[Osmf-talk] New license change proposal status

[SteveC]

On Oct 17, 2009, at 5:12 AM, Klaus Gaßner wrote:

>
> Hi!
>
> Frederik Ramm schrieb:
>> In fact, since you are asking us members "do you approve moving to
>> ODbL", should you not declare *how* this move is planned to proceed,
>> including very sensitive bits like the wording of the message sent to
>> all contributors, and what you intend to do about data not re- 
>> licensed?
>> After all someone might say: I approve of the move to ODbL if it is  
>> done
>> this way, but if they're planning to do it that way then I don't?
>>
>> Asking us to say yes to a completely unspecified process seems to be
>> asking a lot. You could be sending out SWAT teams to hold a gun  
>> against
>> the head of anyone not relicensing their data and claim that the  
>> process
>> was authorised by the OSMF membership ;-)
>
> Frederik has a very important point there. There was a lot of  
> discussion
> about the licence change earlier this year and as I percieved it, the
> main concerns and objections were not about the license itself. They
> were about a rushed approach rather than a reasonable and fair  
> procedure
> to explain about the change and collect the agreements.
>
> So I agree that laying down a well thought out procedure beforehand is
> not only an important point - it may also be the decisive point for  
> many
> people.

The License Working Group has been meeting twice a week for something  
like a decade, or at least that's how it feels. There have been  
minutes of every meeting published on the OSMF site and a huge amount  
of effort has gone in to the process and procedures along with  
everything else as Frederik well knows.

3 page emails about one single point just slows everyone down - these  
guys are volunteers - and I'm sure it'll be discussed and a response  
sent after the next meeting if not sooner informally.

Yours &c.

Steve