[Wikipedia-l] WikiGIS perhaps? (was: Mapping complement to Wikipedia?)

[Daniel Mayer]

Jeff Meyer wrote
>The plan is to deliver an easily searchable repository (content & searchable
>clearinghouse) of quality map content to cover the entirety of human
>history. Along with it would be a freely distributable, open source map
>player. People could then link their existing maps, add modifications, build
>new map content, etc.

I happen to be finishing up my GIS credentials and geography/cartography degree
right now and was thinking about playing around with the free software GRASS
GIS program this summer. See http://grass.baylor.edu/ and the GRASS Wiki
http://grass.itc.it/wiki2/ 

It would be neat to tie GRASS into MediaWiki for map creation. I'll see if I
can get that to work later this year (at least for creating simple maps). 

There is a whole bunch of public domain GIS data out there (mostly in the
U.S....). It would eventually be neat to have a place to do GIS editing on the
Internet to help maintain and extend those data. As it is, the public domain
GIS material created by the U.S. government is made into proprietary products
by GIS firms who clean up, extend, and then sell the data. AFAIK there is no
free content alternative. 

WikiGIS perhaps? I better snag that one... Done.  WikiGIS.org and WIkiGIS.com
are reserved for the Wikimedia Foundation if and when the foundation wants
those domains. 

Which reminds me, Wikimedia.org is about to expire... I better fix that. 

-- Daniel Mayer (aka  mav)

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