The Problems

One computer has a laser printer which the organisation uses to print its main documents. There is always a queue of people with floppy disks in hand wanting to print something off. The computer crashes all the time and due to the fact that floppy disks are the main way of transferring data around it is riddled with viruses.

Duplicate copies of files are to be found on nearly every computer. There is no central file structure with the organisation's data on it and documents are frequently lost, accidentally deleted or worse, taken home by workers on floppies to avoid the office chaos. Field workers often return from research trips with note pads full of data waiting to be processed. The organisation is the only one within the community that deals with land rights issues. It has many cases and is in popular demand. It has had several successes in fighting for land rights claims. The lack of comprehensive IT infrastructure is making the office inefficient.
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Minihub Solution

A consultant from minihub is contacted and asked what they can do to help. An intranet computer system is devised utilising all the current hardware with some extra bits added. A project proposal is written and submitted to a funding agency. A small amount of funds are secured.
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Rollout

The intranet system is established in a couple of weeks. All workstations are connected in a local area network (LAN) over which they share printers and Internet access. The devised system is designed using open source and freeware
software. This keeps costs to a minimum. The person who usually looks after the office computers undergoes a system operator
computer course, which has been tailored to suit the organisation's particular needs and will ensure the new system is maintained.
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Result: Improved operations

Now the organisation has a server on which a data filing system is set up. All files are stored and organised in this central area. This is regularly backed up onto a tape drive. All computers on the LAN can access the internet and the shared printers. The dial-up connection is handled automatically by the network. Congestion over the “internet computer” is eliminated. Queuing for the “printer computer” is no longer necessary, nor is the use of floppy disks to transfer data between the workstations. This cuts down on the spread of viruses.

Minihub offers to host a mailing list and a website on its servers. Assistance is given in setting these up and the group joins the minihub network. The organisation's ability to handle its information has been vastly improved, putting it in a much better position to deal with the demands made upon it.