Terence Eden’s Blog

Why do we continue to pay for open location data?

@edentearnest marples NaBloPoMo Open Data post codes · 1 comment · 750 words · read ~553 times.

I don't understand how our Government works. I understand that tough decisions often need to be made - but sometimes those decisions are so utterly without reason that you have to wonder if politicians spend most of their days "painting their noses". The UK used to have a public sector postal service - the Royal Mail. Postmen need to know to where they were delivering mail. Postal Codes were created to help divide up the country into easily sortable destinations. And so, over time, a…

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When is it better to ask permission than forgiveness?

@edentaaron swartz earnest marples hacking Open Data · 4 comments · 950 words · read ~238 times.

When I was a child, I prayed to God to send me a bicycle. The Priest told me God doesn't work like that; so I stole a bicycle and prayed for forgiveness. Emo Philips (probably) There's a noble tradition in hackerdom of finding creative ways around obstacles. My personal favourite expression of this desire to get things done quickly is the maximum "far better to seek forgiveness than beg for permission." It's something I practice both at work and for my private projects. It's much easier,…

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