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Report on Training in Basic Computing with use of NVDA and eSpeak in Marathi & Konkani
The training programme was organized at International Youth Hostel and Estrila du Mar, sponsored by Rotary Club of Goa and Estrila Du Mar from April 20 to 22, 2015. Seventy-seven delegates attended the training programme.
Report on Training in Basic Computing with use of eSpeak and NVDA in Oriya
This training was held at Orissa Association for the Blind at Bhubaneswar from February 8 to 10, 2015. Thirty six delegates attended the programme.
Call for Participation: Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest
We are pleased to announce the call for participation for the fourth edition of the Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest (“Global Congress”), being hosted at New Delhi from December 15 to 17, 2015.
Open Street Map "Mapping Workshop"
I conducted a workshop titled "OpenStreetMap Mapping Workshop" on Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at Phandeeyar. The workshop was attended by 20 enthusiasts. This involved organisations that work on resource issues, mostly on land grabbing, a start-up company that is planning to offer location-based local news feeds, a representative of MIDO, and an organisation that sells children’s books.
Odia Wikipedia Set to Celebrate 13 Years of Volunteer Contributions
Odia Wikipedia, one of the first of several Indian language Wikipedia projects, is ready to celebrate 13 glorious years of free knowledge contribution on June 3.
What is the Open Data Movement & Why Does it Matter?
I gave a talk at this event organized by Phandeeyar on May 13, 2015 in Yangon. About 25 delegates attended the event.
2015 USTR Report: Old Wine in New Bottle
Every year, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) undertakes an elaborate exercise to castigate countries' domestic intellectual property (IP) law and policy. The criticisms and recommendations are presented in a document called the Special 301 Report. This year's edition puts India on the Priority Watch List for the twenty-sixth time in a row. Below, I rebut the report's prejudicial claims and demands, and argue that the report puts free speech, innovation and public interest in jeopardy.
Studying Internet in India: Selected Abstracts
We received thirty five engaging abstracts in response to the call for essays on 'Studying Internet in India.' Here are the ten selected abstracts. The final essays will be published from June onwards.
Report on the Progress in Manipuri Language Testing
The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) is doing a project on developing a text-to-speech software in 15 Indian languages. This blog post captures the key updates of the work done by CIS team for Manipuri language.
TRAI and the Disclosure of Personal Information
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in March 2015 invited comments on its Consultation Paper for the regulation of over-the-top (OTT) services. In an unprecedented wave of public participation, TRAI received over a million e-mails in support of net neutrality.
Stranded Capacities & Greater Expectations
India's infrastructure is in a shambles because of stranded capacities that don't connect with unmet needs. Every aspect of infrastructure, such as electricity or broadband for communications, needs to be designed and executed to flow through from end to end.
Response to TRAI Consultation Paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-Top (OTT) Services
The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) sent a joint response to the TRAI Consultation Paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-top (OTT) Services with scholars from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. The response was sent on March 27, 2015.
Report on eSpeak Tamil Computing with NVDA Training Workshop at Tiruchirappalli
The training workshop was held from May 4 to 8, 2015 at Centre for Differently-abled Persons, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli. Seventeen delegates attended the workshop.
Figures of Learning: The Conditional Artist
As part of its Making Methods for Digital Humanities project, CIS-RAW organized two consultations on new figures of learning in the digital context. For a proposed journal issue on the theme of ‘bodies of knowledge’ which draws upon these conversations, participants were invited to write short sketches on these figures of learning. This abstract by Tara Kelton explores the conditional artist, and the outcomes of inserting chance in the realization of art work through the use of new multimedia and digital technologies.
Inclusive Financial Services - Global Trends in Accessibility Requirements
Inclusive Financial Services is a G3ict White Paper researched in cooperation with the Centre for Internet and Society. The research paper comprises a Foreword and Introduction, four chapters — Barriers to Access for Persons with Disabilities and Diverse Abilities, International Framework, Integrating Accessibility into the System, and State of Practice - Impact of the Convention on Inclusive Finance and Accessibility Efforts around the Globe.
Report on 15 days Training in Basic Computing with use of NVDA and eSpeak in Oriya
This programme was the first of its kind in the state of Orissa. The participants were mostly completely new to using computers and were also completely from the vernacular background. This training demonstrates that many more such regional level trainings should be organized in order to reach the untouched population of persons with blindness, and expose them to the advantages of today’s technology.
Comments to the GIGW
The Centre for Internet and Society submitted its comments to the National Informatics Centre on April 30, 2015.
DeitY says 143 URLs have been Blocked in 2015; Procedure for Blocking Content Remains Opaque and in Urgent Need of Transparency Measures
Across India on 30 December 2014, following an order issued by the Department of Telecom (DOT), Internet Service Providers (ISPs) blocked 32 websites including Vimeo, Dailymotion, GitHub and Pastebin.
Pervasive Technologies Project Working Document Series: Literature Review on IPR in Mobile app development
This post is literature survey of material exploring and analysing the role of Application Platforms in the Mobile Applications Development ecosystem, albeit from an intellectual property perspective. The document is a work in progress.
Wikipedia Campus at Oxford College
CIS-A2K collaborated with the Oxford College of Engineering, Bommanahalli, Bangalore on April 24, 2015 for introducing Wikimedia projects at their institution. Radhakrishna, a senior Wikimedian from Bangalore provided the crucial introduction and worked closely with the A2K team in conducting all the activities.
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