No. 4

August 2, 1999

 

Technology:

WebMail

Imagine spending a week in a small town somewhere in America. You don't have a laptop with you. Or you have one, but the only way to connect it to the Internet is through a 1-800 number, which will cost you a bundle. There is a public library in this town, but they will only let you use a browser. You have no access to an e-mail client, or even to Telnet, so as to get to your accumulated messages via Pine. You checked the local drugstore and they don't carry anything that might soothe the inevitable symptoms of e-mail withdrawal... Then you remember WebMail, the incredibly flexible (yet free!) service from Instinctive Technologies, and all your anxiety is gone in an instant! You head straight to the public library.

Quite seriously, WebMail is a small miracle. After registering (once) on their Web site, you may create a new e-mail account for yourself or, better yet, access your existing POP3 or IMAP4 account to read, write, and manage your e-mail with nothing more than a standard browser! The truly magical part is that this browser window interface will allow you to do almost all the manipulations your regular e-mail client does, such as: creating folders, deleting messages, sending new messages and replies, maintaining address books, sorting mail. (Obviously, the scope of these manipulations will be far greater for IMAP4 than for POP3 accounts.) And, if you're a cautious type, you may do it all via the optional secure (SSL) connection.

Have I mentioned that it is free? It is, and the advertising banners are not too awful. For those of us who prefer more control over the service or better response time, Infinite Technologies offers the WebMail server itself at very reasonable prices, considering that it may be used both as a standalone mail server or as a gateway to other POP, IMAP, and SMTP-compliant servers, or even to LAN-based systems such as Microsoft Mail, Lotus cc:Mail, or Novel GroupWise. Prices range from $349 for 25 users to $4,999 for unlimited users (for the standard version) and from $699 for 25 users to $6,999 for unlimited users (for the SSL version). The server runs only on Windows95 and NT, but the "client" (i.e. any java-enabled browser) is truly multiplatform.

WebMail screenshots (click on a thumbnail):
Content of a mail folder
Replying to a message

For more information please visit the WebMail site or search the ACT database of Groupwork Tools.

Initiatives:

Plugged In

The mission of Plugged In is "(…) to ensure that everyone in East Palo Alto, California, has the opportunity to fully benefit from all that the information revolution has to offer (...) to provide East Palo Alto organizations and families with access to computer technology, serving as a nationally recognized model for connecting low-income communities with the information economy."
Established in 1992 and concentrated in Palo Alto, this non-profit organization provides a  broad range of services, including:
  • free access to computers and the Internet
  • after-school program for neighborhood children
  • computer classes
  • entrepreneurial programs that help local teens start computer-related businesses
  • internships and support for similar programs in the US
  • free Web pages for members.
With the financial support of various corporations, foundations, and individuals, it produced a number of interesting spinoff projects, such as Plugged In Enterprises, Plugged In Children's Center, and Community Central.

More information about Plugged In can be obtained by visiting its Web site or sending an e-mail inquiry to the Executive Director, Ms.Magda Escobar, at mescobar@pluggedin.org . You may also give them a call at (650) 322-1134, or write to: Plugged In, 1923 University Avenue, East Palo Alto, CA 94303.

Conference:

WebNet 99
  • World Conference on the WWW and Internet
  • Held October 25-30, 1999 in Honolulu, HI
  • This annual conference, organized by the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE), serves as a multi-disciplinary forum for the exchange of information on research, development, and applications of all topics related to the Web. This encompasses the use, applications and societal and legal aspects of the Internet in its broadest sense. This conference is a must for all who plan to use the Internet to access information, communicate or conduct transactions or, who are developing applications for the Internet, including the WWW, Intranets, and Extranets.
  • Registration fee: $395 (AACE member), $445 (nonmember); $175 (student member or K-12 teacher); $195 (student nonmember)

Online reading:

"Recommendations of the National Strategy for Nonprofit Technology"
A Blueprint for Infusing Technology into the Nonprofit Sector
  • From the announcement:  After 18 months of research and consultation to analyze the technology needs of the nonprofit sector, the National Strategy for Nonprofit Technology (NSNT), has developed a blueprint for how the sector can use technology more effectively and creatively.
  • The NSNT blueprint recommended a series of steps that, combined, should increase the technology resources, tools and know-how of the nonprofit sector. Moreover, the NSNT recommended that these steps be taken in a collaborative environment, in which knowledge is shared, built upon and made available to all in the sector working to apply technology to nonprofit mission.  To foster such an environment, the NSNT recommended the development of a consortium, called the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network (NTEN).
  • The National Strategy, however, did not identify what the best structure for NTEN should be. Rather, the National Strategy recommended that the details be developed with input from many stakeholders during the fall of 1999.  Now is the time for your comment on the recommendations in the NSNT blueprint, as well as your input on the organizational form that NTEN might take to ensure that the movement for technology in service of nonprofit mission scales to meet the demand.

She said, he said:

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke


©1999 Vlad Wielbut and the Alliance for Community Technology