Abstract

Abstract in English language: Initiatives that are calling for transparency, open and easy access to information (of academic, administrative or any other origin) are gaining momentum and are beginning to differentiate more and more. The claims range from Free Access to information to Open Access according to the principles of the Open Source community. Some initiatives focus more on transparency rather than on openness, such as the whistleblower platform Wikileaks, while others (e.g. Open Government and Open Access to Research Data) combine the demands for transparency and openness or focus on the provision of non-proprietary information (like the geodata project OpenStreetMap or Open Metrics concepts in the scientific area). Twelve authors from different Open Data projects and from the context of Open Access to scientific information, Open Science, journalism and law analyze the Open Initiatives and discuss their common limitations as well as radical concepts of Openness such as WikiLeaks and Anonymous. Abstract in German language: Initiativen, die Transparenz, offenen und möglichst einfachen Zugang zu Informationen, etwa in Wissenschaft und Verwaltung fordern und herstellen, gewinnen rasant an Bedeutung und beginnen sich immer weiter zu differenzieren. Die Forderungen reichen von freiem (im Sinne von kostenlosem) Zugang zu Informationen bis hin zu offenem Zugang analog den Prinzipien der Open Source Community. Manche Initiativen und Phänomene fokussieren stärker auf Transparenz als auf Offenheit, wie z.B. die Whistleblower-Plattform Wikileaks, während wiederum andere (z.B. Open Government oder Open Access zu Forschungsdaten) die Forderungen nach Transparenz und Offenheit kombinieren oder sich an der Bereitstellung nicht-proprietärer Informationen versuchen (wie das Geodaten-Projekt OpenStreetMap oder die Open Metrics Konzepte im Wissenschaftskontext). Zwölf Autorinnen und Autoren aus Open Data Projekten und aus den Bereichen Open Access, Open Science, Journalismus und Recht beschreiben und analysieren die besagten und andere Open Initiatives, diskutieren deren Gemeinsamkeiten und Grenzen sowie radikale Offenheitskonzepte wie WikiLeaks und Anonymous.

Abstract

Open government is a form of permanent open communication between the administration and citizens, based on transparency from the administration, working with civil society and business. We present one of the key points that are being used to achieve this objective of participation: the open data movement. In Europe, its origins lie in the issuance of Directive 2003/98/EC  of the European Parliament and the Council on access to and reuse of public sector information. Open data projects described here provide access to government data according to the recommendations of the W3C . The structure and open format allows data to be reused to provide new services to citizens and businesses. Numerous projects and visualization applications have been developed that realize the potential of this movement. The situation in Spain is emerging and even in a short period of time many initiatives are maturing. This offers us the opportunity to ask what role information managers will take on in this new scenario.

Abstract

The reuse of public sector information is an increasingly key element in the Open data and Open government strategies. The European authorities are promoting public information reuse policies as a pillar for the digital economy and for democratic transparency. In the same way, several public and private reuse initiatives in Spain have sprung up in recent years to maximize public information reuse benefits. In this sense, the Aporta Project, supported by the Spanish Ministry for Territorial Cooperation and Public Administration and the Ministry for Industry, Trade and Commerce, have been working since 2009 in promoting reuse in Spain. Regarding the challenges of the actual reuse policies it is important to point out that a Royal decree that develops the Spanish Reuse Law is being drafted with the aim to solve some indeterminate aspects of the present public information reuse law.

Abstract

More and more people think that we are transforming the model of society, changing from an industrial to a knowledge model, where data and information are its raw material. In this context many open data initiatives are being developed by public administrations around the world in a short time period. The open data process is defined, the reasons to carry out it are explained, and some guidelines on how to do it in a very pragmatic and sustainable manner are given.

Abstract

We show the first steps of the initiatives Open data and Linked open data as sources of innovation in the field of information management. As the Open Access  movement (OA) and the Open Archives Initiative (OAI) implied some years ago, these two  initiatives constitute a shock that reverberated in technological innovation and the structure of the Web. We present a global overview of open data  and national projects related to government data. Four Spanish local or regional administrations have already begun to release their data: in chronological order, Asturias, Euskadi, Zaragoza and Catalonia. In the case of Linked open data  we also provide a global picture, with 203 registered projects. We describe in more detail the work that the W3C is currently carrying out in the field of libraries. Finally we present the consecuences these new developments can have for librarianship and information science.

Abstract

This research introduces the marriage between interactive documentaries (i-docs) and politics as an opportunity to motivate new civic participation and expression in the political sphere. The main objective of this study is to identify the different degrees of civic participation that i-docs permit and to setup a classification according to these levels of engagement. In order to achieve the main objective, this research has analyzed a group of documentaries using a mixture of Gaudenzi, Gifreu-Castells, and Nash methodology. The results show that it is possible to find a parallel between the closed mode and the Orwellian model; the semi-closed mode and the Tokenism model; the semi-opened mode and the playful model; and between the opened mode and the Athenian model. However, only the opened mode, used in the Global lives documentary, offers a real experience that symbolizes the purest representation of an open government system.

Abstract

In this article we analyze the organization of information in Spain’s Portal of the Transparency, which includes information that is required by law. We analyze both the organization of information and people who appear in the Portal. The analysis is then compared with the Law of transparency, access to public information, and good governance. The results show a high percentage of subjects that are not reporting the information as required by law. Contrarily, some sections, like economics, include an excess of information that makes their access complex.

Abstract

Current policies demanding an increase in transparency, open government and smart cities share open data publication as one of their basic pillars. However, there is a limited availability of mechanisms to assess the use and value of this information. The goal of this paper is to present a new metric, Meloda, that qualifies the information and helps to assess its reusability. Meloda’s four dimensions are described: technical standards, access, legal considerations, and data model. Finally Meloda’s assessment process is explained.

Abstract

There is a growing number of open data initiatives that allow citizens to reuse public data sets through specifically designed applications. This paper presents an overview of these initiatives and their development in Spain, analyzing the open data sets available and the functions and features of the applications developed for this purpose. The information source used in this work is the portal http://datos.gob.es, of national scope which organizes and manages the public information catalog of Spanish administrations. This source offers information about these data sets and the applications and utilities developed. The analysis shows a diverse distribution of these open data sets that requires grouping by metacategories for its study and analysis. The level of development of the applications seems low but it may be due to the incipience on freely available data. In any case, the data sets related to infrastructures (especially transports) appear to be the main object of the applications developed so far in Spain in this context.