Cybertigi is a project aimed at extending the ICT services available in relatively urban centers outward to village sized (and smaller) communities. The guiding principals are straightforward:

• ICTs need not be limited to larger population centers. It is possible to meet the demand for ICTs in more rural settings in practical and applicable manners.
• Providing new tool sets to people (in this case in the form of ICTs) can yield multiplier benefits.
• Infrastructure hurdles can be overcome with adapted technologies.
• ICTs can be used to create economic opportunities previously unrealizable.
• There are social benefits to having access to ICTs and comparable tools.

Our goal is to design and build a system which addresses the basic communication demands of rural communities, and construct it in such a way that it can be an autonomous, entrepreneur-based, and commercially viable system shortly after its implementation. We are attempting to build a symbiotic model where each actor in the system benefits from the overall well being of the “circuit” it is a part of.

Each circuit is comprised of several actors:

1. The CLIC: a cybercafé in a more urban environment where emails will be channeled through, paper and photo prints will be processed, and news feeds will be gathered.
2. The village Kiosk & its manager (branded as “Cybertigi” in the villages): a local kiosk where the community is able to access the services such as scanning, emailing, news feeds, etc.
3. The Mototigi: an intermediary who will physically transport data and documents between the CLIC and the Cybertigi/Kiosk.
4. Local photographer: an agent of the Cybertigi/Kiosk who will help develop clientele while receiving a portion of the business he/she generates through taking photographs.

When a person comes to the village Kiosk and demands a service – say a scan/print – they carry out the process at the kiosk [make their scan] and deal directly with the Kiosk manager. The scan is then stored on the village Kiosk until later in the week when the Mototigi passes by and collects the data. The Mototigi then proceeds to the CLIC where he/she processes the data. Emails are sent, scans are printed, photos are developed.

But the information travels in both directions. After the messages composed at the Kiosk are sent any new incoming messages are gathered and stored for delivery back to the Kiosk. The latest news feeds are also gathered and stored. Prints and photos are collected to be remitted at the Kiosk.

Within each week there is at least 1 voyage between the Kiosk and the CLIC. Each time the Mototigi gathers data from the Kiosk he/she is also delivering the data from the previous visit at the CLIC. Each Kiosk has data gathered/delivered at least once per week, meaning the lag between when you scan something or send an email is no more than 6 days. Where possible this can be reduced to 3 days, or 2 circuits per week.

The information is collected and transferred at the Kiosk and CLIC via a Nokia 770 internet tablet specially configured for the system. There is a VIA in the Kiosk and another located at the CLIC to handle the data when it arrives there. The Nokia 770 is the transfer mechanism between the two points. In the future, as the project matures, we envision the Nokia 770 acting as a portable Kiosk to service even smaller hamlets of only a few hundred people on the waypoints between the Kiosk and the CLIC. Coupled with a portable scanner, keyboard, and headset it has the potential of offering the same degree of service in many of the most rural areas of the countryside.

There are 2 circuits in the Cybertigi model, each comprised of 1 CLIC and 2 villages hosting Kiosks. The circuits are as follows:

The Kiosks are permanent installations in the villages, are managed by a local entrepreneur, and are operational each day of the week. It is in the best interest of the local Kiosk manager to be available as much as possible throughout the week since their pay is directly commensurate with the amount of services sold.

For instance, when a scan/print is demanded by the client the cost is 100 CFA, equivalent to the local market rate for this type of service. The cost of materials is roughly 30 CFA. The CLIC receives 30 CFA for their service fee and use of their printer. The Mototigi who will bring the data to the CLIC and the hardcopy back to the village receives 10 CFA as his fee. Finally, the Kiosk manager, dubbed the Cybertigi, earns 30 CFA for their time. [*scan/print is the only service which does not include a portion for amortization of equipment. All other services portion out an amount towards amortization & savings] For a photo taken by the Cybertigi the manager receives 225 CFA per print (45% of purchase price); Emails 50 CFA of 100 CFA.

The Kiosk hardware is comprised of a VIA PHD computer, an LCD monitor, a scanner, a digital camera, a headset and microphone, lighting for the evenings, a solar Each Kiosk is powered by one 60W solar panel connected to a 100 mAh dry cell solar battery with a charge controller. 5W low power/high yield lights provide extra illumination at nights without drawing too much of the system’s power. The VIA and the LCD each consume approximately 30W when in use. The Nokia 770, although part of the system, is not included with the hardware of the Kiosk. The printers (laser & photo) are located at the CLIC.

