Transcript What Does Openness Mean To The Museum Community?

http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/conferences/mw-2008/
What Does Openness Mean To
The Museum Community?
Brian Kelly
UKOLN
University of Bath
Bath, UK
[email protected]
Mike Ellis
Eduserv
Bath, UK
[email protected]
Co-Author: Ross Gardler, JISC OSS Watch, University of Oxford
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Introduction
BK
About The Facilitators
Brian Kelly:
• UK Web Focus – a national Web advisory post
• Based at UKOLN, a national centre of expertise
in digital information management, located at
University of Bath, UK
• Advisor to HE and cultural heritage sectors
Mike Ellis:
• Head of Web for the National Museum of Science and
Industry for 7 years
• Now working at Eduserv, Bath
• Interests include user generated content, Web 2.0,
ubiquitous computing and innovation and how to
exploit these to gain maximum benefit
for cultural institutions
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Introduction
BK
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About This Professional Forum
Openness:
• A positive term
• Covers open standards, open source, open
content, open services and open culture
But:
• What are the limitations of openness?
• To what extent do we wish to embrace the
concept of openness?
• How do we respond if we feel that openness
concepts may (a) be flawed (b) endanger our
business models or
(c) not be sustainable?
Introduction
BK
About You
What responsibilities do you have?
Why have you chosen to attend this
professional forum?
What do you hope to get out of the session?
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Benefits Of Openness
BK
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Benefits Of Open Standards
Open standards can:
• Provide device- and application-independence
• Avoid vendor lock-in
• Provide an open marketplace for development
• Maximise access to resources
• Enhance interoperability
• Provide architectural integrity
• Provide long-term access to resources
Benefits are widely accepted by the development
community:
• Mandation of open standards in procurement
• Lists of recommended open standards
for digital library development
programmes
Benefits Of Openness
BK
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Benefits Of Open Source
Open source software can:
• Provide freedom to use, modify and redistribute
software
• Encourage competition which can increase the
quality, satisfaction and flexibility of software
• Help to ensure that software remains valuable to
an organisation regardless of changing strategic
objectives of any single software development
organisation
• Ensure there is no incentive to attempt to lock-in
a customer by using proprietary extensions to file
formats or data standards
Benefits Of Openness
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Benefits Of Open APIs
Open APIs...
• ..are systems which allow free sharing of data,
programmatically
• Typically have open standards at their core, or
at least an open framework
• Examples include RSS, REST, SOAP, OAI-PMH,
for data sharing
• Usually have XML or JSON as interchange
format
Benefits Of Openness
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Benefits Of Open APIs
Why is this good?
• Fundamental to the web now is user-centricity.
RSS etc. allow users to get what they want and
how they want it
• Shared data inspires creativity: “we is better than
me” – see the Frankie & Seb show...
• It frees us (and others) to use tools like the MIT
timeline, Yahoo Maps, Google charts, etc –
usually for no or low cost.
• Additional benefits like mobile version are “easy”
• The more data the better!
• Also – if we don’t do it, services like Google
images, Dapper etc will do it for us!
Benefits Of Openness
ME
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Benefits Of Open Content
Open Content:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Is content which can “got at” and shared
A hidden API or RSS feed isn’t “open”..
Word/PDF/Fax/email (etc.) isn’t “open”
Is often associated with CC licences
...which means it is usually free
As per Open APIs, if you provide access
then you can see blossoming creativity
• Throws up issues around income...
Benefits Of Openness
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Benefits Of Open Content
Open Content:
...is
reusable content.
Benefits Of Openness
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Benefits Of An Open Culture
• Openness is a core component of web 2.0
• If we can’t use the web to connect with our
users, then why use the web at all...?
• Web 2.0 (actually, the web) is becoming
more and more about people and
relationships
• A lot of what we’ve talked about this week is
about or around Open Culture!
• e.g. “Web 2.0: where do we go from here?”
Limitations Of Openness
BK
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Problems With Open Culture
Problems with user generated content:
• Not all users are nice!
• Users may prefer to listen to voice of
authority
• Automated spam is an increasing
annoyance (email, blog comments, …)
• Discussion often degenerates into flam
wars
• May be legal implications
• It’s expensive to monitor
Open culture – great in theory;
flawed in practice 
Limitations Of Openness
BK
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Problems With Open APIs
Problems with making use of 3rd party APIs
and services:
• They don’t do this for our benefit, but to
make money
• The long-term business models are
unproven
• They can change their T&C at any time
• They can withdraw services cf Amazon
withdrawing their SOAP interface
Limitations Of Openness
BK
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Problems With Open Standards
Open standards:
• Can be too complex
• Can be difficult to implement
• May fail to be accepted in the market
place
• Take long time to reach agreement
• What is an open standard: PDF, RSS or
MS Word?
• We can seek to deploy too soon, before
limitations, costs, etc. are understood
(RDF?)
Limitations Of Openness
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Problems With Open Source
Open source software:
• Has been over-hyped
• Didn’t bring long the demise of western
capitalism!
• May be issues related to:
• documentation
• SLA
• support
• sustainability
• Source Forge as a dumping ground for
failed Open Source projects
The discussion now is more about
sustainability & fitness for purpose,
whether OSS or proprietary
Addressing The Limitations
BK
Contextual Approach
Contextual approach to open
standards:
• Developed to support
JISC’s development
programmes
• Described at MW 2007
• Based on annotated
descriptions: ownership,
purpose, maturity, risks, …
• Decisions on policies and
compliance delegated to
appropriate level
See “Addressing The Limitations Of
Open Standards” and “Openness in
• Extended to include
Higher Education: Open Source, Open
policies on open source
Standards, Open Access”
software
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Limitations Of Openness
BK
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Problems With Open Content
Problems with allowing others to reuse content:
• Undermines one’s business
• Duplication of popular services but
neglecting of minority interests
• This isn’t liberal; it’s privatisation (similar to
deregulation of public services)
• The content owners are likely to be
unhappy
• Why should Facebook, MySpace, … make
money from our content?
Open content – like socialism great
in theory; doesn’t work in practice!
Benefits Of Openness
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Open Content - Think About:
• Scarcity vs Scale...which for us?
• The Long Tail and the Niche
• How do we address notions of intention?
Answer: we can’t!
• Power of marketing vs power of
commerce without marketing
• Pirate Coelho. It worked for him!
• Freemium, try before you buy?
Any Conclusions...?
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