Charlotte, I was hoping when I saw your mail that you would have seen the words you used in a different light and if not be apologetic, then at least be understanding that these words have an effect on the community, as well as on the individuals you've insulted.
Instead, you've decided to dig in your heels and stand by your position. On Thu, Jul 19, 2012 at 2:19 PM, Charlotte Wolter <[email protected]> wrote: > First, I am among the majority of OSM members who do not program or > write code. Yet, we also contribute, heavily. I don't think writing code > makes one some kind of special contributor. There are many ways of contributing to OpenStreetMap, from doing survey work, to organizing communities, to dealing with administrative issues, to programming the tools that are at the heart of the project, to running the core infrastructure of the project. Amazingly, the people behind the redaction process fit in every single one of these categories. They've been with the project the longest, have organized meetings, are on the OSMF board, run working groups, and yes, they run the core infrastructure. As for special contributors- are you saying that the people who sacrifice their time, who work in hot, sweaty, difficult conditions, who take time off of work and away from their families, who work at all hours in the night and morning to keep OpenStreetMap running deserve no recognition? Because those are the many of the people behind the redaction process. > Second, I am aware that many thousands of hours of volunteeer work > went into this. I also know that we had to do it. Still, there has been a > great deal of damage in a major urban area. The damage does not come from the redaction, but by the acts of those who are not taking part in the migration. If you want to lay blame, lay it on the right parties. > As for open and transparent, with that I'm not so sure. It may have > been open and transparent if you know how to write code, but I saw little > nontechnical discussion. Those of us who use only Potlatch were kind of on > the sidelines. The discussions took place for years on the Data Working Group, the License Working Group and in the OSMF board, as well as other places. The Working Groups are open to all, and all of the aforementioned groups post meeting notes. OSM was considering this transition before I even joined the project (~4 years ago); I think ample notice has been given. > So, now, what can be done to fix it? Are there tools? GPSes and walking, biking, driving. Those are our core tools. You can then overlay your collected data on top of a map using Potlatch or Josm and draw the streets in. This is the core OSM workflow. > And will they be publicized or will we have to find out about them through > side channels You can find instructions on how to map OpenStreetMap in a variety of forms. One of the more popular guides is the one written last year by Kate Chapman, Ian Dees and Shaun McDonald. http://en.flossmanuals.net/openstreetmap/index/ There's also the venerable Beginner's Guide on the OSM Wiki: http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Beginners_Guide In other words- the tools are to go out and map! - Serge _______________________________________________ Talk-us mailing list [email protected] http://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/talk-us
