Background:
The NT has internet connectivity in major population centres however it is typically not possible to achieve an internet connection 30kms out of town. This issue is further compounded when travelling remote.
BushTel.nt.gov.au is the datasource for key authorititative information about remote communities, including meta, mp3 translations, gps coordinates, lot data and essential service provider links.
A particular resource of high significance are the SLAP MAPS, which is a PDF document collection (consisting of maps and key data) of hundreds of the NT's remote communities.
Aim / Problem Solving:
Create a simple useful companion app to the BushTel resources that stores the key data items for offline usage.
For example, a car of tourists or a team of government employees are travelling to a remote community that doesn't have an internet connection. This typically means that supporting government resources (such as BushTel) are inaccessible at this location.
We want to demonstrate Proof Of Concept - using the PDF files of all maps stored at bushtel.nt.gov.au & ntlis.nt.gov.au - to make essential resources available quickly and wherever you may need them.
(A further note: Google Maps has a restrictive limit on what can be cached on your device for offline usage).
Open Data:
http://www.bushtel.nt.gov.au/api/Community?communityTerm=&lotTerm=&boundaries=&assetCategories=
http://www.ntlis.nt.gov.au/hpa-services/slapmaps?community_id=
Opportunities for further development:
- Link more meta fields.
- Make it easy to use code in other apps.
- Link to other governance/service provider tools to assist governance in remote Australia. (e.g. Smart Council App - yes shameless plug).
Current weaknesses:
- Better manage the SYNC button. Currently it attempts to download all, and this put too much pressure on the routine. Being able to tick box the community resources you want to cache to your phone would resolve this issue.
- Not visually awesome.
