Tag: Open Data

Will This Flood of Open Data Wash Past Us?

Posted on by Richard Wallis

 @ePISplatform features fairly prominently in the stream of tweets that waft across my desktop every day – it comes from the European Public Sector Information (PSI) Platform (Europe’s One-stop Shop on PSI re-use) Working to stimulate and promote PSI re-use and open data initiatives. In amongst the useful pointers to news, comment, and documents, I have been recently conscious of an increasing flow of tweets like these: This is good news.  More and more city, local, national governments and public bodies releasing data as open data.  Of course the reference to open here is in relation to the licensing of …

Open Data: Digital Fuel or Raw Material?

Posted on by Richard Wallis

I have been reading with interest ‘Digital Fuel of the 21st Century: Innovation through Open Data and the Network Effect’ by Vivek Kundra. Well worth a read to place the current [Digital] Revolution we are somewhere in the middle of, in relation to preceding revolutions and the ages that they begat.

What Is Your Data’s Star Rating(s)?

Posted on by Richard Wallis

The Linked Data movement was kicked off in mid 2006 when Tim Berners-Lee published his now famous Linked Data Design Issues document. Many had been promoting the approach of using W3C Semantic Web standards to achieve the effect and benefits, but it was his document and the use of the term Linked Data that crystallised it, gave it focus, and a label.

In 2010 Tim updated his document to include the Linked Open Data 5 Star Scheme

Ambitious Technology Plan Emerges From Stanford Linked Data Workshop

Posted on by Richard Wallis

Although there has been a half year lag between the the workshop held at Stanford University, at the end of June 2011, and the Stanford Linked Data Workshop Technology Plan [pdf] published on December 31st, the folks behind it obviously have not been twiddling their thumbs.

Will Government Open Licence Extensions be a haven for the timid?

Posted on by Richard Wallis

National Archives announced today UK government licensing policy extended to make more public sector information available: Building on the success of the Open Government Licence, The National Archives has extended the scope of its licensing policy, encouraging and enabling even easier re-use of a wider range of public sector information. The UK Government Licensing Framework (UKGLF), the policy and legal framework for the re-use of public sector information, now offers a growing portfolio of licences and guidance to meet the diverse needs and requirements of both public sector information providers and re-user communities. On the surface this is move is …

Are We Getting A Right to Data?

Posted on by Richard Wallis

Friday night – nothing on the TV – I know! I’ll browse through the Protection of Freedoms Bill, currently passing through the UK Parliament. Sad I know, but interesting. Lets scroll back in time a bit to November 19th 2010 and a government press conference introduced by a video from Prime Minister David Cameron.  The headline story was about the publishing of government spending and contract data, but towards the end of this 109 second short he said the following: … the most exciting is a new right to data. Which will let people request streams of government information and …