In a time when I was a child and climbing mountains
On foot and on bike just to hang around

Each time I reached a place,
A clear question would emerge:
What is over the wood, the peak or the hill?

Childish ideas I had back then,
A way that only God could have known.

But in a simple day of soldier�s life,
When, alone, had understood a military map
I could see now,
What is over the wood, the peak or the hill!

Tormenting questions have appeared:
How and who can make them?

It needed study and a lot of passion,
For all to come in front of a fresh graduate.

Working in campaigns,
On the sea or in the Delta,
In the mountains or on the hills,
With techniques all over
And with a clear spatial vision,
I could finally accomplish,
What others were experimenting.

Years have passed, times have changed,
And there�s an offer
Gathering information in the past days,,
To pull Romania out of the old ways.

With what I know now,
I told posterity it deserved to stay with it,
At least a part of our hard work,
Thinking about knowing,
That another child is keen to understanding:
What is over the wood, the peak or the hill..

…………………………………………………………………………..

1967 – 2006
Always surprised that the word “Romania” is lacking in the data base of equipments of computer technologies, I always come up to this one and only conclusion: “We still haven�t done anything to be taken into consideration”.
Do we always have to wait from the others for what we can do for ourselves?
So far we have come up to that point when we realize that what the others did is responsible for our situation today. The question is:”What do we do?” Will we inherit their impotence, their carelessness, ignorance and neglect?
If finally we are able to have access to a modern technology, with possibility of obtaining information in various fields, won�t we be able to offer this data for the sake of all of us?
We live in a world where own interest comes first. “Me” and only “me” are key words. When one needs something and has no availability in obtaining that thing, one feels like needing help. If one is in the situation of being “luckier” than others, wouldn�t be great helping the others?
I had the chance of obtaining geospatial information from different data sources. We are talking here only about products for personal purpose.
Some of them came through a financial effort, the others through an effort from a period where it would have been normal to get out more. There has been also the situation when data came across easily, because of the fact I imposed a certain duty. It wasn�t hard that moving through the country I would set the GPS receiver to stock data automatically. It wasn�t hard to manually mark points either.
Why all of this? Maybe out of the wish of having something that others can�t give to me.
In time, a lot of information was gathered, helping me in different practical stages. Now I can note that these pieces of information could help other people too.
I decided to participate with all my creations for personal use at the implementation of “Digital Romania Project”.
Maybe I should have remembered the days we are living in. “Watch your own interest! Take care of yourself!”
But it didn�t work!
I�ve decided to step out of the clich�s! To my surprise, there are others who did the same. Are we special? At least we are different!
What to do with all the data? Keep it for myself? Obtain maximum of profit? Maybe!
But I have already made up my mind! I�m giving them away�and I�m giving them with all my heart!
I always remember: “It would have been great if I had had this data 10 years ago”. Now I feel like receiving such a thing!

Marian Ursache
Participant – Digital Romania Project