[pkg-fso-maint] tangogps and openstreetmap

[Mitja Kleider]

Steffen Moeller wrote:
> >>>> The directory /root/Maps seems to find some consensus between Qtopia and Debian concerning
> >>>> the location of OpenStreetMap data that was downloaded for offline reuse. I'd prefer to
> >>>> use /var/cache/osm, instead. Would that sound reasonable to you as well? Or is there a
> >>>> better location?
> >>> Downloaded maps are user data, thus should be below ~ (i.e. /root while
> >>> running as root, /home/someone while running as a normal user).
> >>>
> >>> That said, it should probably be in ~/.tangoGPS, to follow unix
> >>> convention.
> >> I don't think so. This is public and mostly invariant data. With multiple individuals one
> >> could possibly learn about someone's preference in locations, but otherwise this should be
> >> shared - between users and applications.
> > 
> > OSM data is not invariant at all. Mapnik and Cycle Map tiles are updated
> > once a week, Osmarender is rerendered daily or more often.
> > The bare data behind the rendered tiles is updated 24/7.
> 
> Partly because of mine :) But you will agree that OSM (at least in D) has become such
> good, that the only bits that still change are lamp posts or so ... admittedly, I know a
> few spots myself that I [sc]ould still fix, but there is no strong need for continuous
> updates any more, at least not for the majority of users - it is invariant in the sense
> that most streets don't move or appear any more.
I still disagree (except for big cities), but it think that it leads to
an off-topic discussion.
The important point is that a normal user should have write access to
the tiles.

> > Most common users will not update often, most mappers would like to have
> > the most recent tiles.
> And the update of one user should be autoforwarded to the next in my view.
Makes sense.

> > For multi-user environments it would make sense to share the cache, but
> > I do not want to update tiles as root.
> 
> Just thinking loudly: how about a directory /var/cache/osm with that is owned by
> nobody.nogroup, that has the sticky bit set and is chmod 777 ?
>From a user's point of view that sounds good. What is the Debian point
of view?

> But as long as everyone is happy with $HOME/Maps ... it is a side issue, obviously. My
> main point indeed is that the directories are shared - between applications and in my view
> also between users.
I fully agree on this point and I am not happy with $HOME/Maps.
The Freerunner is not a big multi-user environment, but the solution should be generally applicable to any system.
My thoughts on that topic did not lead to any good solution yet.

Greetings,
Mitja