IT DRILLDOWN
 
NEWSLETTERS
 

CIO.com updates, insights and advice on technology, management and your career.

 
 
 
LEADERSHIP
 
CIO Executive Programs
The Leader in Face-to-Face Education for Senior Executives

Offering regional and national programs, CIO (and CSO) events bring together some of the most respected names and thought leaders in information technology and security. Presented by CIOs and other senior level executives, these invitation-only programs offer timely topics and strong networking. Learn More »

 
CIO Executive Council
A Peer-Advisory Service and Professional Association for CIOs

Social Responsibility's Strategic Benefits

December 15, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM US/Eastern (GMT-5)

Join Ed Granger-Happ, CIO of Save the Children, for a discussion of how creating an organization that is socially responsible improves staffing, retention, leadership development and overall corporate health.

Working With and Communicating to Your Board of Directors

January 13, 2009, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM US/Eastern (GMT-5)

CIO panelists who will share tips and experiences working with their boards: Twila Day of SYSCO; Jeff O'Hare, West Corp.; Marc West, formerly with H&R Block.

IT's Role in Growing Mid-Market Companies

January 14, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM ET (GMT-5)

Mid-market Council members will share their companies' stories and challenges in driving or coping with growth. Panelists represent Veterinary Pet Insurance, Medicis Pharmaceutical, and Intrax Cultural Exchange.

More / Register »

Learn more about the CIO Executive Council »



 
 
RESOURCE CENTER
 
 
 
SUBSCRIBE TO CIO
 
Are you involved in setting the direction for your company's IT budget or strategy?

Apply today for a FREE subscription to CIO Magazine!

 
 
 

Kenyan Techies to Monitor Quality of Service By ISPs

 

April 21, 2008 — IDG News Service —

Kenya's technology experts are developing a community Web site to monitor quality of service by ISPs.

According to Michuki Mwangi, one of the leaders in the project, it will be Kenya's largest technology-related online community-based initiative, where all members are expected to come up with a solution that will make the project work better.

"It is a joint community venture. We will develop applications and all the information will be available on the Web site," Mwangi said.

The idea of a community Web site was brought up at one of the monthly meetings of Kenyan techies, known as "Skunkworks." During the meeting, hosted at Google East Africa offices, members of the IT community underscored the need to monitor Internet services.

Joseph Mucheru, Google's East Africa office lead, promised to support the team in developing and maintaining the initiative.

"We will develop the applications that will run, put them online and set the criteria of what we want to achieve," Mwangi said.

Noting that the Web site is still in the early stages, Mwangi said that the exercise is designed to depend on volunteers. These volunteers will host applications to monitor service, via ISPs, to the Kenya Internet Exchange Point (KIXP), and also monitor international traffic.

As the applications provide information, it will be collated in a Web site that anyone can access.

Asked about involving the ISPs, Mwangi said that the providers could support or reject the initiative, depending on how they view it.

There has been an argument that Kenyan providers thrive on users' ignorance of technology matters. Mwangi thinks the problem lies in users' failure to understand or question the contention ratios provided by ISPs.

"People do not understand the contention ratios. People pay dedicated costs, yet they are given contended bandwidth. It could be 1:4 or 1:12, yet the customer pays for dedicated capacity," Mwangi notes.

To determine the capacity provided, Mwangi noted that one can measure the throughput at peak time and off-peak. Usually, the capacity is faster at off-peak hours (after 5 p.m.) compared to peak hours (8 a.m.-5 p.m.).

If the capacity is dedicated, then there should be no difference in performance during day and night. Organizations provide graphs, but Mwangi says that the graphs only show an average of what one is using, and not the actual bandwidth at peak time.

The emergence of video uploads and downloads has affected the bandwidth provision. Downloads take a shorter period at night compared to daytime. According to Mwangi, the downloads provide another way of monitoring the bandwidth contention ratio. This is because the speeds or performance during the day and at night should be the same if the bandwidth provided is the same.

Loading...
 
