[LINK] Effect of New Government on ICT in Canberra

[Tom Worthington]

On 12/09/13 10:52, Roger Clarke wrote:
>> At 8:23 +1000 11/9/13, Tom Worthington quoted:
>>> ... the Internet in place of physical delivery of services ...
>
> ... doesn't address the major impediments ...

If it was easy, they would not need us experts. ;-)

More seriously, there are impediments to the use of on-line services
(and combined face-to-face shop-fronts). But these can be overcome. One
way is by simplifying and standardizing what is to be done. Another is
by reducing the number of agencies involved. In addition laws, processes
and procedures can be reviewed to see if they are needed at all.

As an example, it is very annoying to have to go into an office to have
some paper document sighted by an official, or to find a JP to get a 
"certified" copy. If this can be replaced with some form of on-line 
authentications, it makes the process much simpler.

One place this could be done is with educational qualifications. At
present these are mostly on paper. These original documents are hardly 
worth the, admittedly expensive, paper they are printed on. After 
spending thousands of dollars on courses, the USQ charged me $15 for an 
"official" copy of my results: no payment, no results.

The Australian government could require all educational institutions, 
which it funds or licenses, to issue free electronic certificates to
all students. Government processes could then use these certificates, as
well as the private sector, saving a lot of time, trouble and money (as
well as reducing fraud). ANU already issues a form of electronic
certificate:
http://blog.highereducationwhisperer.com/2013/08/digitally-certified-university.html


-- 
Tom Worthington FACS CP, TomW Communications Pty Ltd. t: 0419496150
The Higher Education Whisperer http://blog.highereducationwhisperer.com/
PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617, Australia  http://www.tomw.net.au
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Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Research School of Computer Science,
Australian National University http://cs.anu.edu.au/courses/COMP7310/