Suggestions for FLOS biketour IC tools

Add your recommendations and comments on the possible FLOS communication tools below:

The aim of this page is to collect a list of possible libre and open-source information and communication technology tools for Biketour purposes.

General arguments about why ecotopiabiketour aims to use and promote FLOS, can be found here.

eMail

Currently: mostly Gmail :(

Preferences: To ensure communication from "outside" and "within" the Biketour collective. Something that is secure, private, does not steal our data; and will possible filter our messages by subject; keep our lovely name@ecotopiabiketour addresses; with unlimited or lots of 'labels';

Known Alternatives:

• Round-cube
• Squirrel Mail
• Riseup
• Thunderbird

Website & Blog

Currently: wordpress-based, privately hosted website through the very cool Ecobytes :)

Voice over IP

Currently: mostly private Skype accounts :(

Preferences: Voice and or video meetings.

Known Alternatives:

• Mumble
• Pigion

Collaborative working on texts / documents / archive

Currently: mediawiki wiki

Preferences: Getting organised / handover / archive / storage / public space with private options

Known Alternatives

• Crabgrass

Collaborative Mapping

Preferences: Decentrally collecting tips for places to visit, lay out routes, mark interesting regions, overlap with other interesting thematical maps/layers (e.g. from other tours or bike maps)

Known Alternatives:

• http://open.mapquest.co.uk/

- a typical example how big corporations (mis-)use open source data for their own purposes: mapquest is a company of AOL.

• http://osmtools.de/easymap/

- takes a little while to get used to it, but pretty self-explaining. unfortunately not suitable for collaboration, since the map has to be locally saved (and then transferred on a web site) each time.

- this map was made with easymap: http://www.memfarado.org/projects/ecotopiabiketour/2013/route/map/map.html

File hosting / File sharing

Preferences: Anyone being able to easily provide larger files for exchange (photos, maps, ...) which are too big for mailing lists and might not interest everyone on a list.

Known Alternatives:

Social Networking

Currently we have a facebook page :(

Preferences: Something that does not track our friends or circles for suspicious behavior when we think it is a closed network ... it is not. Something that connects us as a 'bridge' to the mainstream - so we do not constantly talk within the same circles... our 'outreach' of you will.

Known Alternatives:

• Identica ( not mainstream )
• Crabgrass ( not mainstream )

Micro Blogging

Currently we have a Twitter account but do not use it

Preference: Same as above

Known Alternatives:

• Identica

Question: is this really essential communication????

Web > tel : Bridging

Currently use expensive sms mobile phones :(

Preference: Cheap way of providing (short) info (sms style) to global phone networks from the web (for example when we are on the road or others are on the road to join us)

Known Alternatives:

• Not sending them
• Web phone ???

Other Graphic Tools

Preference: To make things look cool quickly

Know Alternatives:

• Lightworks (video editing)
• Blender (animation)
• Gimp (vector designs and 2d artwork)