We CANdo it, and we did!

Great event, report coming soon - thanks to Martin Geddes of Telepocalypse.net for blogging the event.

Thanks to all sponsors and to South Witham for excellent hospitality. Winners below....

If you click on the results button, you can see what a difference it makes when your  community is involved and supportive!

It is with great pleasure that we bring you 

The 1st CANdo Awards

for Community Access Networks (CANs)

creating broadband communities 

To be presented at the 1st CAN Colloquium, Jan 19th 2005

in South Witham, Lincolnshire

We all know how much hard work goes into setting up and running anything to benefit the community.  Often there is a huge sacrifice by individuals to create a resource of enormous value to the area, which may go unrecognised and unsupported. 

But, none of us would keep setting up community networks if we didn't believe it was the right course of action for our communities. There are a huge number of highly qualified, professional, intelligent, and enthusiastic people across the country (and the world) setting up and maintaining community organisations.

These awards salute everyone involved in COMMUNITY BROADBAND - who are solving the digital divide issue, bringing new life to their communities, and delivering grassroots innovation and inspiration.

We hope that these Awards, although quirky in some cases, will help to promote community access networks (CANs) to a wider audience, and reward the incredible hard work which goes in to connecting and regenerating communities across all sectors, not just through broadband.

Definition

CAN- do - er - an individual or group who give their all to make it happen against all odds in a community access network (CAN).

The categories, nominations and winners are below.  All categories have been chosen by CANdoers, the nominations come from our lively and distinctive community, and the judges are those who benefit from their efforts - YOU.

Suggest other categories and nominations here. 01/01/05 Now closed.

Vote for yourself, and  and those you know. Vote for as many people as you wish, as many times as the system will let you. If you want a chance of winning one of these prestigious awards, get your community, friends, family, colleagues etc to vote too.   Thank you.

Photos, videos, music, links etc

All photos, videos etc are here. This should save this voting page getting any bigger because some of our visitors may still only have dial up or ADSL - poor them!

Please send in details, photos, videos etc but warn me (Lindsey) before sending any attachments by email or they will be deleted automatically - it's just netiquette, my friends!

Anonymity will be assured for any tales that require it!

Don't miss the example of Health & Safety in this mad world sent in by Chris Conder of Wray - enjoy!

Music - wow, we really are a multi-talented bunch! Live music at the award ceremony will be provided by The CanBand. Bring an instrument and/or your voice and join in with our specially written song - Roamin'. (Thanks to Brian Condon of ABC.)

Special thanks to Chris Conder for buttons on this page and for the winners' websites.

Links to CANs nominated are here.

Sponsored Awards

The ABC Best Network

Winner: South Witham Broadband Nominations:
3-C South Witham Broadband (SWBB) Oxfordshire Rural Broadband Wray Village Pateley.Net Cybermoor Digital Wirksworth Arwain

The CBN Community Broadband Champion

Winner: Lindsey Annison Nominations:
Anne Handley Brian Condon Lindsey Annison Daniel Heery Roy Eddleston Joel Smith Richard Lander

The LocustWorld "Right fine Mesh you've got me into" Award

Winner: South Witham Broadband Nominations:
Pateley.Net Digital Parish South Witham Broadband Drymen Feeed.com

The Digital Dales "JFDI - Broadbandit" Award

For the ones who have just got on and fing done it!

Winner of a MeshBox: Andy Saunders Nominations:
Oxfordshire Rural Broadband Digital Wirksworth South Witham Wray Village Andy Saunders - 11 mode mesh in Chelmondiston Joel Smith - Dales IT/Pateley.Net Harvey Watts - Stour Valley Wireless

MS (Distribution) UK Ltd "Most ingeniously sited antenna" Award

Whether on a mobile mast, church tower, up a tree, on a roof, balanced on a beam in an attic ........

You WANT to win this!!! MSDist have generously given 1 x 12dbi yagi, 2 x 13dbi patch antenna, 1 x8dbi patch, 1 x indoor swivel mount, and 1 x 9.5dbi omni. (see here for piccies of these goodies!)

Winner: Adam Burns - Free2Air Nominations:

Richard Lander  & Lindsey Annison During the Vintage Bus Mesh Experiment Easter 2003:  10dbi omni, cable tied to a chair leg, balanced upside down on a beam in the attic of the Pink Geranium Cafe in Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria Adam Burns - Free2Air Gas tower in East London Ben Shrive - Space IP At the House of Commons on the wall by the Thames - not permitted to install, even for a day, in a listed building! ORB - Rissington Water Tower, Cotswolds International Honorary Mention Himanchal Wireless Network in the Himalayas for making this work!

Category: The Dave Talbot Yogurt Knitters Award

For the individual or organisation who still fails to recognise the importance of community networks and grassroots activists, and who believe CANdoers are yogurt knitters, not professionals capable of delivering real, viable, innovative alternatives.

