Number 15 - February, 2005
Introduction
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Its been a while since our last newsletter and this deserves some explanation. We dedicated a lot of our efforts in the last few months of 2004 to our new website - and more importantly the technology behind it. You will have noticed that it didn't happen. We won't go into the reasons (this is a family newsletter!) but we'll be having another crack at it. Also some of the people you have grown to know and love are saying farewell, and other roles have been re-arranged. Anyway - enough excuses - we hope you have also noticed that the core activities of IT4Communites have been largely unaffected by all of the above. Tell us when you have problems.
We have reached some important milestones and we'll be aiming to build on this. Some ways of doing this include virtual volunteering and doing more simple website design - buts lets not forget the breadth of what we can do as a group of over 2,500 volunteers - from tutoring silver surfers to advising senior management and from making a printer work to building a web-fronted database application.
Contents
Features
News
Projects
of the Month
Making
A Difference – A Case Study
Final
Thoughts
Lots of small charities need simple informational websites. You can work locally or remotely and its a “quick win” for you and the charity.
So, if you have even basic web technology skills then you can be one of the most useful people in our volunteering team. You don't need to be able to make Dreamweaver turn somersaults. And even if you are really a LAMP guru or certified MCSE/MCSA/MCDST and bar, then you might like a bit of a change.
You also don't need to be "terribly artistic" - graphical creativity is great but all the best artists plagiarise anyway and there are lots of templates and design tools around to help - which you, as an IT professional, will find easy to use even if you have never written a web page before. Here are some idea sources -
Open Source Web Design (www.oswd.org) shares free web design templates & web design information. They have nearly 1000 designs with one new one contributed per day on average
Minisitetemplates - web templates and advice (www.minisitetemplates.com)
Community Website Builder (www.communitykit.co.uk)- basic but free DIY web authoring (BT sponsored) – go for the SiteBuilder button
And I'm sure the real web gurus know more so why not post them on our bulletin board?
Our catalogue of opportunities includes a mysterious area called Remote. This doesn't mean the Outer Hebrides or even the British Antarctic Territory (or, from the point of view of you dedicated Londoners, "anywhere beyond Watford"). It means that the charity would like to talk to volunteers from any part of the UK and even beyond (We do have some overseas volunteers). This is means that a volunteer in Thurso (look at a map, you Londoners!) can design a web site for a charity in central London (Yes, this is a real case). Virtual volunteering doesn't give that nice feeling that you get when you show a user how easy it is to put information into your database but its a great way to make sure your talents are available to the community of the whole UK.
Here are some thoughts on how to be a good virtual or remote volunteer -
Make sure you get things agreed and clear - exchange emails to confirm that you and the charity are "on the same page"!
Train your charity to be as picky as you are about getting requirements and technical details right - you know from experience how maddeningly literal computers are!
Email is your key communications tool - educate your charity to read emails consistently and do the same yourself - every evening or “weekends only” is fine as long as its agreed on both sides - even "alternate Thursdays when there is 'R' in the month" is fine if nobody is in a hurry!
Text messaging (SMS) can be easier to manage - again agree ahead of time when you will deal with texts. Use receipts to confirm delivery
You need to be self-propelled in any volunteer project (the charity isn't paying you so your loyalty hasn't been bought) but this goes double for virtual volunteering. They can't see what you are doing - and probably won't understand it either
Reassure your charity frequently - keep them up to date on your work, maybe drip feed them what you are doing or use prototypes. IT projects are scary for non-IT people! (And for old IT hands sometimes - we all have the occasional “cold sweat episode”?)
Understand your charity - its harder if you are virtually on the other side of the country (or the Atlantic) but drop in on them if and when you can and talk a lot on the phone if you can't - the POTS (plain old telephone system) gives your charity a warmer feeling than an email (but put important points into an email so there is no doubt what has been agreed)
And all the usual things for any volunteer project such as commitment to stay with it to completion, agreeing a timetable and even setting a "notice period" so you can "manage expectations" with your charity on one side and your paying customers (You can afford the Seychelles this year!) or your boss (who might just need you “110%” one day?)
Finally, take a look at the Remote location amongst the Opportunities. Its got a variety of opportunities and some very keen charities.
We found this on the web a while back. Someone once said that managing programmers was like "herding cats". Computers are so easy to use for professionals but it's also easy to do what is technically elegant - but doesn't quite match what the customer wanted. This writer offers some advice to non-IT people who are commissioning a website but the ideas are applicable to any computer project. The writer ranges from the professional (“Set clear goals for the project”) to the human (“Don't forget to say thank you”) to the cynical (“Convince them it was their idea”). We found it a thoughtful view from the users side. To “see ourselves as others see us” take a look at “How to Work with Engineers on a Web Development Project” and tell us or the Discussion Board what you think.
