Blogs - DIYNGO

Shouts 2

The new DIYNGO newsletter is out NOW @ www.diyngo.org. Enjoy! :-) Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on November 21, 2009 at 12:37am — No Comments

The Cutting Edge of Rural Kenyan DIY Net Connectivity.

This is Duncan using the prototype solar computer (actually we eventually used his own solar equipment to power this session). He is based in a small rural Kenyan village near Lake Bogoria.… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on November 9, 2009 at 7:01pm — No Comments

Face to face with climate change effects at Mutomo- kitui-kenya

Located 2 degrees 04’s , 380 11 ' E with a total area of 12, 965 km2., lies a district called Mutomo, recently created out of the larger Kitui District .With a population of approximately 190,505 ( 2008 projection)with six divisions namely Mutomo, Kutha, Mutha,Athi ,Kanziko and Ikanga. Metamorphosed by rocks with sandy layers and granite sheets , the place has been classified as one of the most drought hit arears with a rainfall of 300 – 800 mm with extreme temperatures. Women with malnourished… Continue

Added by mary me on October 31, 2009 at 10:55am — 1 Comment

Big Prop II

This is the latest version of Big Prop which uses the Dynohub as a generator. The same blades are used as previously described but a wooden extension to the hub is now screwed onto the smallest of the t… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on October 27, 2009 at 10:57pm — 1 Comment

Combined Forces!

DIYNGO has accepted an invitation from UN DSPD-DESA to join an initiative called "ICTs and Civil Society to Promote Social Development". We're not sure what it entails yet besides sharing 'best practices'. It is, however, an interesting development in the evolution of DIYNGO. All best, Tim :-) Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on October 23, 2009 at 9:00pm — No Comments

Zen and the Art of Renewable Energy

Hmmm...was thinking on the bus today how important it is in attempting to solve these problems we all face today on a 'meta level'. That is, we have to detach ourselves from the immediacy - the here and now - of our lives, escape the everyday and reflect upon where we are going 'wrong'. And by 'wrong' I do mean applying some kind of moral inquiry to the problem at hand, as well as applying positively grounded problem-solving strategies. For example, I had placed a solar panel outside as… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on October 20, 2009 at 4:55pm — No Comments

Security of Electricity/Access to Governance

Renewable energy is not just of interest for Developing Countries. In the UK the government, quite rightly, is concerned that we may not be able to meet the energy demands of our own future society. Hence the call for evidence for delivering secure low carbon electricity. DIYNGO replied with our White Paper.… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on September 24, 2009 at 8:12pm — No Comments

Big Prop Little Prop

This is Big Prop which, briefly, consists of a… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on September 16, 2009 at 9:04pm — No Comments

SOLAR WASTED WILL NEVER BE RECOVERED

Its a wednesday, morning i take with me a video camera and grab a bottle of water to go and film the lesser flamingoes along the lake.It around 10.00 am and the sun is damn hot, i put on my cap and decided to walk a seven kilometre walk down the lake, i see beautiful birds chirping and ostriches crossing the other side of the reserve.My one litre of water almost finished before i reach my destination, a thought flushes in m mind , yes...i under estimated the magnitude of the heat then another th… Continue

Added by mary me on September 9, 2009 at 2:57pm — 3 Comments

ICT4D Questionnaire

We just released a questionnaire at http://ict4d.questionpro.com/ to try to figure a few things out. Like where are we in the field of ICTs for Development, what are people's expectations and what kind of business model may work? The latter is testing a theory we came up with at a business advice meeting whereby we help bridge the gap between Corporate (or personal?) Social Responsibility needs and the needs of those in Developin… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on September 6, 2009 at 9:41pm — No Comments

Where Are We?

Hmmm...good question. Did you read the White Paper over at www.diyngo.org (click on 'resources')? We basically have a set-up consisting of the solar computer (which is the Asus Eee PC, 12 volt battery and solar panel) then the separate PDA set-up using the HYMini (mini wind turbine and three solar arrays). The solar computer can be used for literally anything we normally use a PC for but remember it uses Linux rather than Windows so we have so… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on August 30, 2009 at 9:47pm — No Comments

SOS - Sponsorship!

Hello! We have reached an impasse with DIYNGO. We need further resources to continue these important efforts. If you or your institute/corporation are interested in sponsoring us or donating in kind, e.g. relevant equipment (radios/computers/renewable energy products, etc.) then please do contact us at info@diyngo.org You can find more information about us over at www.diyngo.org including o… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on August 21, 2009 at 10:52pm — No Comments

Duncans Passion for Solar Energy - Bogoria ( Kenya )

A home in the semi arid land of Central Baringo , Loboi village lives a humble man , a few meters from L.Bogoria National Reserve. A reserve famously known for its geysers, hot springs and flamingoes. With the extreme temperatures a simple man who is practising irrigation farming has stood out to be a unique man in the Loboi village who many admire for his innovation of tapping the renewable energy of solar which many don’t use. After taking a cup of tea that Duncan’s wife served me with a frien… Continue

Added by mary me on August 17, 2009 at 3:55pm — 1 Comment

Minnie The Minx!

This is our latest DIY wind turbine design. We took a computer fan kindly donate… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on August 16, 2009 at 11:54am — No Comments

White Paper

I just published our White Paper over at www.diyngo.org under 'resources'/ Its a little sketchy but outlines the vision, the problems as we perceive them and the solutions which we seem to now be veering towards. Do take a look and give us your feedback! Thanks, Tim ;-) Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 30, 2009 at 11:21pm — No Comments

The Fun and Misery of Experimentation!

So, I've been messing around with the wind turbine again today! Crikey, will we ever get there? :-) The good news is that the new set-up of the balsa wood blades bolted onto the room cooler fan seems to be working well. The blades are spinning nicely in a light breeze. The whole contraption is now looking a little more engineered as I'm using the 'meccano' (TM)- like bits and pieces to attach the old stepper motor to the upturned castor wheel assembly (so that she spins) and these are also attac… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 21, 2009 at 11:40pm — No Comments

Expertise DIYNGO Style!

I am completely bowled over by some software I just found for the Palm PDA. Its what we call an 'Expert System Shell' and goes by the name of M-5. It allows one to capture the knowledge of an expert and encapsulate it in software. Its extremely straightforward to use although those without a background in Artificial Intelligence may find it a little trickier at first. I've currently captured my own knowledge on the appropriateness of various ICT solutions for Developing Communities. But it is p… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 13, 2009 at 1:13am — No Comments

Windy Cindy Mark III

These are the stunning new turbine blades I made out of some discarded pipes I discovered in the woods. I used a stanley knife to cut the plastic according to what seems like a fairly aerodynamic shape. The hub is currently the old room cooler fitting with the blades bolted on b… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 7, 2009 at 7:30am — 1 Comment

Terrible UK Internet Connectivity

Another excuse for apparently not doing much but I suffer from a terrible Internet connection in the UK. Gone are the days when my appartment had a 100MB built-in connection (in Japan). I use a 3 wireless connection which just keeps dropping out for some reason. It used to be fine but I guess a few other people got wise to it and now they're oversubscribed or something. Anyhow, its very frustrating so I tend not to go online a lot. Will sort this out, probably get a fixed line at some point. Sha… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 3, 2009 at 12:35am — No Comments

Unprecedented Heatwave

Sorry there hasn't been much posting to our new location on Ning. We've been experiencing an 'unprecedented' (for some time now) heat wave in the UK interspersed with electrical storms. Very tropical weather but, so far at least, not too typical of UK weather. I guess thi… Continue

Added by Timothy Barker on July 3, 2009 at 12:25am — No Comments

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