data.vic.gov.au Blog
What now for government sponsored app competitions?
It may be surprising to learn that very few award-winning apps from what is generally regarded as the originator - the “Apps for Democracy” competition - still exist.
Given this interesting tid-bit, the obvious question to ask is - why, seemingly, do they fail (both app comps and the apps themselves)?
How do we measure whether app comps are a success? Do we base it on the sheer number of entries, or perhaps the sustainability of any victorious apps? There are some who believe any government sponsored challenge should be tied to solving known service problems.
Give us your thoughts.
Some background reading to stoke discussion.
Articles
Everyone jumped on the app contest bandwagon. Now what?
The merits of government app contests
App outreach and sustainabiltiy: lessons learned by Portland, Oregon
Competitions - a different take on the idea
Permalink →Open Data… Is the end user overlooked?
Since the flurry and optimism that greeted the development of such open data luminaries like data.gov and data.gov.uk, the open data movement has recently received some potential body blows.
Firstly, the resignation of Vivek Kundra(the first CIO the US has ever had) has had some in the online world questioning whether this will slow down the Obamas administration's aggressive development of open data priniciples. Washington Post columnist Vivek Wadhwawrote on the 22nd of June that "...whenever a program loses it's key evangelist, it normally dies".
And now it seems that criticism is growing over whom it s that "open data" actually serves. Tim Berners-Lee's now famous catch cry of "Raw Data Now" at TED2009 implores governm,ent agencies to put their raw data on the web to allow the community to do wonderful things with it... but, is open data enough?
This poses a number of questions:
- - Does "open data" address end user needs?
- - How does the uploading of copious amounts of raw data help those who don't know how to sort through them? Or identify what they represent?
- - Does a "Data Divide" between those that have the opportunity and skill to effectively use the data and those that don't exist?
- - Does "open data" simply empower those already empowered?
Is the "data divide" a reality that requires attention to address perceived data access inequalities or should the mantra of "Raw Data Now" be enough to encourage development by whomever for the greater good?
If you have any ideas about about how to make open data, and by extension data.vic.gov.au, a more effective tool for all potential users, please share your thoughts and ideas by joining the discussion.
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Making more government information and data available
The Victorian Government is developing the Public Sector Information Release Framework (PSIRF). It will help Victorian Government agencies better categorise and ultimately release more information and data sets to the public.
The Victorian Government is developing the Public Sector Information Release Framework (PSIRF) to guide the management and release of public sector information. The framework will help Victorian Government agencies to better categorise and ultimately release more information and data sets to other agencies, business and the public.
The PSIRF project follows a parliamentary inquiry in 2009, Improving Access to Victorian Public Sector Information and Data, and the release of the Victorian Government 2.0 action plan.
About the Public Sector Information Release Framework
The framework will guide government agencies to: categorise information and datasets; determine pricing models; determine appropriate licences with creative commons licensing as the default and a tailored suite of licences for restricted material; better manage their information making it more usable and accessible.
Who will the PSI release framework apply to?
The framework will apply progressively to all Victorian Government departments and agencies. Initially the project team is focussing on the 11 Victorian Government departments along with VicRoads, Victoria Police, the Environmental Protection Agency and the State Revenue Office.
Contact
Georgette Apostolopoulos, PSIRF Project
Email: georgette.apostolopoulos@dtf.vic.gov.au
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