Lack of broadband maps?

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Lias

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#270393 7-May-2020 12:45

You used to be able to find nice detailed GIS maps of UFB coverage, VDSL coverage etc, as well as GIS maps of all the backhaul fibre and copper trunks trunks running around the country. I can't seem to find a damn thing like that any more. You have the abhorrent and annoying 'address checkers' rather than detailed maps for the former, and the latter seems to not exist at all any more.

Am I going mad or is my google fu just failing me? Surely all this information should be publicly available.

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nickb800

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#2478562 7-May-2020 12:56

I think that map disappeared a few years ago. I miss it too. I wonder if they were worried about giving out information that might enable vandalism/terrorism?

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#2478575 7-May-2020 13:08

There are lots of reasons why information like that should not be public. Even the cellsite maps on gis.geek.nz (which does also have copper maps) are a potential issue due to all the anti 5G nutters out there using this data.

wratterus

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#2478582 7-May-2020 13:28

https://broadbandmap.nz/ and https://gis.geek.nz/login are your best bets now. I can see us losing the cell tower locations soon though, thanks to idiots.

Jase2985

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#2478593 7-May-2020 13:47

most of the information you want is publicly available its just not in a nice format that would be easy to understand and interpret

Chorus still have their broadband map here:

https://www.chorus.co.nz/broadband-map

it doesnt go down to cabinet level like it used to but cant have everything can we.

gisgeek has cabinet/exchange locations along with cell/microwave link information. James has put a lot of effort into his site and its a shame he had to have people register because of "5G"

Lias

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#2478846 7-May-2020 18:14

Yes I was aware of gisgeek (have been using it for years and am now registered), and it's useful for some things but neither of the thins I mentioned in my original post. I didn't realize you could skip the 'enter your address' on broadbandmap.nz and actually get a map so that's handy and covers off the first thing I was after.

None of them show infrastructure cables which is annoying. You can see maritime cables on international maps, but not our onshore cables. What started me looking this morning was trying to find the map of Vodafone's national backbone vs a vis the dual fibre cuts. I know there used to be map(s) on which you could publicly see all the backhaul and dark fibre etc around the place, right down to street level. Frustrating that it appears to have been taken away for no good reason and I'm sorry but domestic terrorism isn't a valid reason when GIS data of the majority of cell towers, radio towers, gas pipe valves, high voltage power lines and god only knows what else is readily available to the public online.

sbiddle

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#2478848 7-May-2020 18:18

Why does industry data *need* to be made publically available?

Your argument seems to be basis of curiosity only? It's readily available to those who need to know about such things.

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sbiddle

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#2478849 7-May-2020 18:18

Why does industry data *need* to be made publically available?

Your argument seems to be basis of curiosity only? It's readily available to those who need to know about such things.

Lias

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#2478873 7-May-2020 19:15

sbiddle: Why does industry data *need* to be made publically available?

Your argument seems to be basis of curiosity only? It's readily available to those who need to know about such things.

In short I guess it's a combination of my open access/data/knowledge philosophy (information wants to be free.. all of it!) and annoyance that it used to be freely available and now isn't. The only reasons I can think of off the top of my head are that either "someone wants to charge for it" or "someone is overly paranoid", neither of which I personally give much credence to. Feel free to proffer a better explanation if you have one.

Jase2985

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#2478891 7-May-2020 19:59

it costs someone somewhere to make this information easily accessible, and in a map/gis type format. maybe the use of such sites was just not worth the effort of maintaining them?

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#2478904 7-May-2020 20:30

Jase2985: it costs someone somewhere to make this information easily accessible, and in a map/gis type format. ...

Hopefully IoT & automation make that argument null & void.

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everettpsycho

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#2478908 7-May-2020 20:38

I think it isn't shared for a few reasons, one is security, with backhaul routes and pinch points known it's possible for people to know where to target if they so wished to cut off a number of customers.

Secondly there's the competition aspect, in areas with more than one company owning infrastructure there is still competition for some services so you wouldn't want your competition to know all of your cards and undercut your offering.

I don't believe they have to release gis files but there is obligations to know where these things are and supply before you dig style drawings too make sure they don't have their infrastructure struck. Exporting them takes time though and the companies really have no incentive for the world to know where their infrastructure is unless someone is about to dig it up.

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#2478910 7-May-2020 20:42

Yes the old broadbandmap.govt.nz site that existed between 2007-2015 prior to Internet NZ taking over was really nice although I think it stopped being updated around 2012 but nicely tracked all the access, distribution and backbone core fibre relating to cabinetisation project, extension rural fibre etc. going in.

Still have a link bookmarked but now seems to be made private: https://koordinates.com/set/928-fibre-optic-networks-and-fibre-optic-coverage/

Something else I have come across recently is school pass rate data no longer being made available on the NZQA website, instead having to request by email. Could be worth an email requesting access but the above GIS data is likely to be years out of date anyway.