2006 06 04
Can we, Mauritians, hope that one day our Cybercity will become a new Silicon Valley?
Paul Graham thinks that there can only be one Silicon Valley and it can only be in America.
And I have to admit that I find him pretty convincing.
Let’s look at the main reasons why our own Cybercity will not become a small version of Silicon Valley according to him:
- Mauritius does not have rich investors to finance nerds (we have lots of bureaucrats though).
- A technology hub is not only some buildings.
- A top university is needed and UoM has still a long way to go.
- The area does not have any personality and therefore it’s difficult to attract the best.
- Mauritius is not prepared to wait years and years but, unfortunately, creating a technology hub takes time…
Can we still succeed? I have some doubts.
Popularity: 12% [?]
June 4th, 2006 at 10:26
I was reading that article and that made me think about Ebene’s ‘Cyber City’. Heh, what is the government of mauritius thinking? A building? As if that would produce our own Silicon Valley!
Silicon Valley was about creating an environment where high-tech entrepreneurs thrive. It is not about getting a bunch of call-centres together and some big corporate machines like IBM or whatnot.
The startups which began life at Xerox PARC like 3M, Adobe and arguably Apple have gotten a right to birth because there were RICH INVESTORS and ENTREPRENEURIAL NERDS willing to work together.
What will the so-called ‘cyber-city’ be in 20 years?
June 4th, 2006 at 21:51
Exactly.
A technological hub needs bright (young) people AND people willing to finance them.
For the time being, both categories are (very) badly represented in our Cybercity.
I am not too optimistic…
June 5th, 2006 at 12:08
Hi Avinash,
am currently working at ebene cybercity and let me tell you that the business park as it has great potentials but certainly not as an IT hub as we think it should.
Activities that are really profitable and that will over the years bring a lot of investors would be more in terms of call centres and data processing units.
Software development in my opinion is difficult because of the indian and now chinese markets with whom its really difficult to compete against but what we can produce are consultants that are based in Mauritius and are ready to fly and work in other countries such as china and india but that too might take a while.
Its up to our institutions and people like you (being lecturer) to provide the appropriate guidance and material to our your IT professionals so as they can excel standard wise on the global market and have investors coming to dodo land for our human resources.
cheers,
Javed
June 5th, 2006 at 15:11
Hi Javed,
Thanks for your comment. I really think that UoM should focus on quality instead of quantity. It’s of no use creating 100-200 ‘Computer Scientists’ of dubious quality per year.
The UoM will shortly (?) create an institute of IT (under the guidance of IIT Kampur which is one of the best universities in India) and there are some strong indications that quality will be the most important feature of this new institution. Let’s hope it’s true
June 5th, 2006 at 19:10
‘dubious quality’?
All graduates are not of the same calibre one can say. It’s all too obvious. And packing the brighest (I wonder how you sort out the brighest from a pool of graduates) in a team will be a recipe for disaster esp. that Mauritians have an inborn quality of being covetous. Some mediocre graduates even learn later in life and move up the ladder very fast in their 30s or 40s.
Perhaps you’re avoiding to use the term ‘dubious teaching’…
To all of you : do you not understand that MAuritius has a very low exposure to technology. Yes, we can WATCH them (we read abt it, talk abt it) but do we EMPLOY it in our daily life? Nada. We’re close to Africa and that says it all. Worse, for a Commonwealth country our spoken English leaves a lot to desire. Wonder why Singapore leads the way in SEast Asia? Ask yourself and you’ll find the answer.
June 5th, 2006 at 19:12
Erreur mon cher: l’adage dit qu’il faut comparer le comparable!
June 6th, 2006 at 16:59
Hi Guys,
I am Scottish citizen with Mauritian parents. I am hoping one day to move to Mauritius, where all my family are. At the moment I am an entrepreneur in Scotland’s ‘Silicon Glen’ – the situation isnt any better. Its hard for start up companies to seek investment as VCs are concentrating existing companies for growth. I have studied that from 2006 the technology adoption lifecycle is yet to grow to 2016 (10 year cycles- its been at a low). I have always been interested in the Cybercity – I actually tried to apply for a software position at one of the companies there (its a french company), but my french isnt too good (I mostly speak english and can’t understand a word of Hindi other than Namaste!). I hear there are Shell LiveWire competitions etc. to build an entrepreneurial community – I wonder how that is going (the UK has something similar) I was thinking possibly of moving over to the Cybercity with my idea – its a hardware product – maybe being closer to the east I can have better links with possible manufacturers and at the same time help the Mauritian ecomony grow – just look at what India is doing with Bangalore!
I guess the problem is with investment. Any I bet, there arent many VCs in Mauritius…. Other than wanting to invest in the Tourist industry……
June 7th, 2006 at 20:57
Hi Ramin,
Nice to hear from someone from Scotland for once
I really feel Mauritius has *a chance* to succeed. There are some people who have good ideas but bureaucracy is killing them. But the Government has just announced that things will be streamlined. Let’s wait for the budget which will be presented by the Minister of Finance this Friday…
June 10th, 2006 at 10:24
Yesterday, the Minister of Finance announced, during his budget speech, that bureaucracy will be cut down drastically (for example, instead of having to wait up to 6 months to have a permit to operate a business, it will only take a maximum of 3 days).
So it seems that things are moving in the right direction, after all.
Now UoM needs to start produce world-class graduates
June 10th, 2006 at 21:46
Hi
For Mauritius to succeed in the IT sector we need people who worship work and are dedicated to solve a problem rather than having a civil servant mind and want to go home at 16:00 or 17:00 even if the problem hasn’t been solved. Being in the IT industry for nearly 20 years I have seen too many graduates getting the “civil servant” mentality after just a couple of years at work. They of course have an excuse that they are underpaid but then if we keep this king of mentality we’re doomed.
