Skip to main content

UK Contest Frees Government Data

There’s plenty of public information out there in the UK, and the government wanted people to do something positive with it. So they began a competition, Show Us A Better Way, offering a total of $125,000 in cash prizes and aid in development, for the best new sites creatively using that information.

It attracted over 450 entrants, ranging from sites showing the nearest public toilet to one illustrating school catchment areas. But the grand winner was a site called Can I Recycle It? which lets people find local recycling facilities, the BBC reports.

Cabinet office minister Tom Watson MP, who helped devise the competition, said:

"By trusting the public and throwing it open to them to put forward their ideas, the solutions are of real, practical use. Ultimately, this is about building something from the bottom up, rather than having Whitehall dictate from the centre."

Editors' Recommendations

Digital Trends Staff
Digital Trends has a simple mission: to help readers easily understand how tech affects the way they live. We are your…
How to change your language in Google Chrome on desktop
Chrome OS

Google Chrome supports a wide range of languages. While it'll default to English in most cases, there's nothing stopping you from changing its settings and displaying pages in Spanish, French, or dozens of other languages.

Changing your default language in Chrome takes only a few seconds, and the technique used is the same across Windows and Mac. Aside from changing your language, note that Chrome now gives you the option to automatically translate pages written in another language – making it easy to read content from around the globe.

Read more
23 of the best Netflix hacks, tips, and tricks
The Netflix home screen.

Netflix is one of the most popular streaming platforms for all things movies and TV shows. Home to an immense library of titles, the Netflix archive is constantly changing and evolving, and so are the many ways you can use your Netflix account. 

For instance, did you know you can access region-locked Netflix shows and flicks by using a VPN? Or that you can disable that pesky Autoplay feature? There are tons of Netflix hacks, tips, and tricks out there, so we’ve gone ahead and rounded up all of our favorites! 
Expand your streaming with a VPN

Read more
How to make a GIF from a YouTube video
woman sitting and using laptop

Sometimes, whether you're chatting with friends or posting on social media, words just aren't enough -- you need a GIF to fully convey your feelings. If there's a moment from a YouTube video that you want to snip into a GIF, the good news is that you don't need complex software to so it. There are now a bunch of ways to make a GIF from a YouTube video right in your browser.

If you want to use desktop software like Photoshop to make a GIF, then you'll need to download the YouTube video first before you can start making a GIF. However, if you don't want to go through that bother then there are several ways you can make a GIF right in your browser, without the need to download anything. That's ideal if you're working with a low-specced laptop or on a phone, as all the processing to make the GIF is done in the cloud rather than on your machine. With these options you can make quick and fun GIFs from YouTube videos in just a few minutes.
Use GIFs.com for great customization
Step 1: Find the YouTube video that you want to turn into a GIF (perhaps a NASA archive?) and copy its URL.

Read more