Difference between revisions of "Frequently asked questions"

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[[Category:FAQ]]
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== What is OrganicDesign's main goal? ==
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To build the [[Platform network]] which is a global network of organisations that operate together as one in [[alignment]] with the [[core values]] and [[manifesto]] to consistently increase the well-being of all sentient beings - this is what we refer to as the [[common vision]]. We plan to specify the organisational aspect of this goal in the [[Platform specification]] which is a completely technology-independent description, and the [[Software architecture]] document aimed at describing a software package that is designed from the ground up to support the requirements of operating a [[Platform]] in the network.
==== What are the goals of the project, now and in the future? ====
 
The main goal of the project is to implement the [[Philosophy|philosophical foundations]] in the form of a freely available, open, independent self-organising network. The general structure of this network is summed up in the [[nodal model]]. Formalising these principles in such a way that computers and people can work in accord with them overcomes the limitations that have arrisen within the many spiritual traditions throughout the ages.
 
  
==== What spiritual tradition or principles does the project follow? ====
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== How can people get involved? ==
The true spiritual truth is beyond any particular names or traditions, but those involved in the project throughout the ages have usually been part of the particular traditions which recognise this nameless truth such as [[w:taoism|Taoism]] and [[w:Advaita Vedanta|Advaita Vedanta]]. However, categorising the spiritual truth into one tradition or another leads to trouble because every tradition exhibits notable teachers and scriptures making statements which are not in accord with the spritiual truth or are grossly missinterpreted, for example that we are born in sin.
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At the most general level, anyone can be involved simply by being dedicated to the spiritual [[path]] and persistently trying to implement it using their own skills, position, connections and resources.
  
==== How can people get involved in the project? ====
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But more specifically, how to get involved in [[OrganicDesign]]'s implementation of this path involves the following steps:
Anyone can set up their own instance of the project simply by being dedicated to the spritual path and persistently trying to impliment it using their own skills, position, connections and resources. But most likely the question is really meaning "how can people get involved ''Organic Design's'' implementation of the project?"
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*Read the [[Manifesto]], the [[OrganicDesign charter|Charter]] and [[Values]] and see if you feel aligned with them.
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*If so, [{{fullurl:Special:Userlogin|type=signup&returnto={{FULLPAGENAMEE}}}} create an account].
 +
*Read some of the links in the [[help]] to learn about wiki's, MediaWiki and how to use them.
 +
*Read [[Spontaneous Evolution]] by [[w:Bruce Lipton|Bruce Lipton]] as this explains why we're designing the [[Platform network]] and why it's so important that it be done [[peer-to-peer]].
 +
*Start your own user page introducing yourself, your interests and your skills.
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*Keep an eye on the [[Special:Recentchanges|recent changes]], [[News|site news]] and browse the concepts in the [[:Category:Glossary|glossary]].
 +
*Use your [[Special:Watchlist|watchlist]] to stay abreast of changes to articles and discussions of interest.
 +
*Help us improve our content and begin to partake in the discussions about various aspects that are going on in various article's "talk" pages.
 +
From this point on the path into more involvement will evolve naturally and eventually lead to a specific [[role]] in various OrganicDesign projects.
  
The roles Organic Design could really use currently are:
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== How will the ideas in the OrganicDesign website help make the world a better place? ==
*C programmers for the network layer and OpenGL interface layer
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Our content and system covers three main aspects with respect to this question:
*ActionScript programmers for the Flash interface and nodal implementation
 
*Writers to help document the [[nodal model]]
 
*Content management to help with general site content like news and stub creation/expansion
 
*Administrators to help with potential-management and workflow organisation
 
The project exhibits a steep learning curve so the best approach to getting involved is to get used to our wiki environment by reading [[:Category:Help|help]] and [[:Category:Examples|examples]] and keeping an eye on the [[special:recentchanges|recent changes]] to get a feel for who's involved in what etc. All the "regular" users you see in the recent changes are happy to answer questions posted on their user-talk page or other article's discussion pages.
 
  
Once the software is stable and readily accessible, the best method of being involved would be simply by using the software to run your projects and organisations and thereby running them sustainabally and in accord with the principles.
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First we try and gain an objective understanding of the current global problems by doing dedicated research and identifying common patterns and principles so that solutions we find will be as widely applicable as possible. An important point about such research is that we must look into actual mechanisms and their [[bottom line]]s to build up a reliable objective view of the state of affairs, not a view based on [[action over opinion|opinion]].
  
