[openspending-dev] Improvement of offenerhaushalt.at

Wed May 1 14:07:09 UTC 2013

Hi Bernard,

I just took a look at your task list and I must say that I agree with
Friedrich's comment regarding developing outside the openspending core:

On fim 18.apr 2013 15:33, Friedrich Lindenberg wrote:
> I don't want to comment on the multiple instance/many instances thing.
> Still, looking at the task list, I would really urge you to implement most
> of the items (i.e. all of (2)) outside of the main OpenSpending software.

Since you'll be running your own openspending instance I also like
Friedrich's suggestion about just using a subdomain for it and create a
satellite site with your visualisations (the actual implementation).

So regarding additions to openspending core I feel that your user
management tasks 1.1 - 1.3 can't really be developed outside the
openspending core without a lot of unnecessary effort (the visualisation
tasks can however and probably should).

However you say that only 1.1. (the administrative interface) will be
useful for openspending core. I think you're right in that 1.1. is
useful for openspending core but I think you're wrong in 1.2 and 1.3 not
being of interest -- those would actually be really awesome features to
have. Here are my thoughts on each of them:

# 1.2 User roles

I think it would be awesome to be able to have some sort of a user
structure for openspending. If users could create teams and assign
privileges to certain features. We'd of course need to mark the features
in some way, but I think it shouldn't be that difficult. Here's a small
user story example I can imagine would be nice to have (multiple stories
in one):

"Suzie Q creates a new team for her dataset. She automatically becomes
administrator of the team. She adds Uncle Scrooge and Willy Wonka as
data uploaders, Babar the Elephant as the team's modeller and Peeping
Tom as an observant. All team members get emails when another team
member does something."

Here we'd have some user roles that give different team members access
to different features. These roles is not something I've given much
thought but they should give an idea of how I understand your
requirement and how it could be implemented.

Now you're budget indicator role is something I don't fully understand.
When would indicators be added to the dataset. Around visualisations or
added to the data (i.e. before it's uploaded)? I don't see how it fits
into the openspending core.

# 1.3. Single Sign-on

How this becomes useful to openspending core. How do you anticipate
you'll implement this? If you do it around something like OpenID I think
it could become useful to openspending core (at least enable OpenID
login and quite possibly add autodiscovery). I'd be really interested in
hearing your implementation ideas here to get a better grip of what
you're thinking about.

Please keep all of us posted on what you do regarding the visualisation
tasks. I think many (most/all) of them are of interest to a lot of
openspending users. For example Adam Stiles of openbudgetoakland would
be interested in 2.7 and is probably interested in all of the other
tasks (except maybe 2.3 since they're only working with one
municipality). In any case I'm really interested.

Don't hesitate to use the openspending dev list if you want for your dev
discussions (so we can all benefit - and I know I'm putting words into
other mailing list members mouths (or keyboards)).

/Tryggvi