geomantic

With the frenzy of the elections past, I’m gradually returning to normal life. Here are some things that have recently caught my attention.

Fuzzy Tolerance calls attention to a slew of recent open source software releases. Shiny new toys!

From the Google Geo Developers Blog comes word of a snazzy new KML Manual. (Must add this to my book list, since I much prefer to obtain knowledge by looking at pigment on sheets of cellulose-based material.)

Via Andrew Turner comes word of Apps for Democracy. Although it’s too late to enter (entries closed yesterday), I want to call attention to it because it’s a good example of how the web makes it possible and affordable to do something at a micro (i.e. neighborhood) level. There are very few local governments that can afford to organize and stand up programs that meet the same needs that some of these mashups. Examples appeal to the enlightened self-interest of a dispersed group to take collective action in the social realm.