Computer programmers will come together Saturday to create applications that will make information in Gainesville’s open data portal more digestible for residents.
The event, called Hoggetowne Hack, will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Hippodrome State Theatre. The main event is an app-creation contest, which offers more than $2,000 worth of cash prizes that will be distributed to first, second and third place winners.
This event’s goal is to “encourage problem solving of local issues using the data that is on the portal,” said Samantha Wolfe, senior administrative analyst for the city.
The Open Data portal is, as defined by Wolfe, an online repository of public data.
“There’s currently about 20 data sets that we’ve collected from various departments that anyone can go to the portal and access,” she said.
All data sets are enabled so developers can use the data to create applications, she said.
Lila Stewart, senior strategic planner for the city, said she’s expecting teams of database analysts, programmers and those with other skillsets who could help make the application.
This event is part of International Open Data Day, a worldwide movement encouraging the creation of applications that use open data to promote government transparency.
Sara Schuster, a UF computer science junior and founder of Women in Computer Science and Engineering, said she appreciates the hackathon’s six-hour length.
Most stretch on for days, leaving participants with little time for sleep, she said.
“It’s a really great starter hackathon,” she said.
[A version of this story ran on page 8 on 2/21/2014 under the headline “Local hackathon aims to make online data accessible"]