At the moment the data has to be collected via the Nokia 770, but there are efforts underway to arrange the transfer directly through a standard flash memory-based USB drive. This option creates the potential for wider proliferation of Cybertigi services.

The principal Kiosk services are email, news feeds, voice mail, scan/copy, and photos. In the near future we envision the Kiosks also offering offline Wikipedia access, access to market rates for agricultural products, small commerce auctioning services across the various communities Cybertigi is involved in, and many other services. We hope to create an atmosphere where new ideas, solutions, and services are fostered both by the actors within the system and their client base.

As previously mentioned, at least once a week the Mototigi will visit each village Kiosk on the circuit (at the moment 2 Kiosks per circuit) and finish the trip at the CLIC where information is transferred and hardcopies are printed. On a regular schedule the following week the Mototigi will continue back on the circuit to deliver the materials/collect the new data and continue back to the CLIC. In the future the Mototigi will be stopping in the smaller hamlets during these trips to offer Cybertigi solutions in those areas as well.

Cybertigi is designed as a sustainable commercial enterprise. The ideal is for each actor in the system to receive enough financial benefit to make Cybertigi their full time profession – similar to a shop owner. Each person takes a share of the revenues generated by the project, and it is in the best interests of all to collaborate for greater overall gains. No one person can subvert the benefits of another without causing negative personal repercussions. We are working hard to make the model as autonomous as possible. It is meant to be wholly managed by the actors involved.

The solar panels were installed on May 18^th with Ludovic performing some light acrobatics during the installation. The VIA computer and battery used for the kiosk was installed in a spare room in the Mayor’s office, while the solar panel was mounted on the rooftop. The kiosk was operational but there was still some work do finish before the Faraba kiosk could be considered fully prepared for business.

It was also during this visit we had the opportunity to interview our first candidate for the kiosk manager position, Mr. Morinuman Doumbia. We had previously expressed our interest in finding someone from the area who would manage the kiosk as if it was their own personal enterprise, sharing a portion of the receipts generated as their wage. Mr. Doumbia was the first candidate to express an interest in the position.

It was also during this visit that Frederic was able to test his newly reconstructed radio emitter using Faraba’s 50m tower. Terrific success! Frederic’s transmission was able to be captured very clearly from Ouelessebougou, a roughly 32km line-of-sight distance away from where he was transmitting from. Aside from having Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” play 17 consecutive times to the torment of all, the radio test was a raving success. Congratulations Frederic!

Shortly thereafter, on the 5^th of June Matt and I returned to Faraba to begin our first test of the system and also to prepare our activities for the coming week, including a community film night, making the final selection of an entrepreneur, the last kiosk adjustments, and preparations for the commercial opening of the kiosk.

It was also around this time when more intensive work began with the Ouelessebougou CLIC to resolve connectivity issues. The CLIC at that time did not have an internet connection established and could not meet its monthly subscription charges. Since Cybertigi demands a stable internet connection to be a viable operation Geekcorps will begin working more closely with the Ouelessebougou CLIC to attempt to improve the connectivity and revenue problems.

I spent Monday and Tuesday in Faraba with Mohamed to begin finalizing the kiosk, make arrangements for Friday’s community film, and other necessary details, and on Wednesday met up with Matt in Ouelessebougou to begin working on the CLIC side project – affectionately known around the GCM office as the SNAP. [briefly: we hope to launch a CLIC extension in the heart of downtown Ouelessebougou and have a mini cybercafé set up on a bench & worktable and run by a boutique owner] On Tuesday I also began the necessary protocols and site inspections for the second site, Niagadina, on the Ouelessebougou Cybertigi circuit.

On June 9^th the Cybertigi team minus Fred and Maimouna visited Faraba one more time to tie up the remaining details for the kiosk to be operational. We interviewed candidates and made our final decision for the entrepreneur, in the end finding Ms. Déneba Samaké clearly the candidate for the position. We installed 2 low power consumption / high yield lights which draw only 5W each at the kiosk at the Mayor’s office. We placed one inside for the kiosk to be able to be used at night (a necessity since most people work in the fields during the daylight hours) and one outside so the community would have at least one well light area for students or others to use after sunset.

