Hi Pete, I was likewise wondering how Bernie had permission from the Ordnance Survey Office here in Ireland to post those maps to his website since they don't allow anyone to claim rights to the maps and they're very clear about that. He also conveniently hasn't noted the source for the maps nor the years they're from on his website. He's offering paid genealogical services which makes the website a commercially related one too. The Mayo Discovery maps are really basic "tools" for anyone researching Mayo ancestors. Oceanstrands --- PeteScherm@aol.com wrote: > Regarding the maps on the www.bernieworld.net > site: They are nothing > special. Just reproduced segments of the ordinary > Discovery maps 30 and 31 for > this part of Mayo.....which I assume everyone > already has [gr]. There are > actually 10 Discovery maps needed to completely > cover the county. These two maps > are based on aerial photography flown in 1973 (by > the French Air Force, as I > recall) and have been updated periodically since > then. > > I wonder how Bernie obtained permission to use the > OSI maps.....they are > usually very strict about the use of their maps. > Perhaps, as it involves only a > couple of the Mayo maps, it would be allowed under > Fair Use considerations. > Or, perhaps, he had to pay the "big bucks" for the > rights..... But the feature > locating the various placenames on the maps could be > very useful to some - > although his reference to latitude and longitude as > the nature of the grid > numbers is incorrect. These are truncated numbers > using the Irish National Grid, > and is a much better way to locate places in Ireland > and N. Ireland on the newer > OS maps than lat/long. coordinates. > > Pete ... > Pete Schermerhorn, in the glorious Berkshire hills > of western Massachusetts >