[OSM-talk] OpenStreetMap License Change Phase 3 Pre-Announcement

[Elizabeth Dodd]

On Sat, 16 Apr 2011 08:42:00 +0100
Dermot McNally <dermotm at gmail.com> wrote:

> On 16 April 2011 08:31, Elizabeth Dodd <edodd at billiau.net> wrote:
> 
> > So has anyone asked the FOSS gurus of licensing?
> > I have never seen it mentioned while I was subscribed to
> > legal-talk. I am quite prepared to start writing emails (phrased
> > neutrally) requesting an opinion if these people have not been
> > asked before.
> >
> > If then the opinion is that the new licence has merit, we then need
> > work on how the contract provisions "fit in" with other legal codes
> > not just those derived from either the Westminster or Napoleonic
> > codes.
> 
> How long have you been in this discussion, Elizabeth? Quite a while,
> according to my recollection. Given that you seem to now see a
> requirement for this kind of validation, I find it strange that you
> wouldn't have sought it at a much earlier stage than this. Normally
> abject opposition should come after, not before, "neutral" appraisal
> of the proposal, shouldn't it?
> 
> Dermot
> 

So as you have forgotten the beginning, Australian mappers have a
number of difficulties with the proposed new licence and contributor
terms. That is, a majority of Australian mappers. 
We have estimated our exposure in our continent to the risk of data
loss as very high (i forget the proportion, someone will give you the
information if you want confirmation).
Where I stand, I do not see a minority against the new licence. It may
well be parallax error at my end, or it may be the same at your end.
However, I am unable to sign up to the contributor terms. I cannot sign
over my work because some of it is in breach of those terms.

I am not withdrawing my stuff because I wish to vandalise the map. 
I have used a number of sources which are CC-by-SA, and that prohibits
me from signing.

Certainly we should consider Mike's idea, and not hide behind our
existing ideas.
Will you be writing the emails to the people Mike mentioned?