Government in the Metaverse - Public Works Group Blog

December 26, 2008August 8, 2010

Whoâ€™s Leading the Charge to Web 2.0?

Today I read a recently released white paper, Government 2.0: Building Communities with Web 2.0 and Social Networking. Overall, I thought the paper did a good job summarizing much of the ongoing, online discussions and research on this topic. However, I sensed an underlying attitude that concerned me as a government employee. This unspoken, read-between-the-lines belief by the author was finally put to words in the conclusion when he stated: “Ultimately CIOs must decide for themselves if Web 2.0 technology makes sense for their community and if this is the time to invest in it.”

Now, I don’t know about the rest of you working in government, but I can’t begin to tell you how many times our city attorney has lectured me that we are only employed to give advice; it it the job of the elected officials to make the final decisions. I realize we are left to make some decisions on a daily basis without having to run to the mayor or city manager each time, so I take his comment as meaning the “big” decisions. As the city engineer, I can make recommendations about what roads need to be repaired, but in the end, the mayor and the aldermen make the final choice. And I make the repairs based on their decision.

So making the statement that ultimately it will be up to the CIO to decide if his community should embrace Web 2.0 is like saying it is up to our city attorney to decide if he should begin legal proceedings to condemn and demolish someone’s home that doesn’t meet local ordinances. All of us would think that is ridiculous. Those types of community-wide decisions that have the chance to impact our citizens and expend funds must be made by the elected officials. CIOs can recommend and present implementation of Web 2.0, but ultimately, the elected officials will be the ones to accept or deny its use.

The role of the CIO is something I have been thinking about for some time and even more so since meeting Bill Greeves, Director of Information Technology for Roanoke County, Virginia. He and I co-founded the MuniGov 2.0 group to serve as a resource for local government folks looking at Web 2.0 implementation. Not one of the members of this group, who are primarily people working in the information technology or computer fields, have ever expressed an attitude or opinion similar to that put forth by this report. In fact, all have viewed their role in this as a professional who has recognized the need to develop the skills necessary to face the future Web 2.0-related demands of their agency. They all have approached implementation of Web 2.0 as that of a person who will most likely lead the charge, but primarily as a facilitator, collaborator, and mentor to others in their workforce.

Their approach has restored an image I had of that profession that was obviously undeserving but brought about by years of hearing others in government complain about the IT department. The complaints I have heard are that IT prevents them from being able to do their work by restricting access to programs. Talking with Bill about this, I realize that IT has an important responsibility to protect the security of the network, and most likely, these restrictions have been set in place by IT to accomplish that task. But Bill takes a very practical approach to this by indicating that while security is vital, that goal should not keep an IT professional from working with others in the agency to investigate implementing needed software. (See his article on this – published by the same entity that published the report above – addressing this topic from an IT professional’s perspective: Can’t We All Just Get Along?)

As we move into the future and acceptance of Web 2.0, I do believe that IT professionals will be moved out of the basement (as so humorously depicted in the British television show, the IT Crowd) and take a well-deserved place on the upper floors. And I believe that instead of complaining about how IT keeps everyone from being able to do what they want to do, people need to realize how much IT does to make sure they can keep working. We need to “friend an IT person,” find out what their job really entails, and realize that as computers increase in importance, it will be these folks who most likely will be leading the charge. But the charge will not be successful if they do not obtain the trust and buy-in from other departments (and comments like those in this report do not facilitate that type of cooperation with people who already look upon the IT department with distrust and consternation). And no one will be charging at all without the green light from elected officials.

December 20, 2008July 2, 2010

Civil Engineering in the Virtual World

For the past two years, I have been exploring Second Life as a potential tool for civil engineers, public works professionals, and local government. Now, thanks to Silverwing Benoir, a friend of mine from Second Life, I will have the opportunity to present what I have discovered, try to offer some insight into future applications, and hopefully generate some interesting discussion. If anyone is interested in attending this talk, titled Simulating Civil Engineering Projects in Virtual Worlds, it will be held in Second Life at noon (EST), Monday, Dec. 29, 2008. You can register for the presentation for free at the Value-Train Website.

