Greetings. Some of the most impenetrable complexities relating to technology, computing and the Internet, are the maze of twisty little passages comprising intellectual property licensing. But open development regimes often win out nonetheless.

A couple of months ago I discussed the controversy over the specific prohibitions against turn-by-turn navigation systems imposed by the Google Android SDK -- specifically relating to the Google Maps API. Similar restrictions exist in the iPhone SDK, by the way. I speculated at the time that these prohibitions were related to underlying licensing restrictions associated with the mapping data sources, and noted that I expected definitive word on this from Google.

Unfortunately, I have (so far) been unable to get what I would characterize as a "substantive" explanation from Google on this score. The official word I've received is merely a restatement of the prohibition that we already know about. I won't speculate here on why Google isn't more forthcoming about this matter, though I do have my ideas. It's likely an uncomfortable situation for Google, given their very significant dedication to open source, not only in Android, but in many other areas as well.

However, since the Android prohibition relates to use of Google Map data for turn-by-turn systems, the door is still open for Android applications that use other, unfettered mapping data.

And in fact, a turn-by-turn navigation program for Android has appeared via this route (no pun intended, of course).

Specifically, we now have AndNav2 -- which is currently available as an Alpha release. To avoid the licensing entanglements described above, AndNav2 -- which looks like it will ultimately be quite a feature-rich program indeed -- uses free mapping data from OpenStreetMap -- a collaborative global mapping project.

I noted that there was a "But ..." in all this, and here it comes. As you might expect at this relatively early stage, the breadth and depth of "open source" mapping data is more limited in some respects vis-a-vis commercial data -- though this is reportedly changing rapidly.

Another issue is that while apparently U.S. mapping data has been prepared, it won't be made available to AndNav2 users until the authors (who are actively collecting donations to help support this currently free program) have sufficient -- actually quite minimal it appears -- funds to provide server capacity for the U.S. Right now only parts of Europe are fully served for street-level navigation through the program.

How well AndNav2 will work in practice on a large scale remains to be seen. But if you're interested in Android G1 turn-by-turn navigation (I certainly am) I urge you to take a look at the AndNav2 site and give them a hand if you can.

I certainly support the rights of intellectual property holders to protect their works. But I also support the rights of the public to collaborate and create open alternatives. AndNav2 appears to be a great example of the latter approach working creatively within the Internet arena.

--Lauren--