1. GLBrain – A Global Brain - The Basic Idea
GLBrain, a new concept of a social network, using the possibilities of the internet to form a global brain - informative, communicative, creative, focusing on sustainability, social responsibility and creating civic value, made to change our lives, the internet and this world for the better.
The basic idea was derived from the following knowledge of how today's social networks are structured:
The big social networks, have attracted a huge user base, offering communication based services, creating user profiles by watching and storing their behavior and interest. This profile data combined with a totally identified user is sold and built the basis of their business model. Sometimes such data is further used by governmental institutions for their own purposes. They are not interested in anything but their own business without respect to privacy or any specific interest to make the internet work for the better of society.
Content based webpages and networks, focus on sustainability, social responsibility and civic values. They want to spread their ideas but lack the user base to do so.
We in GLBrain wanted use the internet to form a Global Brain and make change happen. For this we needed to develop a platform attracting a big user base by offering all well known functions of social networks but based on our principles of privacy and data control by our users. On such basis we offer new functionalities and a new business model allowing and helping our users to follow our core values of sustainability, social responsibility and creating civic value.
Watching this video animation will help you understand the basic thoughts which lead to create GLBrain.
Please also read our About Us in GLBrain (this and all further links marked in blue down in this campaign, will lead to the relevant content in GLBrain and can be followed in 18 languages by using the language select option up right).
2. Who created GLBrain
2.1. Dr. Wolfgang Pinegger
Austrian citizen who initially developed GLBrain.
Over the last 35 years and untill today he has traveled the world for numerous jobs in various industries which has ultimately given him the chance to develop a good understanding of today's world.
2.2. Dr. Walter Schwimmer
Austrian citizen and former Secretary General of the Council of Europe, today still holding many well reputed functions like: Chairman of the International Coordination Committee, Co-Chairman of the World Public Forum - Dialogue of Civilizations and Co.Founder and president of the Center for Global Dialogue and Cooperation.
2.3. The Team
All holding one or more university degrees in computer science, programming, mathematics, economy or graphic design.
Most of them coming from Megatrend University having helped in the early stage of the project.
3. What we did and how GLBrain looks today
Programming and launching today's version of GLBrain has been a massive task, as it needed to combine all known functions in the internet ranging from a powerful search engine to social network communication and creation tools, and a business model, all based on anonymous statistics to guarantee our principles of privacy and data control by our users.
All technical basis of GLBrain, the database, our own cloud and dedicated servers are implemented. Today GLBrain runs on PC's, all known tablet computers as well as IOS and Android mobile devices. The Chromecast technology allows us to run also via TV and there can be remote controlled by our phones or computers.
How GLBrain looks today is presented here by one of the team members.
Carolin Pinegger
Carolin got her degree in Business Administration in UCF Orlando Florida in May 2013 and has been successful in College Golf for this University.
Since then she made it to become a professional Golfer in USA. She helped in designing important features of GLBrain and today is our window to the young generation especially in USA.
Let her give you a short introduction and explain the basic functions and layout of today's version of GLBrain.
To learn more, please log in and register under www.glbrain.com , or simply follow the link to our short tutorial here.
4. The tasks ahead
For GLBrain to finally become a global brain we need to:
4.1. Complete our communication and social network function
(Time to finish: Q02/2014)
To increase our user base we plan to create a new and unique communication function covering the most used functions of well known social networks but based on our principals of user protection with respect to privacy and self control of his data.
Amongst them a special personal profile with possibilities to post and uploaded content, posting, chatting, newsfeed, searching, administrating and communicating with friends.
4.2. Improve our user profiles
(Time to finish: End 2013)
Our standard profiles will also be updated with new functions enabling them to interact with the new communication functions as well as to show and measure their actions in regard to sustainability and civic value, enabling the normal user to show his interest and be actively involved in sustainability and creating civic value.
Our profiles for professional use will allow better presentation and get new functions such as:
- creating and embedding direct access to their internet shops
- selecting and showing categories and product ranges for their activities
- easy advertising and communication with anonymous users
- classification as CSR certified ISO 26000
- similar GLBrain CSR Classification by self declaration
- special search engine for organizations and companies by geographics, category, product and attributes like Social responsible, sustainable and more
- a system of posting advertisement to all content of a category which can be focused by country, city, sex and age group. Such advertising will open via a thumbnail its own content and lead to the profile page, and online shop. A sample can be seen already by advertising for this campaign on every GLBrain page.
