Hello Progress People,
This is Trevor here opening up the wikiprogress technical blog. I can already hear you thinking ‘hmmmm – a blog about technical aspects of a wiki about progress – how absolutely thrilling. I think a large IT manual must have been dropped on this poor fellows head from a great height. Let’s see what’s on the other channel……’ . But hang on a few moments before you disappear off to facebook or twitter or whatever because there have some been some very exciting and innovative developments in the last few months that are all coming together on the wikiprogress site as I type these very words.
So here is the big news progress people: we have made it possible for anybody with facts about progress they want to share and a story to tell to load their own data into our very own progress database and to combine it with a stunning visual graphics interface which in our humble opinion add a whole new dimension to the traditional wiki. I might even modestly say: ‘now that is what I call progress’.
Our first version of the data uploader will allow you or anyone else with data about progress to shift it from your laptop up into the wikiprogress.stat data warehouse which will launch about a week . (the loader is still being tested but if you would like your data to show in wikiprogress.stat, please contact info@wikiprogress.org and we will upload it for you). Once your data is loaded it can be shown along with your article like this so you have the facts to back up your text. We have some great datasets on deck to be loaded and we look forward to more of the progress community’s involvement so we can start to fill wikiprogress.stat. The peoples database - more progress !
And now it starts to get even better. If you have a story to tell about your data (say you want to show how country A has become happier over time with an increase in the consumption of chocolate but the reverse has happened in country B) then you will be able to use our eXplorer visualisation tool (developed by our very good friends at NCVA) to show this in an animated way using maps and bubble charts. Compelling isn’t even in it. It’s difficult to describe such a magical tool and a picture does tell a thousand words so take a look at this short video clip from the BBC rather than just take my word for it: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8130554.stm
The link between the data and the explorer is currently in beta but watch this space for new developments!
Onwards and upwards.
Trevor
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