almost 14 years ago

Imagination at Work! Unleash Your Creativity with Our Census API!

The Census Bureau is giving a set of users access to a beta version of an application programming interface (API) that would allow programmers to create customized apps using Census Bureau data. We would like to invite you to be part of the beta test. At present the site allows you to develop apps using the 2010 Census Summary File 1 and the American Community Survey (five-year data).

Through open APIs, public data users are able to build applications and perform analyses leading to new levels of citizen participation in government. This initial API is part of a longer-term effort to open Census Bureau statistics and spur innovation in how they are used.

APIs empower citizens to use statistics in new ways, thus maximizing their value. What kind of apps can you create with this API? Maybe an app filtering data for a particular city, collection of tracts, congressional district, etc. We hope developers will use this API to come up with all sorts of helpful apps that showcase Census Bureau statistics.

Beta testers can visit <http://www.census.gov/developers/> to learn about using the API and register for a key.

We are very interested in learning of your experiences and seeing innovative apps we can highlight on our site to stimulate others to get creative. Participants can register here with our Developers Forum <http://apiforum.ideascale.com/> to discuss their experiences with the project.

We expect to finalize beta testing in June and then officially launch the API.