[johngeraci]

I agree that sites with people, thought and energy behind them go much farther than sites that are just technology. And DIYcity consciously tries to develop real community in real local areas where it has a presence - through meetups, through locally-oriented message boards, through wikis that are specific to each local area.

In fact, I'd say that's exactly what we're trying to be at DIYcity - an organizing force to what is otherwise just technology. We're trying to take all of the existing technology - the mashup/api/data/etc technology out there and match it up with real people, real interest groups, in real communities.

I also don't think this is just about government data and transparency. That's certainly a piece of the puzzle, but maybe one that is getting too much attention at this very moment. There are lots of types of data you can harness in a city to make it work better. DIYcity is interested in all of them.