169 C h a p t e r 1 1 I T D e v e l o p m e n t Chapter 11 IT Development Taipei City's dedication to the development of wireless broadband infrastructure can be testified in many examples. In 2006, Taipei City was honored as the“Intelligent Community of the Year”at the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF). And in 2010, the City will showcase its work and achievements as the Best Practice wireless network community at the“2010 World Exposition.”Looking ahead, we pledge to establish a mobile and wireless Taipei City, where its citizens enjoy greater convenience and more diversified services via the wireless network, by reinforcing WiMAX technology to overcome challenges with respect to speed, bandwidth, and transmission distance. ithin the scope of the“Framework Plan to Build Taipei as an Intelligent City”, 170 WTaipei City has strived to formulate and implement various projects based on T three primary strategies－e-Government, e-Community, and e-Life. For instance, in a i 2008, we focused on“developing an intelligent Taipei”by establishing the wireless p e network, promoting wider EasyCard and mobile service applications, carrying on i Y with the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), expanding the 1999 Citizen Hotline, e a establishing the single-window service to handle complaints, and introducing the r b o Resident Healthcare Project as well as the“Fiber to the Home”(FTTH) service. With o k such endeavors like fiber optic communications, we aim to boost Taipei City's 2 competitive edge and realize the vision of“quality life in an intelligent ” city and 0 0 UI-Taipei (a ubiquitous and intelligent Taipei). 8 Part1 e-Government By providing e-Government services in various areas, such as the“1999 Citizen Hotline”service integration, public order and safety, e-business, digital learning, and the fiber optic network, the Taipei City Government has created a responsive e-Government environment for its residents, and may further incorporate all its online services into the fiber network. This is a budget-wise action that also benefits the city's residents with better public service. 1. e-Secretary (1) 1999 Citizen Hotline To understand and meet the residents' needs for government services, the“1999 Citizen Hotline”and the supporting IT system were officially inaugurated on July 3 2008. Located on the 7 Floor of the Emergency Operations Center of Taipei City, the“1999 Citizen Hotline”call center was initially equipped with 60 representatives, with another 25 added later to increase the system's capacity. This Hotline integrates all sixteen 0800- toll free numbers from the Taipei City Government agencies and another sixteen dispatch services “ ” most relevant to the lives of Taipei City residents. A 1999 Citizen Hotline representative answers a call to In addition, a common service platform in the assist a citizen. Chinese language allows convenient online queries about frequently asked questions (FAQs) for various municipal matters. In the future, the EOC will be included in the 1999 Hotline service to assist emergency responses in the event of major disasters. (2) Online Complaint Service via the 1999 Hotline The Taipei City Government seeks to provide a transparent and single-window platform to deal with requests and complaints. By integrating the Mayor's Mailbox and the service mailboxes of various agencies with the“1999 Citizen Hotline,”the procedures are streamlined to allow faster feedback to address specific complaints. Meanwhile, the Department of Information Technology launched the 1999 web-based hotline to relieve part of the growing workload of the call center and to filter out inefficient case referrals. This VoIP-enabled web hotline grants Taipei City residents swift access to information and services they need either via the Internet or a PDA through wireless connection. More services went 171 C h online towards the end of November, 2008, such as case status checks, FAQs, and cell-phone message a p notices for cases already closed. These services help call center representatives and staff members t e r across the agencies to approach residents' queries with improved relevance and accuracy. 1 1 2. e-Business I T The Taipei City Government seeks to help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by improving D and updating the Small and Medium Enterprises Service Center on the city government's website. With e v this revamped website, SMEs can access resources from both the central and local governments to e l o obtain guidance and assistance at different stages of their business development projects without being p limited by the constraints of time and space. In 2008, this website served to bridge the gap between the m e Taipei City Government and the Central Government in providing information and services to businesses n (Department of Economic Development of the Taipei City Government, Invest in Taipei, the Investment t Service of Northern Taiwan Regional Integration, and Taipei Neihu Technology Park Service Center), activities (Beef Noodles Festival, Pineapple Pastry Festival, and Taipei Shopping Festival), and nation- level resources (Commerce Industrial Services Portal, Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) Certificate Authority, MOEA G2B Service Portal, and the MOEA's Small and Medium Enterprises Administration Service Portal). After integration, this website has become a channel for SMEs in Taipei City to access prompt, convenient, and diversified information and service resources. 