December 7, 2008July 2, 2010

Visualizing the ADA in 3-D

Tired of trying to get a curb ramp built that meets the ADA? Instead of photos of your kids are you carrying around pictures of a compliant curb ramp to show the contractor? Join the club – ever since the curb ramp section of the ADA was finalized, sidewalk design and construction have never been the same. The basic concept is simple; the need is imperative. However, getting it to all fit existing conditions and educating the contractor about the requirements have been the stumbling blocks.

This is why the Public Works Resource Center in Second Life has started a project to develop 3-D visualizations of the design solutions presented in the following Special Report: Accessible Public Rights-of-Way Planning and Design for Alterations, developed by PROWAAC. Perhaps seeing the designs in 3-D in a virtual environment can enhance the understanding of these regulations.

3-D Visualization of the Design Solution 1.01 in the PROWAAC Report

Some other ideas for using virtual worlds to increase understanding of the ADA requirements are:

Creating a virtual build of the existing conditions to try out different ideas. If this was built in a community area, others could come by and offer input and help working with a method similar to that of the Wikitecture project.

For training purposes, educators could build sample intersections and have students place pre-made components to show their understanding of the regulations.

For now, as each 3-D build becomes available, it will be added to a design solution libraries at the Public Works Resource Center in Second Life.

November 27, 2008August 8, 2010

The Personal Rapid Transit Revolution

As the world searches for an answer to reducing the use of fossil fuels, cities are starting to look to the personal rapid transit (PRT) system as a potential solution. Lately, MISTER, a Polish-based company, has gained increasing notice for their innovative PRT system. MISTER is an acronym for Metropolitan Individual System of Transportation on an Elevated Rail. The design consists of a group of small, light-weight vehicles or cabins that travel on an overhead truss rail and have externally powered electric motors integrated into the vehicle carriage assembly.

The MISTER system is reported to have an advantage over competitors because of the use of the light overhead truss system while other PRTs rely on guide rails and track systems. The overhead guide allows cars to climb at 45-degree angles while keeping the floor of the vehicle level. The steep inclines also reduce the area required on the ground for stops

The system is designed to carry up to 5 passengers who enter a PRT vehicle at designated stops and select their destination using an onboard computer. This programmed stop can also be changed during the trip by the passengers. Opole, a city in Poland, has allocated land for a test track for the MISTER system and is in the process of planning routes throughout the city.

MISTER is only one of many PRT systems in development. More information about PRT systems and other alternative transportation technologies can be found at the Innovative Transportation Technologies site hosted by the University of Washington.

For those interested in viewing and trying out a virtual, 3D representation of the MISTER system, you can visit the Second Life site of the UN Climate Change Conference by clicking here. (You will need a free Second Life account and avatar available at the Second Life Website.)

November 16, 2008November 16, 2008

Conferences, World of Warcraft, and Professional Achievement

Lately my mind has been preoccupied with thoughts of conferences (going to GreenBuild 2008), public works and engineering, World of Warcraft (WoW), family, and social media applications. With all that jumbled up inside there, it was inevitable that these subjects would start bumping into each other. One of these collisions involved this idea: “Blizzard wants people to play their games; employers want their employees to produce.” Blizzard has been successful at getting millions to not only play their games, but pay to do so. How can businesses leverage their success?

To explore Blizzard’s success, we need to ask ourselves, “why do people choose to play WoW.” I imagine you would get many different responses from the millions of registered users, but in the end, I believe it all comes down to the fact that people like to think they have achieved something. The foundation of WoW is that you choose a representation of yourself, choose abilities and professions, then achieve the goal of getting your character to an end level by completing duties or “quests.” According to my son, the end result is that you have achieved the highest level and can outfit yourself with awesome and enviable gear.

Blizzard seems to have recognized this basic need to achieve accomplishments because with their recent release they added “Achievements.” Now players are awarded points and badges in their achievement tab for completing regular game activities such as fully exploring an area, defeating a specific monster, completing so many quests in a day, etc.