The highlight of the trip was the community movie night. Using the InFocus projector we’ve previously mentioned we hosted a community movie night in the town’s open access courtyard. We began with Kirikou, an animated film based on an African folk tale suitable for both younger and older audiences. At the beginning of the film we had roughly 200 attendees; by the end clearly well over 500. We followed Kirikou with an action/martial arts film – very popular here. The goal for these films was twofold: to build awareness of Cybertigi and its services, and to thank the community for their assistance up to this point. No film had been shown in Faraba in more than 10 years.

Today Mohamed left Bamako to head back to Faraba for the next week and a half to begin training Jéneba Samaké on the system and Cybertigi as a whole. During this time they will also begin building awareness within the community about Cybertigi and its services. Within the next few days I will be heading down to Faraba to lend assistance and begin preparing Niagadina with Matt.

So, that’s the quick summation of the past few weeks. Believe me, there are plenty more details not mentioned, but that’s the outline. We’re running at a good pace right now and there is no indication that things will slow down at all in the near future. Niagadina is about to be opened, and if all goes very well we hope to have the Kangaba CLIC circuit up and running within another month as well, Inch Allah. Next week we begin preparing the Bancoumana and Naréna sites so we can launch at the earliest possible moment. We’re ready, the project elements are looking good (with a nice dose of “challenging” thrown in), and the ball is already moving – quickly. Looks like the next month and a half is going to be a great one!

Mohamed is a graduate of the Modern Technical College of Sikasso, studied accounting, has worked and acted as manager in small boutiques in the Sikasso region, has experience with women’s groups, and is well suited for the travel and other requirements of the position.

Over the next 2 weeks Mohamed will be splitting his time between Bamako and Ouelessebougou/Faraba where he will be working for the first month or two while we set up the first kiosk.  In Bamako Mohamed will be learning about the elements of the project and its goals and being trained on how to operate the kiosks.  In time he will be training others in these same areas.

Renaud, as always, has been skillfully piecing together the kiosk’s interface. At present he has the scanner/photocopy service nearly nailed down, the news feed reader nearly ready, the voice messaging program working, and is working on the email component now. The bulk of Renauld’s time recently has been on how to have the kiosks in our villages transfer all the various data elements to our hub in Ouelessebougou, create billing logs of each transaction, leave no chance of loss of information, work with limited storage space, and a dozen other limiting factors. It doesn’t help that Matt and I often ask for some revision shortly after Renaud has come up with a working model. We’re all anxious to field test his end product. We know we won’t be disappointed.

It’s also important to understand a little about the idea behind many parts of the kiosk and its interface. Because we are designing the Cybertigi system to offer services to people in remote communities, we have to understand who we are selling to and what their demands are. With respect to the kiosk’s interface these considerations are particularly relevant. We have to concede that we will be working in areas with very low literacy rates, disposable income will also be lower than in urban centers, few in our communities will ever have seen a computer – other than on television – let alone use one for email and voice messaging, and so forth. Not all clients will fall among this broad generalization, but the majority will.

Our goal in designing Cybertigi is to take as many of these factors into consideration as possible to create an overall system that works for as many people in our population of interest as possible. If the kiosk is designed properly and the logistics are well organized than we should be able to accommodate any person who has a willingness to use the system with very little outside intervention. By this I mean that if, for example, an illiterate youth who has never traveled outside of their village and only speaks the local language comes to the kiosk, he/she should be able to understand the system and carry out their transaction with ease and with little to no assistance in a matter of moments.

Here’s a shot of what the first screen to access the kiosk’s services might look like:

The kiosk interface is constructed with large, simple icons indicating each of the types of principal services: email –
incoming and outgoing, voicemail, scanning/copying, and news feeds. The user merely clicks on the icon indicating their service and follows a very clear series of icons/steps to the completion of their task. For example, the 2 small shots in the above left show the scan/print service’s screen. Additionally, the kiosk manager is always present to assist any patrons who require assistance. One intention in using icons and an easy interface is to accelerate the kiosk’s learning curve. A person who doesn’t read French or Bambara will find it easier to remember a series of simple images than a complicated series of non-visual instructions.

We will also be conducting awareness campaigns in the villages to help people better understand what these technologies are, what services are being offered through the kiosk, how they can be used to improve communication and what their other benefits are, and how we can build on them to adapt to new types of services demanded in the future.

By early next week we will begin to install the solar panels and the kiosk in Faraba. At this time we will begin training our Malian liaison between the Bamako office and the sites on the system, who will then go on to train the entrepreneurs in the sites. During this time we will be field testing the interface and making any required adjustments and additions needed.