==== How is the software aspect of the project connected to the setting up of organisations? ====
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Second we're working on a [[Platform specification|specification]] defining how [[organisation]]s can work together as a single [[Platform network|network]] in [[alignment]] with a set of [[values]] which do not suffer from the problems we've identified such as the [[economic bottom line]] problem.
Organisations can be set up based on ''templates'' (also called ''classes'', ''prototypes'' or ''patterns''). In the same way that presentation templates can be re-used over a variety of articles, so organisational templates can be reused and refined by many organisations, businesses, projects and groups. Templates form from established patterns of day-to-day use, the software is an environment for managing the re-use and evolution of such patterns. Organisations working in this way are called [[nodal organisation]]s.
 
  
==== Does the project allow contractors to offer services to existing organisations to help them implement the new methods and tools? ====
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Third, our content includes tools that help us move from the current state we find ourselves in now, to a global society operating in this new way. These tools allow our [[system]] to be [[deployment|deployed]] easily by anyone by using a [[seed]] mechanism and making the knowledge as [[openness|accessible]] as possible.
The methods of the project encourage propagation and include [[:category:education|education]]al tools to help with this.
 
  
==== Why does ''the project'' have no name? ====
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== What spiritual tradition or principles does OrganicDesign follow? ==
Every aspect of the software is user and group preference oriented including node or file naming, icons or logos. There will be no centralised structure in the network to control things like names. Specialist groups will emerge which people can defer various classes of decision to.
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Various members of OrganicDesign have studied [[w:taoism|Taoism]], [[w:Advaita Vedanta|Advaita Vedanta]] and [[w:Buddhism|Buddhism]] amongst other traditions. However, categorising the spiritual truth into one tradition or another leads to trouble because every tradition exhibits notable teachers and scriptures making statements which are not in accord with the spritiual truth or are grossly misinterpreted, for example that we are all "born in sin". Instead we have tried in our [[manifesto]] to distil a collection of [[values]] that are common to all traditions and embody them into the [[bottom line]] of all [[organisation]]s operating in [[alignment]] with our [[Platform specification|specification]].
  
==== How old is the project and who started it? ====
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== How can a computer program embody spiritual principles? ==
The project has been going forever and has no beginning, it is the ''implementation'' of the the spiritual principles.
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Spiritual principles are centred around our relationships with others, and in the context of organisations and civilisation, the way entities relate to one another is a reflection of their [[system]]s. If the systems have spiritually oriented [[values]] designed into their [[bottom line]]s, as the [[Platform specification]] is being developed to do, then those systems embody spiritual principles, and in turn any [[software architecture]] designed to support these systems also embody those principles.
  
==== How can a computer program embody spiritual principles? ====
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== Aren't these matters best left to the experts to solve? ==
 +
Exactly, that's why it's so important that a new [[system]] of [[governance]] be put in place which can [[Evolution|evolve]] freely through the enormous repository of expertise that make up society.
  
==== Some of us have been waiting nearly ten years for this "new software"! why's it taking so long? ====
+
The elite currently making the decisions are not necessarily experts in their fields, they've got to the position they're in by doing the bidding of the [[Money|financial system]] with its deployment and maintenance of [[economic bottom line]] thinking. Real expertise comes from organisation applied to the many, not from the biased opinions of the few.
  
==== How's a computer program supposed to help with the imminent economic collapse? people will be fighting for survival not tapping away at keyboards! ====
+
The solution that We, the people, really need is a governance system that has proper harmonious [[values]] as its [[bottom line]], and that isn't going to come from large-scale centralised organisations or institutions. It has to be built and maintained by us, the people, together.
 +
 
 +
== This sounds like "the cloud" why not just use that? ==
 +
A huge population of people around the world realise the need to work together in [[alignment]] with the [[common vision]], and realise that to do this we need to have full control over our information in our own hands, but at the same time we also need to take advantage of distributed storage. The only answer to really achieving this is [[peer-to-peer network]]s, not "cloud" services offered by centralised corporations.
 +
 
