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City of Vancouver website about to see big changes — fans of current site should be documenting what’s there now

July 31st, 2012 · 16 Comments

I’m hearing from multiple people that the city is about to launch a revised website that removes thousands of pages that are now available. There is also some chatter of giving new or slightly different names to various neighbourhoods.

For all who care, you should go on the site now and get screenshots of the pages you tend to visit the most, so that you can contrast and compare with what’s available after.

I know that I, personally, count on being able to access a couple of things. One is the planning/development section where I can get details of all rezonings and major projects, including complete access to every document submitted by the applicant. The other is the finance department and its financial documents.

But I hear that a lot of information now available about neighbourhoods may also be disappearing. I don’t look at that as much, so I’m not even sure what’s there.

Counting on all of you to keep me posted on what the differences are, what you value about the current site, etc.

 

Categories: Uncategorized

  • Joe Just Joe

    Hope you’re wrong on this Frances. I too count on access on some of those documents. I have no issue with the city revamping the look and feel of the site, but they shouldn’t be limiting the content. Wish the open data promises don’t end up like the promise to end “street” homelessness.

  • teririch

    Ahhhh ,destroying ‘evidence’ .

    What can’t be found, can’t be used for or against them.

  • Julia

    I thought they just did a revamp not too long ago! $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

  • Richard

    Hopefully it will be more mobile device friendly.

  • webUzr

    Revamp??? A new front page isnt a revamp.
    Maybe the new site will be searchable…and actually navigatable by some sensible method??
    about time, you guys…hope it looks more like 2012 than the current c.1999 web site!

  • John

    Oh it’s going to be quite a shock to regular users.

  • CityHallWatch

    This news comes as a big surprise. The spectre of having information deleted from easy public access could pave the way for Orwellian rewrite of past decisions. If it’s true, the facts should be publicly confirmed, and the Mayor should clearly state exactly what is going on. Rather than clearing the slate and going for a complete revision, the best policy might be not to remove anything without good reason. The public should have adequate time to comment. It’s not just a matter of attractiveness of the website, but one of accountability, transparency and good governance. Media, civic reporters and the public should strongly call for the Mayor and Council’s commitment to keep a complete archive copy, easily accessible, of everything now up there. All rezoning/development applications, meeting documents, staff presentations, applicant presentations, all video archives, all documentation now up there, should be easily accessible by web so that government is accountable in future for past decisions.

  • Joseph Jones

    Open Data Initiative = Give us a second term, we’ll rip that data right open, and you’ll never even be able to verify what you used to think you knew.

    We’ve already shown you how we can turn Freedom of Information into Slavery of Information. Even if you knew the information existed, we know you won’t ask for it after we take it away.

    You already know that we routinely meet your requests with a standard guesstimate fee of $500 to $600 to shut you down. We know that nobody with any sense is going to sign our blank cheque, end up paying maybe $1000, only to get back a handful of heavily redacted pages.

  • Bill Lee

    Wget, and many other such scrapers. Go.

    Webcrawlers must already have a full set by now.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wget

  • Bill Lee

    It’s the recursiveness that intrigues, digging deep into the shallow pool of city files until the level at the core of blackness.

  • Laurie Best

    Yes, we are launching a new website soon– one based on user research into what most people are looking for most often when they come to the site – things like recreational programs, garbage schedules, job posting, bid opportunities and permit applications. We’re also making it easier to find other information – equally important – that a smaller number of people seek out, like past financial reports or completed rezoning applications.

    In fact, a snapshot of our entire current website – with more than 60,000 pages on it—will continue to be available to anyone who wants to look through it, while the new site will be focused on trying to help people complete their desired tasks more quickly and easily.

    Director, City Of Vancouver, Web Redevelopment Project

  • Jean

    No, worry more about City’s web information not categorized in simple key drop down menu popular pages. Instead, lost with a Google search engine laid on top. There is a dismaying assumption in some IT circles that anyone/everyone can find the information that they need by googling.

    That does not work well since a Google search may yield too many results. Or worse, the person doesn’t know the best keywords to accurately conduct the search to get pinpoint results.

  • Bill Lee

    And why not spend some time and effort on 25 languages to tag pages with “bicycles, bikes, bicyclette, velo, 自行车, (also 自行車 for most of the readers), साइकिल, biciklo, Fahrrad, etc. so pages can be found.
    I would like mini-pages for major sections in various languages, (and pointers to translation engines, btw. they don’t use Google, nor need to in China. Even Japan has their own translation engines. The Intertubes are viewed in different, local ways around the world.

    Why can’t they give this job to the Soviet of Burnaby instead? Why this delusion that it has to be done in house (They would not dare send this to an un-tendered contract would they?).
    Burnaby.ca leading to http://burnaby.ca/Home.html

    And what does Brian John Jackson think about all this?
    If Googlish, then will it finally accept misspellings, (which should be suggestions of more tags)?
    As it is, searching for Bula finds 8, but Luba finds 5 hits.

    60,000 pages says Laurie Best. So a copy in the old style could be sold quite simply on a few DVDs. Make it so!

  • Bill Lee

    at Vancouver.ca Search for 2 words Laurie Best.

    Results for: Laurie Best, -url:/ctyclerk/cclerk/ Document count: Laurie (220) Best (1107) -url:/ctyclerk/cclerk/ (16193) Laurie Best (31)

    about 816 results found,
    top 500 sorted by relevance listed below….

    [Document count: penny (590) ballem (434) -url:/ctyclerk/cclerk/ (16193) penny ballem (356) ]
    [ Document count: fred (1278) hume (62) -url:/ctyclerk/cclerk/ (16193) fred hume (2) ]
    [ Document count: bill (3148) -url:/ctyclerk/cclerk/ (16193) rathie (21) bill rathie (2) ]

  • teririch

    @Julie #3:

    Yes, it was revamped in 2009/2010 (?)…. And I believe that ‘unsolicited contract’ was to the tune of $150K or so….

    Here is a thought: take that money and put it towards ……weed control, cleaning of the sidewalks (have you see the ciggy butts that surround bus stops and St. Paul’s?) filling potholes, mowing lawns….. the list of ‘needs’ is endless.

  • Mira

    teririch #15
    second your comment.
    But why bother? two more years of international travel and abuses ahead… they’ll look into it in 2014 when the millions of dollars are going to again pour in from the charitable cartel. Go figure.