[OSM-talk] [OSM-legal-talk] decision removing data

[Serge Wroclawski]

On Mon, Aug 9, 2010 at 7:56 PM, Liz <edodd at billiau.net> wrote:

> I don't think it slows everything down, just some things.
> My explicit aim is not to slow down nor complicate the process of licence
> change, but to pull it to a halt.

It's good that you've aired that explicitly because it explains your
various mails, but I think your strategy is flawed.

Whether you agree with the results of the process or not, it's
happened. The vote (however unfairly you think it happened) took place
and there's a plan in place today, with a process that's moving
forward.

If the community was outraged by this, they'd have spoken up on the
list and in the OSMF election, but that hasn't happened.

A small vocal minority has spoken up, but when votes are taken, either
officially by the OSMF or informally as in the Doodle vote that
happened eight or nine months ago, the result was the same:  There's a
lot of support for the new license, and then some measure of
indifference, and then a small percentage of people who dislike it.

It's not clear of that breakdown of the (if I recall) 20% or so who
dislike it what their reasons are, or how strongly they dislike it, eg
if they dislike it but would still continue, or dislike it but would
still stick with the project.

At this point, the ODbL ship has sailed. There's no putting the
toothpaste back in the tube, and there's no crying over spilled milk.
There's not even any more time for metaphors, that fat lady has sung.

So if you don't like what's happening with the project and the
license, you have three choices:

1) Decide that OSM is more important than the license and continue
using and contributing to OSM.

2) Decide that OSM isn't worth your time and end your relationship
with the project.

3) Decide that you love OSM but hate the license, so go off and make a
competing project. If you love CC-BY-SA you could fork the current
datastset. You mentioned that you wanted to to do that in  2009
already, and if there isn't a fork, you could make one.

All of these are valid options. They also all have the attribute of
being active- that is focusing on what's to come, instead of focusing
on trying to change the past.

- Serge