Marcus Cake

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.

This article discusses how to create a virtual web server on the Amazon cloud and install/configure SugarCRM in less than an hour. It should actually take 30 minutes if you already have an Amazon account and Elasticfox installed. This is intended as a hackers technical general guide, rather than something a novice could do.

I chose to implement SugarCRM and use it to manage contacts, segment the customer base, and conduct campaigns. This provided a platform to restructure the marketing function of the business to be less reliant on redundant Web 1.0 distribution and more Web 2.0 (participation) and Web 3.0 (contribution).

Rightscale and Amazon Web Services now offers essential features not previously available - automatic scaling , Manager for MySQL and Persistent Storage. The Amazon Web Services platform empowered the entrepreneur, but advanced technical skills were still required to solve storage and scalability issues to create a truly scalable application. These latest developments are critical building blocks of transformative online networks and bring the power direct to the entrepreneur. This power is available by using the Rightscale dashboard/service. They charge USD2,500 to setup your server and USD500 per month to use the dashboard. This is a fraction of the cost of a comparable web hosting configuration five years ago, assuming a comparable web hosting configuration could be built. Competitive advantage can no longer be derived from the prohibitive cost of web hosting or ability to scale a web application. Unlimited storage and global scalability is now available to the entrepreneur (that is a hacker).

The next phase of economic development will be driven by the freedom of information and innovation generated by enthusiastic open source communities. Microsoft is asserting its patent portfolio is being violated by open source community software. It seems determined to strike at the heart that may drive the next phase of economic development. That heart is information freedom and enthusiasm of open source communities.

We empower government with the responsibility of providing the framework to promote economic development. Proprietary ownership of knowledge is no longer necessary to encourage innovation, but it still form a key part of our economic system. Open source communities are being unleashed on a global stage. Our community has a choice - enforcement of the current system of private ownership of knowledge, or allow information to be free to make humanity wealthier. Microsoft probably can’t kill humanity’s opportunity to become wealthier, but the broader battle may. The key threat to open source and online networks is the government regulatory response to the battle between community knowledge and intellectual property.

Online networks which embody every facet of industrial, social and politcal aspects of our modern society are inevitable. They simply offer a superior way to interact and transact. The transition to a global community based around online networks will take six months, sixteen years or fifty years. The timeframe will depend upon the outcome of three epic battles. The battles are economic development vs geostrategy, community knowledge vs intellectual property, and online networks vs closed systems. Online industrial, political and social networks which are involved in these battles could be delayed for decades.

What if we did have cars that cost $25 and got 1,000 miles to the gallon? What if the Moore law rates of innovation and improvement could be applied to the world’s problems. What if Moore’s law rates of improvement applied to aircraft engines, car engines, carbon dioxide emissions, industrial pollution, cures for disease, energy and minerals usage, education and leadership. Our world is evolving. Advances in technology present new ways to organise. Online networks are likely to be a step forwards. An expansion of intellectual property laws is likely to be a step backwards. If there was a new way to deliver greater rates of innovation, we have a compelling need to solve specific global problems. We need to question that our underlying assumptions of how to organise.

Typo3 is a content management system. It was named as one of the top 100 companies and projects in the digital content management industry. It is rapidly developing new features and will improve its standing.

The objectives of open source will change over time. As open source evolves and proves its capability, it will move beyond technology, beyond specific industries, to all other aspects of our society. This has been suggested in the past. However, existing organisations are not sufficiently motivated to apply advances in technology to promote development. Business, social and political entrepreneurs that establish online networks are likely to be the primary force for change.

This article outlines the first four stages of the development of online networks and the .Net boom. The objective of the online network in each stage is identified.

Paul Webber released Linux Media Center edition on on 17th March 2007. It was the culmination of five months work by two individuals full-time. He leveraged the Ubuntu Linux distribution and plutohome.com open source projects to deliver a “free” Linux Media Centre. It may be better than Microsoft’s media centre. I expect a quality community will join this project and fix any issues quickly.

