[OSM-talk] namespaces

David Ebling dave_ebling at yahoo.co.uk
Fri Apr 25 08:46:47 BST 2008


I don't know if I count as a "new user" (started late
2007) but I can't see any benefit from this
"namespace" business. I'm technically minded, but not
an expert geek by any means, and not familiar with the
concept of "namespaces".

On this occasion I find "Ockham's Razor" convincing.
i.e. K.I.S.S.

If something adds no benefit, (and I've been following
this bizarre discussion and have yet to be convinced
of any benefit whatsoever) then why should we add a
whole load more characters to loads of the tags we add
to things? It will lead to more typos, more errors,
more confusion about correct tagging, increase the
size of the db, and raise the barrier to entry for OSM
contributors. It's already quite challenging for some
new members to get the hang of the editors, and
getting harder with things like relations. We don't
want OSM data to only make sense to people familiar
with the concept of "namespaces" do we? Or was that
the intention?

Lets keep OSM as accessible as possible.

Dave

 ------------------------------
> Date: Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:00:31 +0100 (BST)
> From: Steve Hill <steve at nexusuk.org>
> Subject: Re: [OSM-talk] Tagging climbing routes and
> scrambles
> To: Dave Stubbs <osm.list at randomjunk.co.uk>
> Cc: OSM Talk <talk at openstreetmap.org>
> Message-ID:
> 
> On Thu, 24 Apr 2008, Dave Stubbs wrote:
> 
> > a Good Thing, but you can't tell me why, and you
> ignore my reasons why not.
> 
> Nope, I told you why, as did other people.
> 
> > This is the problem dude, you don't get why you're
> doing it.
> 
> I understand exactly why I'm doing it.
> 
> > I like to know why I'm doing something, and
> dislike being told "because".
> > So far you've not actually come up with anything
> except statements of
> > belief, and a few potential non-uses.
> 
> I'm in the same boat - I think the flat namespace is
> a really really bad 
> idea and yet no one has actually come up with any
> good explanations as to 
> why it is the right way to do things.  The only
> explanation that seems to 
> keep coming up is that new users find name spaces
> "difficult" - I am 
> certainly not in a position to evaluate whether this
> is the case (although 
> from my own perspective they are easier), and I
> don't believe you are in a 
> position to comment on whether this is actually the
> case.  In fact, the 
> one relatively inexperienced user who has made a
> comment in this 
> discussion seemed to indicate that nameapaces made
> things easier.
> 
>   - Steve


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