Talk given at Fronteers 2015 in Amsterdam.
In a world where many of our digital spaces are becoming more closed than ever, open data is a concept that is rapidly on the rise.
In this talk we'll explore what open data is (and what it isn't), and why we should care about it. We'll look at how you can introduce it into your projects with regards to practical publication and consumption, and discuss some useful tools and reference points.
Open data isn't just dry and technical - it gives us great scope to be creative, and throughout this talk we'll go through some of the amazing things that it has been used for globally in the hope that it will inspire you to create something amazing yourself.
26. Make money by selling products
Charge a fee for access
27. “We observed that often people think of
open data as a specific ‘kind’ of data –
something separate and distinct from the
data they use day-to-day in their
organisation or team – rather than a choice
about how people publish data.”
theodi.org/blog/closed-shared-open-data-whats-in-a-name
54. “…within two years chemical emissions
nationwide (at least as reported, and
presumably also in fact) had decreased
by 40 percent.
!
Some companies were launching
policies to bring their emissions down
by 90 percent, just because of the
release of previously sequestered
information.”
maban.co.uk/80
57. “How far do you live from your
workplace? Chances are, you'd answer
that question in minutes rather than
miles.
!
An hour on the bus tells us a lot more than
47 miles. That's why we made
Mapumental.
!
Given any start point or destination, it'll
show everywhere within the chosen
commute time, by public transport.”
mapumental.com/services/travel-time
58. “How accessible is your nearest school, post
office, or GP’s surgery?
!
In Wales, that’s not always a simple question: the
country’s mountainous landscapes, rural
populations, and sometimes infrequent bus
services can mean that those without cars are
rather cut off from public service provision.”
mapumental.com/services/accessibility
59. “Just how quickly could fire engines reach
a given postcode in case of a fire?
!
It’s a question that’s pivotal to decisions
made by both the emergency services and
the insurance industry.”
mysociety.org/2013/04/22/fire-fire-mapumental-and-fire-engine-journey-times
70. “Air Transformed is a series of
wearable data objects that communicate
this physical burden in different ways.
Though seemingly decorative, they are
based entirely on open air quality data
from Sheffield, UK, a former steelmaking
city and notorious for its bad air.”
stefanieposavec.co.uk/data/#/airtransformed
87. “There are known knowns; there are things
we know we know. We also know there are
known unknowns; that is to say we know
there are some things we do not know. But
there are also unknown unknowns – the
ones we don't know we don't know.”
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_are_known_knowns
98. ★
Make your data available on the web (in whatever format)
under an open license.
★★
Make it available as structured data
(e.g., Excel instead of image scan of a table).
★★★ Use non-proprietary formats (e.g., CSV instead of Excel).
★★★★ Use URIs to denote things, so that people can point at your data.
★★★★★ Link your data to other data to provide context.
102. 1. Choose open data
2. Publish your data
3. Link it
4. Use standards
5. Promote freedom
6. Do some good
7. Be creative
103.
104. @sjenkinson
!
sally@recordssoundthesame.com
!
recordssoundthesame.com
THANK YOU. Thank you to these lovely people for making their
content open:
Linking Open Data cloud diagram 2014, by Max Schmachtenberg, Christian Bizer,
Anja Jentzsch and Richard Cyganiak - lod-cloud.net
The Data Spectrum - theodi.org/data-spectrum
Doug McCune - dougmccune.com
Stefanie Posavec - stefanieposavec.co.uk
Data abstract painting - flickr.com/photos/rachubarama/2709346242
IE Market Share vs Murder Rate - imgur.com/47D7zGq
Troy Marusek - flickr.com/photos/troymars/9113025616
The Roof of Wales - flickr.com/photos/stray_croc/4743302841
Fire Wall - flickr.com/photos/epleitez/1714341218
Money - flickr.com/photos/mikephotoart/12839909303
cc - flickr.com/photos/kalexanderson/7175627336
RDF - flickr.com/photos/gertcha/8292978031
Small Parts - flickr.com/photos/oskay/2156889157/
Hydrant - flickr.com/photos/pamhule/4677109732/
Upsala Glacier Retreat - flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/10726540434/