We are sometimes asked about how to give and receive old PCs. As a volunteer you will probably meet this need in many charities, large and small. Recycled PCs have obvious uses for -
Simple desktops for web access, simple word processing and email - beginning PC users in community centres, for example
Mini-servers / firewalls / etc. - its often simpler to have a separate “box” to do just one thing in a PC network
Third world recycling - Computer Aid www.computer-aid.org/home.htm for example
iT4C is not directly involved in the recycling process. ITforcharities has a long list of UK charities (and some companies) who do at - http://www.itforcharities.co.uk/pcs.htm
Business in the Community offers some more general advice on recycling and more links to recyclers at - http://www.bitc.org.uk/programmes/programme_directory/community/refurb_main.html [Broken link removed]
As always, let us know about any other sources of information you encounter
About You
We'll be adding a profiles section to our website soon and we need to know more about you. If you are working, or have worked, on an iT4C project, please email john@wcit.org.uk with your name, the project you worked on and a brief (50-100 word) summary about you. We can't promise world superstardom, Bill Gates' fortune or a shot a Linus Torvald's title but you'll get you a slice of your 15 minutes of fame (as Andy promised us all back in the 60's. When do I get mine? Ed.).
As always, we want to hear about all your innovative projects for charities and community groups. Are they replicable? Could you use them to help other charities? Tell us more or use the bulletin board.
Our website design is getting a bit elderly. You may also have noticed a few glitches in the underlying service (and please report them to us if you have time). We would also like to have some new features such as location and virtual opportunity listing for the same opportunity. We are designing a new site and underlying services. This will mean a cutover - probably over a weekend - at some point in the next two or three months. We'll be in touch with everybody nearer to the time with some more details about the new system and the possible weekend when the service might be down.
iT4Communities has been running for just over two years. It's been, we believe, quite a success (but, as always, tell us if you disagree!). We passed few of milestones recently. The project numbers went over 1,000, our registered volunteers passed 2,500 and your work value passed £500,000. So give yourself a pat on the back! How soon can we can get to 2000 opportunities and a million value?
Project of the month
Community Centre needs an XP level PC maintenance expert to help improve
staff skills to a more advanced level and to train volunteers to do simple maintenance.
Also need experienced user of specialised music studio package, Fruityloops
to bring staff and volunteers up to speed. Volunteers also need training in
MS Office XP, especially Publisher. This is an opportunity for one or more local
volunteers.
Quickie of the Month
This football fund-raising charity needs to improve it analysis of data
from it's contacts with substantial number of contributors. The analysis is
done relatively simply using Excel at the moment. The charity needs training
for 2-5 users and some associated advice on best use of spreadsheet analysis.
The training would be a number of short sessions, ideally in office hours. This
is a project for an Excel expert who can transfer skills to an already fairly
IT literate team and help them be more effective in fund raising.
Management Project of the Month
This conservation charity is embarking on a major system development and requires
an expert in database systems implementation and project management to assist
in its purchase and implementation process. This is a project for a project
manager or consultant with significant experience of the vendor / purchaser
process who can help with analysis of the competing bids, assist in negotiation
with suppliers and deal with issues arising in the purchase and implementation
processes.
Northern England Project of the Month
HIV advocacy charity needs website with information resources, e-list, newsletter,
e-forum and news updates and they need the skills to maintain it themselves.
They have clear ideas on content for the site.
West of England Project of the Month
Lowland search & rescue team, require some advice on website maintenance
including uploading and displaying pictures (e.g. a photo gallery). Charity
would also appreciate some training and support in updating the existing site.
Scottish Project of the Month
This health related charity has recently acquired two new Dell PCs to replace
two older PCs but is having problems transferring information and configuration
to them. Manufacturer support has been inadequate and the charity needs an expert
to help with problems such as LAN interconnection, external network access and
printer sharing. This is a project for a PC expert who can help the charity
to restore full service so that the old machines can be fully replaced.
The Little Bit Different Project of the
Month
Advisory service needs advice and technical help with her Lotus-based diary
system, Lotus Organiser 6. This is a project for a Lotus expert who can analyse
the current set-up, adjust the configuration or advise on upgrade if necessary
and also help with longer-term planning
Virtual Volunteering Project of the Month
(a.k.a. Martini - anytime, anywhere)
This well-established youth charity needs a website. The objective is primarily
to publicize its activities amongst peer organizations such as local authorities,
schools and employment offices. The charity has a well-organized set of requirements
for the content but needs a brand new and very professional design for the site.
They also need to build the basic skills to maintain the site. This is a project
for an experienced website designer who can discuss the requirement in detail,
produce a professional design and guide the charity towards self maintenance
of the detailed information content of the site. A local or a remote volunteer.
If these projects are not your cup of tea, check out Volunteer Opportunities online for a full list.
Here's a recent case study which isn't yet on the website.
