Like many other Australians I have a direct link to the recent attacks in Mumbai. One of my family’s friends was trapped in the Taj Mahal hotel. She managed to avoid being taken hostage – or worse. Her husband was out of the hotel at the time and found shelter elsewhere. Fortunately both of them…
Ari Herzog has begun a series on social media best practice in his blog, AriWriter. Kicking it off is a fascinating interview with Utah’s Chief Information Officer, David Fletcher, providing an insight into how Utah has implemented its online strategy, taking it to win the Best of the Web award for US state governments twice…
I’ve been following the blog of the Hon Penny Sharp MLC, Red Leather, as one of the best examples in government of blogging and a strong proponent of the use of the online channel. In late October she gave a speech to the NSW Parliament regarding the level of online engagement by NSW MLCs. Published…
I’ve been reading an article in the New York Times regarding the public competition Netflix has been holding. The competition, named the Netflix Prize, has a prize of US$1 million for the individual or group who can improve their movie/TV recommendations engine by 10%. The article, If you liked this, sure to like that, discusses…
One of the promises Barack Obama made in the US was to release his weekly address to the nation via Youtube. This signaled how serious he was about transparent and open government, and flagged the incoming US government recognition of the power of Youtube’s large and growing audience – which publishes almost 10,000 hours of…
Paul Johnston, posting at TheConnectedRepublic, has brought to my attention the following video and report on the rise of the video republic. This looks at how people – particularly young people – are using online video to express their views, share opinions and shape the world views of their generation. It’s a fascinating watch and…
The World Internet project recently released its Australian report (PDF), providing a mid-2007 view on how Australians access and use the internet. The report indicates that, at August 2007, 72 percent of Australians used the internet (increasing to 86% when considering those in full employment), and highlights known divides in usage based on income and…
A debate has been going on in Europe recently regarding which comes first – successful Web 2.0 egovernment, or citizen-centric and transparent government. One argument goes that government must first undergo cultural change in order to deliver effective Web 2.0 services. The other is that government will undergo cultural change through releasing Web 2.0 services….
While many governments around the world pursue the ‘one portal’ approach, a few commentators are arguing for a different type of model – many correct doors rather than one big door. This means reaching out to embed government content in the websites citizens choose to visit rather than simply attempting to encourage all web users…
Long-serving public servants are familiar with the challenge of balancing customer, agency and political wishes, with a clear understanding that the role of the public service is to implement the policies of the government of the day and not to be customer advocates or lobbyists. In the commercial sector similar challenges are often faced between…
This archive mirrors the original eGov AU blog — Craig’s professional commentary on AI, digital government and technology in public life, running since 2006.
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