on the occasion
of our 5th Birthday
by Bruce Gillespie
Founder of the MilkyWay
Internet Café and Director of PCB Technologies (Pty) Ltd
15th December 1999
Introduction
Africa's first Internet Café, the
MilkyWay, turns 5 on the 15th December 1999. It has been an interesting
and challenging period, and despite the odds, we are proud to
still be in business and celebrating this occasion.
This document will trace the Café's
history, from the first hints of cyberspace, to the present where
it is now an integral part of a unique and bustling community.
The Vision of a Cyber Café
The MilkyWay Internet Café in Yeoville,
Johannesburg, opened up for business in December 1994 as the
first public Internet access in Africa, if not the Southern Hemisphere.
This grew on the Public Computer access facility in the offices
of PCB Technologies, that had begun a year earlier. This offered
the public the use of a desktop publishing system which included
a laser printer and scanner, at a reasonable hourly rate.
Inspirations for the futuristic theme of
the MilkyWay Internet Café came after reading science
fiction author William Gibson and a trip to New York in 1993,
where a chance connection with the cyber-culture magazine Mondo
2000 illuminated the path towards a on-line future.
South Africa was also emerging from a regime
of absolute Information Control, that was rigidly enforced during
the Apartheid years. The Internet was seen as an exciting way
forward in so many areas, and the Internet Café a place
where the public could get exposure to it's wonders and realise
it's potential.
The MilkyWay was sponsored from the start
by PCB Technologies, an IT company which have been installing
and maintaining PC-based systems and installing Local Area Networks
since 1985. PCB envisaged the Internet café as a place
to demonstrate and promote this new concept in global communication
and information flow, not only to the broader public and press,
but also to it's customer base. It was also seen to be providing
a model and inspiration for other Internet Café startups.
The band of the MilkyWay galaxy is very
prominent in the Southern Hemisphere night sky. With the astronomical
community being amongst the first community to make use of the
Internet, it provided a suitable theme. The MilkyWay also features
richly in the largely unknown and unexplored ancient Khoisan
mythology and culture.
Staffing
The key factor in any business , especially one that is customer
service based. We have been very fortunate with staff, and have
attracted a variety interesting people who have helped make the
place work.
PCB has seen the MilkyWay as an important
part of it's contribution to development of IT skills in South
Africa. It has been a first job for many people, and a place
where they have been able to get exposure to computers and the
Internet. Thereafter they are able to claim some work experience
when moving on with their careers.
Serving a community
Yeoville is a unique community in South
Africa. It is one of the oldest suburbs of Johannesburg and has
more recently become an African cosmopolitan junction. Whilst
many may bemoan it's decline, we have seen it as a change ultimately
for the better, representing a vital transformation in our society.
It is not a community of privilege or excess,
and most homes or flats do not have a PC, let alone an Internet
connection. There are quite a few number of schools around, and
some do have computer facilities, but these are normally restricted
to the more well-to-do private schools. Therefore the facilities
and services offered have to be appropriate to that customer
base, and for that reason we have scaled-rate services, starting
with a flat rate per month, unlimited use e-mail accounts on
DOS machines, to monochrome Windows, and then the more expensive
multimedia colour systems.
There is a fairly large community of refugees
and immigrants from the African continent, which bring in a lot
of people wanting to correspond to family and friends back home.
There is also a large youth component, as well as a fair number
of travellers and back packers.
Sustainability
We have seen the rise and fall of many
Internet Cafes in South Africa. The MilkyWay is fortunate enough
to have had the backing of PCB Technologies, which has provided
hefty financial and technical backing right from the start. The
policy of the PCB Directors has been that the Internet Café
should ultimately be financially self sustaining, and this now
by and large this has now been achieved.
Besides net and computer access, additional
services are offered to customers. These ‘value added services'
include hot drinks, refreshments and eateries such as cakes,
muffins, slices of pizza and fresh sandwiches. This also has
provided additional employment opportunities in the community.
We have been fortunate enough to enjoy
long term support from our service provider, Internet Solutions.
This has been in the form of a discounted price on the permanent
leased line that we have to them. We have also had some support
from IT corporates, such as Novell.
An important strategy in sustainability
has been keeping the systems as low maintenance as possible.
This has been achieved through the use of a combination of technologies,
new and old. For example, DOS machines for simple e-mail and
word processing, and Windows for web browsing. Novell ZEN works
has also been deployed, allow for the simple and quick software
maintenance on the Windows 9x workstations.
Outreach
As part of general promotions and fostering
good will in the community, the MilkyWay has sponsored many community
projects, such as AIDS awareness, harm reduction & drug education
programs.
We have also had a policy of promoting
the Internet and computer literacy with the youth of the area,
as well as providing a safe and fun place for them to hang out
in. The MilkyWay has two programs: SpinOut on a Friday night,
which provides free access for teenagers, as well as hosting
up and coming DJ's and FunDay, where on a Sunday, the café
is reserved for free access for under 15's.
The future
The MilkyWay is now not only providing
an essential community service, but also a successful enterprise.
We hope that we can continue with this project in the future,
and that it serve as an inspiration to others to do the same.
Respects
Due thanks should go the other PCB Director
Paul Boulle for his understanding and support of the MilkyWay
project, and all other endeavours which have not been directly
related with the PCB bottom line.
More thanks must go to David Frankel from
Internet Solutions for his long term support, and all other sponsors
who have donated and helped out from time to time, especially
Novell. Also thanks to our first Internet Café employee
Farren Hayden as well all the subsequent waitrons for their contributions
to the success of the café.
Some web related sites:
The MilkyWay Internet Café Home
page
http://www.milkyway.co.za
SpinOut - at the MilkyWay on Friday nights
http://icarus.pcb.co.za/spinout
FunDay - some pictures and details of what happens at the MilkyWay
on a Sunday
http://www.milkyway.co.za/sundayskool.htm
PCB Technologies (Pty) Ltd - the owners
and sponsors of the MlkyWay
http://www.pcb.co.za
Projects supported by the MilkyWay:
Yeoville Community Development Forum
http://www.pcb.co.za/yeoville
Tswaing Crater Park
http://www.milkyway.co.za/tswaing
RaveSafe - drug education and harm reduction
information site
http://www.ravesafe.org
