On Sat, Mar 26, 2011 at 1:45 PM, Sam Vekemans <[email protected]>wrote:
> Lol, that page is no longer valid. Well, the statement on it seems pretty unequivocal -- "[PD data release ...] I grant anyone the right to use my contributions *for any purpose*, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law." (Emphasis in original). ... nor is accepting terms which keep in changing. ... Sam, you don't strike me as the political type, but based on the statement which you wrote _and_ emphasized, you've granted all rights under any conditions. So what does it matter if the terms change on a minute by minute basis, really? > and the Board has the power to unplug osm at any > moment ... as well as ban list-serv users ... on any mailing list. :) > Okay, I'm tired of this FUD crap. Really. While I'm not convinced the licence change is a great idea, the "board" or foundation or whatever doesn't "own" OSM, and can't unplug crap. What they _do_ control are a bunch of servers, and those servers are pulling together contributions from a number of people. Contributions from people like you, Sam. And like me. Could they ban people from a mailing list on a list-serv they host? Sure. They could even stop having anything to do with mapping. I think by now we understand you don't like the CT & OdBL switchover. But you did have, until just over 2 months ago, a notice on your page that anyone could do whatever with your contributions, under _any_ conditions. OSM is the sum of it's contributors. I have yet to hear any critic of the CT/OdBL suggest something like OSM/cc (and/or OSM/pd etc) and do anything about it. Personally, if the tools allowed contributing to multiple forks, I'd do so. But instead of suggesting solutions and building tools, we hear talk of losing data and users, like that is the end of the world. 10 years ago, Governments would never give up data in any kind of "sharing" way. If you wanted to access their datasets, you usually paid and then abided by their licence. Now, many are releasing data under some kind of CC licence -- but just because there is a need to keep abreast of the times. Where will we be in 5 years? Who knows -- and I think that is the point. I have no doubt, if the "board" was to "go rouge" and unplug "OSM", it would only take a short period of time for the OSM community to bring things back online. That's the power of open source -- no one person or entity "controls" the project. And if/when CT/OdBL becomes the law of the land here, someone might decide they can't continue under that regimen and take a copy of the data and keep it under the "previous terms". No data or contributors lost -- just a new URL to know. And, the point is that _anyone_ can do that -- no permission or legal papers needed. So, again, what is the big deal, and why should people not contribute still?
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