It demonstrates the power of one individual to make a significant contribution to the world by leveraging free and open source software. It also extends Ubuntu to deliver a “Media Centre edition” for a specific target segment. The Linux community is moving from tools to solutions for different customer segments.

My definition of the word hacker has evolved. From programmers cracking computer security (called crackers) to my modest efforts to improve my golf and, now, to skilled people contributing to online networks that reflect their passions and interests. A hacker has the tenacity and persistence to solve problems, often for the sake of solving it. They have the vision of architects, the skills of engineers and empathy of a mother with her upset child. They make significant sacrifices in pursuit of their goal. They navigate around, or though, barriers in their path. They do not rest (if inspired) until the problem is solved, or the challenge is overcome. If only my golf, could be described in these terms.

Online networks will be an essential tool of hackers. The will capture and focus the unique contribution of other hackers. Collective talent, energy and innovation will reshape industrial, social and political frameworks over the next decade.

The two leading Linux distributions, Ubuntu and Opensuse, install a Linux desktop in quickly and easily. They also come preinstalled with the KDE collaboration wizard. This will connect Evolution (the equivalent of Microsoft Outlook) to four open source groupware applications quickly. Those four applications are egroupware, Kolab, Suse Linux Openexchange (SLOX) and Novell Groupwise. Imagine a world where one individual could install a complete desktop, configure a groupware server and integrate the two in a few hours. The social and commercial ramifications would be exponential.

I decided that I would also use Ubuntu for 30 days. If I was committed then I would be forced to solve problems preventing me from switching. I will then come back and write about my experiences. I have suspended my efforts to migrate my work computer to Kubuntu. The promises of the next release make it more productive to wait until the 19th April 2007. A migration assistant will be made available with the next version of Kubuntu on 19th April 2007. Rather than needing to commit to 30 days to get everything working, I am hoping I can spend three days - installing Kubuntu, running the migration wizard and laying out my desktop (with everything working). Back to some real work …

The potential of open source software, open source principles and collective innovation is significant. They could change the world. They should, at the very least, change information intensive industries. These assertions are largely an intellectual argument. The thoughts of an individual. The compelling value of open source and collective innovation as a solution needs to be demonstrated.

Open Source software is a viable alternative for nearly every application - business and personal. There is, however, a strong view that the installed base of the proprietary software industry is not likely to shift significantly to free software. The reasoning seems to be the inertia the industry and staying with something familiar. There is, apparently, not a significant reason to shift. I provided an overview of some of the potential reasons in Linux or windows: a decision based on cost, security, convenience, stability, innovation or religion? Or am I just stuck with Windows?. I will offer another. The opportunity to double your retirement by allocating the money you would have spent on proprietary software to your retirement. The cost savings are numerically significant, but the present value of the cost savings is roughly equal to the average retirement savings of a US citizen - about US$60,000. The debate over Linux versus Windows is a luxury for a minority. The majority need to adopt free software to contribute to their retirement.

The WRT54G is a router which costs approximately USD50. It has a large installed base of users. With custom software it can have the functionality of more expensive routers. The combination of open source software, the large installed base of WRT54G users and cheap hardware has also faciltated the creation of the largest global wi-fi network encompassing 80,000 within twelve months. This article will highlight the practical applications of using the WRT54G to empower the home. It will also highlight one opportunity to change the world by leveraging user generated infrastructure that is being pursued by FON. FON has created the largest wifi community on the world encompassing 80,000 users in less than 12 months.

Over many years, I have developed a simple Microsoft Excel template to support a transaction process. Transaction types included a merger or aquisition, IPO’s or private equity capital raising. This template is a starting point and needs to be customised to meet the unique requirements of each company and the specific transaction being pursued. To download the template, click on Transaction process template .This template is part of a series of templates used in a transaction process. It complements my previous post Financial forecast model: A Microsoft Excel template could become an Open Source project

I will contribute the other templates as time permits. The business plan template and Investor presentation templates are still to be posted.

Please review all the available templates by selecting the Templates category .

