Political Reform Scorecard - action plan
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gerryk
Jan 21, 2011, 5:06:56 AM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
Myself and Johnny Ryan got together yesterday evening to discuss possible courses of action in the realisation of this project. The main crux was that in light of how soon the next general election is, stage 1 is to be bypassed, and the project is to be launched at stage 2.
The first course of action is to get a placeholder page up. For the moment I will host it, but, when traffic deems it necessary, we will have to look at a more sustainable (but costly) solution... maybe Amazon AWS or a hosting plan at Blacknight. Other ideas would be most welcome.
The placeholder page will consist of the following... a logo, a twitter feed, the project document and a paypal donate button.
I am not a designer, so anyone with design chops that fancies taking a look would be welcomed.
I can code, so, if necessary can do the twitter integration, but likewise, if anyone else wants in, please feel free.
We have chosen Drupal initially for a couple of reasons... I am prepared to get started on it immediately and time is a factor, it is pretty fit-for-purpose, and it provides for scalability, has a good ongoing roadmap and allows for relatively straightforward migration to another platform. There is also a solid skillbase in DERI in Galway, which might facilitate involvement from them. I haven't disregarded the suggestions made by other members of this list, but it seemed that in the short timescale we are faced with, that some sort of movement was necessary.
I apologise if anyone thinks it was a premature call, but, when time permits, this can be discussed further. I am going to proceed with D6, as it provides the greatest maturity in terms of available modules (like ratings etc). Once D7 catches up (probably about 6 months, from past experience) upgrade will be straightforward, as is usually the case with Drupal.
So, in short... immediate requirements are: gfx/logo design, page layout, twitter feed
Next in line would be any input from people with data modelling experience. I am good at the Drupal implementation stuff, but would appreciate input from anyone with experience in this field, or any suggestions, to be honest.
I'll leave it to Johnny to chime in with delivery dates for all of this.
- Gerry
The first course of action is to get a placeholder page up. For the moment I will host it, but, when traffic deems it necessary, we will have to look at a more sustainable (but costly) solution... maybe Amazon AWS or a hosting plan at Blacknight. Other ideas would be most welcome.
The placeholder page will consist of the following... a logo, a twitter feed, the project document and a paypal donate button.
I am not a designer, so anyone with design chops that fancies taking a look would be welcomed.
I can code, so, if necessary can do the twitter integration, but likewise, if anyone else wants in, please feel free.
We have chosen Drupal initially for a couple of reasons... I am prepared to get started on it immediately and time is a factor, it is pretty fit-for-purpose, and it provides for scalability, has a good ongoing roadmap and allows for relatively straightforward migration to another platform. There is also a solid skillbase in DERI in Galway, which might facilitate involvement from them. I haven't disregarded the suggestions made by other members of this list, but it seemed that in the short timescale we are faced with, that some sort of movement was necessary.
I apologise if anyone thinks it was a premature call, but, when time permits, this can be discussed further. I am going to proceed with D6, as it provides the greatest maturity in terms of available modules (like ratings etc). Once D7 catches up (probably about 6 months, from past experience) upgrade will be straightforward, as is usually the case with Drupal.
So, in short... immediate requirements are: gfx/logo design, page layout, twitter feed
Next in line would be any input from people with data modelling experience. I am good at the Drupal implementation stuff, but would appreciate input from anyone with experience in this field, or any suggestions, to be honest.
I'll leave it to Johnny to chime in with delivery dates for all of this.
- Gerry
James Gallagher
Jan 21, 2011, 5:12:03 AM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
That's fair given the timescales but I would strongly suggest that we go with Drupal 7 unless there's a known issue with intended modules (from the summary, I doubt it) - I think the benefits of Linked Data and RDF capability at 7 with the DERI work would be of interest to us. I also have capacity on an EQ4 at Hetzner.de if required (I could put the site in a separate VM).
James
uoccou
Jan 21, 2011, 5:44:19 AM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com, James Gallagher
On 21/01/11 10:12, James Gallagher wrote:
That's fair given the timescales but I would strongly suggest that we go with Drupal 7 unless there's a known issue with intended modules (from the summary, I doubt it) - I think the benefits of Linked Data and RDF capability at 7 with the DERI work would be of interest to us. I also have capacity on an EQ4 at Hetzner.de if required (I could put the site in a separate VM).
