[OSM-talk] Potential mapping extravaganza in 2007?

[Andy Robinson]

While completing a short section of the Trent & Mersey canal last night
while my son had a piano lesson I got to thinking that a mapping
extravaganza based on a canal boat or two might be really cool. Perhaps
something to think about for next year. Incorporate the next OSM Anniversary
perhaps.

My thoughts included:

1. Hire one or more 72' narrow boats - these normally sleep 10 or 12 or
whatever.
2. Pick a stretch of canal with plenty of closely spaced villages and
perhaps a town or two
3. Put big long banners on the sides of the narrow boat which say
"OpenStreetMap.org Roadshow is Mapping Your Area Today"
4. Hire the boat(s) for a week or two and allow people to book & pay for a
slot for up to the full duration.
5. As each village/town gets mapped, move the boats to the next one.
6. Envisage lots of walking and cycling - great for fitness - a selling
point. It also becomes a bit of a holiday.
7. A small "crew" stays with the boat each day to provide security for
belongings, move the boat up/down locks as required and provide an
information centre for locals about the project. Access to a covered barge
would permit a small "OSM exhibition" to be towed along too.
8. Advertise in the local area that the roadshow will be coming and ask for
help with internet access so that each day data can be uploaded and
downloaded. Clearly a continuous connection is less achievable. Or their
might be sufficient time to set up a local server to sit on the boat using a
daily dump, at least for the target area.
9. A rural setting would help promote rural rather than urban mapping so
more emphasis on footpaths, bridleways and land features.

If there are others who think this might be of interest then perhaps we can
start a wiki page. It would need a lot of planning so something I feel for
next year rather than this. Sometime between say May and October.

Cheers

Andy

Andy Robinson
Andy_J_Robinson at blueyonder.co.uk