At last – free tide data, going back nearly 100 years
Thanks for the tipoff from someone Who Knew, one story in today’s Technology Guardian is about the fact that you can get tide data for free – and reuse it commercially, no muss, no fuss, and no copyright hassles.
The newspaper version reveals how tidal data can be got for free. It’s quite simple: you go to the British Oceanographic Data Centre, follow the links to “data”, register, and download as much data as you like. Then you’re free to make your own tidal harmonics. The Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory has some analysis software – not free, though plenty of their maps are – demonstrating that some people are interested.
And the numbers, oh yes.
The BODC told me that since making the data available for free (under a contract with Defra signed in 2002) there have been 1347 commercial downloads of data since October 31st 2002; 659 commercial downloads between 1st April 2005 and 31st March 2006 (that’s nearly a doubling in a single year); and downloads have been made by 176 different commercial organisations including the following categories: consultancies; engineering; insurance; surveyors; water companies; local port authorities.
And they’re all free to make commercial use of that data. The only restriction is that they don’t pass it off as their own.
I find that pretty inspiring, actually. That’s a lot of companies making good use of data generated by taxpayers’ cash. And more piling in all the time.
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April 14th, 2006 at 8:56 am
[...] A Guardian Technology campaign for free public access to data about the UK and its citizens « At last – free tide data, going back nearly 100 years [...]
April 14th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
That’s very cool. How long it takes for sanity to break through. I remember back in 2001 when the UKHO forced an online tide predictor to take the British predictions off their website. This demand is unique in the whole world, and tells you something about their attitude. I spent a few days arguing with them by email when they did it, but logic has nothing to do with it. I may have persuaded them to build the online version on their webpage, so people could get to it for the cost of reading their adverts. It’s something, at least. Originally they said we should only find the tides by buying a little booklet from the shop in the harbour. Unbelievably backward.
It’s worth reading the information in their FAQ for further details.
http://tbone.biol.sc.edu/tide/faq.cgi#ukho
April 26th, 2006 at 9:14 pm
Here is an initiative in Canada that might be of interstest!
***********************
Public Launch – CivicAccess
April 26, 2006
We would like to announce the launch of a new online space for Canadian civic engagement – Citizens for Open Access to Civic Information and Data (aka: CivicAccess.ca). CivicAccess is being founded by librarians, civil servants, academics, lawyers, free- and open-source advocates, geomatics professionals and community planners from across Canada. We are motivated by the belief that open civic information and data are necessary for being engaged citizens in an “information society”……
To find out more:
Discussion List – http://civicaccess.ca/mailman/listinfo/civicaccess-discuss_civicaccess.ca/
Website – http://civicaccess.ca/
May 6th, 2006 at 6:48 pm
So, in that case, why _doesn’t_ the Guardian Unlimited include the tides information online? It would be useful to me occasionally. Perhaps it could be announced here if it’s able to do so.
Robin Rice
Edinburgh
May 6th, 2006 at 8:20 pm
Why doesn’t Guardian Unlimited include the tides? Because it’s not a high priority, I’d guess. We’re a newspaper.
But the existence of the data, for free, means that other people who might want to work it out – and who knows, set up a company that analyses the data and sells it to online newspapers….
Just because the data’s free doesn’t mean it’s ready-processed. Raw data is fine, though. That creates the commercial opportunity.
May 11th, 2006 at 4:59 pm
Thanks for responding Charles, but that doesn’t quite answer it, since the printed Guardian does include the tides, so it’s already ‘processed’.