[Touch Diamond, MDA Compact IV General] low.flying.pigs:
Hello Blaustein / Klaus,

Many thanks for 4.12beta23 and the source code. Appreciated as always.

I look forward to studying the source code and trying the new beta shortly when I return from a short break.

I would just comment briefly however for now that suitably prominent on screen map copyright attribution is an important and necessary requirement in order for compliance with the mapping providers as has been subject of discussion on forum.

However, the problem with simplistic implementations that are trivially easy for ordinary users to circumvent, with little, or no effort, as seems to be the case in this instance from the description, is that they fail compliance.

This is because whilst the map will still be displayed, the attribution will invariably still not and there appears no attempt to enforce that. Whilst the user is responsible for their actions, software developers are reasonable for what they provide to users, and are expected to make basic compliance efforts.

This is because enforcement is relatively easily implemented and immediately removes the users defence of ignorance by requiring the user to do something, or ensure something has been done, in order to see the map, instead of do nothing which creates their excuse of ignorance, genuine or otherwise.

Where attributions are not hard coded and are readily user alterable, as a minimum, it would be expected as reasonable that no map would display unless an attribution was made. When coupled with the necessary checking on the attribution that it contains the © copyright symbol and is of a minimum length of actual characters, not all spaces for example, this is a simple and relatively effective enforcement technique. Furthermore it is relatively easily implemented.

Additionally:

For GCC online downloadable mapping, if an additional field for each map source in the osm_servers.txt was implemented, it would enable the file to be provided with correct attributions already present and therefore already compliant.

For GCC offline mapping, including any GPS Cycle Computer OpenStreetMap based downloadable offline mapping, the existing copyright.txt in the map folder would suffice. The correct attribution would be provided with any GCC OSM downloadable offline mapping. Users would be responsible for correct attribution in map folders of their own creation.

For maps genuinely without requirement for copyright attribution, the user would take the responsibility for declaring this in copyright.txt by stating clearly and unambiguously © COPYRIGHT NONE. GPS Cycle Computer would read this as it would any other attribution but in this case display the map attribution free.

In all instances the map would be displayed after suitable initial warning the user it is their responsibility to ensure correct attribution at all times, requiring a further action in confirmation, clicking OK for example.

To avoid disruption in actual usage, GCC could display periodically thereafter the same message requiring confirmation of acceptance to proceed.

The above measures are essentially the bare minimum that could hope to withstand even the slightest scrutiny if a map provider were ever to take issue with GPS Cycle Computer, which is clearly undesirable.

low.flying.pigs