Nitobi Inc. is a developer that wanted to create a mobile app using Vancouver's open government data to make it more accessible to citizens. They used Microsoft's Open Government Data Initiative (OGDI) and Azure platform to develop VanGuide, which overlays government data on Bing maps. This allows citizens to easily access landmarks, services, and share reviews. By leveraging OGDI's open standards, Nitobi was able to streamline development and improve collaboration between teams. The app helps socialize open data and brings more value to citizens.

1. Microsoft Customer Solution
Customer Solution Case Study
Nitobi harnesses the power of open
government data with VanGuide
Overview “VanGuide is just the first step to socializing open data,
Country or Region: Canada
Industry: Application Development we hope to start a revolution and that spreads across
the country.”
Customer Profile
Nitobi Inc. is a developer of mobile and Jesse MacFadyen, senior software engineer, Nitobi Inc
rich Internet applications for the
enterprise.
Nitobi Inc. is a developer of mobile and rich Internet applications
Business Situation
Nitobi wanted to create an application
for the enterprise. The developer wanted to create an
using open government data in a way application using open government data in a way that makes
that makes data more compelling and
personable for citizens.
data more compelling and personable for citizens. Nitobi used
Microsoft Open Government Data Initiative together with
Solution
Nitobi used Microsoft Open Government
Vancouver’s open data and the Microsoft Azure platform – to
Data Initiative together with Vancouver’s enable citizens to access government data easily and quickly via
open data and Microsoft Azure platform
to create VanGuide. Citizens are now
the VanGuide mobile and web-based app.
able to access government data easily
and quickly.
Benefits
Improved Collaboration
Streamlined Development Process
Power of Open Data

2. Situation This would allow open government data to
Nitobi Inc. is a developer of mobile and rich be used in a unique, personal way.”
Internet Applications for the enterprise. The
Vancouver-based company is well-known
in the developer sphere and carries a stellar Solution
reputation when it comes to building Nitobi worked with Microsoft Canada to
sophisticated mobile and Web applications. build VanGuide, an application based on
Nitobi Inc. has developed mobile and Web- the city’s open data that local citizens and
based applications for top-tier clients such tourists can use while visiting Vancouver.
as Bell Canada, H&R Block Canada Inc. and VanGuide overlays the data from the City’s
AT&T for over a decade. Today the Open Data catalogue with Bing™ maps of
company, which is dedicated to creating Vancouver and enables citizens to visually
valuable end-user experiences, is changing access information about various
the way rich Internet applications are built. landmarks and services, including local
Nitobi has used software and cloud services parks, schools, libraries and community
operating systems such as Microsoft® centres. Furthermore users can rate, tag
Silverlight and Windows Azure™, but also and comment on these landmarks, or even
uses Microsoft Open Government Data add their own, thus adding unique value to
Initiative (OGDI) to help enable rapid the city’s open data catalogue and enable
application development for publicly knowledge and information sharing a social
available government data. level.
Creating rich and more visually appealing The City of Vancouver is one of the first
applications is important to Nitobi, notes municipalities in Canada to make its data
Jesse MacFadyen, senior software engineer, available to developers. Nitobi realized the
Nitobi Inc. To uphold its reputation as a opportunity to further extend this data by
leader in cutting edge, highly usable leveraging a cloud-based Open Source
applications, Nitobi wanted to build an framework for open data catalogues
application that encouraged citizens to recently released by Microsoft: Open
personalize their open data catalogue Government Data Initiative (OGDI).
experience.
“Microsoft’s OGDI’s main purpose is simple:
In early 2010, Nitobi began its relationship to enable government data to be easily
with Microsoft Canada and Vancouver open accessible and publicly available for citizens
government experts, which helped them to as well as developers,” says Nik Garkusha,
create a mobile social mapping application Open Source Strategy Manager, Microsoft
to allow the data from the City of Canada. “The OGDI implementation using
Vancouver’s Open Data catalogue to be Vancouver data enabled rapid
more accessible. development of a number of web and
mobile applications, including VanGuide.
“We want to socialize map data in the hope This helps cities in Canada and across the
that this will start a citizen-type revolution,” world to build vibrant application
says MacFadyen. “We were looking to ecosystems around their Open Data
develop an app that would ensure that the catalogues.
public could add information about their
personal experiences at specific locations. ODGI leverages open standards and open
applications programming interfaces to

3. allow developers and governments to “Working with several team members can
create new innovative online applications create extra steps, but this technology
using data that is open to the public, and works off of the same tool. Now, when we
VanGuide fulfills this goal by bringing are working on the same project, we are
citizens government data in a unique and able to see each other’s changes. In
compelling way. addition, we can now test the application in
10 minutes where it would have needed to
“VanGuide is unique in that both visitors be completed once or twice a week,” says
and local citizens can use the application to MacFadyen.
locate the particular restaurant they are
looking for or mark their favorite park in Power of open data
the city, and with Microsoft OGDI, users can Operating within the Windows Azure and
now get information quicker because it’s OGDI platforms helps Nitobi get its
hosted in the cloud,” says MacFadyen. applications to market faster, which will
ultimately help it grow its revenue base.
The openness of OGDI helps Nitobi boost
Benefits productivity between its open source and
Nitobi is leveraging the City if Vancouver’s Microsoft-based platforms – helping
open data and Microsoft OGDI to help developers to speed development time.
make data more personable and
compelling for citizens. “Microsoft hosted a subset of Vancouver
open data, and being in the cloud helped
Streamlined development process us get data more quickly because it was
Operating on one platform gives hosted on ODGI and Windows Azure,” says
developers more uniformity, as they are in MacFadyen.
a better position to leverage data to build
richer open data applications. The Windows
Azure platform, Silverlight, .NET, BING
Maps, Visual Studio 2010 and Microsoft
open source-based technologies helped
Nitobi quickly develop VanGuide to meet
their goals, which has ultimately improved
collaboration and increased productivity.
“Since some data is stored in different
formats it can be difficult to have
everything you need in one place, but
OGDI imports all of their data in one place
and renders uniformity,” says MacFadyen.
Improved collaboration
With the help of Visual Studio and
Windows Azure, the creation of the
application was seamless because all of the
Microsoft products used are so tightly
integrated.

4. For More Information
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For more information about Nitobi Inc.
products and services, visit the website
at: http://www.nitobi.com/
Software and Services
OGDI
Bing™ maps
This case study is for informational purposes only.
MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR
IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
Document published October 2010