One of the long established principles in government and big business is that only designated staff are allowed to represent their organisations when speaking to the media. This is an extremely well-intentioned principle, designed to protect both the organisation and individual staff. The media is frequently more interested in sensation than truth and can twist…
These days when I personally need to set up a new website, I either hop onto WordPress or download one of the free open-source content management systems, purchase space on a decent US server and follow the installation instructions. I use a design template found online, customising it with some style tweaks where required, then…
In my experience, where possible, Australian public servants avoid controversial topics when consulting with the public. Controversial topics are messy, unpredictable, raise high emotions and draw out divergent viewpoints – making discussions difficult to manage and control. They also often edge into political matters which are outside the scope of the public service, who strive…
How would it change the management of your website if anyone could make an unmoderated public comment about any page at any time – totally outside your control? How would your Minister and senior management respond if people could freely critique your content, pointing out any errors or misleading statements or airing their complaints (and…
The NSW government has launched the Transport Data Exchange (TDX) Program to provide access to NSW transport routes, timetables and stop/station/wharf information for download and reuse in third party applications. It’s been provided as part of the data available for the Apps4NSW competition. launched by the NSW Premier at NSWSphere. Unlike similar initiatives in the…
In a sign that the discussion over what public data should be public is ongoing, the New York Times has reported that the NY Metropolitan Transportation Authority has issued a takedown notice to an iPhone developer who has used train schedules in his iPhone application. The Authority claims that public train schedule data is its…
Thanks to the eGovernment Resource Centre, I’ve become aware of the New Zealand Draft Open Access and Licensing Framework that was release late last month. Structured as a discussion paper, it sets out guidelines for the use of ‘no copyright’ and Creative Commons use across the NZ government to support the release and appropriate re-use…
Launched by the NSW Premier at NSWSphere on Friday, Apps4NSW is the first Australian public competition for reusing online NSW government data to create useful applications for the public. Quoting the new site, In the competition, individuals and groups will compete for cash prizes by creating ideas and software application prototypes that can be used…
The NSW government has announced the launch of data.nsw.gov.au, a site that will shortly begin providing access to NSW government data feeds available for reuse online. It even has a Twitter stream at dataNSW that will provide notifications as data feeds are released. Announced at NSWSphere last Friday, alongside the release of the Apps4NSW public…
The Sunlight Foundation has announced the three finalists for the Apps for America 2 competition. These finalists represent the best online social innovation sites developed by Americans to make the US government more transparent. I’m hoping that we’ll soon see a similar competition held here in Australia.
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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