Here are a few items we’ll be covering in the next week and a half to give you an idea of where we stand:

• Work with the mayor’s office in Faraba to install the first kiosk
• Acquire the solar system
• Install the kiosk, solar system, and other field equipment
• Make final decision on field liaison
• Begin interviews for local kiosk agent
• Formalize agreements with the CLIC and the mayors office
• Begin building the next site, Niagadina, including protocols and field visits
• Review all fiscal models
• Continue developing training curriculums for the field agent, local agent, and community at large.
• Prepare for the “lancement” (opening ceremony) for the kiosk – very important for the success of the kiosk and culturally appropriate
• Field test the last few items for this phase of the project
• Order the items needed for the next site and the phase following it
• More site visits and protocols at the sites to be used in the second phase, Kangaba, Narena, and Bancoumana
• Develop the Cybertigi.com site and the Bamako photo printing extension (including emailing photos and a delivery service)
• Update this blog

So that’s the short list. Yes, there are plenty more things to do, but the thing is, we have a great team of people here working to bring it all together. Progress is being made daily and we are all becoming very excited that the time for implementation is drawing nearer. As soon as the ball really starts rolling, lkely around the beginning of June, it won’t stop for some time and only pick up plenty more momentum. We can’t wait.

With Cybertigi we are aiming to create a sustainable enterprise with auxiliary benefits for the host community and Cybertigi’s participants. We are also looking to build into the model symbiotic relationships with community members already in place to increase each other’s real benefit from the project. One case mentioned in a previous entry was with the local photographer, where he gains increased revenues through delivering higher quality products to his constituents with lower loss rates, while we gain through augmented revenue streams from a higher degree of photo printing activity.

We see this Bamako extension as a precursor to the finished photo printing model. Here we are using the same technology we will be using at the site to offer the same relative type of services, open to the public at large, to create a revenue stream for one of the project’s enterprises while also offering a needed service for those interested. Our goal in this case is not as much a symbiotic relationship, but instead to gauge demand for the service.

So far it has been well received, with the ink cartridge and paper already paid for with roughly 60% of their capacity remaining. Thesurprising element is that we haven’t even begun advertising the service yet.

We are offering 6 types of prints – Classic, Bordered, 2 per page, Wallets, ID cards, and novelty prints:

All proceeds generated from the experiment will be reinvested in the project.

After several revisions and careful deliberation Matt finalized the Cybertigi logo last night. Here is the logo we will use to build the Cybertigi brand:

Maimouna and I met with 2 local graphic designers today to discuss how we can put the Cybertigi logo on t-shirts, signs, hats, stickers and so forth for our opening lancement ceremony and the project in general. Early next week we will make our decision on how many of each we need to order.

We have also begun looking for the field agent we hope to use as a liaison between our bureau here in Bamako and the kiosk sites. This person would act as a Jack-of-all-trades for the project and be involved in training the kiosk entrepreneurs, assisting with logistics, providing technical assistance to the kiosks, and acting as a middleperson between our office and the project sites. Employment vacancy announcements have been posted in Ouelessebougou and Bamako. We interviewed our first candidate yesterday and will continue until May 12^th when we plan on making our final decision.

Renaud has nearly finished the bulk of the news via email subscription service and has been working on the email transfer mechanism and interface. Already he’s made some excellent decisions on how to better streamline the interface and make it easier for beginners to operate. After working on the email component, one of the most crucial aspects of the overall system, Renaud will be moving on to incorporate scanning, attachments, and a multitude of other features.

Today we are also testing the lifespan of the projectors when attached to a 12V car battery. Since we will not have a standard power source at our sites we need to know how long we can use each of the components when they are running off a solar charged battery. Today we are testing the Zoombox. We’ve just passed the 2.5 hour mark, the critical amount of time to show a movie and public service announcement, and likely have some time to go before losing power.

We are looking at having a kiosk with limited functions in operation by May 16^th to begin training the field agent with. Between now and then we will formalize all arrangements with our partners, finish our pricing and payment models, itemize our training curriculum, order collateral, more site visits, carry out our interview process and select and assistant, and begin implementing the photo and projector components of the project. Busy few weeks ahead for the GCM team.

While designing Cybertigi we have always used the idea of using the HP LaserJet 1300 and charging the standard Malian rate of 100CFA per print. We are currently working on how best to divide the margin between the CLIC’s materials cost and each of the Cybertigi’s core components: CLIC/hub, eKiosk, MobileKiosk, and savings/amortization.