Secondly too many IT graduates think that development is just a temporary job and that they should become managers after a year in that post. So, what they do is to start studying for an MBA rather than studying new techniques and languages. The end result? They are neither good programmers nor good managers.
June 11th, 2006 at 20:04
Hi Raj,
I agree with you about the MBA. Too many people want to quickly move to middle management… (especially those with no programming talent whatsoever)
But as you know programming is not only coding : great programmers are, at the same time, great designers and great coders.
Unfortunately, in many (Mauritian) companies, young programmers only code. They don’t design software (i.e. do the most creative part of programming) hence their willingness to move to something else…
As for doing overtime, I am an avid partisan of Extreme Programming which states:
Working overtime sucks the spirit and motivation out of a team. Projects that require overtime to be finished on time will be late no matter what you do. Instead use a release planning meeting to change the project scope or timing.
I may be an idealist but I don’t think an artist (and, yes, programmers ARE artists) can work from 08:00 to 20:00 everyday…
June 12th, 2006 at 20:52
Hi Avinash
I also believe that you can’t work very long hours on programming but what I meant was that when you’re the IT person supporting an operation you have to be able to think above the crowd and provide intelligent solutions.
Indeed many companies get their specs from UK or France and do the coding here. But there comes a time when the foreign designers trust your capability and judgement and give you only a high level requirements spec and leave the detailed design and implementation to you. As usual they will underestimate the capabilities of “third world” people but its up to us to perform beyond expectations earn their trust.
As for a programmer being an artist I share your views
. Though I think I messed up by saying so in an interview a some years back. I guess the interviewers expected me to say that its an engineering thing and has to comply with rules etc. Which I also believe but I think a programmer should be an artist at heart to come up with intelligent solutions
July 19th, 2006 at 00:52
Hello Avinash,
I actually work in a bank and I’m planning to move in the IT world.
I’m planning to complete “British Computer Society’ degree as well as Comptia A+,N+ and MCSE.
I just want some advise from you for what I’m doing. Is BCS well recognised here? And what about professional qualifications like Comptia,MCSE and Cisco?
Concerning the main subject of this forum, in my opinion, students in mauritius are too academic, they learn just to pass the exams and get the degree.thats all!! We need passionate people that’ll invest their selves in what they are doing and maybe we’ll move one step of the ladder to silicone valley.
Another thing is exposure to technology. Mauritius Telecom is ranked 12th in the world for telecommunication but we pay Rs1000 for 128kbps and in our sister island they get 24Mbps for approx Rs 650. What the hell????????? Safe is cheaper now!!! If mauritian people are not given facilities to be exposed on new tech, surely this government is not empowering its students to become “outstanding Pros”
What do you think.
Any comments are welcomed from anyone.
Cheers,
Jaysen.
ps: Thanks you for giving us your time & advice.Great site!!!!!!!
July 19th, 2006 at 22:28
Hi Jaysen,
Professional qualifications are very important and are obviously recognised here. Do you have any academic qualification in Computer Science? It is important (in my opinion) to have one, especially in Mauritius, as many jobs are only accessible to undergrads or even graduate students…
Mauritian students are like most students elsewhere. They have potential but they need guidance. Some lack self-esteem (i.e. they are not aware of their potential and, as a result, tend to limit themselves to “easy” things). It’s the job of the teacher (or lecturer) to make the student aware of what he/she is capable of doing.
Personally, I understand the reason why ADSL is expensive here. Someone has to pay for the millions invested by MT. We cannot compare ourselves with Reunion island. Technically speaking, ADSL is as expensive there except that the French government is forced (by law) to subsidise most of the price (so that the French living in Reunion are not penalised compared to the French living, say, in Paris).
But I have to agree with you, technology (in general) is expensive in Mauritius. The average salaries are really too low here.
July 20th, 2006 at 23:12
Hi Avinash,
Thanks for your reply.
I don’t have an academic qualification in computer science but actually I’m doing a degree with the British Computer society, and I will be very grateful to have your comments on this organisation, I mean is a degree at BCS worth a bsc from a university. Is it equally recognized? It’s not very clear for me. I’m doing this coz it suits in my daily schedule well as it’s very flexible.
Concerning MT, I really think that if they lower their price and don’t limit data transfer, they’ll have a huge number of customers subscribing & they’ll get much more than with their actual 10,000 clients.
By the way…r u that good!!! I know one of your students who can talk about you a whole day with me!!!!:)
July 21st, 2006 at 10:51
Hi Jaysen,
I don’t know a lot about the BCS but from their website, I can see that they offer three qualification levels:
A Professional Graduate Diploma is not, technically speaking, a Honours Degree but BCS states that “at their highest level, the examinations are examined to the academic level of a UK university honours degree”.
So, I conclude that in the UK, recruiters consider BCS Professional Graduate Diploma holders as being as competent as people with a UK university honours degree…
As for the price of ADSL, it seems that it will decrease in some weeks. So things are moving in the right direction. As for the transfer limit, I am between two minds. On one hand, I understand that MT don’t want to devote most of its bandwidth to bloody pirates. But on the other hand, MT is preventing many people from innovating and creating new services which might help Mauritius.
As for your last question, I’ll leave the floor open
November 24th, 2006 at 01:44
Mauritius Telecom SUCKS!!!
ADSL is extremely expensive in Mauritius. Mauritius Telecom have the monopoly on SAFE cable. MT is making millions of profit each year and he is not willing to reduce the price of ADSL!
