I MOVE that the Board adopt the strategy document as the basis for 1996's operational and financial planning. --------------- Moved by: seconded by: Julie Chahal Chris Hawley Vice President, National Capital FreeNet Chair, Board Planning Committee MOTION CARRIED - 1995-12-19 National Capital FreeNet Strategic Direction for 1996 ----------------------------------------------------- NCF MISSION ----------- "The National Capital FreeNet is a free, computer-based information sharing network. It links the people and organizations of this region, provides useful information, and enables an open exchange of ideas with the world. Community involvement makes FreeNet an important and accessible meeting place, and prepares people for full participation in a rapidly changing communications environment." CURRENT SITUATION ----------------- NCF has been, and is, successful in achieving this mission. We have attracted sufficient voluntary support that we remain free of charge. We have brought a large number of people and organizations to our information sharing network. We have the involvement of many parts of our regional community. We are linked to the wider world of the Internet. But the communications environment IS changing rapidly. The World Wide Web has attracted a phenomenal amount of interest and activity. "Internet" is now a household word, and Internet access providers are springing up rapidly, with access costs dropping in a competitive environment. The method of using Internet and the Web is rapidly changing, but is currently based on a graphical interface, a client-server architecture, and a hypertext language. NCF is now in danger of failing to prepare people for full participation in the current networking environment, and of failing to provide an important and accessible meeting place, as more and more organizations set up Web sites instead of FreeNet menus. If NCF does not stay up-to-date, we run the risk of becoming a ghetto for the information-poor, instead of helping all members of our community participate equally and fully in future information networks. BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE: STRATEGY OVERVIEW ------------------------------------------ In order to build on our current success, to avoid the danger of becoming irrelevant, and to fulfil our mission of serving everyone in the community, NCF needs a strategy for change. This will ensure that every member of the regional community will continue to have the opportunity for full participation in a rapidly changing communications environment. As a first step in this process, the NCF Board has approved a direction "to implement increasing access to, and visibility from, the World Wide Web." PUBLIC PARTICIPATION STRATEGY ----------------------------- NCF must address the remaining significant barriers to participation in networking: computer and computer networking ease-of-use and literacy, cost of equipment, awareness and relevance of content and services. Our current tightly limited, text-based interface has become a barrier to vibrant communication. The cost of network access (now on the order of $10 per month and dropping) is no longer a significant barrier to many, but not all, people of the National Capital Region. Strategy: - make greater use of volunteers to improve computer networking literacy through demonstrations, training, tutoring, software distribution and other means. Focus on groups that are not being well served now, such as women, children, francophones, underemployed, teachers, parents, elected officials, and the media. - provide "storefront" accessibility and visibility of NCF, to reach out to and introduce more members of the public to electronic community networking, and to provide a physical space for informal and formal orientation, training sessions and public access stations. - enhance the dialogue with the public about NCF content and service offerings so that more people will perceive NCF as important, relevant and useful -- worth the "costs" (monetary, time and learning) of getting there and to ensure that NCF continues to meet the public's information needs. - strengthen partnerships with organizations who do, or could, house public access stations to expand the quantity and quality of public access stations; - actively seek out organizations, companies and individuals within the community who could enhance NCF content and services. ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY ----------------------- Many other organizations are and will be offering network products comparable to NCF. NCF is a not-for-profit community organization in what has become a competitive, commercial environment. As a not-for-profit, NCF's enduring advantage will be our image and prestige as "the COMMUNITY Network". Continuing voluntary support from the community will help keep NCF free. The community needs a free, open, accessible, community meeting place on the net, not dominated or controlled by commercial or government interests. If NCF fades away, we will not have served our community properly, and the National Capital region will be a poorer place to live. Therefore, size and growth are important. If we have lots of members, donations, volunteers, content and services, then we can afford to hire more staff, buy more and better equipment and attract more interest. This can be a continuing growth spiral. But if we stay constant while others grow, then we will lose content, interest and members -- we will enter a death spiral. Strategy: - adopt organizational methods that are effective and progressive; find people with the skills, knowledge, and experience