Marcus Cake

According to Wikipedia, Enterprise Requirements Planning (ERP) software is “intended to manage all information of functions within a company or business”. “Examples of modules in an ERP which formerly would have been stand-alone applications include: Product lifecycle management, Supply chain management (e.g. Purchasing, Manufacturing and Distribution), Warehouse Management, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Sales Order Processing, Online Sales, Financials, Human Resources, and Decision Support System.”- Wikipedia.

ERP software from proprietary vendors can be very expensive and take months to implement. My web site is devoted to applying Web 3.0 to economic development. A key building block underpinning the emergence of Web 3.0 is open source software. I wrote an article about How to setup a server on the Amazon cloud and install SugarCRM in 30 minutes. The potential is summarised even more effectively in the video below. It shows how you can implement an ERP software system in less than 10 minutes. There are many images with “ready to go” enterprise software at Amazon. The experience below can be repeated with different types of server images that provide specific solutions to different problems.

You can learn more about OpenTaps from the OpenTaps web site, a summary PDF or QuickTime movie download.

A few days ago, the open source browser project Opera released the version 10 of its web browser. This version, called Opera Unite, introduces a major new function that will probably be incorporated into all browsers. Opera Unite extends the browser that reads web pages from the internet, with a web server that publishes information to the web. In short, it facilitates direct peer to peer (or browser to browser) communication between browsers in real-time. Google Wave and Opera Unite facilitate peer to peer in Web 3.0. They do it in different ways. Google Wave appears to have a a superior value proposition, but ultimately it will depend on how, and how many, third party applications are integrated into each platform.

I was in Canberra today to participated in the strategic review of a mobile payments company.

A friend provided an introduction to Dr Jonathan Gray, Senior Researcher, e-Government Initiative at NICTA. I was able to meet Jonathon straight away. I demonstrated the EDemocracy prototype and provide a link to further information at the NICTA e-Government Initiative page.

I understand that EGovernment is not Edemocracy, but Jonathan may refer me to some others in Canberra that may be interested in a Web 3.0 Climate Stability network. I will need all the help I can get. I am hoping a Web 3.0 transparent approach will allow people interested in my projects and opportunities to find me. We can then assemble a community to create the Web 3.0 online networks on the path to Web 4.0 and transform the world in 365 days.

Regulated capitalism is the last man standing. We have no choice but to make it work. We must, however, acknowledge that regulated capitalism has failed its citizens comprehensively. The failure of regulated capitalism is equal to the collapse of central planning. The communists recognised their system had failed and chose to implement something else. Will capitalists do the same? Or will we try to save the status quo at any price? Will bailouts move on to other “too big too let fail” activities that prevent the operation of creative destruction?

Harry Dent recently released two Youtube videos providing some quick thoughts on the impact of the credit (and now financial) crisis on his depression scenario. In essence, there will be a period of optimism in 2009, but the demography underlying the depression will begin to bite and lead into depression. He recommends that people hold cash while the value of assets fall. Investors with cash will be presented with a buying opportunity that only occurs once in an 80 year new economy cycle. I recommend you watch the videos below.

I just read a Financial Times article which states that the E-Democracy prototype has an immediate application. Please read E-democracy just six weeks away! Political sovereignty exercised directly by citizens through an online political network.

This article discusses how to create a virtual web server on the Amazon cloud and establish a location to install a new web site in less than 15 minutes.

Price Waterhouse’s Technology Forecast (Summer 2008) provides some commentary on the emergence of Web 2.0 type online social networks in the enterprise. The report offers an insight into the elements that drive Web 2.0. It does, however, not identify compelling reasons for the enterprise to adopt the principles of Web 2.0. I have expanded on the concept of Web 2.0 and offer an insight into what Web 3.0 and Web 4.0. A survey in the report also states that 51% of the Global 2000 are buying Web 2.0 solutions. However, it would be interesting to understand the proportion of these projects that are small solutions like “wikis” or disruptive platforms that deliver enterprise innovation or industry innovation.

The US system has collapsed. Failed financial firms are trying to convince the government to invest in them. The selling proposition? - “too big to let fail!” Understandably, the US congress are making further enquiries before writing a cheque for US$800 billion dollars. The US already terminally insolvent - even with unprecedented growth it can not repay its debts. Another US$800 billion won’t push it over the edge. It passed the edge a while back. A private receivership committee may have been formed in international markets. It will operate in “opaque channels”. A private online political network would be essential coordinate timely international activities amongst US creditors. The aspirations of the average American remain the same. They can be sold a “story” by mainstream media that permits further avoidance of debt repayments or justifies activities that acquire international “leverage”. An E-democracy online network and/or a US insolvency online network could be used to inform the US public. Maybe, they will assume responsibility, or maybe they would prefer not to know.

IBM conducted a survey of 1,130 CEO s, general managers and senior public sector and business leaders from around
the world. I read with interest the comments that highlighted the potential application of online social and industry networks in facilitating collaboration, participation and information distribution in industries. We turnkey online networks for the financial markets and are also keen to contribute to open source software community that maintains an “Online network Solution” open source software project for any entrepreneur or organisation. I have extracted some interesting comments and recommend you read the full report.

Rightscale offers to manage a farm of servers to automatically scale the processing and storage capacity of a web application to service growing, or declining, demand from internet users. Rightscale costs USD500 per month plus a USD2,000 setup fee (last time I checked). Scalr is an open source application that performs the same function as Rightscale. You can implement Scalr yourself from here or use Scalr’s USD50 per month paid version (with no setup fee).

An online political network can replace expensive proprietary distribution channels and with a virtually costless channel that provides a superior means to deliver the primary objective of democracy to ensure “political sovereignty [is] retained by the people and exercised directly by citizens”. Democracy is entirely based upon information and could be facilitated by an online political network. Our politicians make choices about economic, social and industry policies and implement them with laws. Citizens choose politicians based on information. Online political networks provide internet applications to facilitate the exchange of information, collaboration and the political process between citizens, government executives, politicians and other stakeholders in the politcal process. This article offers a potential structure for this network. I have also developed an initial prototype of this web application that has the global scalability of the Amazon Web Services cloud. The web application may be available in six weeks, but the transition to this online network may take six months or 50 years In Politics 3.0, individual transparency through online networks and internet traffic to a politicians profile may be determine whether a politician gets elected or not.

The era of online networks which manage information of no value is ending. The era of online networks that manage valuable information and reshape industry is beginning. The foundation for online networks has been building for decades. The most recent milestone may have been 90% broadband penetration rates in the major economies. The next generation of online social, industry and political networks will deliver unprecedented transparency, liquidity and accessibility in all aspects of society.