International Open Data Hackathon, Dec 3rd. It’s coming together.
So a number of things have started to really come together for this Saturday Dec 3rd. I’ve noticed a number of new cities being tweeted about (hello Kuala Lumpur &…
technology
The New Government of Canada Open Data License: The OGL by another name
Last week the Minister Clement issued a press release announcing some of the progress the government has made on its Open Government Initiatives. Three things caught my eye. First, it…
China Pushes Green Technology Forward
China has to confront a lot of environmental problems brought forth by its own quick development, and when China confronts an issue they go all out! Renewable Energy World has…
Open Data Day – a project I’d like to be doing
As some readers and International Open Data Hackathon participants know, I'm really keen on developers reusing each others code. All too often, in hackathons, we like to build something from…
Weaving Foreign Ministries into the Digital Era: Three ideas
Last week I was in Ottawa giving a talk at the Department of Foreign Affairs talking about how technology, new media and open innovation will impact the department's it work…
IBM Launches 3rd Annual Smarter Cities Challenge
smarter cities.jpg At a time when corporations’ misdeeds are under a bright spotlight (and rightfully so,) we needn’t overlook the few companies that are working to bring innovation a...
Check out what my bro’ has been up to…
He’s living one of his dreams… Cool. Gotta love technology sometimes! Share and Enjoy: Trashy, Ottawa, Ontario
Using Open Data to drive good policy outcomes – Vancouver’s Rental Database
One of the best signs for open data is when governments are starting to grasp its potential to achieve policy objectives. Rather than just being about compliance, it is seen…
Steve Jobs was no technological visionary; he was a disturbed and disturing individual
Limits of Magical Thinking Steve Jobs wasn’t a technology visionary, but he convinced the world that he was. Steve Jobs was a disturbed and disturing individual, and he was no…
Charge Your Phone with the Sun
We’ve seen DIY iPod solar chargers before and now an Ottawa-based company has produced a consumer one. The PowerTrip is a small battery with a USB jack and a solar…
Tale of the Norden Bombsight
Malcom Gladwell spins a fascinating story about the strange origins and ultimately twisted fate of a fabulously complicated yet practically hapless bomb-sighting device developed at extraordinary expense for the U.S.…
As Canada Searches for its Open Government Partnership Commitments: A Proposal
Just before its launch in New York on September 20th, the Canadian Government agreed to be a signatory of the Open Government Partnership (OGP). Composed of over 40 countries the…
The State of Open Data 2011
What is the state of the open data movement? Yesterday, during my opening keynote at the Open Government Data Camp (held this year in Warsaw, Poland) I sought to follow…
I apologise in advance if you have a BlackBerry…
… well, sorta… it WAS your choice, after all… Share and Enjoy: Trashy, Ottawa, Ontario
Brain Candy – Great Quotes from Yesterday
I'm in San Francisco to co-chair the Code for America Summit this week, so lots going on, and some deep blog posts in the works. But first. Fun! Here are…
Farcical Aquatic Ceremonies: Canadian “Democracy” and (not) You!
So, Ontario, Canada’s most unbearably self-righteous Province, just concluded another one of those spiffy “election” things everyone is getting so worked up over these days. As of this writing, it’s…
Occupy the Church, Occupy Together
Christians. Church. God. Jesus. Occupy. What do these words mean to you? For many, the connotations are negative. Personal experiences with judgemental, rigid, frozen people who identify themselves as Christians…
Thanks Steve
I still remember fondly the first computer ever to find its way into the family home. The Apple IIe was magic, allowing these clumsy finger to type badly, then delete…
The Science of Community Management: DjangoCon Keynote
At OSCON this year, Jono Bacon, argued that we are entering a era of renaissance in open source community management - that increasingly we don't just have to share stories…
The Canadian Government’s New Web 2.0 Guidelines: the Good, the Bad & the Ugly
Yesterday, the government of Canada released its new Guidelines for external use of Web 2.0. For the 99.99% of you unfamiliar with what this is, it’s the guidelines (rules) that…