 +
== Why we you need privacy if we have nothing to hide? ==
 +
{{:Privacy}}
 +
 
 +
== How can our business survive if it doesn't put profit first? ==
 +
Economist J.K Galbraith noted as far back as the 1950's that short-term profit maximization is a failing strategy for businesses, which instead need to ensure that they adopt long-term survival strategies, which include ensuring that the environment in which they are working is stable before seeking and gaining profit. In this context the approach being taken at this stage is the correct one.
 +
 
 +
== Can this system really scale to large-scale industry and government? ==
 +
Yes it can. Many of the largest corporations are using exactly the same kinds of systems running on the same open source software. The key is in using simple tools effectively.
 +
 
 +
== What about the workers? Doesn't efficiency threaten jobs? ==
 +
Efficiency, in the context of science and technology, doesn't threaten "jobs" however it does threaten mundane, repetitive and boring resource management requirements. This in turn helps to support the growth of personal freedom and self esteem and inspires creativity which can lead to new and more fulfilling  and rewarding opportunities.
 +
 
 +
== Who will maintain the roads? ==
 +
As people loose faith in the system it's ability to tax its members reduces and eventually it will be unable to continue maintaining public services. It's important that when this begins to happen that there is a critical mass of people that have the ability to carry out large-scale organisation together. We can see that we're close to this happening now by an all-time low in voting; a lack of voters shows a lack of confidence in the system.
 +
 
 +
== What if there is a better way of doing things? ==
 +
We believe that there is a better way of doing things than the current model, but we do not have the "silver bullet" nor will there ever be a "fixed" solution.
 +
Our stand is that solutions should evolve organically as required from the "bottom up" and that "better ways" shall become apparent and be implemented to suit the circumstances, events and times. (All aspects changeable)
 +
 
 +
== Wouldn't it be more effective to engage in activism? ==
 +
Rather than putting energy into breaking down structures we disagree with and protesting, wouldn't it be better to develop alternatives instead and increase the level of harmony in society?
 +
 
 +
== How is the software aspect of the project connected to the setting up of organisations? ==
 +
 
 +
== Can the OrganicDesign system be used by commercial businesses to make money? ==
 +
 
 +
== Some of us have been waiting nearly ten years for this "new software"! why's it taking so long? ==
 +
 
 +
== How's a computer program supposed to help with the imminent economic collapse? people will be fighting for survival not tapping away at keyboards! ==
 +
 +
 
 +
 
 +
[[Category:Help]]

Latest revision as of 02:46, 9 August 2011

What is OrganicDesign's main goal?

To build the Platform network which is a global network of organisations that operate together as one in alignment with the core values and manifesto to consistently increase the well-being of all sentient beings - this is what we refer to as the common vision. We plan to specify the organisational aspect of this goal in the Platform specification which is a completely technology-independent description, and the Software architecture document aimed at describing a software package that is designed from the ground up to support the requirements of operating a Platform in the network.

How can people get involved?

At the most general level, anyone can be involved simply by being dedicated to the spiritual path and persistently trying to implement it using their own skills, position, connections and resources.

But more specifically, how to get involved in OrganicDesign's implementation of this path involves the following steps:

  • Read the Manifesto, the Charter and Values and see if you feel aligned with them.
  • If so, create an account.
  • Read some of the links in the help to learn about wiki's, MediaWiki and how to use them.
  • Read Spontaneous Evolution by Bruce Lipton as this explains why we're designing the Platform network and why it's so important that it be done peer-to-peer.
  • Start your own user page introducing yourself, your interests and your skills.
  • Keep an eye on the recent changes, site news and browse the concepts in the glossary.
  • Use your watchlist to stay abreast of changes to articles and discussions of interest.
  • Help us improve our content and begin to partake in the discussions about various aspects that are going on in various article's "talk" pages.

From this point on the path into more involvement will evolve naturally and eventually lead to a specific role in various OrganicDesign projects.

How will the ideas in the OrganicDesign website help make the world a better place?

Our content and system covers three main aspects with respect to this question:

First we try and gain an objective understanding of the current global problems by doing dedicated research and identifying common patterns and principles so that solutions we find will be as widely applicable as possible. An important point about such research is that we must look into actual mechanisms and their bottom lines to build up a reliable objective view of the state of affairs, not a view based on opinion.

Second we're working on a specification defining how organisations can work together as a single network in alignment with a set of values which do not suffer from the problems we've identified such as the economic bottom line problem.

Third, our content includes tools that help us move from the current state we find ourselves in now, to a global society operating in this new way. These tools allow our system to be deployed easily by anyone by using a seed mechanism and making the knowledge as accessible as possible.

