ICT Key Terms and Concepts

Access
Provision of "real access," taking into account social, economic, institutional and sustainability issues
Bridges.org, a nonprofit organization working on social inclusion issues in developing ICT, defines twelve component of real access that must be fully integrated into any development program in order to have full impact:

(1) Physical access to technology
(2) Appropriateness of technology
(3) Affordability of technology and technology use
(4) Human capacity and training
(5) Locally relevant content, applications, and services
(6) Integration into daily routines
(7) Socio-cultural factors
(8) Trust in technology
(9) Local economic environment
(10) Macro-economic environment
(11) Legal and regulatory framework
(12) Political will and public support

Backhaul
ICT network infrastructure portion linking the backbone to the intermediate access points
Wikipedia article on backhaul infrastructure

Digital Divide
Disparity between socioeconomic populations with and without access to ICT
While the digital divide appears to be converging within industrialized countries, it is estimated that one billion people worldwide have no Internet access and more than 30 countries have less than one percent Internet penetration rates. (World Summit on the Information Society, 2005)
Statistics on global access to ICT

Fiberoptics
Physical backbone to the high-bandwidth, data transmission network
References to FTTN (fiber-to-the-node), FTTP (fiber-to-the-premise), or even FTTC (fiber-to-the-curb) point to the importance of fiberoptic infrastructure in "first-mile" infrastructure.
Wikipedia Article on Optical Fiber Communication

"First-Mile" and "Last-Mile"
Because Internet access is largely dependent on geography, these terms refer to related problems in delivery of services in the first and last miles of network grids. First-mile issues usually deal with competing in dense urban environments for space to lay down the fiberoptic network. Last-mile issues deal with the challenges of delivering access to rural areas where fiberoptics and other infrastructure would be cost-prohibitive.

Mesh Networking
Use of multiple, lower-capacity nodes to route data. Wireless mesh networking is particularly efficient in urban areas, as this structure introduces redundancies and builds capacity into what can otherwise be a low-capacity, lateral network.
Wikipedia Article on Mesh Networking

OSS: Open Source Software
Also called FLOSS, FOSS, or F/LOSS for variations on free/libre OSS
Software developed and distributed communally, without commercial gain. Code is nonproprietary and can be altered and redistributed without restriction.
See the philosophy on

VSAT: Very Small Aperture Terminal
Satellite technology
Wikipedia Article on VSAT

Wi-Fi: Wireless Fidelity
General term referring to data transmission over a wireless connection. Low-reach, capacity dependent on network, making it a great candidate for mesh networking.
Wikipedia Article on Wi-Fi

WiMAX:** Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access
High-capacity, far-reaching, telecommunications platform run off different parts of the spectrum in different parts of the world
Wikipedia Article on WiMAX
WiMAX in Africa

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