OpenTreeMap.org (cloud) announcement
Andrew Thompson
Dear OpenTreeMap Community members,
As we have said before, Azavea has been working hard towards a completely re-architected, cloud-hosted, push-button subscription version of OpenTreeMap. We have been developing this new version, “OTM2”, in the open at http://github.com/azavea/OTM2. Aside from some extra stuff, such as UI and features key to managing and interacting with subscription cloud instances (credit card payments, instance customization tools, some future enhancements, as examples), the core OpenTreeMap software will continue to be an actively developed open source project and available under the GPL. In the coming weeks one of my goals will be developing new install instructions and documentation for this new open source version, and I look forward to this community’s continued feedback, contributions, and questions.
Today, though, we are proud to share with you that we have “flicked the switch” and http://www.opentreemap.org/ now features details about the new OpenTreeMap Cloud, built from OTM2. Initially, we have decided to soft launch OpenTreeMap Cloud as a private beta, available by invitation only. We are encouraging people to sign up for a waiting list, and we will gradually send out invitations to start a 1-month free trial (at any subscription level) of the beta.
This beta process is so our partners, current clients, most enthusiastic potential customers, and others already familiar with OpenTreeMap can help us “stress test” the new OTM2 and give our production code a thorough final shakedown. I am positive there will still be quirks and rough parts, and that’s exactly what a beta period is designed to help us catch – before we launch to the general public as soon as we can!
We wanted to thank you for your longtime support of the project and your feedback, documentation contributions, and pull requests that have gotten us closer to this point. We also knew that no group of people is better equipped to be OpenTreeMap beta testers than this community. So, we’re offering priority on the invitation waiting list for anyone on this list who’s interested in a free trial of the OpenTreeMap Cloud beta! Depending on demand it may still take us some time to get through people, but we will eventually get to everyone. If you are interested in a free trial, please sign up with the email that you use on this list – it will be easier for me to know who’s who and bump you to the front of the line. Also, when you create and explore your first map, I would love to hear any feedback you have about the software – anything at all, just shoot me an email (atho...@azavea.com)!
Finally, if you’d like to catch up in person, my colleague Deb Boyer and I will be attending the Society of American Foresters National Convention (booth #608) in Charleston, SC next week and the Partners in Community Forestry Conference (booth #17) in Pittsburgh, PA the week of November 6th.
Thank you,
Andrew Thompson
Azavea | 340 N 12th St, Ste 402, Philadelphia, PA
atho...@azavea.com | T 215.701.7689 | F 215.925.2663
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