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TheDataWeb

TheDataWeb is a network of online data libraries and an infrastructure for intelligent browsing. TheDataweb provides easy access to data from disparate locations across the internet using DataFerrett as its interface. It brings together demographic, economic, environmental, health, and other datasets that are usually separated by geography and/or organization.

The Philosophy Behind TheDataWeb:

Data is too difficult to use and data driven decisions are often difficult to achieve because:

1. Finding the right data to use is often confusing.
2. Finding the right way to use the data correctly can be very time-consuming.
3. It is often difficult to find inexpensive tools that help you manipulate and integrate data easily and properly.
4. Finding tools that allow you to create interactive WEB 2.0 websites is difficult and expensive.
5. Data is organized in different ways, and is often out of date and difficult to reuse. Every time a report is created, a new copy of the data needs to be downloaded and organized for that report and updated regularly.
6. There is a lack of internet-based environments that network datasets together well.

TheDataWeb Framework is designed to solve these issues, and is composed of three parts:

1. DataWeb Webservices: The computer plumbing that networks all of the datasets in TheDataWeb together.
2. DataFerrett: A web-based analytical workspace.
3. HotReports: A website builder that can use any of the networked data in the DataWeb. HotReports allow you to create websites focused on specific topics or issues. It encourages reuse of data, meaning data can be used in multiple websites at once, yet be maintained and updated as a single instance of the dataset.

TheDataWeb provides the environment to move from data dissemination to data intelligence on the desktop for more effective decision-making.

Last update: 1/28/11