[okfn-discuss] An interesting question about open data for local government.

[Zach Beauvais]

Excellent…   

Maybe we could take a leaf from people like the Gideons, and leave copies of the Open Data Handbook in all local government offices? :)

I agree completely about the enmeshment of format debates. That's why clear guidance is so important: especially when it makes the priorities clear, and points out licensing and permissions.

Cheers,
-Z

--  
Zach Beauvais | @zbeauvais (http://twitter.com/zbeauvais)
z.beauvais at gmail.com (mailto:z.beauvais at gmail.com)
http://zachbeauvais.com


On Thursday, 11 October 2012 at 08:20, Rufus Pollock wrote:

> On 10 October 2012 15:42, Zach Beauvais <z.beauvais at gmail.com (mailto:z.beauvais at gmail.com)> wrote:
> > Quora sent me this question [1], which I think is of interest to the OKFN:
> >  
> > If you were making a bill about open data for a local government, what sort
> > of specifications and formats would you include in the bill?
> >  
> > And it's starting out with a few interesting answers in situ.
> >  
> > This subject might be a good post/paper for people to pass on to civil
> > servants/local representatives with a step by step guide to transparency?
> >  
>  
>  
> The Open Data Handbook has some basic instructions on "How to Open Up Data"
>  
> http://opendatahandbook.org/en/how-to-open-up-data/
>  
> Which includes:
>  
> http://opendatahandbook.org/en/how-to-open-up-data/make-data-available.html
>  
> Which states "open, machine-readable format" as one criteria. I would
> say though, that as long as you are getting machine readable (esp. not
> PDF, not scans etc) one shouldn't get too obsessed about formats and
> specs -- I think that is something one can come back to *once you are
> actually getting data out there under an open licence** (there's a
> danger o/w that one gets enmeshed in big debates over one format
> versus another that stall the actual process).
>  
> Rufus
>  
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>  
>  


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