The only thing I'd suggest to watch out for in respect of D7 is
module availability - not all D6 mods are there yet.
James
On Fri, Jan 21, 2011 at 10:06, gerryk <ger...@gmail.com> wrote:
Myself and Johnny Ryan got together yesterday evening to discuss possible courses of action in the realisation of this project. The main crux was that in light of how soon the next general election is, stage 1 is to be bypassed, and the project is to be launched at stage 2.
The first course of action is to get a placeholder page up. For the moment I will host it, but, when traffic deems it necessary, we will have to look at a more sustainable (but costly) solution... maybe Amazon AWS or a hosting plan at Blacknight. Other ideas would be most welcome.
AWS giving away 750 hours per month atm, on a micro instance free
for a year [1]. If you run 2 instances tho you'll get charged (works
about about e30 p/m otherwise). BlackKnight or self hosting may be
cheaper.
There are 70 existing AMIs with Drupal on AWS atm, none for D7 as far as I can see. Creating a new AMI from a basic LAMP image wouldnt be that difficult.
I'd also say that consideration for privacy of user contributions and personal details in later phases (at the technical and hosting level) should be addressed at the outset.
There are 70 existing AMIs with Drupal on AWS atm, none for D7 as far as I can see. Creating a new AMI from a basic LAMP image wouldnt be that difficult.
I'd also say that consideration for privacy of user contributions and personal details in later phases (at the technical and hosting level) should be addressed at the outset.
The placeholder page will consist of the following... a logo, a twitter feed, the project document and a paypal donate button.
I am not a designer, so anyone with design chops that fancies taking a look would be welcomed.
I can code, so, if necessary can do the twitter integration, but likewise, if anyone else wants in, please feel free.
We have chosen Drupal initially for a couple of reasons... I am prepared to get started on it immediately and time is a factor, it is pretty fit-for-purpose, and it provides for scalability, has a good ongoing roadmap and allows for relatively straightforward migration to another platform. There is also a solid skillbase in DERI in Galway, which might facilitate involvement from them. I haven't disregarded the suggestions made by other members of this list, but it seemed that in the short timescale we are faced with, that some sort of movement was necessary.
I apologise if anyone thinks it was a premature call, but, when time permits, this can be discussed further.
I am going to proceed with D6, as it provides the greatest maturity in terms of available modules (like ratings etc). Once D7 catches up (probably about 6 months, from past experience) upgrade will be straightforward, as is usually the case with Drupal.
I've got no issues with this, like I said think it needs to get up
quick and can be reviewed. Out of interest, I'm going to continue
doing some SemanticMediaWiki investigations and can try and mirror
the initial page and see how much trouble or easy it is. Maybe
useful later or on other projects.
I'm no PHP dude, nor a designer, so Im going to bow out of that element for now. If you need java, sparql, database I can help. Data modelling wise I can make contributions if needed.
I'm no PHP dude, nor a designer, so Im going to bow out of that element for now. If you need java, sparql, database I can help. Data modelling wise I can make contributions if needed.
So, in short... immediate requirements are: gfx/logo design, page layout, twitter feed
Next in line would be any input from people with data modelling experience. I am good at the Drupal implementation stuff, but would appreciate input from anyone with experience in this field, or any suggestions, to be honest.
I'll leave it to Johnny to chime in with delivery dates for all of this.
Who is going to edit/manage/control/curate the content !?
uoccou
Jan 21, 2011, 6:56:12 AM1/21/11
to uoccou, open-dat...@googlegroups.com, James Gallagher
Sample : http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
(warning, running on a Sinclair ZX81 in office hours only)
rating :
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria1
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria2
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria3
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria4
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria5
rating overview
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/All_Criteria_Rating_Table
login to edit/play : with your OpenID, or create account
(warning, running on a Sinclair ZX81 in office hours only)
rating :
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria1
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria2
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria3
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria4
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/Criteria5
rating overview
http://history.endofinternet.net:8888/wiki/index.php/All_Criteria_Rating_Table
login to edit/play : with your OpenID, or create account
l e
Jan 21, 2011, 7:43:57 AM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
so you going to create a linked data version of their election promises on _just_ political reform, establish the positions and the best options and the best ways enact them, then make a scorecard and say we'll hold you to these, and then later track their progress?
