Geomob

In this episode Ed chats with Sarah Hoffmann, long time OpenStreetMap contributor, software developer, and the primary maintainer of Nominatim, the main OpenStreetMap geocoding software. We go deep on the difficulty of geocoding - especially on top of an every-changing, crowdsourced data set like OpenStreetMap. Nominatim is immensely powerful, handling about 400 requests per second as the search on openstreetmap.org. Sarah explains the tech stack, and also the challenges of managing such a technically complex and publicly visible open-source project.

 

At OpenCage we rely heavily on Nominatim and are delighted to help support Sarah's work financially - and of course also with code contributions.

 

Interested in geocoding? Please get involved with Nominatim.

 

Show notes on the Geomob website.

This episode is an absolute treat - Steven interviews ceramic artist Nan Deardorff-McClain, maker of the beautiful ceramic map of Delft. This is a delightful project turning a graffiti-covered wall into a physical representation of a visually extraordinary ceramic representation of a 15th century map. Nan shares the details of the project and how the local community came together to make it a reality. This project shows the incredible power of physical cartographic art. Hopefully we can get Nan to a Geomob event in the future to share more about this map.

Show notes on the Geomob website.

This episode is an absolute treat - Steven interviews ceramic artist Nan Deardorff-McClain, maker of the beautiful ceramic map of Delft. This is a delightful project turning a graffiti-covered wall into a physical representation of a visually extraordinary ceramic representation of a 15th century map. Nan shares the details of the project and how the local community came together to make it a reality. This project shows the incredible power of physical cartographic art. Hopefully we can get Nan to a Geomob event in the future to share more about this map.

Show notes on the Geomob website.

This episode is a real treat because I had the chance to chat with Daniel O'Donohue, one of the founders of MapScaping. MapScaping is a retailer of beautiful maps and map socks, but is probably best known for the MapScaping Podcast, one of the most widely listened to podcasts in the geospatial world. Daniel shares his personal story, tells us about making the leap from geospatial consultant to running his own business, and discusses some of the many things he's learned through his podcast. The MapScaping podcast was a key inspiration for us in starting the Geomob podcast. If you are not yet a subscriber to the MapScaping podcast, I highly recommend it.

This episode is a real treat because I had the chance to chat with Daniel O'Donohue, one of the founders of MapScaping. MapScaping is a retailer of beautiful maps and map socks, but is probably best known for the MapScaping Podcast, one of the most widely listened to podcasts in the geospatial world. Daniel shares his personal story, tells us about making the leap from geospatial consultant to running his own business, and discusses some of the many things he's learned through his podcast. The MapScaping podcast was a key inspiration for us in starting the Geomob podcast. If you are not yet a subscriber to the MapScaping podcast, I highly recommend it.

Steven catchs up with old friend, colleague, former Geomob London speaker, and chair of OSGeo:UK, Jo Cook. They talk about Jo's background and introduction to geo via archeology, her eventual path to open source software and OSGeo:UK. She shares the story behind the Portable GIS project, and they discuss the importance of documentation, not just for programmers, but as a way for people with limited technical skills to also contribute to open source. Enjoy.

Show notes on the Geomob website.

Steven catchs up with old friend, colleague, former Geomob London speaker, and chair of OSGeo:UK, Jo Cook. They talk about Jo's background and introduction to geo via archeology, her eventual path to open source software and OSGeo:UK. She shares the story behind the Portable GIS project, and they discuss the importance of documentation, not just for programmers, but as a way for people with limited technical skills to also contribute to open source. Enjoy.

Show notes on the Geomob website.

Steven has the chance to talk with Quintin Lake, who is close to completing his 11,000 km walk around the coast of Great Britain. Quintin shares the story of his multi-year adventure with emphasis on some of the navigation and mapping challenges along the way.

 

Show notes on the Geomob website.

Steven has the chance to talk with Quintin Lake, who is close to completing his 11,000 km walk around the coast of Great Britain. Quintin shares the story of his multi-year adventure with emphasis on some of the navigation and mapping challenges along the way.

 

Show notes on the Geomob website.

It's been a long, hot summer. After many weeks of guest interviews, Ed and Steve catch up on their various projects. We discuss OpenStreetMap's 16th birthday, FOSS4GUK, and give updates on our projects Mappery and OpenCage. Amongst much else, Steve laments that previous podcast interviewee Harry Wood leaves nothing for him to map in North London. We hope you are all having a great summer.

 

Show notes on the Geomob website.