local – Dave Briggs

Link roundup

I find this stuff so you don’t have to:

Integrate Your Apps | Zapier – Sync the Web – An ifttt for business web applications. Potentially vey handy.
What Organizations Can Learn from "If This Then That" (IFTTT) – Nice post from Nick Charney on ifttt – which I wrote about the other day
Digital Government: Building a 21st Century Platform to Better Serve the American People – "Building a 21st Century Platform to Better Serve the American People"
Don’t forget about ePetitions – they can be part of a more collaborative future – "There is a massive cultural resonance to a democratic mechanism like petitioning – maybe we could think about using this cultural resonance and familiarity in a more innovative and open way."
Is regular door knocking a must for councillors? – "(An alternative title for this entry could be, ‘If I go looking for problems, I’m bound to find some’.)"

Link roundup

I find this stuff so you don’t have to:

The learning organization: an often-described, but seldom-observed phenomenon | Harold Jarche – "What should a true learning organisation look like?"
Connecting and engaging inside your organisation – "Social networks are inherently bottom up and user powered. In IBM, BlueIQ worked because it had buy-in from the very top. You need both otherwise time is wasted overcoming resistance."
Local 2.0: How digital technology empowers local communities | The Young Foundation – Useful report covering how digital innovation can impact on communities.
The order I check things | Stephen Hale – I love reading how people do this stuff!
Cutting down on cookies: practical tips | Puffbox.com – Useful tips from SImon Dickson.

What I’ve been reading

I find this stuff so that you don’t have to.

Google’s Chromebook set to transform how we think about computers | Technology | The Observer – “On 15 June, Google will officially take the next step on its road to global domination. From that day onwards, online shoppers will be able to buy the Google Chromebook, a device that the search giant hopes will change the way we think about computers – and in the process rain on the parades of Apple and Microsoft.”
Open-source is great, let’s explode a couple of myths – Some sensible stuff that’s useful reading for anyone overdosing on the OSS kool-aid.
Workshopping in Peterborough | Kind of Digital – Quick summary of our digital engagement workshop. Want one? Just ask!
Reconciling identity and place | Curiouscatherine’s Blog – Yet more great thinking out loud by @curiousc
Alpha.gov.uk: What’s in Your Stack? – Interesting interview about the tech behind AlphaGov
Faster Future Campaign – Interesting looking rural broadband project based in King’s Lynn.
nexters | big ideas. inspiring society. – “Nexters is the big society network’s new programme to support the UK’s best social entrepreneurs.”
Where technology should be used to improve policy-making, and is not – “what about all the conversations where people share problems, suggestions, even solutions, which do not happen on an e-participation web site, but pop out from online communities where people socialize for reasons that have nothing to do with politics?”
FibreValley – Fibre Valley – Digital Worth Valley – Interesting new community broadband project in Yorkshire.
On becoming Executive Director of Digital in the Cabinet Office – The new digital director speaks!

You can find all my bookmarks on Pinboard.

Bookmarks for January 27th through February 19th

I find this stuff so that you don’t have to.

Big Society – if the price is right – Interesting views on Big Society from a blogging councillor within my local district.
The impact of IT decisions on organizational culture – O’Reilly Radar – "It's said that with great power comes great responsibility. Among business functions, the IT group has disproportionate control over what can and can't happen in an organization."
Have your say – Code of recommended practice for local authorities – DCLG's online consultation discussing how data should be made available by councils.
Thriving too: Big Society: Community Organising – Why? – Great post on the role of the community organiser
Around the Local Government World in Ten Days – Nice writeup of a bunch of interesting events and meetings by Carrie
Local engagement in the land of big sky and sausages – Great blog post picking up my 'place as open source system' idea by @jiiiii
Are you social or anti-social? – Interesting, challenging stuff from @joannejacobs
What does ‘cloud’ mean for the public sector? – Nice post written by @lesteph for Huddle summing up our webinar chat about cloud in government.
Coté’s People Over Process » The US Federal Government and Open Source – Really interesting overview from @cote
5 Things we learned from UK GovCamp 11 | Delib Blog – Nice summary from the guys at Delib!

You can find all my bookmarks on Delicious. There is also even more stuff on my shared Google Reader page.

You can also see all the videos I think are worth watching at my video scrapbook.

OpenSpaceDevon

Carl Haggerty has launched a great initiative down in Devon:

Carl writes:

It would be great to get public sector professionals, voluntary organisations and business people involved in these areas all together and working through some of these issues and topics – Basically, i’d imagine the event to involve anyone who has an interest and passion to improve public services in general.

This is an interesting idea, and one I’m totally in agreement with. Take the format used by LocalGovCamp and other unconferences, but make it all about the geographical area. Bring together public, third and private sectors to thrash out new ways of doing things, and hopefully spark the enthusiasm needed for some of the organisational battles required to get stuff moving.

Just the sort of event I was thinking about when I wrote this post after the Lincoln LocalGovCamp.

So if you are in Devon, or just interested, pop along to the network Carl has created and join in the discussions!