Accessing open source BGS software through GitHub
BGS is increasingly utilising GitHub to make its software available as open source and encourage collaboration with partners and the wider community.
15/12/2021
BGS is increasingly utilising GitHub, a collaborative software source control platform, to make its software available as open source to encourage collaborative software development with partners and the wider community.
Projects from across the organisation have provided access to innovative tools, documentation and even training materials through the BGS GitHub page. For example, the ETL Helper tool is a Python library that helps simplify the process of transferring data between databases. BGS published the software to GitHub to ensure that it could be used for collaborative projects with other agencies and because it could be useful for other users using Python with databases. Since then, the project has received code contributions and valuable feedback on future improvements from external users.
ETLHelper animated process. BGS © UKRI.
As part of this approach to more collaborative development, BGS has also been working on a new way for developers, data scientists, modellers and others across the organisation to promote and highlight their activities and outputs – the BGS GitHub blog.
Introduction to GitHub blog
BGS Digital has a development blog series published on our BGS GitHub page. Over the past 18 months, staff from across the directorate have published a range of exciting content covering innovations, how-tos and tutorials, and discussions about design concepts or development issues. Whereas ‘traditional’ blog posts tend to be longer-form discussions, these posts are designed to be short and sweet, often including code snippets and screengrabs to illustrate the discussion or concept.
BGS GitHub blog . BGS © UKRI.
These posts are a great way to document processes, methodologies and scripts that have been used within a project, to highlight some of the concepts that worked well and to flag up some trouble areas. The posts raise the profile of the work that can sometimes go under the radar as part of a bigger project, whether it’s a back-end system that supports other, more visible parts of an application, refactoring code and servers to support recent updates or a proof of concept demonstrator used in the BGS Open Day.
As these posts are public and accessible in GitHub, it makes the work of BGS Digital visible to the wider world, which helps raise the profile of the work being undertaken across the range of fields that staff work in.
Blog Day for the application development team
We all want to make our work as visible and useful as possible, to highlight achievements and to provide solutions or support to problems that will help others inside and outside BGS. However, finding time to write a blog post can often be difficult with increasing demands on our time.
To help address this issue and seed the development blog series with exciting content, the application development team within BGS Digital held an event in August 2021 to start and finish a blog post, suitable for publication, within a single working day; a single, time-boxed event to publicise that snippet, how-to, tech demo or best practice that had been on the backlog. The day was a success with eight new posts being written that are now being scheduled for publication throughout the year.
Find out more
To learn more about the developments going on, please visit the BGS GitHub blog series.
About the author
Steven Richardson
Geospatial applications developer
Relative topics
Latest blogs
Mining hazard data from BGS
17/05/2022
Great Britain has over 250 000 documented mining sites and the underground voids resulting from past mining activity pose a possible hazard. Knowledge of the distribution of former mining areas will help us to plan for future development and ongoing maintenance.
Introducing GeoCoast: new coastal datasets from BGS
20/04/2022
GeoCoast is an integrated GIS package of datasets designed to inform and support coastal management and adaptation.
Six changing coastlines and how climate change could affect them
12/04/2022
We explore how parts of the British coastline are changing and what important factors we should consider in terms of natural hazards, adaptation and resilience.
Sea level rise and coastal erosion: what’s the real impact?
05/04/2022
How much of an issue are coastal vulnerabilities and what do we need to consider to increase our resilience to future events?
The importance of staff networks
18/03/2022
A sense of inclusivity in the workplace is essential for staff health and well-being. Staff networks can help this by bringing together people from a diverse group of backgrounds, as Romesh Palamakumbura explores.
Building surveys in La Palma during the 2021 volcanic eruption
18/03/2022
In December 2021, BGS BUFI student Sara Osman visited La Palma in the Canary Islands to assess buildings damaged during the Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption. In this blog, she talks about her experiences on the island.
My role as a BGS Geochemistry Technician
08/03/2022
Kotryna Savickaite tells us about her new role as she settles in at BGS Keyworth.
Understanding environmental impact through the study of sediments
23/02/2022
A new study aims to understand the range of organic molecules present in urban waterway sediments from different locations around the world.
Investing in nature
14/02/2022
BGS and local community volunteers join together to plant 12 000 spring bulbs and help native wildlife to thrive.
Understanding the resilience of Mexico City to future water crises
25/01/2022
Long-term solutions for water poverty in one of the world’s largest cities in the face of climate change and a growing population.
Going greener at work
04/01/2022
There are many ways to reduce your carbon footprint through small changes in your daily activities, from methods of transport to activities at work or the home office space.
Evidence Week 2021
15/12/2021
Representatives from BGS took part in Evidence Week 2021 to talk to parliamentarians about unlocking the potential of geothermal energy in the UK.