Tuesday, October 19, 2004 3:40 PM
I added a new category to the blawg directory last night that encompasses U.S. State-level government. Specifically, efforts by the States to provide feeds of legislative and legal-related materials of interest to both legal professionals and the public at large. The States, by and large, are not producing blawgs, but some are starting to showcase the dissemination technologies inherent in most blawgs, particularly XML (e.g., RSS, RDF, Atom, etcetera) feeds.
One great example (and view of the future) is provided by the State of Texas. On this web page, the Texas Legislature offers the public multiple avenues to stay updated with activities within the Legislature itself. Instead of the old-line approach of dictating to the public how and/or where it can receive this information, it enables the public to make the choice. In many cases, you simply pick how you wish to receive the updates and information (on your cell phone, on your pda, via your favorite news reader, etc.) and subscribe to the appropriate feed.
The positive effects that blawgs and syndication technologies are having on the rapid dissemination of public information emanating from all branches of government is very real. Even while this movement remains in its infancy, snapshots of the future like those offered by the State of Texas, gets one excited about the possibilities.
In the coming weeks, look for more States to be added to State Government category in the directory. You might be surprised at what is already available.