3. Digital Learning (1) Taipei City Educational Portal Site Supported by information technology, the Taipei City Educational Portal Site creates a learning environment for education without being limited by walled boundaries and tolling school bells; it builds up a common platform for teachers, students and parents to meet and learn from one another. In 2008, this Educational Portal gave out free email addresses to all members of the Taipei City Educational Network Center. After integration, the Portal boasts a total of 259,622 members as of December, 2008. In the same year, it was rated an A-Class website by the Taiwan Internet Content Rating Promotion Foundation, and ranked 54th in Business Next magazine's Top 100 Websites, outperforming all“.edu”and “.gov”websites. (2) e-Resource Integrated Query System The Taipei Public Library put together an integrated query system for electronic resources in December 2008. Readers can make queries via a unified interface, browse by category or by theme, and retrieve desired information from databases, electronic journals, or e-books in either Chinese or English. We aspire to deliver more diversified and customized information service, combined with the existing New Arrival Bulletin and Selective Dissemination of Information. (3) The Revamped Electronic Library for the Blind The Taipei Public Library Electronic Library for the Blind provides text version web content to meet the needs of the visually impaired. After the revamped website reopened in December 2008, it has become more accessible for the blind with guiding“web-tile”-like Access Key functions and Hard Keys modeling after the G-Mouse windows system for the blind. By accessing this website, visually challenged readers are able to search through the book collections in the Taipei Public Library and examine the status of the books. It also features a combined archive of online Braille books, audio books, and Braille music scores, available for accurate and abundant book entry queries and fast downloads. Some web pages include a text-to-speech feature, correctly translating the web content into an audible one. We hope our efforts to equip the Electronic Library for the Blind with enhanced accessibility and richer content will encourage more readers to visit the Library. 172 T a i p e 4. e-Safety and Combating Crimes i Y (1) Intelligent Dispatch System e a The Taipei City Police Department established the Intelligent Dispatch System, thereby improving r b the existing e-dispatch system and integrating it with the assignment arrangement system, the dispatch o o supervision system, mobile information system and Global Positioning System (GPS). Under the k 2 improved system, a hand-held mobile GPS device helps to locate on-duty policemen and enables 3.5G 0 0 wireless transmission of on-site situation and available information (such as audio and video recordings 8 “ ” and photos) back to the 110 e-dispatch system. Police officers on duty may also use the mobile device for queries about individual/vehicle registered information, driver's license information, criminal records, taxi operation license information, tickets issued for violations, and more. This not only shortens the time used to look up information but also improves accuracy and efficiency. (2) Surveillance Cameras To better combat crime and protect lives and property, the Taipei City Government has laid out a three-year plan (2007-2010) for installing a comprehensive surveillance network at high-crime areas and blocks. With the help of modern technology in crime investigation and the integration of the police dispatch management systems to achieve precise and prompt handling of traffic incidents and security violations, this project is aimed at creating a safe living environment for residents. After completion of the project, videos will be transmitted and stored for retrieval or review A mobile device is used when a car is stopped to check and by police posts, police stations, and the city's identify any violations. Police Department. Furnished with the latest technology, the police posts and stations may also function as digital control centers. If the image data captured by the surveillance camera system can be effectively managed, utilized, and maintained, this will help prevent crime, safeguard the lives and property of residents, and create a safer living environment. 5. Seamless Network Services The Taipei City Government is committed to setting up a city-wide fiber optic network. The network will incorporate the completed wireless broadband network.