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Eleven months ago, we began prototyping PANDA. The PANDA project aims to make basic data analysis quick and easy for news organizations, and make data sharing simple. I hacked for a month on an experimental version, verified that our technology choices worked, and then threw it out and started over. Since that time, development has proceeded in steady, week-long iterations, checkpointed by numerous releases and two-day long PANDA team-planning sessions. We've implemented every feature from our "must have" list, a large chunk of our "want" list, and even one or two off our "not likely" list (in response to user feedback).
Today, I'm pleased to announce that we have reached the end of our road map: PANDA Version 1.0 is ready!
YOU CAN HAVE A PANDA NOW
If you've been taking a wait-and-see approach to getting PANDA in your newsroom, now is the time to see. Version 1.0 is the most polished release we've ever done. Among the highlights:
- New user-oriented documentation at pandaproject.net.
- No more default user accounts. A setup mode allows you to configure an admin user after installation.
- Search for data within categories.
- Additional metadata for datasets, including "related links."
- Many, many, many bug fixes.
To get started with PANDA now, head over to our installation docs.
I have one month left to keep working full-time on PANDA. That means you have a month to get personalized help with any issues you encounter while setting up. If you get started now, I'll be answering your emails, tracking your bugs, and logging your future development requests. If you wait, you may have to get in line.
Still not persuaded? Check out an awesome presentation from Nolan Hicks, San Antonio Express-News reporter and PANDA beta tester.
Every newsroom can be a data-friendly newsroom. Get started with PANDA now.
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