oh yes I remember looking at http://openatrium.com/ looks good, and then use the casetracker module http://drupal.org/project/casetracker this person was working on a D7 version last summer not 100% he's got it working but this is where its at http://activismlabs.org/2010/05/25/open-atrium-case-tracker-for-drupal-7/
tried to install OA and CT last night, didn't quite get everything working, ie ways to bulk import info, needs a certain amount of automation to be feasible to track progress.
I'd been heading towards using semanticmediawiki in my little projects http://projects.csail.mit.edu/wibit/wiki/index.php?title=Wibit maybe be useful to pull in info from dbpedia rather then duplicate, but I couldn't quite get it working on my server either :/
anyway drupal is more user friendly on the front end at least.
ta
iTiSoN
Jan 21, 2011, 8:34:34 AM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
Top Trumps is something that came to mind when Kevin put this forward
at Reset Ireland. Perhaps something that could be thought about for
design elements and holding page...
at Reset Ireland. Perhaps something that could be thought about for
design elements and holding page...
Down the road it could form part of an interactive mashup of the figures.
Mark
--
"the future belongs to those that create it"
Johnny Ryan
Jan 21, 2011, 12:18:27 PM1/21/11
to Open Data Ireland
Hi everybody,
The delivery date is 2 Feb. That's the date when the PR circus begins,
and when the scorecard is finalised by the academic panel and ready
for release. This can (if functionality isnt ready) be simply show the
scorecard, background info, has an E-mail sign up, twitter feed, and
donation button. But from 2 Feb on, as the election on 11 Feb
advances, we'd like to capitalise on interest by adding functionality
as quickly as possible. Gerry, can you advise on how quickly this
could happen? Ideally the site would be pretty well established and
capable of building up a community of interest by the time of the
publication of the programme for government (this may be 1 month after
11 Feb).
Johnny
The delivery date is 2 Feb. That's the date when the PR circus begins,
and when the scorecard is finalised by the academic panel and ready
for release. This can (if functionality isnt ready) be simply show the
scorecard, background info, has an E-mail sign up, twitter feed, and
donation button. But from 2 Feb on, as the election on 11 Feb
advances, we'd like to capitalise on interest by adding functionality
as quickly as possible. Gerry, can you advise on how quickly this
could happen? Ideally the site would be pretty well established and
capable of building up a community of interest by the time of the
publication of the programme for government (this may be 1 month after
11 Feb).
Johnny
John Handelaar
Jan 21, 2011, 12:48:40 PM1/21/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
On 21 January 2011 12:43, l e <expecta...@gmail.com> wrote:
> so you going to create a linked data version of their election promises on
> _just_ political reform, establish the positions and the best options and
> the best ways enact them, then make a scorecard and say we'll hold you to
> these, and then later track their progress?
> so you going to create a linked data version of their election promises on
> _just_ political reform, establish the positions and the best options and
> the best ways enact them, then make a scorecard and say we'll hold you to
> these, and then later track their progress?
Now that, there, sounds like the sort of thing you could do with publicwhip.
Which we need for a great many other reasons, too.
jh
Kevin Flanagan
Jan 22, 2011, 11:54:22 AM1/22/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
This might be of interest
http://chicago2011.drupal.org/sessions/introducing-openpublic-government-drupal-distribution
http://chicago2011.drupal.org/sessions/introducing-openpublic-government-drupal-distribution
Paul Dixon
Jan 27, 2011, 6:12:59 AM1/27/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
I would like to offer my services..
Web Dev Client and Server, and DB expertise...
