What do you think?
Rate this book
Hacking the BBC
BBC Backstage was a five year initiative to radically open up the BBC, publishing information and data feeds, connecting people both inside and outside the organisation, and building a developer community. The call was to "use our stuff to make your stuff" and people did, to the tune of over 500 prototypes.
This ebook is a snapshot of some of the projects and events that Backstage was involved in, from its launch at Open Tech 2005, through the triumph of Hack Day 2007 and the shot-for-web R&DTV, to current visualisation project DataArt. We take a diversion to Bangladesh to see how a Backstage hacker helped the World Service keep reporting through the horrendous Cyclone Sidr, and look at the impact of the 'playground' servers, used inside the BBC.
Backstage's mandate, throughout its history, was for change. It changed the way people think, the way the BBC interacted with external designers and developers, and the way that they worked together. So what remains, now Backstage is no more? The legacy isn't just a few data feeds and some blog posts. Backstage brought about permanent change, for the people who worked there, for its community of external developers and for the BBC. What better legacy could one ask for?
This ebook is a snapshot of some of the projects and events that Backstage was involved in, from its launch at Open Tech 2005, through the triumph of Hack Day 2007 and the shot-for-web R&DTV, to current visualisation project DataArt. We take a diversion to Bangladesh to see how a Backstage hacker helped the World Service keep reporting through the horrendous Cyclone Sidr, and look at the impact of the 'playground' servers, used inside the BBC.
Backstage's mandate, throughout its history, was for change. It changed the way people think, the way the BBC interacted with external designers and developers, and the way that they worked together. So what remains, now Backstage is no more? The legacy isn't just a few data feeds and some blog posts. Backstage brought about permanent change, for the people who worked there, for its community of external developers and for the BBC. What better legacy could one ask for?
48 pages
First published January 1, 2011
4 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 12, 2011
An interesting eBook, covering the history of the BBC Backstage project. I'm an ex-employee of the BBC, and was slightly involved with Backstage (more involved when working outside of the organisation than inside, it ought to be said).
This book is an interesting read; some of it kicking off some memories, and some of it teaching me new things.
There's a tendency for BBC employees and contributors to believe their own hype, and that creeps into this book. Reading it, you're left with a sense that BBC Backstage was a massive change for the corporation, kicking off a massive movement in the industry at large. It wasn't, by any stretch of the imagination (not wishing to belittle the contributions made); but since the whole purpose of this book is to celebrate what the now defunct project did, it's probably acceptable to have some hyperbole here.
A good historical read, therefore, if you're in the online or media world; and excellently transferred, as you might guess, into an eBook format. (I read the MOBI format on the Kindle).
This book is an interesting read; some of it kicking off some memories, and some of it teaching me new things.
There's a tendency for BBC employees and contributors to believe their own hype, and that creeps into this book. Reading it, you're left with a sense that BBC Backstage was a massive change for the corporation, kicking off a massive movement in the industry at large. It wasn't, by any stretch of the imagination (not wishing to belittle the contributions made); but since the whole purpose of this book is to celebrate what the now defunct project did, it's probably acceptable to have some hyperbole here.
A good historical read, therefore, if you're in the online or media world; and excellently transferred, as you might guess, into an eBook format. (I read the MOBI format on the Kindle).
Want to read
June 8, 2011E-book available at http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews