Last modified: 2014-02-22 14:12:20 UTC
Currently one can use {{gbmapping|grid reference}} and related templates to link out to e.g. see [[Upton, Warwickshire]]. This externally links to http://www.rhaworth.myby.co.uk/oscoor_a.htm? SP125575_region:GB_scale:25000 and that then redirects to a wiki hosted by http://kvaleberg.com/ that then uses to give several options for obtaining maps. Now, wouldn't it be a lot easier if an internal solution similar to the ISBN solution was engineered? http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Booksources&isbn=0192891987
I would further suggest that the ISBN code be adapted to create a new special page. The Irish grid which works on a similar basis also needs doing.
Pasting a reply from Tim Landscheidt at http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/maps-l/2014-February/001355.html There are two aspects to this bug: a) Geographical coordinates should be resolved internally, without GeoHack (sic!). b) Treat OS grid coordinates as first-class citizens. For the first use case, there is Extension:MapSources (not to be confused with my Extension:Mapsources :-)) for the presentational side which has been deployed to the Wikivoy- ages, and Extension:GeoData for a database backend. I don't know if someone is eager to open Pandora's box and promise support for the various other coordinate formats.
Part (a) should probably be treated as a separate bug, and/or spunoff if there's no duplicate. Regarding supporting OS grid refs, the direction of travel seems to me to be towards the OS providing co-ordinates using (as an option, if not the default) the international datum (I moaned about this issue to their head of these things. He seemed receptive). One can always convert coordinates using a bot, as I have done.
