{"id":651,"date":"2005-01-07T15:02:00","date_gmt":"2005-01-07T09:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/archives\/651"},"modified":"2005-01-07T15:02:00","modified_gmt":"2005-01-07T09:32:00","slug":"text-messages-aid-disaster-recovery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2005\/01\/text-messages-aid-disaster-recovery\/","title":{"rendered":"Text messages aid disaster recovery"},"content":{"rendered":"

BBC NEWS | Technology | Text messages aid disaster recovery<\/a>:Text messaging technology was a valuable communication tool in the aftermath of the tsunami disaster in Asia. <\/p>\n

Here’s my take:<\/strong>
1) SMS-to-blog: I think this would have saved a lot of trouble in disseminating information from the ground. None of the popular blogging services offer it; obviously because it involves inter-operability with service providers across the world.
2) Remember MTNSMS? The South-African telecom service provider had a website that allowed people to send (and receive) text messages to cell phones worldwide. They shut down the free service later on. Maybe we could revive it to use it for disaster alerts.
3) Even now it is possible to blog via SMS<\/a>. But it is a work-around. It involves syntax that a lay person might find difficult to use. I am for a service similar to Blogger’s e-mail-to-blog: you choose a secret e-mail id, and publish posts by sending mails to that id.
4) Mobile phone service providers may want to offer a service helping bloggers. I read somewhere that blog readership has gone up by more than 50%. So, this could be a great value-add to service providers.
5) Maybe we should look at toll-free text messaging. No charges when you send a message to a particular number (the message is published on an alert website or an e-mail group).<\/p>\n

The flip-side though is the possible misuse of such services. I keep getting junk mail on sumank.tsunami[at]blogger[dot]com (a mail to this id is published on http:\/\/tsunamihelpindia.blogspot.com<\/a>). Some moron was sending stupid messages to it. But I don’t think a few morons should deter us from lending a helping hand to the millions.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n<\/map>\n

<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BBC NEWS | Technology | Text messages aid disaster recovery:Text messaging technology was a valuable communication tool in the aftermath of the tsunami disaster in Asia. Here’s my take:1) SMS-to-blog: I think this would have saved a lot of trouble in disseminating information from the ground. None of the popular blogging services offer it; obviously […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[],"tags":[58],"class_list":["post-651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-tsunami"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false,"jetpack-portfolio-admin-thumb":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Suman Kumar","author_link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/author\/suman-kumar\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"BBC NEWS | Technology | Text messages aid disaster recovery:Text messaging technology was a valuable communication tool in the aftermath of the tsunami disaster in Asia. Here’s my take:1) SMS-to-blog: I think this would have saved a lot of trouble in disseminating information from the ground. None of the popular blogging services offer it; obviously…","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Gbk8-av","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":620,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2004\/12\/tsunami-help-india\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":0},"title":"Tsunami Help India","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"December 29, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"I have created a new blog for victims, relief agenices, volunteers, people searching for their loved ones, and information on the disasterTsunami Help India: \"Send an e-mail (from a web-based mail service. Outlook and other e-mail clients mess the text up) to sumank.tsunami[at]blogger[dot]com to post information on lost people, request\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"tsunami\"","block_context":{"text":"tsunami","link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/tag\/tsunami\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":616,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2004\/12\/more-blogs-on-tsunami-disaster\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":1},"title":"More Blogs on Tsunami Disaster","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"December 28, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"TsunamiHelp is a collaborative blog for News and information about resources, aid, donations and volunteer efforts. More information, first-hand accounts on WorldChanging.com.","rel":"","context":"In \"tsunami\"","block_context":{"text":"tsunami","link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/tag\/tsunami\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1120,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2004\/12\/publish-information-on-this-site-via-your-e-mail\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":2},"title":"Publish Information On This Site Via Your E-mail","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"December 29, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Send an e-mail (from a web-based mail service. Outlook and other e-mail clients mess the text up) to sumank.tsunami[at]blogger[dot]com to post information on lost people, request for contributions, relief requirements, volunteer request, or just about anything that's related to the Tsunami disaster.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":783,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2005\/08\/world-bank-discussion-on-private-sector-and-tsunami-recovery\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":3},"title":"World Bank discussion on private sector and tsunami recovery","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"August 4, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"I received a mail from the World Bank, seeking my contribution to the discussion on 'World Bank discussion on private sector and tsunami recovery'. I am copy\/pasting the mail as is. Read it and please contribute. Also, forward this message to friends who might be interested in contributing. Communists please\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"tsunami\"","block_context":{"text":"tsunami","link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/tag\/tsunami\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":648,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2005\/01\/media-and-the-disaster\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":4},"title":"Media and the disaster","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"January 6, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Rajeev gets hammered on Rediff boards;However, not every one was against Rajeev's view ('wrath of god\/sage'):It is common human proclivity to brush off something which goes against the normal grain. It has been proven time and again that ideas; trivial as they might look to begin with, have been proven\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"tsunami\"","block_context":{"text":"tsunami","link":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/tag\/tsunami\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":627,"url":"https:\/\/sumankumar.com\/blog\/2004\/12\/tsunami-death-toll-may-reach-100000-red-cross\/","url_meta":{"origin":651,"position":5},"title":"Tsunami Death Toll May Reach 100000: Red Cross","author":"Suman Kumar","date":"December 30, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"The total number of people dead because of the Tsunami disaster has reached mammoth proportions: 80000 people officially dead. However, Red Cross fears that the number could reach 100,000. It is believed that one-third of the dead could be children. 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