The global economy is 70% services based. Broadband penetration is growing. The opportunities for open source technology to change the status quo are staggering. LAMP is the technology which underpins most of the major web sites in the world today. It will be a key tool for the social and commercial entrepreneurs of tomorrow and underpin the the .NET boom.

It is possible to store your “life” on your IPod, but you would need to use open source software and lose the ability to integrate with devices soch as mobile phones and PDA’s. The “portable applications” include email, web browsing, office software and many others. It may even be possible to run a virtual computer. The recent release of Palm’s Lifedrive seems to suggest people want to be even more portable. A recently announced partnership amongst mobile phone manufacturers to develop a common version of Linux for mobile devices is important. It extends open source to devices and makes it easier to integrate the desktop with these phones, PDA’s, IPod’s and other devices. This would remove a significant hurdle to the adoption of Linux on the desktop. Is this an opportunity for entrepreneurs to package open source into a “portable” offering?

Any organisation, including open source communities like Linux, can only become what they want to become. Linux, or one of its distributions, would have to truly want to adopt marketing as a business function and understand other customer segments to move beyond its narrow technology person niche.

Linux will become a viable alternative to the Microsoft Windows desktop software. Over the last few years, there have been many articles that Linux may reach a Tipping Point . The Tipping Point for Linux means it will move from being used by a niche group to being commonly used. I believe the Tipping point will occur in the next two years. Individuals will use Linux on the desktop. Any remaining inhibitors or features required by everyday users should be implemented in Linux in the next year. This includes support for more devices allowing synchronisation with mobile phones. Business will increasingly use Linux for mail and web servers and replace their existing Microsoft Exchange mail servers

Software licenses are contracts. The terms of that contract are determined by parties to the contract. The terms “free software” and “open source” are terms which refer to software license contracts that have specific attributes. Software licenses are contracts. The terms of that contract are determined by parties to the contract. The terms “free software” and “open source” are terms which refer to software license contracts that have specific attributes. These terms are defined, but are often used to portray licenses that do not comply with these definitions.

Online social networks will drive a significant lift in productivity over the next decade. The internet will be essential to coordinating these networks. Online social networks are likely to be more efficient at manufacturing and distributing information. Consumers may be offered more convenient means to purchase, at lower cost using open source philosophies that may deliver greater customer satisfaction. Government can allow people to benefit from economic development, although some industries may perish or need to evolve in the short term.

Existing industries have billions of dollars of historical investment, hundreds of years of history and employ of tens of thousands of people. These industries are being challenged by more innovative players that apply new business models to reduce costs. Challenges to the introduction of the railroad included “Rail travel at high speed is not possible, because passengers, unable to breathe, would die of asphyxia.” This article offers a brief insight into the emerging responses of industry and their efforts to lobby government. Will government “asphyxiate” the people on the information superhighway? Will we be forced to travel by canal? Will we be forced to use the telephone?

Moore’s Law is forecast to continue. If the rate of improvement continues, technology will be 128 times more powerful in ten years, and over 4,000 times more powerful in 15 years. Will it be possible for a single laptop capture, store, process and transmit information for entire industries? Could a single laptop replace the global music industry, a stock exchange or provide voice calls for the world? There are billions of dollars of historical investment, hundreds of years of history and tens of thousands of people being challenged by new companies. Starbucks may have enough bandwidth to run a bank, but you probably would not want to live there 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

The Linux desktop is important because it empowers the user with the key internet technologies that will transform many industries. The availability of a version of Linux that can work for every person every time will become a reality in the next year. Usability of Linux is no longer an issue - it works just like Windows. At the moment, the best versions of desktop Linux probably install successfully 90% of the time, satisfies the needs of 90% of users and will work with 90% of peripherals that you attach to your computer. These are symbolic and not actual figures.

The Open Source model of building software harnesses the collective knowledge of a group of volunteers to build complex software. Over the next few years, collective knowledge networks like the open source movement will move beyond developing open source software, to manufacturing and distributing products products and services in other industries.