England ADSL 8Mb/s is 10Pound (Rs600)
France ADSL 20Mb/s is 9.90Euro (RS400)
India ADSL 2Mb/s is Rs700
Ireland ADSL 8Mb/s is 20Euro (Rs800)
Mauritius ADSL 1Mb/s is Rs6400 +vat
Please dont call our country ‘Cyber Island’ People will laugh at us.
February 23rd, 2007 at 08:51
Renaming Mauritius ‘CyberIsland’ follows a long national tradition of giving inadequate names to the islands of the Republic of Mauritius: Flat Island is not flat, Round Island is not round, there is no snake on Snake Island, no deer on Ile aux Cerf and… no fucking cyber on CyberIsland!!!!
As long as we haven’t caught up with the rest of the world in terms of ADSL connectivity, we should drop the word “cyberisland” from the mauritian dictionnary. I am also of the opinion, that ministers who use the word “cyberisland” should be made ineligible for life. We don’t need idiots at the head of the country. The GM should stop ridiculing Mauritius by using grand words like cyberisland and instead work to provide decent connectivity to the mauritians.
November 16th, 2007 at 21:43
Mauritius Telecom suckssssssssssssss! It sucks. How the hell will Mu be called a cyber-island or whatever when MT only offers CRAP! 512kbps – I get less than a 56K dialup! WTF! Telecom you are a f***ing shit!
January 22nd, 2008 at 00:19
Hi Mr Meetoo,
I passed the BCS diploma level in yr 2000. Due to lack of interest I failed to pursue my studies and it has been very regretful.
Finding courses for BCS graduate diploma is very hard in mauritius.
If at your level or if you can help for course I would appreciate to hear from you.
(sorry if i intruded in a different thread)
thanks,
zul
mail: iex98@yahoo.com
May 24th, 2008 at 12:48
Hi Mr Meetoo,
We are actually doing a research for our project concerning xtreme programming.
Please can you give your feedback on what is the benefits of xtreme programming in the mauritian software companies?
Is xtreme programming being used massively in Mauritius?
Thanks,
Ogeela – UOM Students
May 25th, 2008 at 13:46
Hi Ogeela,
Why don’t you ask the people working is those companies directly?
September 2nd, 2008 at 18:33
I own an IT recruitment company in Cape Town, South Africa. I am going to be making a trip to Mauritius in 2 weeks time to assess whether we can help find resources from around the world for Mauritius. Im sure an IT Developer living in cold Britain might like a one year contract in the sun! Does anyone have any suggestions for me please? Thanks, Bev (DataFin Recruitment)
September 2nd, 2008 at 22:50
Hi Bev,
What are you looking for exactly?
September 18th, 2008 at 14:21
hi Mr Meetoo
Am writing to you if u could help me in doing my computer project(lower6) in programming.Am using vb6 to write i had a lot of prob in writing the codes so i would appreciate if you could help me please i have to submit on 29 september 2008
September 18th, 2008 at 14:41
Hi Kamlesh, what exactly is the problem?
[By the way, Visual Basic 6 was released in 1998 and is completely outdated now...]
October 13th, 2008 at 20:35
VB6 ??? o.O
ouch!! is that what youngsters learning nowadays to work in the cyber island? what a shame
as avinash said it’s completely outdated
October 29th, 2008 at 18:25
[...] to cover all Madagascar in wireless and in Mauritius it seems to be impossible. Avinash Meetoo stated the outcomes and problems of this whole business as well as the misunderstanding of the underlying projects some two years [...]
January 23rd, 2009 at 00:56
HI,
I am a foreign investor and I ahve an opprtunity to invest in a new development in CYBER City. The builder is promising top rent of the properties with rentals from multinational companies.
Do you think it is a good idea? Especially, in these times or wolrd financial meltdown?
Let me know your commnets
Samir
January 23rd, 2009 at 09:54
Hi Samir,
I understand you’re considering investing in buildings in the Cybercity. If this is the case, then I believe that it’s a wise investment as, as you said, rent is high there and you will recoup your investment in a relatively short time.
But don’t count on big multinationals or startups. Rather, your building will be full of call centers.
February 4th, 2009 at 16:59
Hi all,
I have worked at the cybercity for three years and I am now in London, deciding whether to come back or stay here.
I think that as it is now, the cybercity has reached saturation. The new graduates from University of Mauritius would get increasing difficulty to find a job in the companies at the cybercity unless the other cybercities open. UOM and UTM help to create the base foundation in IT where the graduate can move into any IT branch by the time they graduate. I would like to thank Avinash here for his wonderful job as a lecturing but also in creating the interest and awareness in the IT field in Mauritius.
Even if they open, the developers in Mauritius are not having much programming experience in a wide range of programming languages and platforms. If some companies are providing the training, the technology is quickly getting obsolete after 2-3 years.
The cybercity is certainly creating employment but to be a cyber hub, I think the government should invest in free mass training and certifications in all areas of IT to every IT graduate working in Mauritius where a single class could train up to 400 IT developers at a time.
The rest is up to the trainee to make use of this talent at work, for project managers to attract new contracts and government to attract new investors as Mauriitus is definetely cheaper than Europe. Mauritius also has the advantage that it is bilingual and the time zone difference plays a role too in outsourcing to Mauritius.
I think that is the only way to continue what has already been started but is stalling now..
Thanks,
hope to hear your views..
February 5th, 2009 at 14:31
To be frank, I do not think that our Cybercity is even 1% of the Silicon Valley. The reasons being the ones written in the post and principally the one which says that it all depends on having world class education. Personally, Vikram, I am not too happy with classes of 400 IT developers… I sincerely think that programming can be easily taught but to small classes and by putting emphasis on problem solving. UoM has chosen another strategy… but I am not too confident (and I am not alone) it will work out in the long run…
February 23rd, 2009 at 18:04
I recently visited Mauritius on my vacation and found tha country to be interesting. I’ve got a MScCE degree and have been working with software design/engineering for 10 years. My question is, what is a salary in Mauritius for a SW developer like me.
