FCC Doles Out $100K to Open Source Community Apps Challenge Winners

The $100,000 challenge: Develop useful, localized open source apps that make local public information more personalized and usable. With that idea as the backdrop the Federal Communications Commission and the Knight Foundation today awarded Code for America developer Ryan Resella the $30,000 Apps for Communities Challenge grand prize.  Resella won for his YAKB.us app, a real time bus notification system for bus riders without a smartphone. Rasella developed an app that uses voice and SMS to deliver arrival times in English and Spanish.

Second prize of $20,000 went to consultant Curtis Chang who's Homeless: Santa Clara County app helps homeless people and families with services according to their specific needs and eligibility. The app developer also won an additional $10,00 for Best Design and Visualization.  The app has been adopted by the largest county government in Northern California, the city of San Jose, and the local agencies serving the homeless...