means a usability design both in the look of the structure and the content and its simple and quick and obvious navigation. So yes we are talking about Internet access and services but they have to be re-purposed with simpler menu options and many often ‘unnoticed’ assistive features. Often a software developer ‘knows’ how the applications operate and becomes blind by this knowing  and as a result cannot think like a person confronting a touch screen service for the first time.

Public access kiosks MUST be usable by everyone not just by those with existing computing and internet navigation experience. The good news is that the usability interface designs of the new range of mobiles like the IPad do understand about usability at least on the top level touch menus. Usability is walking in the shoes of others, considering their needs. These new devises are getting there!

Outdoor kiosks have far more considerations to take note of.

All remote kiosks need to operate under automatic self diagnostic conditions; the kiosk needs to ‘know’ its own operational status and generate failure recovery procedures even as it dies sending out automatic email & text SOS requests for help! Such messages should alert a remote monitoring network, which remotely manage all the required functions of monitoring, updating etc.

Remote kiosks have to be self reliant features such as intruder security alarms, double secure locking, vandal proofing, onboard self monitoring, CCTV, weather proofing, and be capable of operating in harsh conditions: rain, freezing or hot conditions. Functions required are automatic brightness to adjust for ambient lighting day and night time conditions and direct sunlight readable outdoors (latest LED technologies).

24 x 7 x 365 operation means onboard self diagnostics with remote back up monitoring of status is essential.

Security of content is as important as the physical security of the kiosk. Immunity from virus and any hacking attempts, banning derisive and perverse website access is very important for public display services.

 Usage statistics; are essential for the kiosk client and operator to know the services value and to retrieve user feedback and statistics.

Many kiosks are designed without considering these things many obstruct wheelchair users and are too tall for some users. Kiosks exhibiting keyboards, roller ball navigation and with complex looking features are proven barriers to general usage. A carefully thought out designed public access internet kiosk has to take all these considerations onboard and the result will be a design for all users approach – social inclusion – is then resident as a feature simply by default of making it in the manner of building everything with the users needs in mind.

Of proven value is the use of lighting; good attractive lighting associated with public kiosks attracts and encourage use, apart from being a visible safety zone.

These are some of the very basics of kiosk functionality linked with usability and design, what follows is a pictorial progress showing a design from concept to deployment of an outdoor public kiosk network:

 

The content services are also required to be considered from the same position of usability…the menus & navigation requires careful consideration. Its not just a case of putting a link to a website. The Public DataWeb methods overlay assistive templates and just in time virtual keyboards for inputs but only when necessary.

We employ public access internet navigation that incorporates SEO; Search Engine Optimisation techniques that simultaneously assist all included sites (city council) and all localised focused web-services with enhanced back-linked tags which ad value for attaining higher PageRank locations on Google search requests.