4.3. The “Sustainability, Social Responsibility and Civic Value Mode”
(Time to finish: Q01/2014)
The main focus of GLBrain is to promote sustainability, social responsibility and create civic value through day by day usage of the internet.
All present or future services and functions shown above are made to motivate our users to make GLBrain the internet platform of their choice and to generate the user base and traffic necessary to create positive effects by changing their own behavior to promote these principles on all levels.
This is a massive task but GLBrain has been specifically designed for this and most of the main functions like the categories, Global, Local and the MyBrain levels and possibilities for movements and voting ballots are already implemented.
Some of the new functions have been mentioned above in the new user profiles. Some more are:
- creating a non public "suggest and report" function that allows control of such declarations by the users
- creating special search functions to browse by attributes like "Socially Responsible Company" or "Sustainable Product" and then showing only users, companies, stores, products and GLBrain content matching such attributes.
- This being linked to the embedded internet shops will help users to make their decisions and buying sustainable products from socially responsible companies.
- We will also create tools and statistics to easily show the effective change of behavior in millions of our users.
- and many more
The interaction between the user's MyBrain and general content on all countries Local and all Global Levels makes GLBrain become the place where the individual user can take control of society and is provided a better way to act socially responsible, change their behavior and share their ideas.
4.4. Some additional technical issues
To follow and promote our planned growth we need to:
Expand our server capacity to match our increasing demand (Time: as needed).
Add many more languages. (We plan 5-7 per month).
Our final goal is to cover all languages natively spoken by more than 10 Million people.
Having already translated GLBrain into 18 languages we reach about 35% of the world population in their native language. To reach this goal we have to add about 40 more languages.
Quite a challenging and costly task, but absolutely necessary. In addition we will implement a professional tool managing all changes in so many languages.
Implement a translation tool also enabling direct translation of all content between all languages available in GLBrain.
4.5. Summary of what we already have and what we will do
Completing this tasks will make GLBrain to be a fully integrated internet platform and social network, offering many known functions in a unique and new way. All based on our principles with regard to privacy and data control by our users, and promoting sustainability, social responsibility and civic value.
This picture shows, what we already offer today and how GLBrain will look like, when the tasks described here will be completed in about 6-9 months time.
4.6. Marketing Campaigns
(Time: All year 2014)
We also need to run marketing campaigns on a global and local level to further attract NGOs and Companies who would use GLBrain and thus help us reach our goal of using the internet only in the best interest of its users and to make this world a better place. We will spread out our system of appointing local partners (now active in 10 countries) to many more countries.
5. FAQ
Q: How can you improve privacy knowing that almost all Internet and servers belong to big companies influenced by powerful governments?
A: It is difficult but possible. We do not ask to use your actual name and address, your email is only used for safe registration, then never again unless you forget your password.
The infrastructure was a major issue, as we could not use a standard cloud and server infrastructure available on the market. We had to build our own cloud system with the help of Twinstar and operate on dedicated servers only used forGLBrain.
Q: Is it legal to allow registration without the correct name?
A: In many countries like Germany, it is illegal to force a user to use his real name or to delete his account for this reason. Facebook, for example, can only behave like this as they are not operating under such countries' laws.
Q: How do you prevent illegal actions on GLBrain?
A: Our principles of creating civic value will not allow illegal actions on our network. All content of our terms of use and privacy policy are based on German law, the so far best and most user protective Internet law. This goes along with a powerful “Suggest and Report Tool” also matching German law standards and allowing interaction with anonymous users or about content created anonymously. We only allow embedding and linking to safe internet content.
Q: Why is your headquarter located in Dubai?
A: Globra FZ LLC, the mother company is located in Dubai Internet City, a Free Zone specially created for these kinds of business and home to offices of almost all internet companies and social networks like Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo, Linked in, Oracle and 500 more. Dubai Internet City hosts the biggest agglomeration of Internet Companies in the world.
Q: Who is the real owner of GLBrain?
A: Dr. Wolfgang Pinegger and Dr. Walter Schwimmer.
Q: What Banks and Payment Providers do you use?
A: Our Bank accounts are with Deutsche Bank AG and we are accepted by all major credit card and payment service companies, as can be seen in our own payment system.
For internet credit card payments we use our Austrian Subsidiary Globra GmbH and the Austrian Payment Provider
mPay 24.