Things to Consider when Developing an Application for a Developing or Middle Income Country

On December 1, Random Hacks of Kindness in collaboration with the Peace Corps held an event called "Peace Corps Innovation Challenge." Volunteers from around the world submitted ideas and concepts that they felt could improve the lives of people in their community or other volunteers. Ideas and concepts were submitted prior to the event and reviewed by Peace Corps Staff, NGO's, current volunteers, returned volunteers, and technical experts. The best ideas and concepts were submitted to members of Random Hacks of Kindness in order for them to develop the ideas during a hackathon on December 1. 

My alma mater, Rochester Institute of Technology, participated in the event. The event was well received and was attended by Sean Herron, a member of NASA’s Open Government team, and Rob Bishop, a developer with the Raspberry Pi Foundation . During December 1, which is also World AIDS Day, I live tweeted some tips to consider when developing an application for third world or middle income countries. I hope those who saw the tips found them helpful. I have listed them below for future programmers:

Things to Consider when Developing an Application for a Developing or Middle Income Country

1. If your creating an app that stores a lot of data. Make sure it saves often. Electricity may be an issue
2. Internet Speeds vary within countries. Make sure your app can run with little to no Internet
3. Remember your users and make sure your app is user friendly
4. Please consider that getting access to a phone may be easier then a computer.
5. If your creating an app for a global audience please consider people with disabilities  Note: Section 508 is a good reference concerning Tip 5
6. Good Documentation can be just as important then the app itself
7. Make sure English is a national language in that country. If not consider translating some of the texts or providing that option

Learn more about the Peace Corps Innovation Challenge at: http://innovationchallenge.peacecorps.gov/

Happy Hacking :D

How to Improve Your Speed and Bandwidth on Slow Internet Part 1:

Hey Everyone,

 Here are some tips I have learned concerning improving my internet experience on slow internet. These tips are specifically geared towards my fellow volunteers around the world :D

Tip #1: Utilize mobile sites instead of the regular website when using the internet on a computer

Example Mobile Sites:
Social Media:
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/
- Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/
Email:
- Google: https://mail.google.com/mail/x/
- Yahoo: m.yahoo.com/mail
- Hotmail: https://mid.live.com/

Tip #2: Disable Images in your Browser
Photo's can use up a significant amount of data. Many websites utilize images for their icons, backgrounds, etc. While images can add to your overall web browsing experience, I would recommend disabling your images initially in your browser, and turning back on the option when you REALLY want to see the photo.

Firefox:
Go to Tools->Options
Click on the Content Tab
Click on Load Images to remove the check mark

Internet Explorer:
Go to Tools->Internet Options
Select the Advance Tab
Scroll down to the Multimedia Section
Click on Show pictures to remove the check mark

**Check out the web on how to disable images for other browsers.**

Tip #3: Download a Chat Client/Instant Messenger
  I love speaking to family and friends back home and downloading a chat client/instant messenger has made performing this task very simple. Though downloading a chat client can utilize a bit of your data plan, it is worth it. After installing a chat client, you no longer have to worry about using your bandwidth to download images, or unnecessary buttons, etc. Your chat client simply allows you to long into your specific chat server and listens for new instant messages, in addition to sending your instant messages.
Listed below are some awesome chat clients/instant messengers.:

Chat clients that allow you to connect to several chat servers at a time:
Pidgin: www.pidgin.im/
Digsby: www.digsby.com/
Trillian: www.trillian.im/ 

Company-specific chat clients, that may or may not have the ability to connect to other chat servers:
Google Chat: talk.google.com/ 
Windows Live Messenger (formerly named MSN Messenger): http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-live/essentials-home
Yahoo Messenger:   messenger.yahoo.com/

Here is a helpful wikipedia page that compares some chat clients: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_instant_messaging_clients 

 Tip #4: Select the HTML Option of a website, if it is available
 If a website provides an HTML Option, please use it. While there are so many awesome features when PHP, Javascript, and other awesome programming languages are utilized, sometimes utilizing simple HTML is all we need to get the job done.

Stay Tuned for more helpful Tips