OpenStreetMap has been in the news this month for its great coverage in and around the Olympic venues, particularly in comparison with Google Maps. Wired has a good piece on the subject, and Ilya Zverev of the Russian OSM community reminds us that the great data is no last minute rush job – most of the area has been well mapped for years.
But OSM doesn’t just win where it has more detail – it wins everywhere by being open. Whether you want to contribute to the map of your neighborhood, or dive in deep and learn how every piece works, or just take the data and make something new and awesome, you can do that. Being open is pretty cool.