[OSM-talk] Things People Say

[Frederik Ramm]

Hi,

On 12/29/2011 10:39 PM, Ben Johnson wrote:
> There seems to be a duality of identity here. On one hand, some are
> saying lets make it more accessible and friendly to "ordinary people".
> On the other hand, some appear embarrassed by the prominence of maps to
> represent what our community is all about, and they want to retain a
> geeky "we are not a map, we are a database" ideology.

This is not a geeky ideology, this is the heart of our project.

Otherwise we'd all be using the Gimp (or maybe Inkscape), and not JOSM 
or Potlatch.

> The two goals are completely incompatible because "ordinary people"
> expect OSM to be all about maps.

When in fact we're about providing the ingredients so that great maps 
become possible. This is the big thing about OSM: We don't decide how 
the map looks like. We don't decide what is shown on the map. We don't 
make all these decisions for you. If you want these decisions made for 
you, use Google Maps. If you want to be part of a project where one guy 
can make a cycle map and another guy can make a transport map and 
someone else prints posters and someone else still makes nautical maps, 
all from the same data, and all precisely because the core of the 
project doesn't make the map but just the raw data, then OSM is for you.

> Again, what is embarrassing about a map?

It is not embarassing, but misleading. If we were to convey the idea 
that we are about "a map", then people would come and say "uh, how can I 
change this motorway to become orange instead of blue, and also I would 
like the name of that pub displaced a bit so it doesn't obscure the name 
of the nearby church."

Even today we - occasionally, thank god - have people who actually 
delete things from OSM because they don't want them on "their" map. We 
have to educate them about how the data is the same for all, but the map 
need not be.

> I really do hope OSM finds its way through this quagmire of identity and
> eventually becomes the world's map, widely used, integrated, and quoted
> in all kinds of spheres.

No. There is no "the world's map". Everyone wants a different map. And 
that's why we must *not* fall into the trap of trying to provide the 
right map for everyone. The great thing about us is that, given the 
right tools, people can *make* the right map for themselves. This is too 
difficult now, but it can become easier. Take our data, take your ideas, 
and make your map - not "take our map".

Bye
Frederik

-- 
Frederik Ramm  ##  eMail frederik at remote.org  ##  N49°00'09" E008°23'33"