The Zen of Open Data
- Open is better than closed.
- Transparent is better than opaque.
- Simple is better than complex.
- Accessible is better than inaccessible.
- Sharing is better than hoarding.
- Linked is more useful than isolated.
- Fine grained is preferable to aggregated.
- (Although there are legitimate privacy and security limitations.)
- Optimise for machine readability — they can translate for humans.
- Barriers prevent worthwhile things from happening.
- “Flawed, but out there” is a million times better than “perfect, but unattainable”.
- Opening data up to thousands of eyes makes the data better.
- Iterate in response to demand.
- There is no one true feed for all eternity — people need to maintain this stuff.
The Zen of Open Data by Chris McDowall