Case Study – Women Acting In Today’s Society (WAITS)
““Close communication with Vicki enabled WAITS to be fully briefed on the capabilities of MS Access and make informed judgements on what to expect from the conclusion of the project.” Martin Barklam
Volunteer
– Martin Barklam
(individual volunteer)
Project Summary
WAITS is a women’s educational trust established in 1992. They support women to address issues such as welfare benefits, social education, domestic violence, isolation, health, crime and the fear of crime and many more. WAITS provides the first steps for women from a wide range of educational, social and cultural backgrounds to challenge and work with mainstream decision makers and institutions.
A network of women’s groups, WAITS membership reflects the diverse communities of Birmingham, Sandwell and other parts of the West Midlands.
The charity needed a database to enable staff of WAITS to monitor and evaluate their domestic violence project.. Martin Barklam volunteered to help through iT4Communities.
Project Delivery
Vicki Hook at WAITS briefed Martin about the requirements. Martin told us “The primary aim of the project was to enhance the reporting functionality, presentation and user-friendliness of their existing client database in MS Access and provide user training”. Vicki told us that this involved both meetings with her and regular updates to ensure that WAITS was kept up to date with progress.
Vicki added “Martin worked very much by himself in the design of the database – I am not sure how much time Martin contributed but as this was such a large project carried over a long period I am sure it took up a lot of evenings and weekends”
Martin summarised the work as “design MS Access forms, reports and macros and integrated them into the existing client database. Also produced user documentation”.
Outcomes for the Charity
Vicki told iT4Communities that the database allows them to identify the common needs of the women WAITS work with, collate information for funders, monitor / evaluate services and identify gaps in WAITS services. Martin added “WAITS have a much more user-friendly database from which they can now also produce meaningful reports”
Vicki also asked us to mention the excellent help on their website www.waitsaction.org from another iT4Communities volunteer, Lewis Smith.
Outcomes for the Volunteer
Martin told us that “I have gained a lot of practical knowledge and confidence in working with MS Access (previously not my forté!)”
Lessons Learnt by the Charity
Vicki told us there was no difficulty in carrying out this project and “We have decided to ask Martin to help us design another database to help us monitor and evaluate our community organising department”
Lessons Learnt by the Volunteer
Martin says “Close communication with Vicki enabled WAITS to be fully briefed on the capabilities of MS Access and make informed judgements on what to expect from the conclusion of the project. Similarly, by liaising closely with Vicki, I was able to produce a finished product that met their expectations..”
Lessons learned by iT4Communities
Successful IT projects are always a judicious balance between dialogue with the customer and creative technical work. Martin and Vicki struck that balance very successfully.
Vicki told us that if iT4Communities gave awards for the best volunteer projects that she would nominate both Martin for this database work and Lewis for his help with the website.
Check out the other case studies on the iT4C website for more comprehensive feedback, tips, pointers and pitfalls.
This is a month when we say our farewells to two core staff at iT4Communities.
Dr Simon Davey has been iT4C Director since our launch in November 2002 and has been an important contributor to the success of iT4Communities. His careful planning and relaxed but professional style have, we believe, made iT4Communities what it is today and helped us achieve the milestones mentioned in the News above. We'll be staying in touch and we'll observe his future plans with interest. Simon can be contacted at Omega-Alpha and simon@preponderate.net
Dr Paula Graham has been our Coordinator since the beginning of 2004. Many volunteers and charities will remember her fine combination of good humour and skilful handling of tricky issues. Paula has controlled the “engine room” of iT4C and made the ship a much steadier vessel. At the risk of over-egging the metaphor, she has also charted some shoals which Nigel and John (see below) will particularly appreciate. We'll be staying in touch with Paula too and we'll observe her continued contribution to IT and the voluntary sector.
John Davies (MSc Computer Science - we are lowering the entrance requirements for working at iT4C...) is now our Coordinator. He has been doing most of the project definitions over the last two years and will continue to keep his hand in with these! Blame him if the charity you talk to wants a website when the opportunity said database! Nigel Davies (no relation) does most of our administration work and will often be the person you talk to on our office number. Our Acting Director is David Edwards, who was one of the originators of the iT4Communities idea. He also remains the Trust Director at WCIT so he's a busy man!
The milestones mentioned in the News above inspire us to do even better in the next two years.
Let's go to work...
John.
John Davies
Coordinator, iT4Communities
e:
john@wcit.org.uk
w:
http://www.iT4Communities.org.uk/
IT 4 Communities is an initiative to encourage companies and
individuals with professional IT skills to volunteer these skills for
the benefit of the community, and is supported by a partnership of
key IT sector organisations.
We aim to achieve a significant and sustainable increase in the number of companies and IT professionals volunteering their skills in their local communities, and to maximise the effectiveness of this volunteering input in building the capacity of local charities and community groups.