Paul
iTiSoN
Jan 28, 2011, 9:14:09 AM1/28/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
i would just like to suggest one thing.... the idea that this is managed by academia may not be such good idea. to me it seems this may perpetuate the culture of "us and them".
the project would have more weight if that word was taken out of the proposal. input should be possible from anyone regardless of educational background and it should be noted that some of the smartest people around never went to third level...
and the way things are going, the future of smart people may not have the option of 3rd level available to them due to lack of finances..
the method proven by wikipedia would seem the best roadmap to me. allow it to be edited and any "vandalism" is there on record and always transparent.
i've been thinking about this a bit... i think there is a need to be careful from the outset about having an exclusivity of academia... fair enough it is the type of research work that interests academia.. but this has a greater value which does not require a hierarchy.
it may well be that most of the input comes from academia but the overall project would benefit from and open door policy.
my two cents.
Mark
ps.. i've talked to several people about this and they all fully support the Political Reform Scorecard idea and see it as a great way to keep politicians in check and to keep people interested in politics... hopefully this is done by it being accessible to the input of the public.
the project would have more weight if that word was taken out of the proposal. input should be possible from anyone regardless of educational background and it should be noted that some of the smartest people around never went to third level...
and the way things are going, the future of smart people may not have the option of 3rd level available to them due to lack of finances..
the method proven by wikipedia would seem the best roadmap to me. allow it to be edited and any "vandalism" is there on record and always transparent.
i've been thinking about this a bit... i think there is a need to be careful from the outset about having an exclusivity of academia... fair enough it is the type of research work that interests academia.. but this has a greater value which does not require a hierarchy.
it may well be that most of the input comes from academia but the overall project would benefit from and open door policy.
my two cents.
Mark
ps.. i've talked to several people about this and they all fully support the Political Reform Scorecard idea and see it as a great way to keep politicians in check and to keep people interested in politics... hopefully this is done by it being accessible to the input of the public.
Johnny Ryan
Jan 28, 2011, 5:15:41 PM1/28/11
to Open Data Ireland
Hi Mark,
Thanks for thinking about this, and for the support you are giving.
It's important for me and Joe to say that this is not being managed by
academics. We want to harness the knowledge among political
scientists, who have devoted their careers to researching examples of
best practices for running government from around the world, and use
this to draw some ready made conclusions about how political
institutions can better operate.
The public's role is central too. The public will i) weigh the
importance of the different reform areas, and ii) be the driving force
in providing data to monitor whether reform is being carried through.
This is for stage 2, which will last far longer than stage 1. Stage 1,
which is starting right now, needs to take the ideas that are already
out there and get to work on them.
So stage 2 is about the public getting involved, but stage 1 has to
get moving with what ideas are already available.
Johnny
Thanks for thinking about this, and for the support you are giving.
It's important for me and Joe to say that this is not being managed by
academics. We want to harness the knowledge among political
scientists, who have devoted their careers to researching examples of
best practices for running government from around the world, and use
this to draw some ready made conclusions about how political
institutions can better operate.
The public's role is central too. The public will i) weigh the
importance of the different reform areas, and ii) be the driving force
in providing data to monitor whether reform is being carried through.
This is for stage 2, which will last far longer than stage 1. Stage 1,
which is starting right now, needs to take the ideas that are already
out there and get to work on them.
So stage 2 is about the public getting involved, but stage 1 has to
get moving with what ideas are already available.
Johnny
iTiSoN
Jan 28, 2011, 5:30:36 PM1/28/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
Hi Johnny,
Sounds good. Of course political scientists are the best place to start.
Mark
Sounds good. Of course political scientists are the best place to start.
Mark
Johnny Ryan
Jan 29, 2011, 8:00:50 AM1/29/11
to Open Data Ireland
Thanks Mark.
BTW, we've just started a Facebook page, so please join
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Political-Reform-Scorecard-Reformcardcom/130049577060172
Johnny
On Jan 28, 10:30 pm, iTiSoN <iti...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Johnny,
>
> Sounds good. Of course political scientists are the best place to start.
>
> Mark
>
BTW, we've just started a Facebook page, so please join
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Political-Reform-Scorecard-Reformcardcom/130049577060172
Johnny
On Jan 28, 10:30 pm, iTiSoN <iti...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Johnny,
>
> Sounds good. Of course political scientists are the best place to start.
>
> Mark
>
iTiSoN
Jan 29, 2011, 5:09:54 PM1/29/11
to open-dat...@googlegroups.com
done!
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