What is the project doing?
The government is opening up its data for other people to reuse. This is only about non-personal, non-sensitive data information like the list of schools, crime rates or the performance of your council. This site is the first step in creating a network of reuseable Government data in Ireland.
What is Open Data?
Open data is a practice requiring that certain data are freely available to everyone, without restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control. It has a similar ethos to a number of other 'open' movements, such as Open Source and Open Access.
Why Does Government Data Matter?
Open data gives us a window into how our government operates so we can enhance its services, help build on its analysis and, when necessary, hold it to account. Data also powers our economy, better information and data can mean more efficient services, higher productivity, and more informed choices. There are lots of people who are much articulate on this subject. Some suggested reading:
- Tim Berners-Lee's TED talks: the original and the year open data went worldwide
- Data and Transparency: Of Government and Geeks, The Economist
- Special Report on Managing Information, The Open Society, The Economist
What is a mashup?
A mashup is a Web page or application that combines data or functionality from two or more sources. It provides information or functionality beyond that designed or envisaged by the original producers of the data. The attraction of data mashing lies in the ease and speed with which new web applications can be launched with limited resources. The main characteristics of the mashup are combination, visualization and aggregation. Mashup is important to make more useful already existing data, moreover for personal and professional use. For example, a mashup combining data sources such as school addresses and school league tables to display the results using a mapping tool could show where high-achieving schools are. This would be of interest to parents of school-age children who are considering moving house. [Read more ...]
How can I engage in the discussion?
You can follow us by reading the blogs page here and by signing up to the Open Data Ireland mailing list. If you use the #odirl hashtag on Twitter, your tweet will show up here as well.
How can I add an Irish government data set?
Click on 'Register a Data Set' in the menu above. Instructions on how to proceed are described there as well.
What tools are available to process Open Data?
Depending on what you want to do (extract, visualise, query) there are various tools available. Some of the tools we are aware of are (please let us know which ones you think should be listed as well):
Will more structured data sets become available in the future?
Yes, more data sets will be available as the project matures.
What software is powering this site?
This site is powered by Open Source software: Drupal and the 'Comprehensive Knowledge Archive Network'(CKAN), a project of the Open Knowledge Foundation (OKF).