Crisis Management software on Linux

[nocturn]

Hi all

I'm looking into crisis management software as part of my job. I'm wondering if there is anything available on Linux, preferably Free Software.

There's a commercial product for Windows/IIS here:
http://www.esi911.com/esi/products/webeoc.shtml

I'm looking for something similar, but Free

[stig]

Hi,
Have you tried a Google search first? Putting in the words:
crisis management software linux
brings up some interesting links. For instance, the UNDP-APDIP one referring to the Sri Lankan government setting up disaster management is titled "Free and Open Source Software for Crisis Management". I guess you want something ready-made rather than just a suggestion for development but you may well find people who can point you in the right direction.

Another possibility would be to contact industry and trade organisations which are forced to engage in crisis management. One of them might know of software under development. There must be plenty of such trade bodies in Brussels.

I'm involved with the food industry and there are research associations, such as Leatherhead Food International here in the UK, who provide crisis management consultancy to the food industry. There must be similar organisations in Belgium.

Good luck with your research!

[nocturn]

Hi,
Have you tried a Google search first? Putting in the words:
crisis management software linux
brings up some interesting links. For instance, the UNDP-APDIP one referring to the Sri Lankan government setting up disaster management is titled "Free and Open Source Software for Crisis Management". I guess you want something ready-made rather than just a suggestion for development but you may well find people who can point you in the right direction.

Another possibility would be to contact industry and trade organisations which are forced to engage in crisis management. One of them might know of software under development. There must be plenty of such trade bodies in Brussels.

I'm involved with the food industry and there are research associations, such as Leatherhead Food International here in the UK, who provide crisis management consultancy to the food industry. There must be similar organisations in Belgium.

Good luck with your research!

Thanks stig

I had googled before, but I had "crisis management" + linux, which turned up a dead link to Sahana (which I'm checking out now).

I'm also contemplating the (mis)use of Nagios through a custom CAP-XML plugin, though it will not do nearly as much as the commercial product I mentioned.

[stig]

I've sent an email to a colleague who is a food industry crisis management consultant to ask if he can suggest an organisation that acts as a "trade association" for crisis management.

His name is Colin Doeg and he is author of the best book on the topic for the food industry:
http://www.springer.com/east/home/li...-22-72377929-0

I'll let you know if he can offer any suggestions of who to ask.

[nocturn]

I've sent an email to a colleague who is a food industry crisis management consultant to ask if he can suggest an organisation that acts as a "trade association" for crisis management.

His name is Colin Doeg and he is author of the best book on the topic for the food industry:
http://www.springer.com/east/home/li...-22-72377929-0

I'll let you know if he can offer any suggestions of who to ask.

Thank you very much!

I'm in the nuclear industry BTW.

[stig]

I'm in the nuclear industry BTW.

Thanks for telling me - that makes me even more pleased if I can help at all. I'm a biochemist who has gone into publishing on a specific area of science. I'm a supporter of nuclear energy. Here in the UK we are slowly getting people (public and government) to accept that we have an absolute need for nuclear power in order to avoid the coming "global warming" crisis.

Hae you read "The Revenge of Gaia" by the chemist James Lovelock? If not then I suggest you do:
http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Book/Boo...999143,00.html

He was anti-nuclear but has become a supporter because nothing else can provide the energy needed.

[stig]

Nocturn,
Colin Doeg replied to me with the message below. It doesn't help directly with respect to Linux software but gives some general advice.
Stig


Quote from C. Doeg:
Anyone looking for crisis management software has to realise it will not provide a magic solution. The client still has to put in their own material like crisis plans, contact details for crisis committee and all other key contacts both within the company and externally. That should include all appropriate regulatory bodies, independent experts, media, etc.

Such software could/should include templates for background statements, question and answer sheets, media releases, checklists, etc.

It could also be configured so that draft media statements, Q and A's, etc could be automatically circulated to the appropriate executives for comment.

I have a recollection that about 15 years ago a nuclear body used the Internet and specially developed software to alert appropriate executives whenever there was a reference to the industry, especially undesirable. The alerts were arranged through a news agency or monitoring agency. Stock responses were prepared as well as ones written to suit each alert. Extensive details were also stored of every nuclear plant in the world so that any alert could be put into perspective.
The aim was to be able to produce a response to an adverse media story in sufficient time to include it in the published news story or article.

It was a very far-sighted arrangement that worked well but was finally ceased for reasons I cannot recall.

As far as existing software is concerned, the first stage I would suggest is an Internet search under Crisis Management Software. I mention this software on Page 257 of the latest edition of my book. In particular I mention a programme called Crisis Commander, which is available world-wide and also other software and case histories on the web site of the UK's ICCAssociation website (http://icca.org.uk) ). I am sure they will also find other software during their search but I am sure any programme will have to be modified to suit their particular purposes. They should also require demonstrations of any interesting software and also talk to existing users.

[nocturn]

Nocturn,
Colin Doeg replied to me with the message below. It doesn't help directly with respect to Linux software but gives some general advice.
Stig

Thanks for this Stig!

[nocturn]

Thanks for telling me - that makes me even more pleased if I can help at all. I'm a biochemist who has gone into publishing on a specific area of science. I'm a supporter of nuclear energy. Here in the UK we are slowly getting people (public and government) to accept that we have an absolute need for nuclear power in order to avoid the coming "global warming" crisis.

Hae you read "The Revenge of Gaia" by the chemist James Lovelock? If not then I suggest you do:
http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Book/Boo...999143,00.html

He was anti-nuclear but has become a supporter because nothing else can provide the energy needed.

Though I work for a nuclear research centre, I'm relatively neutral on the debate.

I do think that shutting down Nuclear reactors today would be a mistake, but if we as a race are going to survive we need to start putting real money into reducing our power consumption and research into environmently friendly power sources.

In the past, I think we have put too much of that money in one technology, so the others are in an infant state today.

Though I think we will need Nuclear power for at least 2 more decades, the builtup of nuclear waste is not something we can sustain for another century.

[mips]

Maybe you could look at writing your own or register a project on sourceforge and attract some devs ?