[GRASS-dev] terminology issues in grass7

[Roger Miller]

Folks,

The terminology discussion has evolved into a discussion on usage.
That's constructive but it really doesn't do much to solve the initial
problem.

I noticed that most of the participants in the discussion are using the
term "layer" frequently and usually without problems in agreeing to its
meaning.  Does that indicate that the term should continue in its
current usage?

It seems to me that most of you are talking about a "layer" as a visual
component of a map.  The usage in the existing GRASS command is not a
visual component, but a database feature.  Recent discussions have
revealed that the "layer=" feature by itself doesn't create a unique or
easily manipulated visual feature.  That seems to confuse the usage.

The "layer=" feature of the commands seems to me to be largely if not
entirely superfluous.  The function that it performs can be duplicated
by "where=" and/or "catlist=".  Further, the term "layer" is widely used
with other meanings in fields where GIS is applied and that leads to
confusion.

I have a GUI of my own design that I use for GRASS.  I used the term
"layer" frequently when I first wrote the scripts and it is still firmly
imbedded in the script, but after some confusion over the term I removed
it from all the widgets and documentation.  I also had only a limited
need to replace the term with something else.  The context was always
clear enough that I didn't need to use the term.


Roger Miller