Any idea ?
February 23rd, 2009 at 21:26
Hi Clas,
It all depends on you and your negotiating skills
What I know is that international companies may be in a better position to pay more. Why don’t you contact some of the biggest companies and ask?
July 21st, 2009 at 21:24
hello avinash,
i need your advise.i am considering to do a bsc of computer science with network security at utm.but i havent done computer at the hsc levels and i am rather poor in maths.i got D in maths:)
will this cause a trouble?i have heard loads of stuff about how programming,java and databases are tough.is it true?
does the modules have complicated maths?
if so please tell me so that i can switch to banking if thats the case although i did science.
some people told me that if i do a degree in computer science in mauritius i wont be able to go abroad as our degree here are not recognised worldwide.
thnx a lot in advance
tyler.
July 26th, 2009 at 19:03
Hi Tyler,
I would not advise you for or against Computer Science (or Banking for that matter…) Study what you like best. And, yes, higher studies are tough and you’ll struggle a lot (like everyone else.)
[All UTM and UoM degrees are recognised worldwide AFAIK.]
August 20th, 2009 at 00:17
Hi Avinash i would be glad to have your view on this:
What in your opinion are the serious training institutions in Maurititus that offer courses such as A+,N+,Server+ , Mcsa, Mcse, Ccna, Ccnp you would recommend to someone looking for these courses??
August 22nd, 2009 at 22:28
To be frank, I don’t know a lot about those training institutions offering the courses you mention. What I’ve heard is that a lot of them are somewhat, ahem, amateurish. But don’t take my word for it, call them all and make up your own mind.
September 26th, 2009 at 04:13
In fact Avinash, i want to get started with I.T but i do not know where and with what to begin with? i would really appreciate if anyone could point me to the right direction.
I must say also that i was not well informed about the careers in this particuliar field.
September 28th, 2009 at 22:43
I don’t really like the term I.T. because it’s so vague…
Personally, I make a difference between Information Systems and Computer Science. The former is about how to use computers to make businesses more productive. Computer Science is the study of information and computation from a scientific perspective. Most people I know have the potential to become good IS specialists but only a few have the aptitude to be Computer Scientists… It’s like that: scientists often have a different cabling of the neurons and synapses
October 6th, 2009 at 22:19
Hi Mr. Avinash,
First, my congrats for such a nice blog. At least somewhere to express ourselves freely. As many of you may think …. we are living in a democratic country and we can express ourselves freely on any private radio stations!! But unfortunately medias are meant for only some category of people in Mauritius, I personally mailed R+ and called them umpteen times, but in vain!! I turn to R1 and left my details on voice message service {explik ou cas} but none of them called me back….
Its already 6 month now since I gave up contacting them…
Well i want to have some advices and share my opinions freely.
Infact my case is as similar as for JAYSEN, I joined BSC in 2007, but i quit due to extremely high cost ( RS 25,000) for certificate level EXCLUDING exams fee EXCLUDING transport.. I had to work for another 2 years and save for the BCS exams (2009). Im surprise that the course are still expensive for certificate Rs 30,000… Diploma Rs 60,000….Graduate diploma Rs 100,000 (ALL EXCLUDING EXAM FEE).
Truly, being an SC holder i don’t have much choice other than BCS course (NO FORMAL ENTRY REQUIREMENT).
By the way, I would also like to lay emphasis that there is no equal opportunity in Mauritius, meaning, a poor SC holder CANNOT join uom nor utm as the Min entry requirement is 2 A levels, But for a wealthy buddy he/she can join One of the many private institutions!!!
Well, competing for BCS is extremely tough, as no materials are readily available here. Just go to any library and ask for tertiary level books…. They’ll say W.T.F!!!
As some might think, BCS students can turn to British council.( comme dir cozer la “avant to ti pesser mo ti marain…”) its waste of time.
As any normal person, before investing in such huge amount, i did try to get feedback & opnion, like Jaysen……to know the equivalent of the BCS course here.
First i went to CAB= Citizen Advice Bureau. After railing for nearly 30 minutes, i came before a lady and without even a Good morning , she just shout at me ” KOT OU PLAN?! COMBIEN PIED CARRER!! ) i was at a lost, i sweat and i knew i blushed !!!
After exposing my problems concerning BCS course in mautitius, the lady told me ( ICI NU ZIS DONNE DALL PU DIMUN RANGE ZOT LAKAZ!!!)
I wonder WTF “CAB” stands for!!! they cant even advice citizen about career, job prospects, so on…. better leave this subject…
So I went to MQA, Equivalence council, TEC etc etc….. Finally i was informed that the PGD (pro graduate diploma) = to a first degree level in mauritius *((BUT))* THEY SAID SO WITH REFERENCE TO EQUIVALENCE GIVEN IN THE PAST, AND THAT THEY CANT FORECAST FOR ANY CHANGE IN THE EVEN NEAR FUTURE… “maybe students sitting for Bsc exams can end up in 3 yrs to the equivalent of a diploma level!!!!… What the hell are the authorities doing??!?! Cant anyone be straight forward???!!!
I didnt got any positive answer concerning job prospects too. I called many directors of ICT company and explained myself, and asked weather they’ll find me as a potential candidate for any future employment after completing BCS course….. none were able to give an answer….. I called an ex friend who did up to diploma level and he flew to Australia, I was surprise to know that he is working as Barman there!!!!