What spiritual tradition or principles does OrganicDesign follow?

Various members of OrganicDesign have studied Taoism, Advaita Vedanta and Buddhism amongst other traditions. However, categorising the spiritual truth into one tradition or another leads to trouble because every tradition exhibits notable teachers and scriptures making statements which are not in accord with the spritiual truth or are grossly misinterpreted, for example that we are all "born in sin". Instead we have tried in our manifesto to distil a collection of values that are common to all traditions and embody them into the bottom line of all organisations operating in alignment with our specification.

How can a computer program embody spiritual principles?

Spiritual principles are centred around our relationships with others, and in the context of organisations and civilisation, the way entities relate to one another is a reflection of their systems. If the systems have spiritually oriented values designed into their bottom lines, as the Platform specification is being developed to do, then those systems embody spiritual principles, and in turn any software architecture designed to support these systems also embody those principles.

Aren't these matters best left to the experts to solve?

Exactly, that's why it's so important that a new system of governance be put in place which can evolve freely through the enormous repository of expertise that make up society.

The elite currently making the decisions are not necessarily experts in their fields, they've got to the position they're in by doing the bidding of the financial system with its deployment and maintenance of economic bottom line thinking. Real expertise comes from organisation applied to the many, not from the biased opinions of the few.

The solution that We, the people, really need is a governance system that has proper harmonious values as its bottom line, and that isn't going to come from large-scale centralised organisations or institutions. It has to be built and maintained by us, the people, together.

This sounds like "the cloud" why not just use that?

A huge population of people around the world realise the need to work together in alignment with the common vision, and realise that to do this we need to have full control over our information in our own hands, but at the same time we also need to take advantage of distributed storage. The only answer to really achieving this is peer-to-peer networks, not "cloud" services offered by centralised corporations.

Why we you need privacy if we have nothing to hide?

Privacy is the resource that is made available by Security which in turn is a collection of tools for allowing information and resource to be made available only to selected people or groups. In Organic Design this means that our peer-to-peer network must have a good distributed encryption and authentication mechanism in place so that trust groups can contain private information securely and persistently even when none of the members are online.

Having very good encryption is important because these days more and more sensitive information needs to be stored in a robust distributed way while remaining fully private and under our own control. Examples of such information are passwords and private keys, scanned identification documents, personal correspondence and these days even digital money.

How can our business survive if it doesn't put profit first?

Economist J.K Galbraith noted as far back as the 1950's that short-term profit maximization is a failing strategy for businesses, which instead need to ensure that they adopt long-term survival strategies, which include ensuring that the environment in which they are working is stable before seeking and gaining profit. In this context the approach being taken at this stage is the correct one.

Can this system really scale to large-scale industry and government?

Yes it can. Many of the largest corporations are using exactly the same kinds of systems running on the same open source software. The key is in using simple tools effectively.

What about the workers? Doesn't efficiency threaten jobs?

Efficiency, in the context of science and technology, doesn't threaten "jobs" however it does threaten mundane, repetitive and boring resource management requirements. This in turn helps to support the growth of personal freedom and self esteem and inspires creativity which can lead to new and more fulfilling and rewarding opportunities.

Who will maintain the roads?

As people loose faith in the system it's ability to tax its members reduces and eventually it will be unable to continue maintaining public services. It's important that when this begins to happen that there is a critical mass of people that have the ability to carry out large-scale organisation together. We can see that we're close to this happening now by an all-time low in voting; a lack of voters shows a lack of confidence in the system.

What if there is a better way of doing things?

We believe that there is a better way of doing things than the current model, but we do not have the "silver bullet" nor will there ever be a "fixed" solution. Our stand is that solutions should evolve organically as required from the "bottom up" and that "better ways" shall become apparent and be implemented to suit the circumstances, events and times. (All aspects changeable)

Wouldn't it be more effective to engage in activism?

Rather than putting energy into breaking down structures we disagree with and protesting, wouldn't it be better to develop alternatives instead and increase the level of harmony in society?

How is the software aspect of the project connected to the setting up of organisations?

Can the OrganicDesign system be used by commercial businesses to make money?

Some of us have been waiting nearly ten years for this "new software"! why's it taking so long?

How's a computer program supposed to help with the imminent economic collapse? people will be fighting for survival not tapping away at keyboards!