http://civicaccess.416.s1.nabble.com/slightly-OT-Free-snail-mail-to-your-MP-well-you-need-to-buy-an-envelope-tp161p164.html
Tracey P. Lauriault wrote:
> Patrick! A nice sagueway for me to go on about Postal Code Data,
> Geomatics and Access! My favorite!
>
> **************
> Canada Post also manages and SELLS important datasets that
> geodemographers, researchers, and companies use to manage mailing lists.
>
> These are unfortunately FOR SALE on a 12 month subscription basis and
> priced for internal end-user and those who resell value added products
> to a third party!
> (
http://www.canadapost.ca/business/offerings/address_management/can/other_data-e.asp).
> There is also a cute little find a postal code tool -
>
http://www.canadapost.ca/business/tools/pcl/bin/quick-e.asp.
>
> Statistics Canada Geography Division in cooperation with Canada Post
> also produce 3 digit (K1R) and 6 digit (K1R 7J4) postal code framework
> data files (base maps)
> (
http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=92F0153U). Each postal
> code is represented on the base map as a point, and you can georeference
> (link) other data sets to those points and map them (e.g. see where my
> natural gas customers in Ottawa are). These data sets are also
> aggregated into areas (polygons) called Forward Sortation Areas (FSA).
> The area is defined by the geographic area of the first three digits of
> a postal code and these can be mapped with census data and work with the
> 3 and 6 digit point files (e.g. i know where my customers are, and I
> overlay that (points) onto an average income or language spoken at home
> map (polygons/ares) to glean more information about who my customers are
> and the nature of the neighbourhoods they live in). These data sets are
> also aligned with road network, hydrography (rivers, lakes, etc.),
> electoral boundaries to name a few.
>
> So when you buy something and you are asked you for your postal code -
> guess what they are doing with that info! Then again, you can also map
> the distance traveled by the customers of an organic food store, the
> characteristics of their hoods and then decide the best place to build
> another! Conduct spatial location analysis.
>
> These Base Map data sets are also FOR SALE, by Data resellers such as
> DMTI or directly from Statistics Canada with all kinds of special data
> licensing agreements . These data are only available for free if you
> are a professor or a student conducting research for non-for-profit
> purposes through the Data Liberation Initiative
> (
http://www.statcan.ca/english/Dli/dli.htm)
>
> These data sets are very powerful as you can, with the right GIS
> software & knowledge & financial resources, map these to other data
> sets such as Census of Population, Census of Agriculture or other
> Statistics Canada, federal ridings results or private sector data and
> conduct some excellent analysis. Much important analysis such as
> demographics, profiling, risk assessment, spatial location analysis,
> territory management, target market, delivery routes etc. can be done
> with these.
>
> Few NGOs, neighbourhood associations or individual citizen have access
> to these data as they are too costly.
>
>
>
> Patrick Dinnen wrote:
>
>
>>First, I'd like to say I'm really pleased to see this mailing list get
>>started. There seems to be a lot going on in the sphere of civic data
>>access in Canada and I'm really excited to see where this goes.
>>
>>Here's the (not exactly on topic bit). I was looking for something
>>unrelated on the Canada Post site and came across the fact that you can
>>send letters to your MP without needing to attach a stamp, which seems
>>cool to me. Maybe everyone in the world but me knew that already.
>>(
http://tinyurl.com/car9p).
>>
>>Could be quite relevant in terms of being able to get your voice heard.
>>I've heard that letters tend to have more weight with MPs than emails
>>so, I suppose because of the perception of the extra effort needed
>>writing a letter, finding an envelope and actually remembering to drop
>>it in the mail.
>>
>>Patrick Dinnen
>>
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>>
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>>
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>>
>>
>
>
>
>
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