This system of awarding badges for achievements reminds me of the badge system in girl scouts and boy scouts. Remember how we would complete specific tasks for the purpose of earning a badge, and how important it was to have the badges displayed on a sash or other item? Scouting uses the system to encourage leadership and good citizenship; Blizzard is using it to encourage more subscriptions. But they are both using the same system to achieve their goals

Even with our children, we are taught to use rewards like stickers on a calendar that can be traded in for something at the store. This idea of using rewards to motivate children has been picked up by all the online media that targets kids such as Webkinz and Club Penguin. Players are assigned duties and given digital badges and items as their rewards.

So in the end, if all this works as we are growing up, why are we abandoning it as adults? Maybe because we feel silly giving out rewards for everyday accomplishments – maybe because we feel the salary or pay should be reward enough. But is this working? We all are brought up to expect and understand the reward system, and then at age 18 it all fades away, and we are expected to stay motivated only for the purpose of getting a paycheck.

So, trying to put aside the traditional approach and going out on a limb, I thought what types of simple things could we do in the workplace to incorporate this reward system? Remembering that these rewards could be set up to be actual objects like badges or digital representations that people can display on desktops or Webpages.

Give out badges for number of letters written or e-mails sent. Achievements could also be given to reward timely responses.

Conferences should give out badges for attendance. (I also like the idea of sending out something like pins or ribbons that say something like “Attending GreenBuild 2008” so attendees can network, if they choose, on the way to the conference.)

In my field, I would like to give out badges for number of potholes filled, garbage cans emptied, water breaks fixed, water meters installed, complaints handled, etc.

Microsoft could help promote this in the workplace by offering an option to incorporate an achievement type system like that used in WoW into MS Office. Then I can get an achievement badge in MS Office after making so many Powerpoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets, or even using some of the more advanced tools in my work.

Professional associations could encourage these achievement systems by awarding mega badges based on conferences attended – a water badge for attending all the major water-related conferences in a year. Or in the spirit of creating a digital persona that displays your accomplishments, allow for the setup of a digital character that is rewarded items based on your professional accomplishments.

Those are only a few simple examples; the idea is to remember we have been programmed growing up to receive rewards for our achievements. Let’s understand how other industries have used this basic concept to successfully motivate, and then let’s apply it in the workplace to increase production and a sense of accomplishment in our employees. Is it really all that silly if it works?

A humorous aside to all this discussion of achievements: Someone has applied this idea of achievements to the presidential election by portraying President-elect Obama gaining an achievement in WoW.

November 15, 2008August 8, 2010

Bumping into the DOT

As a civil engineer, the federal agencies I visit online are usually the DOT, EPA, and FHWA with an occasional click over to the USGS. Upon my entry into Second Life, I searched for these agencies within that virtual world and found nothing.

The only federal agencies that had made it into the virtual realm and set up islands were NASA, NOAA, and the CDC. And although from a personal level, I enjoyed visiting the islands and learning about agencies I really had known little about, I still held hope that one day, I would be able to visit the DOT, EPA, or FHWA in virtual form.

Well that day might be finally getting nearer. Last week, while I was traveling through Second Life researching colleges and universities for an article I am working on, I noticed an island called DOT World. I clicked it hoping it was open to the public, and sure enough I was teleported to the ground. There was only one building so I worried that maybe I had assumed wrong about the name of the island. Maybe someone had just happened to choose the common abbreviation for the Department of Transportation. But once I entered the small structure sitting in the corner of the sim, I knew it was the DOT for which I had searched. There on the conference table was the DOT logo.

As excited as I was to find the DOT in Second Life and as much as I wanted to tell everyone, I felt I should check to make sure they wouldn’t mind having their presence known – some agencies want to enter the virtual realm as quietly as possible while they figure out their approach to this new technology. So I IMed the island’s owner and received confirmation that I could publicly let folks know they were there. Unfortunately since then, they have closed off the island to public access so although they might not mind having folks know they are there, they seem to have decided they don’t want them poking around.

Anyway it appears official, the DOT has entered the virtual realm and set up shop in Second Life. And even though right now they only have one building for meetings and have decided not to let anyone visit, at least it is a start; perhaps they will even encourage the FHWA to follow them in. So with all the speculation about how progressive the Obama administration will be and how they will embrace new technologies, I have to think that it might not be long before I can attend classes and collect resources virtually. You don’t get much closer to putting a face to government than establishing an digital representations of your staff in avatar form.