This comment, posted four months ago to my blog by Jesse G. in response to this post on GCPEDIA, remains one of the favorite comments posted to my blog ever. This is a public servant who understands the future and is trying to live it. I’ve literally had this comment sitting in my inbox because […]
Continue readingTag: Commentary
eaves.ca: Open Source Data Journalism – Happening now at Buzz Data
(there is a section on this topic focused on governments below) A hint of how social data could change journalism Anyone who’s heard me speak in the last 6 months knows I’m excited about BuzzData. This week, while still in limited access beta, the site is showing hints its potential – and it still has […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: How Dirty is Your Data? Greenpeace Wants the Cloud to be Greener
My friends over at Greenpeace recently published an interesting report entitled “How dirty is your data? A Look at the Energy Choices That Power Cloud Computing.” For those who think that cloud computing is an environmentally friendly business, let’s just say… it’s not without its problems. What’s most interesting is the huge opportunity the cloud […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: How the WSJ’s former owners could REALLY screw Rupert Murdoch
When the News of the World scandal began to really explode at the beginning of the month some intrepid reporter went and tracked down members of the Bancroft family – the former owners of the Wall Street Journal – and asked them if they regretted selling their controlling stock of the newspaper to Rupert Murdoch’s […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Depression and Decline: American Irresponsibility is Ending the American Era with a Bang
Despite the assurances of US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner it is increasingly likely there will be no debt deal. The United States is going to default on its debt. I know it sounds crazy, but I believe it is going to happen. If it does, this is the black swan event no one imagined or […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Why I’m Struggling with Google+
So now I’ve been a couple of weeks with Google+ and I’ll be honest, I’m really struggling with the service. I wanted to give it a few weeks before writing anything, which has been helpful in letting my thinking mature. First, before my Google friends get upset, I want to acknowledge the reason I’m struggling […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Using Data to Make Firefox Better: A mini-case study for your organization
I love Mozilla. Any reader of this blog knows it. I believe in its mission, I find the organization totally fascinating and its processes engrossing. So much so I spend a lot of time thinking about it – and hopefully, finding ways to contribute. I’m also a big believer in data. I believe in the […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: The Audacity of Shaw: How Canada’s Internet just got Worse
It is really, really, really hard to believe. But as bad as internet access is in Canada, it just got worse. Yesterday, Shaw Communications, a Canadian telecommunications company and internet service provider (ISP) that works mostly in Western Canada announced they are launching Movie Club, a new service to compete with Netflix. On the surface […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: The End of the World and Journalism in the Era of Open
For those not in the United Kingdom a massive scandal has erupted around allegations that one of the country’s tabloids – the News of the World ( a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation) – was illegally hacking into and listening in on the voicemails of not royal family members and celebrities but also murder […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Lots of Open Data Action in Canada
A lot of movement on the open data (and not so open data) front in Canada. Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) Open Data Portal Launched Some readers may remember that last week I wrote a post about the imminent launch of CIDA’s open data portal. The site is now live and has a healthy amount […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Links on Social Media & Politics: Notes from “We Want Your Thoughts #4″
Last night I had a great time taking the stage with Alexandra Samuel in Vancouver for “We Want Your Thoughts” at the Khafka coffee house on Main St. The night’s discussion was focused on Social Media – from chit chat to election winner – what next?” (with a little on the social media driven response […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: The next Open Data battle: Advancing Policy & Innovation through Standards
With the possible exception of weather data, the most successful open data set out there at the moment is transit data. It remains the data with which developers have experimented and innovated the most. Why is this? Because it’s been standardized. Ever since Google and the City of Portland creating the General Transit Feed Specification […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Visualizing how everything in Beijing is built at a Las Vegas scale
One of the things that struck me most about Beijing was the sheer size of everything. Beijing, it often seems, is built at a Las Vegas scale – the buildings, the roads, the airport – it’s all huge. The size can be deceptive when looking at a map, it is not unusual for a city […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: Social Media and Rioters
My friend Alexandra Samuel penned a piece titled “After a Loss in Vancouver, Troubling Signals of Citizen Surveillance” over at the Harvard Business Review. The piece highlights her concern with the number of people willing to engage in citizen surveillance. As she states: It’s one thing to take pictures as part of the process of […]
Continue readingeaves.ca: The Review I want to Read of “What Technology Wants”
A few weeks ago I finished “What Technology Wants” by Kevin Kelly. For those unfamiliar with Kelly (as I was) he was one of the co-founders of Wired magazine and sits on the board of the Long Now Foundation. What Technology Wants is a fascinating read – both attracting and repulsing me on several occasions. […]
Continue readingDear Assange: please shut the fuck up!
Is there an award for being the most insensitive, arrogant, misogynist asshole in the world? Because if there is, I have a candidate. And if there isn’t, I’m about to start up this award and mail a larger-than-life sized trophy in the shape of a cunt to Julian Assange. I think I may even declare […]
Continue readingWhy Angelina’s Film is Likely to Cause Offense
Last week, celebrity gossip news made the mainstream with the announcement that the Bosnian government was revoking permission for Angelina Jolie’s new film project. Originally sold to the government as a “love story” about “a couple that meets on the eve of the war”, controversy has erupted with rumours that the film is actually about […]
Continue readingConflict Minerals Act Will Not Harm the Congolese Economy
Last week, the US Senate passed the Wall Street Reform Bill, embedded wherein lay provisions for the tracing and monitoring of conflict minerals. This provision was prompted by recent media attention and global outcry relating to the ongoing war in the Democratic Republic of Congo – the deadliest war since WWII. Waged since 1998, the […]
Continue reading