[okfn-discuss] Defining open data - blog post

Thu Oct 3 16:19:55 UTC 2013

No particular reason, Luis, but as a comparative newcomer to the space I
get asked this a lot, and it's useful to set out something super clear and
not domain specific :)

Laura

On 3 October 2013 16:29, Luis Villa <luis at lu.is> wrote:

> Nifty. Anything in particular motivate this now?
>
> Luis
>
>
> On Thu, Oct 3, 2013 at 7:17 AM, Laura James <laura.james at okfn.org> wrote:
>
>> *All,
>>
>> **
>>
>> **
>>
>> *
>> *
>> *
>> *We just posted about "Defining Open Data" on the Open Knowledge
>> Foundation blog - setting out a clear and accessible explanation
>> (hopefully!).  There will be more posts about the Open Definition and how
>> it relates to other open principles in the next few days.*
>>
>> http://blog.okfn.org/2013/10/03/defining-open-data/
>>
>> Laura
>>
>> *
>> *
>> *
>> *
>> *
>> *
>>
>> *Open data is data that can be freely used, shared and built-on by
>> anyone, anywhere for any purpose*. This is the summary of the full Open
>> Definition <http://opendefinition.org/okd/> which the Open Knowledge
>> Foundation <http://okfn.org/> created in 2005 to provide both a succinct
>> explanation and a detailed definition of open data<http://okfn.org/opendata>
>> .
>>
>> As the open data movement grows, and even more governments and
>> organisations sign up to open data, it becomes ever more *important that
>> there is a clear and agreed definition* for what “open data” means if we
>> are to realise the full benefits of openness, and avoid the risks of
>> creating incompatibility between projects and splintering the community.
>>
>> *Open* can apply to information from any source and about any topic.
>> Anyone can release their data under an open licence for free use by and
>> benefit to the public. Although we may think mostly about government and
>> public sector bodies releasing public information such as budgets or maps,
>> or researchers sharing their results data and publications, any
>> organisation can open information (corporations, universities, NGOs,
>> startups, charities, community groups and individuals).
>>
>> There is open information in transport <http://transport.okfn.org/>,
>> science <http://science.okfn.org/>, products<http://product-open-data.com/>
>> , education <http://education.okfn.org/>, sustainability<http://sustainability.okfn.org/>
>> , maps <http://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=5/51.500/-0.100>, legislation<http://legislation.okfn.org/>
>> , libraries <http://openbiblio.net/principles/>, economics<http://openeconomics.net/>
>> , culture <http://openglam.org/>, development<http://open-development.okfn.org/>
>> , business <http://opencorporates.com/>, design <http://design.okfn.org/>
>> , finance <http://openspending.org/> …. So the explanation of what open
>> means applies to all of these information sources and types. Open may also
>> apply both to data – big data and small data<http://blog.okfn.org/2013/04/22/forget-big-data-small-data-is-the-real-revolution/> –
>> or to content, like images, text and music!
>>
>> So here we set out clearly what open means, and why this agreed
>> definition is vital for us to collaborate, share and scale as open data and
>> open content grow and reach new communities.
>> What is Open?
>>
>> The full Open Definition <http://opendefinition.org/okd/> provides a
>> precise definition of what open data is. There are 2 important elements to
>> openness:
>>
>>    - *Legal openness*: you must be allowed to get the data legally, to
>>    build on it, and to share it. Legal openness is usually provided by
>>    applying an appropriate (open) license<http://opendefinition.org/licenses/> which
>>    allows for free access to and reuse of the data, or by placing data into
>>    the public domain.
>>    - *Technical openness*: there should be no technical barriers to
>>    using that data. For example, providing data as printouts on paper (or as
>>    tables in PDF documents) makes the information extremely difficult to work
>>    with. So the Open Definition has various requirements for “technical
>>    openness,” such as requiring that data be machine readable and available in
>>    bulk.
>>
>> There are a few key aspects of *open* which the Open Definition<http://opendefinition.org/okd> explains
>> in detail. Open Data is useable by anyone, regardless of who they are,
>> where they are, or what they want to do with the data; there must be no
>> restriction on who can use it, and commercial use is fine too.
>>
>> Open data must be available in bulk (so it’s easy to work with) and it
>> should be available free of charge, or at least at no more than a
>> reasonable reproduction cost. The information should be digital, preferably
>> available by downloading through the internet, and easily processed by a
>> computer too (otherwise users can’t fully exploit the power of data – that
>> it can be combined together to create new insights).
>>
>> Open Data must permit people to use it, re-use it, and redistribute it,
>> including intermixing with other datasets and distributing the results.
>>
>> The Open Definition <http://opendefinition.org/okd> generally doesn’t
>> allow conditions to be placed on how people can use Open Data, but it does
>> permit a data provider to require that data users credit them in some
>> appropriate way, make it clear if the data has been changed, or that any
>> new datasets created using their data are also shared as open data.
>>
>> There are 3 important principles behind this definition of *open*, which
>> are why Open Data is so powerful:
>>
>>    - *Availability and Access*: that people can get the data
>>    - *Re-use and Redistribution*: that people can reuse and share the
>>    data
>>    - *Universal Participation*: that anyone can use the data
>>
>> Governance of the Open Definition
>>
>> Since 2007, the Open Definition has been governed by an Advisory Council<http://opendefinition.org/advisory-council/>.
>> This is the group formally responsible for maintaining and developing the
>> Definition and associated material. Its mission is to take forward Open
>> Definition work for the general benefit of the open knowledge community,
>> and it has specific responsibility for deciding on what licences comply
>> with the Open Definition.
>>
>> The Council is a community-run body. New members of the Council can be
>> appointed at any time by agreement of the existing members of the Advisory
>> Council, and are selected for demonstrated knowledge and competence in the
>> areas of work of the Council.
>>
>> The Advisory Council operates in the open and anyone can join the
>> mailing list <http://lists.okfn.org/mailman/listinfo/od-discuss>.
>> About the Open Definition
>>
>> The Open Definition <http://opendefinition.org/okd/> was created in 2005
>> by the Open Knowledge Foundation with input from many people. The
>> Definition was based directly on the Open Source Definition<http://opensource.org/osd-annotated>
>>  from the Open Source Initiative <http://opensource.org/> and we were
>> able to reuse most of these well-established principles and practices that
>> the free and open source community had developed for software, and apply
>> them to data and content.
>>
>> Thanks to the efforts of many translators in the community, the Open
>> Definition is available in 30+ languages <http://opendefinition.org/okd/>
>> .
>> More about openness coming soon
>>
>> In coming days we’ll post more on the theme of explaining openness,
>> including a more detailed exploration of the Open Definition, the
>> relationship of the Open Definition to specific sets of principles for
>> openness – such as the Sunlight Foundation’s 10 principles<http://sunlightfoundation.com/policy/documents/ten-open-data-principles/> and
>> Tim Berners-Lee’s 5 star system<http://www.w3.org/DesignIssues/LinkedData.html>,
>> why having a shared and agreed definition of open data is so important, and
>> how one can go about “doing open data”.
>>
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-- 
*

Dr Laura James

CEO  | skype: laura.james  |  @LaurieJ <https://twitter.com/LaurieJ>

The Open Knowledge Foundation <http://okfn.org/>

Empowering through Open Knowledge
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