---
type: "post"
id: "using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a"
slug: "using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a"
title: "Using Parseable with Datasette for OpenTelemetry traces"
description: "Thesis: This tutorial shows how Datasette’s OpenTelemetry traces can be inspected in Parseable, turning emitted telemetry into a navigable view of request and database activity."
retrieval_nugget: "Thesis: This tutorial shows how Datasette’s OpenTelemetry traces can be inspected in Parseable, turning emitted telemetry into a navigable view of request and database activity."
published_at: "2026-10-06"
updated_at: "2026-10-06"
record_date: "2026-10-06"
date_kind: "published_at"
topics: []
source_urls: ["https://simonwillison.net/2026/Oct/6/datasette-parseable-opentelemetry"]
schema_version: "newruntime-agent-readable-v0.2"
stable_id: "post:using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a"
status: "published"
visuals: []
editorial_provenance: {"schema_version":"newruntime-editorial-copy-v1","content_status":"source_grounded_final","final_copy_sha256":"sha256:567fa970d61f94130b71b320438272bed3ff10cd622255785d8e56ce4073821d","reviewed_at":"2026-10-06T21:00:57.209Z","source_evidence_count":1,"verified_claim_count":2,"site_analysis_schema_version":"newruntime-site-analysis-v1","site_object_kind":"field_note","observed_fact_count":2,"implication_count":2,"watch_condition_count":1,"related_record_count":0}
analysis: {"schema_version":"newruntime-site-analysis-v1","object_kind":"field_note","thesis":"This tutorial shows how Datasette’s OpenTelemetry traces can be inspected in Parseable, turning emitted telemetry into a navigable view of request and database activity.","observed_facts":[{"text":"The author says Datasette 1.0a41 added OpenTelemetry support and describes using Codex to work out how to run Parseable and feed it Datasette traces.","source_urls":["https://simonwillison.net/2026/Oct/6/datasette-parseable-opentelemetry"]},{"text":"The screenshot described in the post shows a 40.9 ms trace containing 247 spans, including a GET root span and db.query / db.query.execute children.","source_urls":["https://simonwillison.net/2026/Oct/6/datasette-parseable-opentelemetry"]}],"mechanism":"A trace viewer organizes spans by hierarchy and time, allowing a developer to move from a request-level view toward individual operations. In this example, Parseable provides the display surface while Datasette supplies telemetry; the post is a human-written TIL of the patterns that worked.","why_now":"Datasette’s stated addition of OpenTelemetry support provides the enabling event for this workflow, and the author’s walkthrough turns that capability into a concrete local inspection path.","implications":["Developers evaluating Datasette observability can use the walkthrough as a starting point for connecting trace emission to a visual analysis tool, especially when investigating database work nested within requests.","This is a practical recipe, not evidence that every deployment configuration is supported or that Parseable is required."],"evidence_boundary":"The supplied public post describes one author’s setup and displays one trace; it does not establish production readiness, performance, security properties, or compatibility across versions and environments.","watch_conditions":["Whether subsequent documentation or examples establish a maintained, repeatable Datasette-to-Parseable setup beyond this single walkthrough."],"related_records":[],"new_branch_reason":"No prior New Runtime record is supplied for this specific Datasette-to-Parseable walkthrough, so this starts a distinct analytical record grounded in the public tutorial."}
editor: {"role":"editor","name":"Andrey Reshetnikov","profile":"https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.md","profile_json":"https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.json","same_as":["https://www.linkedin.com/in/reshetnikov1/","https://t.me/lapetuse"]}
routes: {"html":"https://newruntime.com/posts/using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a/","markdown":"https://newruntime.com/posts/using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a.md","json":"https://newruntime.com/posts/using-parseable-with-datasette-for-opentelemetry-traces-analysis-d5722a.json"}
---

# Using Parseable with Datasette for OpenTelemetry traces

## Retrieval answer

Thesis: This tutorial shows how Datasette’s OpenTelemetry traces can be inspected in Parseable, turning emitted telemetry into a navigable view of request and database activity.

Thesis: This tutorial shows how Datasette’s OpenTelemetry traces can be inspected in Parseable, turning emitted telemetry into a navigable view of request and database activity.

Observed facts: The author says Datasette 1.0a41 added OpenTelemetry support and describes using Codex to work out how to run Parseable and feed it Datasette traces. The screenshot described in the post shows a 40.9 ms trace containing 247 spans, including a GET root span and db.query / db.query.execute children.

Mechanism: A trace viewer organizes spans by hierarchy and time, allowing a developer to move from a request-level view toward individual operations. In this example, Parseable provides the display surface while Datasette supplies telemetry; the post is a human-written TIL of the patterns that worked. Why now: Datasette’s stated addition of OpenTelemetry support provides the enabling event for this workflow, and the author’s walkthrough turns that capability into a concrete local inspection path.

Implication: Developers evaluating Datasette observability can use the walkthrough as a starting point for connecting trace emission to a visual analysis tool, especially when investigating database work nested within requests. This is a practical recipe, not evidence that every deployment configuration is supported or that Parseable is required.

Evidence boundary: The supplied public post describes one author’s setup and displays one trace; it does not establish production readiness, performance, security properties, or compatibility across versions and environments. Watch condition: Whether subsequent documentation or examples establish a maintained, repeatable Datasette-to-Parseable setup beyond this single walkthrough.

Editor: [Andrey Reshetnikov](https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.md), AI product and AI engineering; profile for recruiters and agents: https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.json

## Continue in the graph

Next records for an agent, linked to their Markdown twins. Replace `.md` with `.json` for structured fields, including `next_reads`.

- collection: [Field Notes](https://newruntime.com/posts.json): Open the latest editorial analysis.
- collection: [Source Ledger](https://newruntime.com/source-ledger.json): Inspect the public source evidence graph.
- whole graph: [discovery graph](https://newruntime.com/discovery-graph.json) (typed nodes and edges) and [site index](https://newruntime.com/site-index.md)