People across Great Britain are being given the opportunity to gain a greater understanding of open data, and the tools and techniques to use open datasets, through a series of free masterclasses hosted by Ordnance Survey.

Following on from the success of the two previous open data masterclass series, individuals, developers, community groups, social entrepreneurs, commercial and government organisations are invited to attend the latest series of masterclasses. The masterclasses are run by Ordnance Survey’s GeoVation initiative and supported by Horizon Digital Economy Research.

Those participating stand to benefit from a greater understanding of the opportunities around open data; as well as being provided with the tools and techniques needed to use and analyse a range of open datasets relevant to them.

The open data masterclasses will combine theory and practical sessions and provide participants the opportunity to use and harness free-to-use open datasets, including Ordnance Survey’s own free-to-use OS OpenData, now approaching its second anniversary, after being released on 1 April 2010.

Participants will learn a range of techniques, from data collection and processing, to data analysis and map visualisation. The focus on the day will be guided, hands-on practicals, using data from Ordnance Survey and data.gov.uk. Through the masterclasses, participants will have the opportunity to use and harness open datasets from various government departments and public-sector organisations including higher education, healthcare, transport and environment.

Full information avail on: http://www.agi.org.uk/member-news/2012/3/7/ordnance-survey-holds-free-open-data-masterclasses.html

There certainly appeared to be some positive correlation between active participation in INSPIRE implementation and enhanced business opportunities in both the UK and the rest of Europe.
The AGI and the UK Location Programme would like to gauge the effect of the Programme and of the EU’s INSPIRE Directive on the COMMERCIAL side of our industry.

Although INSPIRE applies specifically to public authorities that provide environmental information with a spatial element, it is clear that the rest of the GI industry may be affected to a greater or lesser extent. This will include software suppliers, services providers, and consultants.

This follows a smaller poll of UK based companies that have registered as ‘Spatial Data Interest Communities’ for the INSPIRE Directive, that was carried out by Ian Masser and Robin Waters and presented at the AGI conference in September. See: http://www.agi.org.uk/storage/GeoCommunity/AGI2011/Presentations/RobinWaters.pdf

The UK Location Programme (responsible for implementing the UK Location Strategy which incorporates the EU INSPIRE Directive) and the UK Location User Group both expressed interest in the results and backed the idea of extending the survey to all AGI commercial members. Subsequently the AGI’s INSPIRE working group also endorsed an extension of the survey.

Please spend a few minutes completing this questionnaire and thank you for your interest. Further details of the UK Location Programme can be found at www.location.defra.gov.uk

PLEASE NOTE: This questionnaire is NOT INTENDED for public bodies. Any responses from such sources will not be taken into account. Thank you for your understanding.

To access the questionnaire please click HERE.

Ordnance Survey has released an enhanced and updated version of OS OnDemand, its web mapping service designed for professional users. Features in this release for the web map service (WMS) include:

·      Additional Ordnance Survey products added to the service, served as raster images and including Strategi, Meridian 2, OS VectorMap Local, Land-Form PROFILE and OS MasterMap Integrated Transport Network Layer.

·      A more attractive annual charge model, increased from three to five bands.

·      Compliance with the INSPIRE Directive, which seeks to establish a framework for easier sharing of geographic information among European public bodies and improved accessibility to the public.

·      and overall service performance enhancements, driven by an upgraded version of Geoserver and hosted by business partner Infotech Enterprises.

More information: www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/web-services/os-ondemand

The presentations from the Workshop have now been released.

Source: http://location.defra.gov.uk/2010/10/data-providers-workshop-presentations/

The Open Government Licence is a key element of the Government’s commitment to greater transparency. It provides a single set of terms and conditions for anyone wishing to use or license government information and removes some of the existing barriers to re-use.

Developers and entrepreneurs wishing to use government data to create new websites and applications will no longer need to register or formally apply for permission to re-use the data. The new licence is interoperable with other internationally recognised licensing models, such as Creative Commons.

The UK Open Government Licence is supported by the UK Government Licensing Framework , which provides a policy and legal overview for licensing the re-use of public sector information from both central government and the wider public sector. The UK Location Council and UK Location Programme team are working with The National Archives team on the next stage under the UK  Government Licensing Framework that will deliver a licensing solution for the INSPIRE implementation.

Source: UK Location