Winner: Blair's Govt Nominations:
Blair's Government BT adits (RIP) Most Regional Development Agencies (RDAs)

MS (Distribution) UK Ltd "The most progress on least money" Award

 Win this to get a Stella Doradus 10dbi omni from MSDist!!

Winner: Wray Village Nominations:
Wray Village 3-C Pateley.Net Drymen Consume Free2Air Digital Wirksworth South Witham Broadband Boundless Martley Web

The Feeed.com "Act of Most Stupid Bravery" Award

Surely we have no-one to suggest for this?!

Winner: Roy Eddleston & Geoff Lawrence Nominations:
Joel Smith and Pat Gale - EdenFaster on 30 tonne crane trying to stop gravity and hydraulics removing their arms, lives or LA's chimney pot before the antenna was up. Roy Eddleston and Geoff Lawrence - SWBB  climbing the water tower at Buckminster (see photo page for this scary tale! Paul Tate - ORB multiple occasions(!) but especially installing a copper antenna on a roof in a thunder storm

 The South Witham Broadband "Best Community Content Idea" Award

Winner: Wirksworth.net Nominations:
CarNet - the roundabout webcam Cybermoor - SMS weather and road alerts Cybermoor TV Free2Air - radio stations, media server and more Wirksworth.net - lively website, and particularly to Rita Williams for 'Methodist' content

The SOLWISE "Most Exciting Techie/Developer Innovation" Award

Solwise have sponsored this award - your chance to win an EnGenius Wireless Access Point/Bridge, and a Phenet WAP11. COOL! 

Winner:

SWBB

Nominations:
3-C - The Engine Room SWBB (Roy Eddleston) -PBX/Asterix VoIP implementation Jon Anderson - MeshBox dev

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Awards awaiting sponsors - see here for ways to sponsor your very own award

Category: "The Highest Antenna" Award

How high is your wi-fi? (Spurious claims swapping height in feet for metres will be disbelieved!)

Category: The "Grant Application Survivor" Award

All of us have tried to get grants. Some have succeeded, but most have horror stories to tell of wasted time, effort, resources etc when dealing with grant applications. Tell yours!

Winner:

Chris Conder

Nominations:
3-C (Nothing at all and then ideas plagiarised in grant funding attempts) South Witham Broadband (Christmas food hampers and worse!) Chris Conder (Wray)

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Associated category: The "Worst Grant Funder" Award

The list may be endless..........but the criteria are strict. Did they give you money when you needed it? Did you give it your best shot?  If no, then yes..... nominate them!

Category: The "Posthumous" Award

In memory of some of the networks who haven't survived the huge number of difficulties which community networks have to face. Here's hoping that much of the experience, lessons learnt, best practice, innovation etc will not be lost to others who come after them.

Winner: West Haddon Nominations:
LS29 Carnet - Laurie Van Someren and John E. Harris one of the very first communities to actually make it happen  Buckfastleigh - Gordon Adgey With our very best wishes for your continuing return to health West Haddon & West Winwick - Trevor and Keith

Category: The "Best Customer Service" Award 

Judged by the most impressive curvature of spine from bending over backwards?!

Winner: SWBB Nominations:
3-C South Witham Broadband Oxfordshire Rural Broadband W3Z for Wirksworth Jenny Snowden - Cybermoor for being the most helpful, approachable member of Cybermoor. "A very talented lady who makes using Cybermoor a pleasure".

Category: "The best CAN salesman" Award

Winner: Tom Anderson Nominations:
Tom Anderson- South Witham. Ex-timeshare and ex-used car salesman who managed to get most people's 12 month subs before the network was even built! Mark Harrison - 3-C Joel Smith - Pateley.Net Richard Lander - LocustWorld

Category: The "Best Marketing Idea" Award

Winner: Lindsey Annison / Ben Hammersley Nominations:
3-C - biggest postcard Boundless - funky postcard Lindsey Annison/ Ben Hammersley - Guardian Online front page Jez Verity/ Joel Smith - Outside broadcast for BBC Radio 4

Category: The "Most weird/diverse surveying kit" Award

It has to have a flask of coffee, gloves, wide range of antenna, pigtails, laptops, sniffing software, maps, invertors, compass etc but what else?

Winner: Roy Eddleston Nominations:
Roy Eddleston - posh or wot?! And as for this!! Joel Smith - just everything! Lindsey Annison - 1918 binoculars etc Geoff Lawrence - compass with bubble

Category: The "Stupidest Place To Survey"

Sadly, there are far too many places where you will find CANdoers like this

Winner: Joel Smith Nominations:
Joel Smith - seen regularly in weird places but holding his Mac laptop in a field full of cows and waving an antenna at them to keep them away...