Shortly after arriving in Faraba and greeting the mayor and the dugutigi* we were given a personal escort by Mr. Sayon Diabaté, the Secretary General of the Mayor’s office. We met with several entrepreneurs, the local druggist, and the region’s photographer. It was over the course of the meetings with the entrepreneurs we came to recognize how valuable a connection between them and their Bamako supplier could be. Some would have to spend several thousand CFA and an entire day in transit just to replenish their stock. If we can devise a bridge between wholesaler and vendor we bring the ability to ship directly noticeable cost savings for the retailer. Matt and I are looking into the possibilities now.

With the region’s photographer we proposed a partnership between him and Cybertigi. We offer superior quality prints, in a more timely fashion, the same market rate of 500CFA per print, and with roughly the same operating margins as the standard film reproductions. Our goal is not to infringe on the photographer’s operation but instead to complement it. We proposed he use our digital camera and process his prints through the Cybertigi. This would create close to the same profit per print margin for him as before and reduce his work burden. Currently the photographer has to wait until the entire roll of 24/36 prints is taken before he can pay to travel at least 2 hours to Bamako to have the prints developed, often with inferior results. The complete cycle usually takes several weeks from taking the picture to processing to payment for the prints. With our Cybertigi partnership he would have prints delivered at least once per week without having to travel at all. He can also verify with people which prints they want by showing them on the viewscreen before sending the print order in. There are also value-added options such as 2-per-page prints, special designs, or making photo IDs. Simply put, we offered a more streamlined enterprise with some value added components in exchange for using his existing recognized brand of “village photo-tigi”. Instead of competing head-to-head, something we in no way want to do, we found an equitable compromise that benefits all parties. We concluded the meeting with an understanding that we would like to work together and would discuss payment and billing details during our next meeting.

On the whole we left Faraba satisfied that we were able to glean so much valuable information in such a short period of time. This comes in large part from the generous assistance of Mr. Sayon Diabaté, the Secretary General, and Mr. Adama Wattara, the village’s go-to man.

There are still other details to be investigated, but the initial charge is well underway. We hope to begin the first phase of the Faraba component of Cybertigi within the next few weeks.

*Dugutigi: Village chief [“dugu” means village]

This week brought more progress on the technical front. As always, Frederic and Renaud have been moving ahead nicely on building the interface for the eKiosks. This week they were focusing on building the email and relay components of the system. How to best incorporate news and similar feeds are being debated now. To say they are an impressive team would be an understatement.

Matt has been thinking of new value added services and site logistics and came up with a few new ideas. Among them was the sharp idea to offer 2 types of news steams: 1 or more free access feeds for the community at large, and a handful of premium feeds for those who are interested in subscribing to up-to-date news feeds on the topics they are most interested in (say, their favorite football team or the foreign press).

I’ve kept busy working on the project’s budget and earnings projections, as well as some scheduling and planning. We are now at the point where certain elements of the project are coming together and we have to be looking to when we can realistically start implementation. We’ve come to the consensus that the best approach would be to begin shortly with the photo printing opportunity, and gradually phase-in the other elements as they are completed. By adopting this approach we ease ourselves into the community, begin to build our brand, and work out the first technical details before beginning in full force.

Thursday a team consisting of Matt, Renaud, Ludovic, Maimouna, and I went to visit Ouelessebougou and Faraba to greet members of the CLIC and Faraba’s mayor’s office to formally express our interest. Although we had met with these agents in the past, we thought it best to meet again before proceeding any further. Their support will be critical to the project’s success and to review each party’s goals is prudent.

The CLIC will be used as the service hub, and while there we met with Mme. Yattara Oumou Sow, its manager, and reviewed how we could work in partnership. We also had the opportunity to demonstrate the Epson PictureMate Deluxe and discuss how it could be used to increase revenues for the CLIC. While in Ouelessebougou we also took note of the radio and GSM towers in the area. Ideally, we would like to partner with Ikatel, one of Mali’s 2 cellular providers, to use their large tower in the heart of Ouelessebougou to relay a Wi-Fi connection between Faraba and Ouelessebougou CLIC. We envision this allowing us to relay information directly from Faraba to Ouelessebougou to the CLIC, and during the next pahse, create a link between the CLICs in Ouelessebougou, Bougoula, and Kangaba to share one internet connection and divide the its cost between each.

