The Open Data Protocol (OData) is a Web protocol for querying and updating data that provides a way to unlock your data and free it from silos that exist in applications today. OData does this by applying and building upon Web technologies such as HTTP, Atom Publishing Protocol (AtomPub) and JSON to provide access to information from a variety of applications, services, and stores. The protocol emerged from experiences implementing AtomPub clients and servers in a variety of products over the past several years. OData is being used to expose and access information from a variety of sources including, but not limited to, relational databases, file systems, content management systems and traditional Web sites.
Note however, that OData is a Microsoft project. They state:
The name Open Data Protocol was chosen to make it clear that the protocol is intended to align with the Open Data movement and that we are fully committed to ensuring that the protocol remains as open as possible.
Here’s a list of articles and videos with more details on this project. You may be hearing some debate in the open source community about OData in the future, including a talk at the Open Source Bridge conference in Portland, OR this summer. These materials will give you some background on the topic.
Be prepared for some skepticism when people hear “open” and “Microsoft” in the same sentence :-)
I’ll accept it as an open protocol when two non-MS-associated implementations exist that have full access to all features with no licensing costs.
Netflix, Ebay, Twitpic, bunch of local government implementations, etc… it’s a protocol for moving data. Once the format was documented and published, there’s not much that’s “proprietary” about serving data over the web.
As they say in the investment world, “past records do no guarantee future performance.” That said, it seems likely that Microsoft will treat OData just like they treated OOXML – i.e., they’re more interested in getting ‘approved’ as a standard, rather than deliver actual interoperability. Here are some links regarding Microsoft’s past record:
http://www.robweir.com/blog/2007/04/sometimes-i-need-to-remind-myself.html
http://www.consortiuminfo.org/news/archive.php?page=49&Category=3&SubCat=Whos%20Doing%20What%20to%20Whom
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2007/sep/05/microsoftooxml1
http://www.betanews.com/article/ISO-to-FastTrack-Office-Open-XML-Process/1173731196
http://www.dwheeler.com/essays/why-opendocument-won.html
@jbeale : +1 ;)
About the initial post in itself :
If dangerousprototypes starts delivering informations on “Open Source Software”, not directly related to “Open Source Hardware”, you will loose the clarity of your core activity. I don’t think it’s a good idea. :/