---
layout: post
title: Benefits of Transparency
image: http://kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com/transparency-jellyfish.jpg
author:
  name: kinlane
tags:
  - Transparency
---
One of the aspects of my current job that I enjoy, is the transparent nature of my role. My job is to generate attention for [Mimeo](http://www.mimeo.com) and the Mimeo Connect [Cloud Print](http://www.kinlane.com/category/cloud-computing/cloud-print/) [API](http://www.apievangelist.com/).

Let me give you an example. In various roles I've had at companies as lead developer, director of technology, or just a developer I spend a lot of time researching new technologies.

kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com When I research new technologies I usually create some sort of overview document, a presentation and probably some sort of sample code or prototype. ![](http://kinlane-productions.s3.amazonaws.com/transparency-jellyfish.jpg) In legacy positions I do all this hard work, and usually submit to my boss and maybe do apresentationto other teams. Often times, my work goes nowhere.

In my new role as an API Evangelist I enjoy a lot of transparency. I get to talk about my work as I'm learning. For exmple I wrote these blog posts yesterday:

*   [**Programming with PDFs**](http://www.kinlane.com/2011/01/programming-with-pdfs/) - I am building a list of APIs and [Open Source](http://www.kinlane.com/category/open-source/) PDF tools I want to use, integrate and create resources for my developers.
*   [**Programming with Images Using ImageMagick**](http://www.kinlane.com/2011/01/programming-with-images-using-imagemagick/) - Similar to PDFs I want a full suite of tools and resources for empower developers to program using images.

My project work involves me doing a lot of research and testing, and I get to share this information in real-time. If the projects move forward I will blog about improvements as they happen. So my documentation and presentations often go public as I create them.

If a project doesn't go anywhere, the information is still out there. It is still on my blog and on my [Twitter](http://www.kinlane.com/category/twitter/) account. This can bring added SEO benefit to all my projects and help me in the future, you never know when it will come back around.

In other roles where I don't enjoy the same transparency this information would never see the light of day.