[talk-au] Bulk loading all the Australian Statistical Geography Standard into the OSM - a query from the Australian Bureau of Statistics [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]

[{withheld}]

On 24/02/11 14:46, Ian Sergeant wrote:
> On 24 February 2011 14:33, {withheld} <Pheasant.Coucal at gmail.com
> <mailto:Pheasant.Coucal at gmail.com>> wrote:
>  
> 
>     For <expletive elided>'s sake, with due respect to Andrew Harvey and
>     Steve Bennett, shouldn't the community be a whole lot better off
>     expressing appropriate gratitude to Marcus Blake for offering this data
>     and then pissing off and finding a use for it!
> 
> 
> Marcus isn't just offering the data, he is also looking for a static
> data repository.
> 
> He says that ...
> 
>> From the ABS point of view the principle reason for doing this is
>> that an the OSM database would hold  a copy of the official version
>> of the boundaries and that this point of truth would be available for
>> all OSM users and downstream distributors.
> 
> I don't believe OSM offers that. It is kindness in stating that directly
> up front.
> 
> That doesn't mean that OSM can't continue to work with the ABS data in
> other ways.

Not quite sure I fully accept that point, as I interpret Marcus' wording
more in the sense of its generosity than him stating restrictions. (A
government department asking for charity? Doesn't make sense.)

However I still hold the community should accept the offer and be
grateful. Carping about internal politics just looks bad. And whiny. And
doesn't encourage anybody else ever offering similar largesse ever again.

Do we really want to appear like a bunch of inconsiderate losers; or do
we have any sort of pretence to be a professional outfit? Or is this
community just comprehensively hopeless at everything we attempt?

In case I am the only person to do this: Thank you Marcus, for your fine
and generous offer. It will be looked into, and somebody will get back
to you as and if appropriate.