[Foundation-l] semi-OT: Goodbye Google Maps, hello OSM

[David Gerard]

https://plus.google.com/u/0/118383351194421484817/posts/foj5A1fURGt

About a business moving from Google Maps on its site to doing their
own from the available free content.

"$200,000 to $300,000 a year is, at the very least, the same as hiring
a very good engineer for a year (and paying all the taxes and benefits
and costs and still having a lot of money left). It was enough money
to finally push us into doing our own maps."

Somewhat relevant in that free content really is quite good and
important stuff. (Also, I've long thought OSM as something that would
have fit Wikimedia's portfolio wonderfully.) I remember a Dorkbot
presentation in 2004 on OSM - a friend who was working for Multimap
pooh-poohed the idea that OSM could ever achieve a usable-quality map.
I had been involved in Wikipedia for a few months at that time and
considered this obviously wrong ...


- d.