As i’m half way stuck, I jumped to the MCSE exams….. parallel with BCS (Just like Jaysen).. Which i thought MSCE+BCS = better chance getting a job lateron.. Fortunately/ Unfortunately i got a mail saying (pass any online exams ,A+, N+, ccna, mcse etc etc)….. Nice joke..lol. What are the authorities doing once more? just sitting ???
Fraud doing Proximetric exams, like Mcse ???? how that possible???
I called Microsoft mauritius, but they cant help… they refered me to another private institution……
That’s how i get to know that doing MCSE exams = 0 % chance getting a job in mauritius. 1st the entry requirement for Mcse is “working experience in relating field, professional industries operating more than xxxx computers ”
2nd Mcse ~~ approx equal ~~ to outdated!!!! Meaning its based on 2003 servers whereas the actual requirement is 2008 servers!!..
3rd, Mcse stands for MICROSOFT……… meaning that its applicable in Microsoft working environment… minimizing chance getting a job…
4th You cant seek for the equivalent of Mcse as Its a Microsoft TM (no duplicate)
IF YOU WANT TO BE PROFICIENT, YOU NEED TO CLIMB THE LADDER, STEP BY STEP…. A+,N+,CCNA+,MCSA,MCSE, MCIT?!…… TO GET AN IDEA WHAT IM TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
A+ =Rs 10,000
N+= Rs 7500
CCNA = Rs 20,000
MCSE = 7 MODULES X RS 10,000= RS 70,000
To top Up to 2009 server you have to Prepare for a budget of RS 50,000
(ALL PRICES ARE APPROX EQUAL IN ANY PRIVATE INSTITUTION AND EXCLUDING EXAMS FEES AND TRANSPORT)
Now I leave the rest to YOU, calculate in term of years and money it cost to do BCS+ MCSE!!!!! Is it worth doing?? What are the job prospects? there are Almost no relation between subjects, BCS= Information System, IT etc.. whereas MCSE= Microsoft Servers…
That’s my point of view…. By experience, i found that Mauritians are Business minded only. None will give you the real and best advice. like Jaysen and I, there are many buddies in dilemma..
Where to go and seek for help? Who can we have faith in and trust???
Another important point is, Being a BCS student = weekends courses = jobless!!!!
Either you go and work as moderator in a tchat room (dirty work) im against.
I sent my Cv ( 6 distinctions + 1 credit) certificates in IT etc, Driving licence… but im not free during weekends… You wanna know my stats? 248 application letter sent, no reply…. Being god believer i cant work as tchat moderator. so in my case, I cant study, I cant work…. what shall i do?
A brief note about ADSL, I was an Ex member of NO”MAD, using 64kbps, switch to 128, then 256 and finally 512… YES-MAD is better than NO-MAD!!!
64kb= 4kb download rate, 128kb= 8kb dwnload rate, 256kb= 16kb download rate, and finally 512 kb = 32kb download rate…..PEAK HOURS= 12am-12pm (personal experience)
Ive heard they just come with a new strategy plan Rs 75 for modem rent!!!+ bandwidth management+ firewall security.. For more than Rs 1700/month for a 512kb connection, i wonder who on earth will quit 512kb orange @ Rs 850!!!!
(YES-MAD=1 YEAR CONTRACT WHEREAS ADSL=NO CONTRACT)
Im satisfied with Orange service, till now im fine even after stepping over 10Gb download.. only one drawback, byebye torrent files…. even doing port forwarding doenst improve download speed….. 512kb orange = 58kbps rate with FREE rapidshare user (anytime almost same speed).. It steps to 70kbps with IDM on other websites… great,nah?!!? can watch youtube without pause, the buffer rate is almost twice as playing speed in most cases..
Cybercity can become X % like sillicon valley, If people are equally considered and chance given to those who really deserve it… no one can predict in IT. Remember, in the early 70’s many great scientist predicted ” There’ll be a world market for a dozen of computers!!!” or ” Internet will never work..” even Bill G once stated ” 612 Kb memory is largely sufficient for Pc’s “….
Just project the Cybercity 10 years further….
I was among the one laughing about the 1st Cybertower some years back…. ( 1 batiment au millieu laforet )
nowadays Buildings are growing everywhere…….. We have infrastructures, equipment, even intelligent and hard workers here. I guess Attractive packages should be given to those who really deserve a post and at the top of any dept We must ascertain that the most qualified one is selected…. Nothing is impossible.
Please comment and share your point of view. Advice me and others in same situation.
At the end of the day, Ive paid for the BCS course, Preparing myself for Mcse as private candidate and im taking part for A level Exams too… that’s the best ive figured out (by my own)…
Any better Idea?
October 9th, 2009 at 06:01
Dear Ashley,
I’m impressed by the quality of your comment. Let me try to answer some of the questions you’re asking yourself:
How old are you? Why don’t you do your A-level then (if you are passionate about Computer Science) join a university to do a degree? Certifications are fine but training is not education. Training is about mastering a product and/or a technology. Education is about becoming, well, adaptable to change (which happens very frequently in our field.)
Second thing: why send 248 application letters? If I were you (but I am not), I would identify one small company where people are genuine (ask some of your friends for tips) and try to convince the manager to recruit me (or to have me on work placement.)
What do young people really do there? I’ve heard a number of things but I would like to know more.
October 9th, 2009 at 14:41
Avinash i used to work as a chat moderator and i could tell you a lot of things happening where i used to work (dirty or not) and it was not was i was expecting. at all for this job.
Will comment on Ashley’s post when i finish reading it…i was glancing at new comments
October 9th, 2009 at 15:34
Tell me. I really want to know what people do there because I’m fed up with people bragging about how Mauritius is embracing IT while, in fact, most of the cybertower seems to be filled with call centres and financial companies.
