[talk-au] In defense of the NSW DCS Base Map

[Warin]

In defense of the NSW DCS Base Map? Some have criticized the DCS Base 
Map .. a response below.


“We don’t want OSM to be a copy of the DCS Base Map”? Umm OSM has 
capability of far more than the DSC Base Map e.g. pubs, petrol stations, 
farm fields, vineyards etc. So it should be far more than the DCS Base 
Map. Where OSM is missing stuff that is in the DCS Base Map why should 
it not be copied? That is a gain for OSM.

“The DCS Base Map is out of date”? So is the OSM data! I don’t see that 
point of this ‘argument’ at all. If something in OSM is ‘out of date’ 
then correct it. If something is missing from OSM but is in the DCS Base 
Map then copy it. Those who know it is out of date can correct it, 
arguing that it should not be added because ‘it may be out of date’ 
could be applied to all sources other than those sighted in the last 
day. Should any data that ‘may be out of date’ be rejected? I have found 
some things in the DCS Base Map to be more upto date than the DCS 
imagery having to resort to Maxar to confirm the existence of the 
objects. So the DCS Base Map maybe ‘out of date’ for some things but 
more ‘upto date’ for other things. Such are the joys of our changing world.


“On the ground truth” Some take the view that they have been there and 
seen X. Ok, the DCS Base Map says Y.. Humm. Where this is some land form 
or land cover I take it the mapper involved has more expertise than 
those that contribute to the DCS Base Map to determine that land form or 
land cover. I would not put myself in that category. As an example the 
ability to determine an area is an arid wetland, I have no expertise to 
determined that and would take DCS Base Map as more authoritative than 
my poor observations.


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Me?

I have added libraries (those facilities that lend books) from the DCS 
Base Map .. using a list from a copyright source to direct me to the 
area and then searching the DCS Base Map for it. The location and name 
comes from the DCS Base Map not the copyright source. This is not all 
the libraries as some are ‘private’ e.g. schools. But it has got at 
least most of the public ones into OSM. I call that a win for OSM.


Mangroves. These are well defined by the DCS Base Map. I have been 
questioned as to how reliable they are .. well on 5 that I gone to those 
all appear to be accurate .. and others can be seen on imagery. So I am 
quite confident that these can be transferred from the DCS Base Map into 
OSM.


And I have copied other stuff, missing in OSM, from the DCS Base Map. 
There is a lot of it! I plan on continuing to do so. The DCS Base Map is 
a great resource that we should use. I have even found errors in OSM 
from the DCS Base Map.
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