Possibilities - The San Francisco Connection - Public Data as a Public Service

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THE SAN FRANCISCO CONNECTION - PUBLIC DATA AS A PUBLIC SERVICE
--------------------------------------------------------------

*** From October 1990 Possibilities Newsletter ***
*** Copyright 1990 by eSoft, Inc.  All Rights Reserved ***

The San Francisco Connection -- Public Data as a Public Service
by Alan Bechtold

Public service is an important consideration for public utilities.  
Beginning nearly three years ago Pacific Bell wanted to make detailed 
information about all San Francisco city governmental offices and officials 
avail- able online for modem-using callers as a public service.  

Pacific Bell teamed up with the San Francisco Public Library to implement 
this service by offering to fund the project.  Pacific Bell offered to 
provide the computer hardware, modems, telephone lines, along with TBBS, 
TDBS, and SYSOM software.  The library agreed to provide five employees to 
handle bookkeeping and data entry.  James Lim, a librarian at the San 
Francisco Public Library, was tapped to oversee the design and 
implementation.

Once an agreement had been reached, Pacific Bell installed an IBM PS/2 
System 80 computer, a four-port DigiBoard, four 2400-baud Hayes-compatible 
modems and the telephone lines.

Lim said the library was excited about the system because they saw it as an 
excellent way to broaden public access to library resources.  He oversaw the 
system's initial software design and software and still handles day-to-day 
operation and general maintenance.  He also wrote much of the dBase 
programming.

Lim stressed the fact that he's a professional librarian -- not an 
experienced computer professional.  "It took us about three months to map 
everything out and input all the initial data files," Lim said.  "But," he 
added, "if someone with my limited experience can do it, that says a lot for 
TBBS' ease of use."

The San Francisco Connection is simple and straightforward.  The menus are 
uncluttered, designed to minimize confusion for first-time callers.

"We get a lot of calls from people who have never used a modem before," Lim 
said.  "We wanted the information to be readily available to everyone and 
felt that a straightforward presentation was the best approach."

Databases are available allowing a caller to pick a section of the San 
Francisco city government and work down to the street address, telephone 
number, operating hours, administrator's name, contact person's name, and 
even the languages spoken by department personnel.  This information, 
available for hundreds of city and county bureaus, boards, and departments 
is the original reason the system was put in place.

The TDBS expansion module wasn't available when The San Francisco Connection 
was first set up, but Lim knew it was coming and looked forward to it.  "I 
started teaching myself the dBase programming language right away,"  he 
said.

Meanwhile, the system went online, with all the City Hall database files 
offered as straightforward keyword-searchable text files.

"We plan to switch all those files over to dBase and make them available 
with TDBS," Lim said, "but TBBS' built-in keyword search database 
capabilities work so well there isn't any rush to get the job done right 
now."

As soon as the TDBS expansion module arrived, Lim and his associates went to 
work getting other dBase III Plus compatible databases online for their 
callers.  One interesting database -- compiled and designed by the San 
Francisco Department of City Planning -- gives outstanding details about 
every business in the city and county area with more than 50 employees.  The 
information was built upon U.S. Census Bureau information and includes 
addresses, designated post offices, zip codes, and two-letter codes to 
signify the approximate number of employees for each entry.  There are also 
numerous bits of information NOT normally gathered by the U.S. Census 
Bureau, such as the actual number of employees (where possible, as opposed 
to the estimated number), names of contact personnel, and contact personnel 
telephone numbers.

Lim wrote the TDBS programming associated with this database.  Callers are 
allowed to search the City Planning database for key words or they can 
search for employers with more, less, or the number of employees the caller 
specifies, by zip code and more.

Once the system was in place and providing the information it was originally 
intended to, the library expanded its mission.  Lim added databases to the 
system that pertained to the library itself.  A detailed searchable database 
of information on San Francisco's various libraries of specialized 
information is one example.  Databases which present the user with witty 
quotes and thought-provoking poems that are searchable by title, author, 
subject, or virtually any keyword is another.  The most recent addition to 
the system is a keyword-searchable text file of Martin Luther King's 
Mountain Top Speech.

"We have a lot more database files that could be put online easily," Lim 
said.  "The library already uses dBase III Plus to manage most of its own 
data files, so it's just a matter of designing a program that allows callers 
to access the information to put any of them up."

A lot more is planned for the system, but the city of San Francisco, 
struggling to overcome a budget deficit, cut funding across the board and 
the library was forced to lay off the five employees who helped Lim keep The 
San Francisco Connection updated.

Now it's Lim, alone, who manages the system with what time he has between 
his regular librarian chores.  He says the layoffs were in no way indicative 
of a lack of interest in the system.  "It's too important to take down -- 
I'll continue to keep it online until funding is restored, hopefully soon," 
he said.

It is in this cutback period that the true value of using TBBS for this 
information service shows.  If the system had a high recurring cost, or 
required dedicated personnel to operate, it would have been shut down when 
the funding stopped.  However, because TBBS uses only a single PC and 
requires very little maintenance, even one part time person can keep the 
system running.  In fact, Lim is even able to continue expansion plans in 
his part time status!

"I'm investigating the possibility of adding some sections for use by the 
hearing impaired," Lim added.  "That could even lead to other sources of 
potential funding -- and definitely more callers."

Meanwhile, Lim is using Sysom to call the system in the evenings and update 
files -- entering new data and adding menu options whenever he can -- so the 
system will be ready for the publicity push he wants to see as soon as 
funding is restored.

Despite the money crunch, The San Francisco Connection is always up, 24 
hours a day, providing information for anyone who calls.  James Lim knows 
the potential for the system he manages has barely been tapped and he's 
ready to take San Francisco Public Library access to new heights.

You can give The San Francisco Connection a call and see it in action for 
yourself by dialing 415-864-8085 at 300, 1200 or 2400 baud.

Update

The Data-Tel long distance data service mentioned in last issue's profile of 
the Compact Disc Exchange has ceased operation.  We have had many calls 
requesting information on this service, but at present we know of no plans 
for it to resume operation.

- END -
PS1090-4
Rev. 10/90

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