RE: Use machine-readable standardized data formats / Use non-proprietary data formats

Tomas,

> 
> * Dirty data: if the data is available only in a very dirty and unfriendly
format,
> make it also available: dirty data is better than not data.
> 

This is not always true. Errors in legislation, medical information, road
maps can cost lives.

Of course, if the 'users' are people that make a living or hobby out of
finding and correcting errors, dirty data is fine, and those users can help
cleaning it. If on the other hand the users are unsuspecting citizens who
rely on the data, dirty data is worse than no data.

In many places, there are laws that oblige the government, pharmaceutical
companies, food manufacturers etc. to publish data that is correct; if they
knowingly publish dirty data, they are breaking the law.

Makx.

Received on Saturday, 15 August 2015 09:36:24 UTC