PureGin.org

I just saw this GrowLab post about an initiative to get local companies to get listed and link to a directory of Vancouver companies.

Now, I definitely think we can do more to celebrate being based here in Vancouver, as we digital creatives go out to sell to the entire world, but I hate seeing us once again starting yet another directory from scratch!

What other directories could we re-use the data from?

How about Crunchbase (143 companies listed)?

Or Angel List (172 startups listed in just Vancouver)?

Or the StartupNorth Index? Even Techvibes has a company directory!

Now, of the four, I think only CrunchBase has a Creative Commons license that easily encourages re-use of the data. (And yes, I'm still waiting for StartupIndex.ca to publish what their license is, and I've bitched … err, "suggested" to Techvibes that they should have an open license, too).

But it means that companies have an incentive to fill out and keep the information up to date. Both StartupIndex and CrunchBase are wiki-style, meaning anyone can help keep the information up to date.

So, let's re-think creating directories from scratch. Talk to some of these existing sites, and by all means make http://www.vanmade.ca an interesting hub to tell the stories of these companies.

But more stale directories is not what we need.

(ironically, this might have been just a brief comment on the GrowLab site, but comments are turned off)

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Dave Winer is right as usual. Actively pick your news sources (plural, not 1000 like me but at least 2 dozen!), pick real voices, no crazy algorithmic ones like TechMeme or preaching to the choir rags like YCombinator News (I love YC News but really it's so over the top Silicon Valley startup it's not even a joke :-) !)

• active news reading
• passive news reading
• just say no to techmeme
• just say no to passive news reading
• techmeme
• ycombinator news

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