Next, in Faraba we met with Mr. Diabaté, the Secretary General for the mayor’s office. Over the course of an hour and a half we worked on how to find the right person to use as a local entrepreneur, evaluated where the kiosk could be placed, and what services the eKiosks would offer and how we can work towards meeting other needs of the community.

Here are a few more shots from the day:

Upon returning from the site visit we met Frederic at the office who showed us the substantial advances he made during the day on the email component. Today he and Renaud are building on the work done yesterday.

- BC

Since Monday the team has been working to tie up many of the loose logistical and administrative details we needed to accomplish before progressing any further. The highlight of the week was getting most of the equipment we need to the preliminary phase ordered and shipped.

The following are some of the more noteworthy items ordered:

• Nokia 770
• InFocus LP120 Projector
• Zoombox projector
• T-amp

On that same note, Renaud is making huge strides in building the overall Cyber-tigi interface. The team was fortunate to get him on-board. He’s a great addition to the Geekcorps, Mali team and we’re all looking forward to seeing what he develops in the coming months.

Fred has also been exceptional, as always. From designing the Wi-Fi relay to working on the solar powered sources to working with Renaud on the interface, Fred is demonstrating his talents across all areas of the project. His breath and depth of the technical aspects of the project is staggering. To say the project is fortunate to have him would be a gross understatement. What is truly impressive is that this is merely one of the many projects Fred is involved in, each equally demanding. As we say in Mali, “i ni baara, Fred”.

We are all eagerly anticipating the arrival of these components. The LCD projector is one of the items we spent a great deal of time researching and are keen to see how it performs. The projector will be used in kiosk sites and villages along the way to deliver public service announcements, NGO multimedia, short films in the local language, and so forth. It will be a way for us to build awareness of the Cyber-tigi project while also delivering worthwhile content to these communities.

Using an LCD projector in villages is very appealing to us. It is a way to bypass the cultural hurdle of introducing new products by delivering a service indirectly linked to our Cyber-tigi project. It builds our brand. Also, in the villages we plan on using it in there is little activity in the evenings. Some homes use a television run off a car battery and always draw large crowds every time to watch the nation channel ORTM. In many instances members of the community watch it solely for the visual aspect and don’t catch much of the French being spoken. Remember that Mali is officially Francophone, but the majority of people living in the countryside speak a local language, predominantly Bambara in our part of the country. A fair portion of the materials available to us are in Bambara, something previously nearly unavailable to most.

We are not your standard product testers. Our environment is more harsh and our demands are greater. For this reason you might often find hardware listed here that you otherwise wouldn’t consider for other projects. Point in case: the Hasbro Zoombox listed above. Yes, we bought a child’s toy. Why? Because it seems like just the right fit for our needs. Our communities will be pitch black at night, negating the need for high-brightness lamps; we need portability, and the Zoombox weighs fewer than 6lbs/2.7Kg; we need a lamp that is affordable enough for Malians to be easily replaceable - the Zoombox’s cost roughly $7USD; we need something inexpensive and flexible - the Zoombox meets those criteria; we understand its limitations, but for use as the mobile-projector we believe it will meet our needs sufficiently.

We also chose the InFocus LP120 for the more demanding applications and for delivering messages from our partners in the larger communities hosting permanent kiosks. These communities are always larger than the hamlets and have more demand for larger, crisper projections. We narrowed our choices down to 3 main: the InFocus LP120, the Epson PowerLlite S3, and the Epson PowerLite S1+. Our reasons for choosing the InFocus LP120 are many, but some stand out more than others: the operating temperature on the LP120 is 40C, the others only 35C - major factor here; its power consumption - remember, we’re using solar systems and batteries; the size and weight of the unit; the clarity of the image; where the vents and hot-spots are and how we can build an external casing to reduce the unit’s temperature; and access to the unit to be able to clean it out. There are other considerations, but these were some that stood out on the LP120.

Arguably the most impressive item among our order are the T-amps. For those who don’t know, T-Amps are integrated amplifiers which are causing an enormous stir among audiophiles. They deliver heretofore unmatched audio quality at seemingly impossibly low prices. Reviews abound describing how the inexpensive $30USD amps are outpacing systems 100X more costly, They are portable, inexpensive, pack a punch, battery powered, of the highest quality, innovative, and just the right thing for our project. We are eagerly awaiting their arrival.

So that’s the hardware wrap up for the week. The orders are in and we are waiting. We are looking to go out to Ouelessebougou and Faraba next week to begin the formal protocols necessary before beginning any projects. Look back late next week for more pictures from the sites.

-BC