(I was away over Easter and out of cyber-touch. The in-laws were Most Impressed that my name was Mentioned in the Papers...)

I notice that Mr Brown seems to have either got bored or else realised that he was running up against his word-limit, as he includes the usual relative distractions aboiut Roy, the trig and the one-inch map, and not the 'serious stuff' about the LARGE SCALES, thereby simply compounding the usual public (mis-)perception of the OS as simply producing small-scale paper maps - grotesquely laughable in view of what the 'free our data' campaign is really all about!

Richard Oliver
(May have MI5 file, but independent of KGB connections. Some paper communications may be on paper kindly provided by Conservative Central Office in their targeting of marginal constituencies, as finded by one M.Ashcroft.)

________________________________________
From: A forum for issues related to map & spatial data librarianship [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Francis Herbert [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Saturday, April 03, 2010 7:50 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: FW: British OS launches free data site: UK newspaper article

Apologies for compiling yesterday's posting in the semi-darkness (candle
at home was running low); this re-sending corrects both the URL and the
fact that - apparently - Richard Oliver has, indeed, composed an article
such as the journalist states. This 'short history' - less definite
article - is to be found, as Russell Guy informed me on 'MAPS-L' (where
discussion continues), at -

http://www.charlesclosesociety.org/files/HistoryOSGB.pdf

- although the reference, in the 'summary' introduction to this piece on
the CCS webpage, is titled 'Short History of Ordnance Survey of Great
Britain'.

FH (by full daylight)

-----Original Message-----
From: A forum for issues related to map & spatial data librarianship
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Francis Herbert
Sent: 02 April 2010 20:11
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: FW: British OS launches free data site: UK newspaper article

In order that 'Lis-maps' subscribers do not feel left out I fwd the
subjoined posting to 'MAPS-L' - with the more relevant 'addendum' that
the final paragraph of both hard copy and online versions of the article
appropriately quote Dr Christopher Board (CCS Chairman).

FH

-----Original Message-----
From: Francis Herbert [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 02 April 2010 20:02
To: 'Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship'
Subject: RE: British OS launches free data site: UK newspaper article

Russell:

And, should anyone be interested in at least one British 'quality'
newspaper's reaction, you can refer to either the hard copy of 'The
Independent' (London) for today, 2 April 2010, article 'No. 1 in the
charts since 1747' (full page 15, with 2 col. images); or to the online
version (with only 1 image - omitting the hard copy's folded and rather
worn OS map heading the page):-

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/os-maps-no1-in-the-charts-sin
ce-1747-1934059.html

One may be 'pressed' [an inevitable Francis Herbert pun (as April
Carlucci will confirm)] to locate a copy of what the journalist,
Jonathan Brown, cites as Dr Richard Oliver's publication 'A Short
History of the Ordnance Survey of Great Britain'. Perhaps he intended to
cite 'Ordnance Survey maps : a concise guide for historians', 2nd ed.,
rev. & expanded (London : The Charles Close Society [for the Study of
Ordnance Survey Maps], 2005), ISBN 1-870598-24-5?

Francis (Herbert)
Past Member (when Curator of Maps, RGS-IBG, London), International Map
Trade Association

-----Original Message-----
From: Maps, Air Photo, GIS Forum - Map Librarianship
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Angie Cope
Sent: 01 April 2010 15:41
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: British OS launches free data site

-------- Original Message --------
Subject:        British OS launches free data site
Date:   Thu, 01 Apr 2010 09:48:41 -0400
From:   Russell Guy <[log in to unmask]>
To:     [log in to unmask]

The British Ordnance Survey has released the gov't report on the future
direction of the OS, including what data will be released free of charge
for private, public, and commercial use.  The report is available at
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/corporate/pdf/1528263.pdf .  It
is interesting in that the British gov't is now setting up a "commercial
contract" with OS for funding at least some of the costs of the OS,
whereas the OS was fully self-supporting up to now.

The OS also launched today its new "OS OpenData" website at
www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/opendata
<http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/opendata> where the public can download
the various free data sets, including medium scale vector data, etc.
According to the OS, the new site is very overloaded today and users may
get a request for user i.d. and password. This requirement is a glitch
due to the overland and OS is working to fix it.

It will be interesting to see what paper maps get discontinued due to
funding considerations.  The OS has already announced the end of its
very popular 1:250,000 Travelmaster road map series as well as its
single-sheet Routemaster road map.

Cheers
Russell Guy                             [log in to unmask]
Omnimap.com                              http://www.omnimap.com
<http://www.omnimap.com/>P.O. Box 2096
        Tel.:  800-742-2677 (USA only)
1004 South Mebane St.                        Tel.:  336-227-8300
(International)
Burlington, NC 27216-2096 USA            Fax:  336-227-3748
Past President (1996) and Member, International Map Trade Association