सब की भाषा हिन्दी

हाल ही में श्री देवाशीश जी की सामयिकी में एक बातचीत छपी - 'सब तक बात पहुंचाने का माध्यम है हिन्दी - लोकप्रिय टीटीएफ फाँट सुशा के जनक हर्ष कुमार से सामयिकी की बातचीत' । इसे अवश्य पढ़ें । पता है - http://www.samayiki.com/2009/01/harsh-kumar-interview

Samayiki is a new Hindi webzine and the new avatar of Hindi blogzine Nirantar
I am very thankful to him and his team.

e-Business

Recently I passed through a village ‘Haat’ (weekly/fortnightly temporary merket) and overheard some craftsmen talking about ‘e-Learning’ and ‘e-Business’. I was very happy and at the same time curious to know what these terms meant to them. A young craftsman explained me that these terms meant “e-Learning means Learning English and e-Business means doing business with people who speak English". He added that these were the absolutely essential requirements for every good crafts-man to make good profits. Is it very difficult to imagine what e-Revolution would bring if the local languages are not promoted on computers?

Open Source Software

My first encounter with the open source software was way back in 1995. I was posted at a training institute and was in-charge of IT. Internet was a very new thing and we had been given the job to set up a site on it and ensure that VSNL like facilities were extended to all the trainees who visited the institute. Time was ASAP ‘if not yesterday’. The head of our institute was a person who really believed in setting very stiff targets. He believed that if you put nine women on the job the baby will get produced in one month.

We checked with the local vendor/companies and IT training institutes to find out who all could help us. We wanted to contact the recognized companies only. The idea was that the companies would have resources/software and technical know-how to set things up. So we contacted the local representatives of the three main companies and engaged all of them and told them to supply the hardware and server duly configured. I was still not sure of meeting the target because the vendors and technical people of the company appeared to be quite ignorant about the different systems, services and protocols. I was very worried and did not want to burst the targets.

One evening as I sat in my room thinking what else we could do, two students of the local university who were doing the final semester project with me walked in. They enquired why I was looking that mush worried. I explained them the issues and told them that I was quite sure that the companies I had engaged would not be able to deliver results as the technical engineers were not quite up to date and lacked knowledge and skills. The students wanted to help but did not know what they could do. So we worked on a different plan and decided to try out the new software called Linux, which one of the IT magazines had given out as a free CD. The students volunteered to work during the night. I told them that the way out was to seek help from the net. We were sure that on the net we would meet a number of people who had traveled on the path we were trying out.

So we installed Linux on a PC and connected the same to the net. Since on local help was available for Linux the only option was to look for it on the net. Their job was to find help on the net and to ensure that the entire range of software was identified, located on the net, downloaded, configured and put in ready to us condition. Late in the evening I left them to find resource people and knowledge gardens on the net. I returned at midnight with some coffee and snacks for them and was very happy to find that they had located quite a few of people who were ready to extend help and do basic hand holding. Sure enough by morning we had all the software we needed duly configured and ready to use.

We realized that there were a very large number of resource people who were available on the net round the clock and were ready to guide and to help you. These groups exchanged information freely and very quickly expand the knowledge base and the general knowledge set of the members. The members of this group get recognized because of their knowledge and competency and therefore they are for ever ready to share it with other. A natural by product of this interaction is that information is exchanged/shared freely and speedily. These groups have proved the old Sanskrit saying-‘knowledge increases by sharing and reduces by hoarding’.

In the end we were very happy for we had solved the problem overnight and found these groups which freely and openly discussed issues and helped the newcomers. It was wrong on our part to think that only the companies which had local representatives were in the best position to offer help and that there would not be any support for the software not owned by the big companies. In fact one does not require presence of any local person as long as virtual presence can be ensured. There is one more saying which is very true for such software which means what is owned by community is protected by the GOD.

Ensuring Safety on Blue Line Bus Service

Making Blue Line Bus Service of Delhi Transport System a safe one.

A few years time back I used write a regular column called ‘Harsh Realities’ for Computer Express. It was a very good and satisfying experience. I used to write about wish list of a user/common person. Some times I wrote about what was technically possible but where no one was offering a solution in the market. Sometimes I wrote about the dreams of solutions which would make life simpler, easier and better. Sure enough, over the years almost all those dreams have come true. This has encouraged me to write again. Here we will discuss what is technically possible but not available as a commercial solution or a solutions are available but they have not caught on. All suggestion, ideas, and wish lists from the readers are also welcome. Please mail me.

Those who are in touch with the news in Delhi regularly get shocks because the Blue line busses of the city transport system regularly keep killing people. They read tragic new almost every day. There are people who argue that there are about 1.4 crore people in Delhi and if one or two die everyday then statistically it is an insignificant number. However, you can certainly say that the person quoting such statistics has not lost any near or dear one is such road tragedy. When we talk of accidental deaths we cannot talk of statistics but have to think of the individuals who are lost in these avoidable tragedies and their families. People in Delhi have often clamored to take all these buses off the road. Some time back these buses were also taken off the road for a short while. But that led to another problem because then the people could not go to offices for work. Can technology assist in solving this problem? The answer is –Yes, a simple solution is available. Let us see how.