October 9th, 2009 at 18:22
Hi Mr Avinash,
So many thanks for your advice.
Yeps, Im preparing myself for A level. I’m 27 years… “Better be late than never”. Due to financial problem i was not able to study beyond Sc level.
Being Sc holder(6 distinction+1 credit “science subjects”) I had no better alternative than joining as sales/marketing, ((working hours 8am-18pm(week days)/ Saturday 8am- 16h)). It was so hard to work & study, that’s why I came to a plan: {work>save>study……..after 3yrs>work>save…..}
By the way, IT being one of the pillars of our economy, I find it weird that “A” level in IT is closed to School candidate only!!!
My decision doing BCS is based on some facts “in my case” which I think is like a dead end.
1st, I’m 27yrs; It’s like a fight against time. I must lay a firm foundation before too late. Meaning: Before labor market is saturated, and getting too old without working experience.
2nd, Being Sc holder I can’t join UOM. Just Imagine, if I take part in June 2010 “A” level exams…. I’ll Get my result slip mid August, meaning Too late to join UOM i.e. Deadline for enrollment already over (April). So I have to wait for Next intake i.e. year 2011! Now what if my application is rejected?? Maybe due abnormal time lapse from SC to A level/ or No “A” level in IT?!?! (I’m just speculating)…….
3rd, “Assume” that I’m already an HSC holder, enrolling UOM for BSc in IT = 3.5 years full time, Monday to Saturday. I’ll end my course at age 31!!!. Now, what if I’m in a situation where I can’t study further, say, after 1yr?? I guess no certificate will be delivered….. Whereas BCS is Awarded for each level, i.e. 6 month I’ll have a Certificate in IT, 1yr later Diploma in hand, 1 more year PGd = BSc level. Now take in account Time invested = Part time (week ends only) for 2.5 years only!!! Is it not better to have a BSc level from a UK university on top of that Worldwide recognize?!.
After PGd level I can enroll at UOM for MSc!!!… Now take 3.5 years minus 2.5 years= 1 year!!!, 1 year = less saturated labor market.
4th, Proximity factor. UOM= Reduit, whereas There are dozens of IT centers all over Mauritius offering BCS course.
That’s how I conclude that BCS will suit me best.
—–//—–
Nowadays its so hard to have a job when your opponents have even a single point over you, in my case I’m not free during weekends. We are living in a world where employee must deliver the good, that’s one of the many reason why long ago employees were confirm after 1 year in a company: at that time proficient employees were scarce. Nowadays it’s the opposite, its on contract basis, where employer has the power to exhaust a contract…
At first I turn to recruiting companies, but in vain. I Mailed My CV to many companies (using yellow pages)…. Finally I applied to post advertised on news paper & PSC..
Its not surprising after all, if you were a director and have to choose between an SC holder not free on weekends and a diploma holder free 7/7!!!! If in any case I’m chosen, I will have to anticipate for the worst working condition!
—–//——
You really want to know about moderator??? Ok
I have a friend Ashwina, we met last month after nearly 8 years. I was shocked that she changed so much. She WAS the kind of girl, who would never look or talk with guys, never go to disco.. Her lifestyle study>prayer>home, no friend. Well, we met and she was using rude words while talking… After 15 min she asks for Rs 10 to buy a cigarette!!! Astonished I pretend to be out of money, she coast a taxi driver and ask for one!!! Cheeky one!, Last time she phoned me (pu ene program boir)!!!
What the hell can change someone so much!?!? …….. She was chat moderator.
Its one of many examples I can expose.
I’ve work for such a company years back (for 2days only). Its quick cash.
(((DONT CONFUSE AMONG CALL CENTERS {SALES AGENT/ CUSTOMER CARE AGENT/CHAT MODERATOR})))
Some Box usually asks for a minimum of Form IV only.
As far as I know, there are three ways they operate.
1st, websites pretending to make you meet someone either for a hot date or hot chat cam. BOTH FAKE.
2nd, Hot phone call, FAKE.
3rd, TV channel diffusing FAKE ads.
(AGAIN THESE ARE AS FAR AS I KNOW, MAYBE THERE ARE OTHER GENUINE BPO”s)
—————————–PART 1 and 2—————————
Surely anyone of you has at one time or other come across websites like in example(1st)… actually the operate in third word countries (low costs) When you register on such websites, the company actually gets your membership as a deposit… Then you will be forwarded to chat zone to meet “hot” girls. Once you did your choice, you will be invited to “HOT WEBCAM CHAT”.
(2nd) Of course you will see girls playing stripping “LIVE”. Once the “GIRL” feels like you are on 7th heaven, she will ask you for a phone call.
You will be taxed over 100% normal rate.
((( I’ve wrote “GIRLS”/ “HOT WEBCAM CHAT” etc in upper case, as In reality there are no such “LIVE CAM” nor “HOT GIRLS” as such…. if you didn’t get what I’m trying to explain, go to google search > rivalzone.. or simply type “fake msn cam”. These are actually software add-on to PLAY A VIDEO CLIP so as to appear like a real webcam to the other user… )))
So your “HOT GIRL” can be the ugliest guy chatting with you and playing a fake video clip.
———————THAT”S PART 3———————–
Its the worst one :
Live TV show, diffusing info like ”
” Super sexy de 18ans region xxxxx cherche mec de 30- 40 ans pour +++”
” Homme veuf de 50ans cherche femme serieuse come compagine si affiner…..”
” Pour une relation durable contactez sophia, 21ans, cherche homme serieux pour marriage”
Actually all of them are fake ads. Each SMS (by mobile phone) sent by the one interested with the adverts will be taxed heavily. On the other hand, here guys/girls will play with people feeling (via keyboard on computer).
