[geo-discuss] [Geodata] Re: Geodata in CKAN and collaboration (was Re: Responding to the consultation on opening Ordnance Survey's data)

SteveC steve at asklater.com
Tue Feb 9 12:54:50 EST 2010


On Feb 9, 2010, at 9:42 AM, Puneet Kishor wrote:
> I am not sure anyone is saying that, but what one is saying is that
> using licenses for facts is most likely not going to fly in the
> courts,

...which is clearly contested...

> and is more probably cause potential users to turn away.

...and if you mean user as end user, it's even more likely to turn away potential users who would publish, which is far more important.

I can't tell you the number of people who I've met who have thought about licensing data and hit a brick wall because they're either told a) they're wrong to want to license data virally or NC, b) no license exists, c) "the law doesnt support it".... it's all very sad. What they should have, is a menu of options like CC does, but for data.

Is anyone at all willing to begin building that? I'm hearing silence from OKFN because they don't believe in money and 'no' from Science Commons because they don't believe in Share Alike (and by the way I think it's nice to claim post-hoc that they suddenly only care about science, but that clearly hasn't always been the case). What I think would be ideal is if both organisations put aside those religious positions and worked to fill out a chart that looked like this for data:

http://wiki.creativecommons.org/FAQ#If_I_use_a_Creative_Commons-licensed_work_to_create_a_new_work__.28ie_a_derivative_work_or_adaptation.29.2C_which_Creative_Commons_license_can_I_use_for_my_new_work.3F

The potential usage and power of a (at least approximately unified) license menu is far greater than the sum of a number of organisations each with their own little licenses. Surely?

Yours &c.

Steve



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