The drivers of these busses know that there is no system to monitor and correctly and accurately record their performance when they are controlling the steering wheel. The solution to put inspectors all along the routes to monitor them is too expensive. They even run away from the site after the accident and sometimes the buses cannot be traced. So if we have a system which constantly and accurately records what they do, the problem will be under control to a great extent. These recordings could be used for action replay when needed (location of the bus at time and place of accident etc.) or for generating exception reports (over speeding, rash driving, not stopping at the bus stand etc.) and counseling/training the driver so that he improves his driving skills/habits. In other words these could be used for policing, punishments and rewards system and also for improving the driving skills of the driver.

Let us put a GPS device on all the buses. This device will accurately and constantly beam the location and speed of the bus to the central server. It will also record time and location where the bus came to a halt. These points will be matched by the computer with the latitudes and longitudes of the bus route and the schedule halts of the bus. The exception statement generated from the system will tell us bus-stops where the driver did not stop the bus or stopped much ahead/short of the bus stop or if he deviated form his route etc. etc. This information will flow to the supervisors of the transport company who will be under obligation to counsel the driver and to take action against the incorrigible ones. The bad cases will also be with the police for imposing penalties, fines and for taking other legal actions. The transport companies and school authorities will be under obligation to review the exception reports and to take prompt appropriate action. This will take care of the problems to a great extent.

It is also possible to develop a special ‘Black Box’ for buses/trucks which will record the acts of the driver accurately and which will be temper proof somewhat on the lines of the airlines ‘Black Box’. This will even record where and when the driver changed the gear, the speed at that time, sharpness of the turn made by the diver, speed at the road crossing etc. etc. Recording these details and monitoring them will further improve the driving /skills of the driver. The main beneficiary of this system will be the transport company providing the bus because improvement in the driving skills and habits of the driver will result in less wear and tear of the busses and it will also improve life of the buses and thereby increasing the Return on Investment (ROI).

Let us now discuss the cost of the device and solution.

The cost of device to be put on the buses will cost about Rs. 10,000/- or so and application at the central server will cost about Rs. 50 lakhs to Rs. 1 crore depending on the number of the vehicles to be monitored and response time etc. We will also have to prepare GIS maps of the road system in the city. The cost of the device on bus will be born by the transport company. There would be a number of companies which will be willing to put in their money on PPP model for the system at the central server end. A part of the cost could be recovered form the advertising revenues and the balance will have to be borne by the transport companies providing the buses. Certainly they must pay the residual cost of the service because their buses get monitored. They would be willing to pay as they are the ones who are ultimately responsible (vicarious liability) for the acts of their drivers and have to bear the legal etc. costs of the deeds/misdeeds of the drivers.

(Written in 2007)

IT and Music

I am sure readers will agree that we all grudgingly allow the Music companies to overcharge us. Most often we like only one or two songs in a CD but pay for all the songs which are on the CD. None of us complains because no one else is complaining.

The problem is due to a mismatch between what we want to buy and what the music industry offers. We like songs and want to buy songs but the Music companies only sell CDs. They do not sell ‘songs’, the smallest, complete and ‘stand-alone’ unit of the music CD. There is a technology issue involved here.

The music companies have not changed their way of thinking in step with the advancements in technology. They live with the new technology thinking that they still have the constraints of the old technology. In the old technology the cost of production of a single record was high and process elaborate. It was, therefore, nearly impossible to ‘tailor-make’ records to suit the tastes of the individual customers in a cost effective manner. However, the current technology (IT) can deliver systems where customer selects songs and then orders a CD and music company produces these ‘tailor-made’ CDs in a cost effective manner for the cost remains more or less independent of the lot size.

Toady automobile manufacturers offer customized cars to us and considering complexities of their systems, making customized CDs is a ‘kids play’. In fact most kids today believe in cutting their own CDs after taking songs from a number of different CDs. They burn the CD directly or after converting them into MP3 format. Is it not strange that the music companies do not think that this market is large enough for them to enter in? Unfortunately, the old fashioned law abiding people will have to wait, till music companies take cognizance of their needs before they can enjoy what the kids round the block are having fun with.

I hope someone/some group takes on the music companies for thrusting goods/songs on us and charging us for them. Imagine if you went out to have food at a hotel and they charged you for the dishes you did not order/eat but were served to you because they were cooked in the same kitchen. I am sure all of us will cry foul. I wonder if this is the reason why the hotel industry has a ‘buffet’ system. I am talking about introduction of ‘buffet’ system in the music industry. I do hope and pray that soon we are allowed to buy only the ‘songs’ we like and are not forced to buy CDs offered by the industry.