Category: "Most tireless volunteer" Award

Winner: Chris Conder Nominations:
Tom Anderson - SWBB Paul Tate - ORB Chris Conder - Wray Helen Anderson - SWBB Adrian Wooster - ORB Dave Talbot - Digital Wirksworth Roy Eddleston - SWBB John E Harris - Carnet Laurie Van Someren - Carnet

Category: "Village Anorak" Award 

This award is for Chris. She is dying to be promoted to Village Anorak and this is your opportunity to make a Lancashire (near Yorkshire and Cumbria too!) farmer's wife blush. 

Vote NOW for her promotion!

We are very proud to know her, and to continually be amazed at all she does for her community (Wray), her farm, her family and her friends.

(Special thanks for the Nominate button which she produced at very short notice, and which we don't need here!)

Nomination & Winner:
Chris Conder

Winner: Fried cable in swbb Nominations:
The Crispy Critter - Middlefield House, SWBB Tale to be told at the Colloquium

Category: "Most dedicated installer" Award

Braves all weathers and situations

Winner: Pete Coleman Nominations:
Hugo Raddon- Cybermoor Pete Coleman - SWBB Pat Gale - Edenfaster Joel Smith - Dales IT Ben Houghton - Reeth Rural Radio

Category: The "Holy" Award

Most holes drilled in the wrong place

Winner of a bottle of holy water in a holy bottle!: Pete & Ian Nominations:
Pete Coleman & Ian Haggerty - SWBB Heaters and water butt - say no more!

Category: "Most antennas on a single roof" Award

Winner: Alan Nominations:
Alan Scarisbrick - SWBB (Number? His wife says far too many!)

Category: "The Installer with the biggest tool" Award

Can we ask "HOW big?!!"

Winner: Pete Coleman Nominations:
Pete Coleman - SWBB (see photo) Roy Eddleston - speechless! See the photos!

Category: Most amusing customer announcement award

What did you tell them?!

Winner: Everyone's a winner! Nominations:
Roy Eddleston - SWBB All of us - the network will be up and working this week!

Category: The "Try My Patience" Award 

For the CAN with the customer who placed the most service calls for no particular reason. (Is there anyone who CAN'T be nominated for this award?!)

Winner: SWBB Nominations:
3-C EdenFaster SWBB ORB Cybermoor

Category: Killing Me..sh oftly 

Weirdest excuses or reasons for a downed network

Winner: SWBB Nominations:
SWBB - blown up iron, fish pond, hedge cutter incident etc (see photo page) Russell Hutson of Feeed - Network status announcement 02/11/04 - "FeeedLola in Tilehurst Road, Reading will be going down at 16.30 Tuesday 2nd Nov while I fit a new shower. The new shower will not change the Feeed service, but I will be a little cleaner in the future :o)"

Category: Most supportive individual from a public/private sector organisation or company

There are goodies!

Winner: Mark Bowen of Lincolnshire Nominations:

Sean Fensom @ The Phone Co-op Neil Homer @ Oxford Swindon & Gloucester Co-op Nigel Heriz-Smith @ DTi Piers Bearne @ WLAN Event Andrew MacDonald @ the event organisers Steve Coppins @ SEEDA/Siemens Tom Wheadon @ Simmons & Simmons Scott Bain @ Cisco Mary Walker @The Community Council of Lincolnshire Mark Bowen @ Lincolnshire CDA Dave Farr @ Rural Matrix Dr Nick Race @ Lancaster University Dr Keith Mitchell @ Lancaster University Martin Burkinshaw @ Myerscough College Sue Nichols @ Wray Primary School Phil Southward @ NWDA Steve Kennedy @ Thus Andy Long @ EasyNet

(and many others who space prevents us naming!)

Category: Most consistently useful techie expert ('s mobile number)

07.....!

Winner: Gregor Siegert Nominations:
Roy Eddleston (Cedar Consulting) Joel Smith (Dales IT) for Mac & PC, networks, ADSL, mesh and even where to send your kids camping for 2 weeks a year Adrian Wooster Paul Tate Steve Spillane (Village Internet) for his BT and ADSL knowledge Dave Farr (Rural Matrix) for mesh advice Mark Harrison (3-C) Lindsey Annison (Digital Dales) Gregor Siegert (Avanti) Hugo Raddon (Cybermoor)

Category: Most involved local community

Involving other organisations, individuals etc is essential and it's where CANs win out

Winners: Wray Village and SWBB Nominations:
South Witham Broadband Pub is the Hub - Telabria 3-C Wray Village Cybermoor Digital Wirksworth

Category:  Honorary CAN Awards

There is always a guru or two, plus the odd revolutionary who must be mentioned. They led the way 'n we love 'em.

Category: The "It CAN Be Done" Award

They knocked us into shape, got the word out there, brought many like-minded individuals and groups together and they deserve huge praise.

Category:Roamin, roamin, roamin

One to watch as CANs set up peering agreements and show sustainable business models at work....