[GRASS5] GEM in CVS

[Hamish]

> Thanks to Markus' help,
> the code for the GRASS Extensions Manager (GEM) is now in the CVS.

Congratulations Benjamin. GEM has great potential to help expand the
current reach and depth of GRASS in many institutions and fields of
study, as well as opening up a lot of the add-ons to a wider audience.

> Perhaps this would be a good point to think which modules
> could in the future be developed outside the GRASS base and put into
> extensions.

It is my opinion that existing modules should not be removed from the
main distribution. GRASS should provide a wide range of basic GIS and
modelling tools to all users. I think having a full strength integrated
package, by default, is really a great selling point. This is especially
true when you consider that many of the professional GIS migrants come
from a situation of having had to, over the years, repeatedly purchase
expensive toolkits just to cover their basic needs. It is prohibitively
expensive (without breaking the law) to try out other packages which are
even slightly outside of your primary needs.

For myself, the luxury of having numerous data analysis tools right at
my fingertips, which would normally only exist outside of my usual
discipline, has really helped to broaden my scientific horizons and
analyze my data (and think!) in all sorts of interesting new ways.

Splitting GRASS up in terrain analysis, satellite imagery, hydrologic
modelling, wildfire, etc packages to me doesn't encourage a culture of
inclusiveness and giving back, but rather establishes a series of code
fiefdoms and encourages needless forking.

The great thing about GEM is that it makes it easy for folks to
collaborate with us from within their own framework, even if I'm not
at all thrilled that this might make it easier for non-Free software
to get a free ride on our hard work.

I am just worried about losing some of the best benefits that the GPL
gifts us (reinvestment of code), as well as the certain probability of
seldom used (but important to some) modules drifting outside of the
shorthanded development effort and being lost due to neglect. We need to
cherish our niche users, that's why they came here in the first place,
and they're the ones most likely to start tinkering. Side-lining them
would be a huge mistake IMO.

If GRASS grows to be a 3-CD download, I reserve the right to change my
mind.


cheers,
Hamish