[Openstreetmap] Organizing the OSM community and funding a bit better (Was: no dots)

[Arnulf Christl]

Andy Robinson wrote:
> The OSGF basic website is now up and running at http://www.osgeo.org/
> 
> Andy
> 
> Andy Robinson
> Andy_J_Robinson at blueyonder.co.uk 

Hey,
the current web site does not reflect the data issue well yet (its 
hacking geeks who started it). Prominent support to the idea of freely 
accessible spatial data was given by the GRASS GIS community (Markus 
Neteler), Schuyler and the other usual suspects. Additionally to the 
software perspective we need and want a strong data centric position 
within the OSGeo Foundation. openstreetmap has been mentioned several 
times and as a long time list lurker I'd really like to see one of you 
represented it in the OSGeo.

Currently the 'second tranche' of the member nomination runs and I would 
very much like to nominate or second whoever you think makes sense to 
represent openstreetmap in the foundation. If you figure out who that 
should be I would be happy to nominate him or her (yes, not many women 
anywhere in geek world...).

Mind me, there is a lot of additional work waiting for you but on the 
other hand you get the whole bunch of top-of-the-edge-hackers and 
packages served to the tip of your hands as well as loads of promotion 
and visibility.

OSGeo is working on providing hardware and bandwidth to host a full 
fledged SDI stack including WFS-T, WMS, PostgreSQL/PostGIS storage and 
all the other goodies around it. All that we could host for a starter 
would be a boring VMAP level 0. Sucks. We need living data and you can 
provide it.

Oh man, there is so much more... we have set out collecting hundres of 
WMS and dozens alone that render high res ortho photography of German 
cities. There are more every day. Sure, there are also loads of problems 
like strange coordinate systems and so on but look at that speed:
http://wms1.ccgis.de/mapbender2/frames/login.php?name=mb&password=mb&mb_user_myGui=mb_perf_mon

(We operate the client frame on a clumsy old back up server but the 
imagery is requested directly by your browser from the City of 
Nuremberg. Click on the page symbol to get the metadata.)

Anyway, whatever, keep up the good work!

Best, Arnulf.

>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: openstreetmap-bounces at vr.ucl.ac.uk [mailto:openstreetmap-
>>bounces at vr.ucl.ac.uk] On Behalf Of Petter Reinholdtsen
>>Sent: 09 February 2006 11:14
>>To: openstreetmap at vr.ucl.ac.uk
>>Subject: [Openstreetmap] Organizing the OSM community and funding a bit
>>better (Was: no dots)
>>
>>
>>[Lars Aronsson]
>>
>>>I would suggest you as chief technologist and Tom Carden as
>>>chairman.  Petter could be treasurer and I could volunteer as
>>>secretary, if there are no other suggestions.
>>
>>I am not unwilling to contribute making such thing happen, but I
>>believe it is a better route to piggy-back on an existing organization.
>>
>>I'm already the leader of Norwegian Unix Users Group, a active Debian
>>developer, technical coordinator of the Skolelinux project a board
>>member of the skolelinux foundation (SLX Debian LAbs), trying to get a
>>privacy assosiation up and running here in Norway, involved in the
>>patent discussion and working on free map projects.  I do not really
>>expect to have much time to work on setting up or running a new
>>organization.  Especially when I suspect it isn't really needed.
>>
>>Did anyone consider the new Open Source Geospatial Foundation as a
>>organization to piggy-back on?  It seem to be right up our ally. :)
>>
>>See for example
>><URL:http://industry.slashgeo.org/industry/06/02/05/1319219.shtml?tid=35>
>>and <URL:http://industry.slashgeo.org/industry/06/02/06/213205.shtml>
>>for info on this foundation.