This is a follow up post to what Kaung Myat posted about IT standards.

Lack of standards is not just in IT
The lack of standards is not just in IT, it exist everywhere in Myanmar. Just go to the market and see all the various measurement standards used. We have Pyi for rice and some beans and pulses, while others are by Viss and Tickle. We have pound for Tea and Coffee while fruits are not sold by weight but by how large it looks!

Even with Rice, Pyi is not the sole standards because the bags are measured by weight and is slightly off when measured with Pyi!

What about electrical plugs? What is Myanmar standard for a three pin plug? Is it the large round three pin or the small one? Or is it flat three pin or the Chinese type slanted flats? Or even the round and flat combo three pin? We have to waste so much money because of lack of standard, we buy multi adapters so that we can use all the plethora of plugs that the market sells with. It's all a very sad situation.

Can we change it?
The answer is no (or not yet?). That's because some 40 years back a professor from YIT (formerly RIT) did publish all these standards to be used in Myanmar. It was never published. And this is not going to change how much ever we try. So what about it IT? Can we do something about it?

IT standards... can we change it?
Everyone of us here knows that we don't have a standard keyboard layout yet (or do we?, I haven't been following these for a long time). We have Unicode now. And we a lot of smart minds are working on it now. Are they working on Burmese language or Myanmar? Is this word interchangeable? I believe we are working on Burmese, but never think twice about calling it Myanmar. This we can change. At least to some extent we can. Like we can start calling places that sell Burmese food as a Burmese food shop rather than a Myanmar food shop. After all they are selling mostly Burmese cuisine and not usually offering a combo of Kachin, Shan, or Kayin food etc. What about the so called “Myanmar Music Ensemble”, known as “sine wine”. Is that Myanmar Sine Wine or is that Bamar Sine Wine? What we can at least do for the time being is start using politically correct terms. That would be a start. As for higher thing like keyboard layout, I think it's going to be tough even if someone comes up with a super smart layout that would be agreeable to everyone. So should anyone try? I am not sure. What do you guys think or feel about all these lack of standards? Who should take the initiative?

Thinking out of the box.
If given enough thought I do believe standards can happen. It may not be “recognized”, but it can be made so popular that it would become the defacto standard. Using the keyboard layout as an example. The Win Myanmar Systems is almost the defacto standard, mainly because it's easily available and because that's what Myanamarsar keyboards are printed with (or is that CE?) What could be done is a deal with keyboard factory to print what is thought to be most suitable for new learners to use and bundle that with a CD including a typing tutor. Just my two cents. Can there be anyother out of box thinking for other standards? Your inputs are much needed and pleaded for. Myanmar is waiting.

I Want Myanmar To Be

I also believe myanmar has very good potential for IT industry.
But we need to do a lot of things for national level;
There are currently 41 Singapore IT Standards as presented, http://www.itsc.org.sg/sg_it_stds/sis_index.html
This is the one example of how Myanmar should be change, we really need to do a lot of things like this.
Ladies....... and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Take your duty, Don't fight each others ... :)

Corporate Lesson

A priest was driving along and saw a nun on the side of the road, he stopped and offered her a lift, which she accepted. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to open and reveal a lovely leg. The priest had a look and nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun looked at him and immediately said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?" The priest was flustered and apologized profusely. He forced himself to remove his hand. Changing gear, he let his hand slide up her leg again. The nun once again said, "Father, remember Psalm 129?" Once again the priest apologized "Sorry sister but the flesh is weak." Arriving at the convent, the nun got out gave him a meaningful glance and went on her way. On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to retrieve a bible and looked up Psalm 129. It Said, "Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory."

Moral of the story: Always be well informed in your job, or you might miss a great opportunity.

More Read: http://www.berro.com/entertainment/fun.htm