 
CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
 
Infrastructure
» Outbound Email and Data Loss Prevention
This report shows the findings of a recent Proofpoint and Forrester Consulting study on e-mail security, data loss prevention, and includes statistics on electronic risks.
» A Modern Approach to On-Demand Email and Data Security
Learn how Proofpoint delivers a dedicated, hosted e-mail security solution that combines state-of-the-art anti-spam and virus control.
» A Proactive Approach to e-Discovery
Learn about the key e-discovery challenges facing legal and IT departments today and how businesses can develop an e-mail archiving strategy to deal with e-discovery requests.
» The Advantages of Identity Based Encryption
Download this paper to learn why e-mail encyrption is critical to an organization's overall security architecture and the advantages of identity-based encryption.
» Global Best Practices in Email Security, Privacy and Compliance
This whitepaper discusses the latest global regulations that impact the e-mail security policies and strategies of today's enterprises, universities and government organizations.
Center sponsored by

 
 
ABCs
 

Just the basics, please. Sometimes we all need a refresher or we need to make sure our team and our colleagues are all on the same page.

Over 25 tutorials on everything from business intelligence to virtualization.

 
 
FEATURED SPONSORS
 
 
 
SPONSORED LINKS
 

Integrating ActiveRoles With IBM Tivoli Identity Manager 5.0

Quest Authentication Services: Simplify Identity Management

Data Protection: Challenges for the Traveling User

Learn how wide-area data services can help deliver the benefits of virtualization

Learn how companies are changing how they reach out to their most profitable customers.

Learn how to leverage virtualization for a 74% savings in TCO.

Find out how you can affordably consolidate applications with VMware.

ESG Research on Server and Storage Virtualization

Data Center ROI with RFID Asset Tracking

Get help navigating the management challenges of virtualization.

Narrow the gap between virtualization's benefits and the management risks.

Cash in on the promise of virtualization

Determine the ROI of Web Application Acceleration Managed Services

Achieve a 50:1 Data Deduplication Ratio

Remote Infrastructure Management - What Your Peers are Thinking

Complementary BI: The New Approach to Business Intelligence

Expand High-Performance Computing (HPC) Capabilities

Power the Platform of Choice for Virtualization in the Enterprise

Boost your top- and bottom- lines.

Unified Communications & Collaboration: Game-Changing Business Results

Best Intel Info for IT Pros/Intel Premier IT Professional Program: Stay up to date with roadmaps, technologies & best practices

Make Hidden Trends, Inter-Relationships and Influences Visible.

Improve delivery of product information to customers.

Prudential Financial Protects its Brand with Symantec

Mission Impossible: Building the Right Project Metrics

Quest Authentication and IBM Tivoli Identity Management

Get IDC's take on one company's foray into storage virtualization.

White Paper: Centralized Data Backup and Your WAN

White Paper: Accelerating the Next Phase of Virtualization

The Right and Wrong Master Data Management Strategies to Start Small and Grow Big

Find out why IDC thinks virtualization is changing operating environments.

Explore the impact virtualization can have on your bottom-line.

Save with 0% Lease Offer on HP Servers and Storage

How RFID Improves Data Center Efficiency

Find out how to manage virtualization's risks and reap the rewards.

Conquer the realities of managing virtualization

Improve Web-Enabled SAP Performance

Gartner on Data Deduplication Cost Savings

Data Protection Options Explained

Webcast - "Into the Wild: Managing Laptops Outside the Office"

5 Steps to Successful IT Consolidation

High-performance computing is no longer just for Big Business

Leading university calls on Nokia for mobile unified communications.

Mobility is Growing: Survey Shows Why CIOs are Concerned

Learn what it takes to build a holistic digital collaboration platform

The ECM Paradox: Extending Local Flexibility to Strengthen Central Control

Customer Insight Yields Sales, Marketing Gains

7 Requirements of Data Loss Prevention

Put Enterprise Communications on Autopilot

Portfolio Management for Effective IT Governance