I personally did chat with an old man of 50yrs pretending to be a woman of 40yrs and deeply in love!!! I still remember, the man was a mechanic, he begged me to give my home phone number/ and to come and meet him…. as he was paying his day work for “FAKE SMS”.
Usually packages are like: 1st 500(text sent via keyboard) will equal to basic salary (Rs 6000)
.Each (text sent via keyboard) over 500 first one, will be paid as bonus… On average on one shift you chat with 10 people simultaneously totaling to about 1000 text/ shift…
I’ve heard that chat moderator earn as much as Rs 20,000/month!!!!+ Traveling.
I’m against, because it’s actually playing with others feeling. Sometimes women who just lost husband, handicapped persons, mentally sick ones.. I personally I classify these jobs as stealing!.
Young ones like Ashwini are running after quick cash, but unconsciously they are heading straight into a pit!. Working environment doesn’t prohibit smoking, that’s how youngsters are smoker. After night shift, in spite of heading home, they are heading to disco!! (Temptation).
PLEASE MR AVINASH, IF YOU FEEL LIKE THERE ARE PARAGRAPH ILLEGAL PLEASE MODERATE IT.
Thx.
October 9th, 2009 at 23:22
First of all my personal views about how things were going on where i used to work as a moderator.The company didnt care about giving us training when we need it…instead we would have to watch the more experienced animators and try to catch up with how things work and have one or two sessions with a lazy “formateur ” who would show up two or three days in a week for the 1 week training… What exaclty was my job about?
Well im sorry if that shocks some readers who are faint of heart but im just telling the truth; it is about ripping off people’s money by telling lies to generate conversations… the animators have to play as an actor/actress are given a fake profile.
You are given a fake identity( we are not mauritians there) we endose many identities given out by a profile and yes a male could have a female profile ( you are given profiles at random) and he would have to play it and vice versa for the females.And yes sometimes you could get a gay or lesbian profile according to the category of chat rooms who have chat with others with kind of sexual orientation . Well thigns might seem ok at first ,it could be fun for one hour or two or three but then since the clients are users of a chat service abroad and most of them age fall in the category of teenagers…you are certainly aware that flirting is common matter but then things could have gone spicy and indeed visa x scenarios would have to be played as well as remain disguised.Remember we are no longer mauritians according to our profiles.Animators would work more or less on each on the same fake profiles and follow the previous conversations so as not to make things suspicious
How we get paid is to fill out a daily quota by sending a lot of messages as possible unlike MRU we send messages its them who pay for it no like the contrary we have here.sometimes the person could have empty their phones credit and we would have to beg them to refill it so as to continue the conversation because our quotas could possibly have not been filled yet…or because we would want more money (this statement makes me sick)
Avinash sometimes when there would be no topic or nothing to say we would have to go the easy way of talking dirty to engage into something sensual with sexually active teens or some playing one and this is sometimes the only way for us to fill our quotas. avinash, i had no idea i had to expect such a thing…but what really disgusts me is that no one seems to care.what about moral values?? we were warned not to discuss delicate subjects such as religion that was not allowed although i know some of my colleagues have had nasty experiences with that .and also try to always ” rode ene pretext” when one user wanted to get more intimate with you eg:wanted to call you, etc see you on webcam…Well above is my personal experience as a chat animator and im sorry if some parts might shock some readers but its the true reality of what i have been undergoing for this job.
Avinash I didnt get enough courage to tell the truth to my parents when i left this job.
October 10th, 2009 at 15:06
To both Ashley and JT:
Thanks for explaining in details what kind of things happen in those places. Strictly speaking, I have no deep philosophical problem that such companies exist (because, well, they seem to be satisfying a need) but what I find very troublesome is that some young people (and most parents) are completely unaware of what happens there.
I think that the Government has to force every company to publicly reveal in what business they are before they are allowed to recruit people.
To Ashley:
Good luck for your BCS courses. Be positive. And don’t forget my hint about working in a small company as opposed to working in a large one.
October 12th, 2009 at 10:14
Hi guys, do you think its worth to get the mcsa/mcse on server 2003 certififcation since Server 2008 has been recently launched? ive heard that there will not be mcsa/mcse for server 2008 but only mcts.
October 12th, 2009 at 16:30
Hello Sir,
What a coincidence, we were all much interested with “call center issue”.
Well there’s a main point Ashley omitted, Young ones change Identities, sometimes a real girl can become a lesb…/ hetero/ or gay!!!! and vice versa….. In doing so, this has a sever negative psychological effect, that will definitely deteriorate their feelings thus rendering them heartless. Those deeply affected will do it in real life, duping guys/girls then after getting what they want, they’ll just leave the genuine one hurt alone there.
[Antish, I have censored some parts for obvious reasons
]
October 13th, 2009 at 20:16
where can we get the information about test centers for microsoft exams for private students?
October 15th, 2009 at 10:45
Funny that you’re asking for questions concerning Microsoft on my blog
October 15th, 2009 at 22:50
I’m seeking information about it
October 20th, 2009 at 11:07
Hi, do mail Microsoft for more info. What I was told in all IT centers is that you cant jump to MCT or MCSE unless you do MCP/MCSA. And before you compete for MCSA you have to do A+ and N+.
Check out the entry requirement for the exams on Microsoft websites.
