Poll: MapServer and Autodesk

Paul Spencer pspencer at DMSOLUTIONS.CA
Thu Dec 22 22:29:43 EST 2005 

Ed, Option B seems to cover that angle unless I am missing something?

Paul

On 22-Dec-05, at 8:43 PM, Ed McNierney wrote:

> Gary -
>
> You seem to be deliberately overlooking the rather obvious solution  
> of removing the word "MapServer" from the Foundation's name.  If  
> one were to steal an idea from Tyler's editors and call it the "Web  
> Mapping Foundation", then many of the issues you describe below  
> would go away, wouldn't they?  The "WMF MapServer" and "WMF  
> MapGuide" products are both members of the WMF product family as  
> much as a MapServer Enterprise and MapServer Cheetah are members of  
> the MapServer product family, aren't they?  I'm not trying to lobby  
> for that particular name, but rather to point out another route to  
> a solution.
>
> I guess that means I'd vote for (c).
>
>      - Ed
> Ed McNierney
> President and Chief Mapmaker
> TopoZone.com / Maps a la carte, Inc.
> 73 Princeton Street, Suite 305
> North Chelmsford, MA  01863
> Phone: +1 (978) 251-4242
> Fax: +1 (978) 251-1396
> ed at topozone.com
>
> From: UMN MapServer Users List [mailto:MAPSERVER- 
> USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU] On Behalf Of Gary Lang
> Sent: Thursday, December 22, 2005 6:50 PM
> To: MAPSERVER-USERS at LISTS.UMN.EDU
> Subject: [UMN_MAPSERVER-USERS] Poll: MapServer and Autodesk
>
> Below is a note that Tyler Mitchell and I put together to help  
> describe some of  the 'open letter' groups' thinking around the  
> name issue.  There is also a new POLL related to it - please vote  
> when you have a minute.  It will be very helpful to measuring  
> peoples' opinions.
>
>
>
> http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/community/polls/ms_autodesk
>
>
>
> At the end of this message is a poll for you to vote on.
>
>
>
> Those of us that signed the open letter may not have laid out  
> exactly what it meant to us to have a shared name brand.  This note  
> is an attempt lay out those reasons clearly, so we all understand  
> why we thought it was important to share name brands.
>
>
>
> Each of us knew that:
>
>
> * MapServer has had a good history, significant market share and  
> has good equity in its name.
>
>
> * Autodesk is a very successful company, with successful products  
> and has significant amounts of brand equity
>
>
> * Autodesk were planning to release "Tux" as open source and  
> continue to develop it through an open source community
>
>
>
> Autodesk had a choice to make: a) offer to work with MapServer to  
> find common ground, to build synergies and not compete; or, b) set  
> up their own open source geospatial software foundation as a home  
> for their product, develop their own independent branding for their  
> product and end up competing with MapServer.
>
>
>
> In the spirit of open source, Autodesk engaged DM Solutions, UMN,  
> Steve Lime and other developers, etc. to try to find a way to work  
> together.
>
> Granted, it was behind closed doors because an NDA was required for  
> a public company like Autodesk to even have such a conversation  
> with outsiders, but we thought we had a very good representation of  
> the leaders in the community.
>
>
>
> Our collective thinking was that a common name for the products  
> would be ideal.  Having both products under the same banner was  
> good, but only if both products and the foundation could share that  
> common name.  There was going to be potential for confusion, but  
> sharing a common prefix for two different products is not unheard  
> of and it was going to be a major change. We all wanted to keep  
> building on MapServer momentum instead of ignoring MapServer and  
> building something independent of it.
>
>
>
> After all the feedback from the community, it's more than obvious  
> that the naming is an major issue.  But the naming of both the  
> products really represents the willingness to share the brand or  
> not.  A "MapServer Foundation" cannot equally represent both  
> MapServer and MapGuide.  The names are the brand.  If a product  
> can't use the name, then it isn't using the brand.
>
>
>
> Autodesk decided that it would rather take the harder road and work  
> with an existing community, than go it alone and work against that  
> community.
>
> And the MapServer stakeholders decided they would take the hard  
> road and work with Autodesk to find a common path, rather then  
> compete head-to-head.
>
>
>
> Then the story broke, and the MapServer community had the reaction  
> we all saw to the name. The general reaction to the announcement  
> outside of the MapServer community has actually been quite positive.
>
>
>
> If a common name brand can't be used, then one alternative will be  
> that MapServer is not going to be leading the startup of a  
> foundation that can house both MapServer and Tux.  As well, such a  
> foundation can not be called the "MapServer Foundation" any more  
> than it should be called the "MapGuide Foundation".  In many ways,  
> voting against sharing the name brand is actually voting against  
> working with Autodesk on starting the MapServer Foundation.  
> Autodesk will not be willing to put their investment into a  
> foundation that hides their name brand under the name of another  
> web-based mapping project. It has already invested a lot of money  
> in promoting the "MapServer Foundation", which no one else has ever  
> done.
>
>
>
> So this was the thinking and these are the choices.  We didn't do  
> it all perfectly and not having broader community input was a real  
> problem. I wish that we could have put the following question out  
> there for community feedback from the very start.
>
>
>
> Here is the poll question, please cast your vote and comment on the  
> poll online at:
>
>
>
> http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu/community/polls/ms_autodesk
>
>
>
> -------------
>
>
>
> What serves the MapServer Community best?
>
>
>
> a) Work with Autodesk under the MapServer Foundation, creating a  
> unified brand name, with MapServer and Autodesk lending their  
> respective brand equities to each other and working together to  
> make open source web mapping the platform of choice.
>
>
>
> b) Work with Autodesk to release its product through a foundation  
> with a different name such as "MapTools", with MapServer now  
> competing directly with the new brand name that will be created and  
> heavily promoted by Autodesk, even though they will likely be  
> housed by the same foundation.
>
>
>
> Gary Lang
>
> Tyler Mitchell
>
>

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|Paul Spencer                           pspencer at dmsolutions.ca   |
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|Applications & Software Development                              |
|DM Solutions Group Inc                 http://www.dmsolutions.ca/|
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