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Buses in SL under GPS Scanner Sri Lanka has started using satellite technology to monitor the movements of buses in a bid to “detect and control misdeeds” committed by drivers. The buses would be monitored
to ascertain whether they run according to time tables and whether they follow the stipulated speed limits, Lankan Information Department said. The movements of the
buses would be displayed on screens at monitoring centres, and errant drivers would be instantly advised to follow rules over satellite phones placed in the buses.
Disaster Management
e-MUNICIPALITY
University researchers in Taiwan have released a mobile phone application that with one touch can transmit to any number of people the location of users trapped in earthquake rubble or debris. The app transmits the latitude and longitude co-ordinates of people stranded in disaster areas. It has recently been put on sale in the mobile application stores following the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan. Users anywhere can download the application, called
Dubai Municipality has re-launched its web portal with a new design, the fourth since 1998, which was the first launch to create an e-Audience for Dubai Municipality on the Internet. Now, the change is based on the new trends in the field of technology, especially Internet-related and consistent with the requirements of the public who deal with the Municipality on a daily basis. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality said Dubai Municipality has
In Aftermath, New Disaster Alert Mobile App Released
Mobile Saviour for $2.99 in English, Chinese or Japanese. All proceeds from the sales of this app
will go to victims of the devastation either through Japan’s foreign ministry or Red Cross chapter.
gEOGRAPHICAL iNFORMATION SYSTEM
New Spatial Support System in Taiwan Taiwan GIS Centre (TGIC), the country’s GIS “think tank” is developing its webbased spatial decision support system on the Government Cloud, which would enable the central and local government, private industries, and the general public to access spatial information through various medium such as the Internet and mobile phones. TGIC is developing an application portal that would use a Spatial Decision Support System (SDSS) to enable better reusing, sharing, and managing of spatial information. The framework is said to include four
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components: Geospatial ontologies enabling domain experts to contribute knowledge and models for reuse and sharing; an ontology registry allowing web service providers to register GI services into ontologies; a web portal where domain experts can evaluate results and SDSS developers can find solutions for specific geospatial problems; and an ontologies engine to infer relevant registered GI services based on the knowledge in the ontologies in response to a geospatial problem submitted in the web portal.
Dubai Municipality’s Website Revamped worked to develop the site in terms of form, content and sections so as to ensure ease of use. It has also taken care to provide more information and to add new channels to achieve the goal of customer satisfaction and support their requirements. He said all the criteria of the Government of Dubai in developing e-Government portals have been applied to support the “Zero Visit” initiative, and to integrate and unify all the portals of the departments of the Municipality in the main portal.
disaster management
ICT for Disaster Management at UN Workshop The United Nations Asian and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communication Technology for Development, a regional institute of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNAPCICT/ESCAP), kicked off the Fourth Regional Training of Trainers Workshop in Seongnam, Republic of Korea. The
five-day workshop was held from 22-26 February, 2011 and aimed at giving training on the use of information and communication technology (ICT) for disaster risk management and climate change abatement. As is now widely accepted by the scientific community and the general public, climate change constitutes a major threat to the earth’s ecosystems.