Getting Started on the Open Data Portal

This page provides quick information to help you accomplish some common tasks on the portal, including how to: 
  1. Find what you need with our data catalog
  2. View stories, dashboards, and other asset types
  3. Preview and interact with the data
  4. Create your own visualizations
  5. Find the dataset you need and filter it to find local information
Find what you need with our data catalog
The Data Catalog is the home base for navigating the Open Data Portal. This page can be accessed from our home page. The Data Catalog is simply a list of all the content on the Open Data Portal, including datasets, visualizations, stories, etc. You can click the categories, types, or tags on the left side of the screen to filter the list down to what you want. You can search using your own keywords in the search bar at the top of the page.
View stories, dashboards, and other asset types
Data stories (or dashboards) are a simple way to contextualize and highlight data on the Open Data Portal. They make it easy to interact with data and understand context and trends. Data stories are a way we can explain or analyze an issue through a combination of text and dynamic visuals.
Preview and interact with the data
Once you click a dataset within the catalog, you will be taken to the dataset landing page, which provides a description of the dataset and other metadata. Metadata refers to information about the data. It describes the data and provides an understanding of what the data is and how to use it. More information about the dataset landing page is available from Socrata here. 
From the dataset landing page, you can export the data, access the API endpoint, or get started on creating your own data visualization. 
Create your own visualizations
One of the more powerful features within the Open Data Portal is the ease with which anyone can start visualizing and interacting with data. The videos below highlight how to create a chart and a map on the portal.
Create a chart. The two minute video below demonstrates how to create a chart from a dataset.
Create a map. The short video below shows you how to create a map on the Open Data Portal.
Find the dataset you need and filter it to find local information
Once you have found a dataset that you are interested in, you can filter it to find the specific information you want to know. For instance, you may be interested in data on the number of cases of COVID-19 in your town. The short video below shows you how to filter a dataset to only include the information you want to see. If you save this filtered view to your account, it will update automatically as the underlying dataset is updated with new data.
Filter a dataset. The short video below shows you how to filter a dataset on the Open Data Portal.
Sort a dataset. The short video below shows you how to sort a dataset on the Open Data Portal.
Group rows of data. The short video below shows you how to group rows of data in a dataset on the Open Data Portal and how to save your aggregated view.
Additional Resources
For more information about how to use the Open Data Portal hosted on the Socrata platform, see the additional resources listed below.