System Mapping: Platforms
We live in a world of platforms, from Facebook to Amazon, Slack to Drupal. Digital platforms allow us to connect, learn and engage with the world around us. In recent years we have moved from monolithic platforms that function like a swiss army knife, doing many things ok to instead smaller more nimble platforms that specialize in only a few tasks and then integrate with each other (think of the list of apps on google or apple).
What is a platform?
A platform at its most basic level is a common base upon which other things can be placed to enable them to do more, be more than they could on their own. We stand on platforms to be taller so we can see and be seen. In the context of digital technology, platforms are likewise a base on which applications and users can do more.
Another way of looking at platforms is as infrastructure. It is the piping that allows us to do a task. This can be physical: roads are a platform that allows for the movement of goods and people. But usually platforms are used to describe digital infrastructure. Youtube is a platform that allows people to quickly and easily share videos. Amazon is a platform that allows for the sharing and selling of goods. Google search is a platform that allows us to quickly and easily find websites and content.
Platforms usually do not create content, instead they enable the users to produce and share content. Thus with platforms has come the rise of the term prosumer where users are both the producers and consumers and the platform is the container that brings it all together.
Governments and platforms
As government we use many different platforms to do our work. For basically every business need we have their is a series of different platform options we have. Since all governments are doing relatively the same tasks I thought it would be interesting to map who is using what platform. By understanding who is using what, we can more effectively learn and share with each other.
A nod to open source
I am particularly interested in what open source platforms are being used. Where as many platforms are proprietary, meaning that we pay a licence fee to access and use them, open source is free to access, use, change and adapt. By going open source we can much more easily build and share with each other, creating more personalized platforms at a fraction of the cost. Governments have started to signal their interest in investing in more open source (e.g. Canadian Digital Standards) and are starting to experiment with different open source options. I think this makes a lot of sense since open source becomes a public good, and as governments are public institutions it makes sense that they invest in public goods.
Ok so who is using what platforms? I have started to map the space out based on what I know, this has been expanded on by colleagues and friends from around the world. I have placed everything into an open google sheet that anyone can add to. The hope is that people will share this document around and we can have a growing list that we can all draw from. Check it out, share through your networks, lets grow this list together.