(Written in 2001)

IT in Education

As we all know IT has changed the way we do business with the banks or the way we operate in the Capital Market. It has also changed the way people buy and sell goods- Air and Railway Tickets, etc. It has, however, not made much difference where it should have made the maximum difference and where it has tremendous potential to make a difference for the better. I would not have realized it had I not visited a university college recently. I found the good old ‘chalk and talk’ still at work there.

The good old Pareto’s Law operates in the Universities and Colleges also. Only about 20% of the teachers are good and impart ‘Knowledge’. The less said about the rest the better. However, there is a physical constraint of space restricts the number of people who can attend conventional lectures. IT can remove this constraint by creating virtual class rooms with practically unlimited space and thereby allowing a much larger number of students to interact with the professors – online, off-line, Audio, Video etc. etc.

IT can help the colleges to get out of the islands like existence in which they currently live. The ‘net’ can increase the reach and impact of the good professors. A good professor in one college can, besides teaching students on the net, reach a large number of lecturers in other colleges and help them. The net could also be used to conduct tuitions for school children and classes for working people. Informal enquiries with friends and colleagues reveal that there is a sizeable market for this.

However, while the technology can offer solutions, I am not sure if the teachers in our universities and colleges are ready for induction of IT into their domain as yet. If inducted, IT can completely change their way education is imparted and the nature of teachers’ job- a few will conduct lectures and the rest will conduct tutorials and help the students with the problems.

We will need considerable amount of ‘Change Management’ skills for giving shape to this dream. But talking about the ‘Psychology, Organization Politics and Science of Change Management’, a subject by itself, will require more space and time and will be taken it up later.

(written in 2002)

Knowledge Management

It is very difficult to say whether the buzz word ‘Knowledge Management’ is at the peak of the wave or it has crossed the peak. This is one of the most frequently used term by most of the IT professionals, consultants, vendors and companies. However, each one of them understands it a bit differently from the other but it is certain that most of them have a very definite view on it. On one extreme we have people who think that ‘data, information, knowledge’ are all the same and as long as one had the raw data with him one could cull out knowledge. I have recently attended a seminar where this view was propounded by the chief gust and supported & furthered by the lead faculty. On the other extreme, as elaborated in the next paragraph, we have people who think that knowledge is something that exists in a clearly definable frame and can easily be identified by the ‘Gurus’ in the consulting firm, vendor, or the organization seeking the solution and made available to everyone so that they could access it as and when they needed and apply it. I suppose most of us will see that both these extreme views are not correct if we are to look for practical solutions. I am sure that I am not alone in this thinking and that there are a number of others like me who would vouch for the fact that the situations in the real world require a very different approach..

Other day I met one ‘KM Professional’, believe me that there are a number of people who are totally convinced that they belong to this elite group. He mentioned what I had read many years earlier about science - what you cannot quantify and define does not exist. I think that the thinking in the physical science too has changed but the world had not changed much for this professional. He said that if you cannot clearly identify and speak what is knowledge then “you do not have it and you do not know it”. I wanted to tell him bluntly that the world was not that simple and wanted to point to him the blinkers he had put on for he did not recognize ‘tacit’ knowledge at all. However, I adopted a softer approach and tried to explain him the problems with his line of thinking. Despite my best efforts I failed to help him identify the blinkers. I did not want to give up so I suggested to him that once he reached home he must try and cook any recipe after reading the cookbook, a ‘repository of knowledge’.

As I have mentioned above, in a working environment most professionals will tell you that knowledge is not what is confined in the books, manuals, reports and data. It is spread across the organization and is with a number of working people who may or may not be able to sit and write down all they thought was knowledge. However, given a situation they could clearly identify knowledge and how and from where to acquire it and how to apply to the situation to get the desired results. Anyone attempting a solution to KM in real world must understand the this and accept that knowledge is often, identified, acquired, assimilated and applied in a very different manner altogether than the assumptions made in the ‘Guru’ approach.

Unfortunately, the professional I had referred to above is not alone and most of the vendors/consultants who offer Knowledge Management solutions assume that a small group in the organization will know what knowledge is and their job would only be to digitize it and keep it in a manner so that it can be accessed by the users in a secure and convenient way. I call it the ‘Guru Approach’. They do not realize that what they are offering is not a solution for Knowledge Management but just an Information Management System. For those who have forgotten, the Information Management Systems, take inputs from both internal and external Systems and information coming from Business Transaction, called Management Information System (MIS) is only one subset of information coming from internal sources.

The solution offered is often a variant of an efficient library management system only. The attempts of most of the companies operating in this space fall far short of the need. They will have to offer efficient system to capture the working systems in the computers and ensure that the knowledge is captured from the normal working only quite like it happens in the real life. This will then have to be offered in the context of the work so that it is taken cognizance of and applied for advantage. The attempts of most of the companies offering to provide KM solutions can be summed up as attempts to ‘sell old wine in old bottles through the same old salesman using new jargon’.