needed, and organize volunteers into rewarding and well-defined roles; - actively work within the local community; build partnerships with other community organizations that have information networking needs and roles; - periodically review the organizational structure to make sure that the growth strategy is supported, key positions are filled and that everyone understands objectives, policy, accountability, responsibility, reporting relationships, etc.; - ensure that NCF members continue to have a say in the direction and operation of the organization; - draw on local experts to review plans, get advice, etc. -- ask people with the expertise we need to volunteer. CONTENT, SERVICES AND ACCESS ---------------------------- Content and services will give people a reason to "click on NCF" no matter how they get access. "Content" refers to the material that you read, see, or hear, such as text, newsgroup articles, art, graphics, video, music, sound. "Services" refers to the functions performed at your request, such as a database search, a calculation, sending or posting messages, transferring files, seeing who is online, etc. "Network access" refers to the combination of modems, phone lines, computers and software communication tools that allows a person to interact with network content, services and other people. CONTENT STRATEGY ---------------- NCF was one of the first and most accessible places for organizations in this community to post their information. Now most organizations (and individuals) would like to have a Web Home Page. Graphics, such as maps, drawings and photos, are now considered basic components of electronic information, not frills. NCF should provide support for sharing this type of information. The most popular content of NCF right now is provided by the members themselves. We should allow this content to expand by attracting the artistic talent in the community; encouraging people to display their writing (in all languages used in this multicultural community), their works of art, their songs, their music, their stories, their faces. Strategy: - allow and encourage information providers, organizations, individuals and local businesses to set up WWW pages on NCF servers; - develop a range of services to assist content-providers of all kinds to build information and cultural offerings that are informative, attractive and accessible to everyone; - work with the community to build a sense of pride and enthusiasm in participating in their own community network. SERVICES STRATEGY ----------------- The Internet and WWW to date have been primarily focused on access and content, but now the trend is to expand services. NCF has the opportunity to be a leader in providing services that bring content and people together into a real community. The most widespread services today include communications (e-mail, newsgroups, chat), search facilities, and information organization (hierarchical menus, hypertext links). NCF provides most of these using the FreePort software. As we move to a WWW format, we must continue to provide these basic services, but must expand our services, especially in area of community-building. Strategy: - maintain links between content, discussion and context as currently exist in our hierarchical menus, text files and newsgroups; - increase services that give a sense of other people being present on-line and contributing to the community; - work with Telecommunities Canada to coordinate service development in community networks; share/exchange/fund software development; - cultivate the image of NCF being the place to meet your friends, make new friends, exchange views, get community information, etc. NETWORK ACCESS STRATEGY ----------------------- With the rapid growth of commercial Internet access providers (which is expected to continue and become more competitive), NCF should place less emphasis on network access. We should continue to facilitate and encourage community activism to make sure that network access is cheap and accessible to everyone in the community. Providing some free access modems and free public terminals will continue to ensure that money is not a barrier to access. However, we should encourage members who can afford it to give their network access business to local companies who in turn could support NCF as an interesting and attractive on-line destination. Strategy: - maintain a limited pool of free access modems; explore ways of encouraging members who can afford other options to use those options instead of loading NCF free modems; - encourage and help content providers to maintain core information in a form accessible to users of low-cost, text-based equipment; - expand the number of free public access terminals by encouraging sponsorships by organizations where these terminals are located; - change funding and sponsorship methods so that they are not dependent on the means of network access; - develop partnerships with local internet access providers so that network access remains cheap and easy, while NCF remains the place that links the people and organizations of this region. CONCLUSION ---------- These strategies for 1996 are intended to give NCF sufficient power to serve all the community, not just a segment. If NCF targets just one segment of the community, it will be unlikely to become the community network, and thus lose an important advantage and will perhaps wither, eventually serving no-one. NCF's best bet to remain the community network is to accommodate everyone: all types of people, all ranges of interests, and all perceptions of value. People are different -- NCF must accommodate differences.