December 11th, 2009 at 19:05
hi i am vikesh. i have also been a chat moderator when i was 17. now i am 23. i worked there for 1 year, and it did paid me well. i saved this “dirty money” well all the money are dirty but this must be the worst, anyway i saved up and came to study in london. am still here. i managed to do just my diploma in bisiness admin. i want to come and be part of the ict economy. i have done just sc 5 credits 2 pass and just have a diploma in business admin. can anybody help me and show me a way when i come back home which is in 3 weeks.
thank you
January 28th, 2010 at 01:37
hello sir,
your blog is very much helpful. thank you for what you are doing.
i am currently doing my ccna and intend to further my studies to ccnp and
bcs. i’m actually in a big financial crisis, i wanted to know if i could really get a job with the ccna. Well by reading the comments of L. Ashley, i’m really starting to feel a bit
troubled about job prospects with a ccna.
i have always dreamed of getting a job in the networking field no matter how small it
may be. I’m really passionate about networking and i feel that I’m better in
nothing else but this.
i will be turning 22 this year and i’m jobless. so i spend most my time studying.
please sir give me some advice!
January 28th, 2010 at 04:40
Don’t believe statistics. People with good skills and a good attitude towards work always succeed
January 29th, 2010 at 01:59
thanks for your reply sir!
indeed, you are right. yes i should be more positive!
now concerning the dream of calling our cybercity a mauritian silicon valley,
this won’t be achieved unless the companies and the local government start to invest massively on newer
technologies and better internet connections. Also the mind set of our people should
change. I think that we should be more open to the world. I mean that if you call a concentration of call centers or data centers as a ‘cybercity’ then i think that we are going in the wrong direction.
I have nothing against call centers, as they create jobs and bring money to the country(huh…i think so).
Better and cheaper technologies is really what we need!
also not every household in mauritius have the financial possibility to have a computer(not to mention a broadband connection).
January 29th, 2010 at 07:27
… and we should have much better tertiary education than we have now: better teachers, better equipment, better understanding of the technology revolution happening right now online and on mobile devices, etc.
January 29th, 2010 at 21:59
exactly!
February 2nd, 2010 at 01:11
Hello there,
Back again on Mr Avinash Fabulous blog after many month… Im taking part this April for BCS exams. My personal experience, low quality of teaching in mauritius. If one day I become a teacher; for sure i’ll be much better than many many “lecturers”.
One advice to everyone who wish to join any one of the many private institutions for further studies : NEVER TRUST BLINDLY THAT XZY ‘CENTER’ IS MQA REG OR WHATEVER. ASK FOR THE LECTURER/S NAME AND JUST DO A SIMPLE SEARCH ON GOOGLE OR QUERY AT MQA.
I was duped after paying many thousands rupees for the BCS course…. What i mean, the private institution is MQA aproved but not the lecturers. The management is more after profit than student success. They employ “”lecturers?” who are not qualified. Lecturers are mostly ex students same field, or students at uni doing slighty higher level in same field… in some rare cases they will employ secondary school teacher.
Le system d’education Mauricien c’est a se faire chier!. On essaie de detruire la base de l’education plus que jamais. Ca sers a quoi les lecons particulier??? Sois pour consolider notre conaissance dans la matiere ou pour mieux comprendre ce que notre prof d’ecole/uni a failli de nous faire comprendre…. On essaie d’etendre l’horaire scolaire et etre enseigner par le meme prof qu’on arrive pas a comprendre!!!
C’est quoi cette histoire?!
Combien de ces eleves ayant terminer leur etudes superieurs sont pret pour “deliver the good” sur le marcher professionel du travail?? Le programme d’etude ne correspond pas aux exigences des employeur. Tant d’uni a maurice, et ou on passe on entend dire les eleves font l’informatique… comment se fait -il qu’il ya un manque aussi important de developeur de logiciel?. Des fois je me demande comment des gens aussi incompetent on passer d’annees a l’uni…Alors que d’autre beaucoup plus competant sont delaisser… Ca laisse reflechir….
Assess any HSC student and you will see their level of education compared to students of the early 80’s… I personally did discuss with some Maths student (hsc level) their knowledge is far too limited.. many of the contents of “core book of bostock and chandler” is obselete. These missed contents will be developed at uni..
I guess, that’s why long ago there were some HSC students and nowdays there are many Bachlor. ( Ban c ki pa p croir moi, prend ban livre arithmetic des annee 70 pu niveau hsc, btw calculatrice pa ti p servi sa lepok la..”log” ti dans table, calculation up to 6 decimal places were required in complex exercises)..
enfin….. L’ile maurice que c’est formidable…
Forget to tell u, the chat box i was working for, went on fire last year!!lol
February 2nd, 2010 at 07:00
Congrats Ashley for writing such a long and interesting comment.
True. There is a major problem with our education system: it’s unadapted to what is happening in the real world. And the main reason for this is because a somewhat large number of teachers and lecturers are, simply said, not good enough… and, as you mentioned, this is especially true in the myriads of training institutions we have in Mauritius.
February 4th, 2010 at 15:12
This completes the statement that most training centers are simply- money minded business who make profit on students and not give a f***of giving the adequate amount of professional training expected for certifications in the it field.
Welcome to the world of cyberlearning guys … i have doing over my A+ , N+ and Security+ feeling myself not prepared for the exams ,i invested my money in online training materials and i must say that i have learned a lot better compared to ridcilious training sessions done by an instructor who reads out an ebook to you.
what is this??paying lots of money to sit and read in a class together when i could de doing it myself.this is not what i paid for.
Well i learn at my own pace now with trainsignal vids http://www.trainsignal.com videos and i really enjoy it…and i feel confident enough because it has cleared some doubts i had about these comptia courses.i’m will still carry on with it until i hear that the quality of training has improved of which personally i doubt.
February 5th, 2010 at 14:58
There are some training institutions who are very very very professional. Check http://www.knowledge7.com/ for instance