Several points - start separate discussions if/where needed
I changed "many incredible" to "several inspiration." For small changes of that nature, you should feel empowered to make them directly to the wiki page, though I appreciate you flagging areas of concern and the rationale behind it. However, if you would prefer to keep everything on the talk page, I'll continue making the edits.
>>"free" as in beer? (sorry, I had to ask...
I understand that the ambiguity can be frustrating, especially when experts and novices have different ideas about the meaning of a common word. If you're referring to the the use of "free" in the first paragraph, I made the change to "unrestricted use, reuse..."
>>Might be useful to define "content" a bit further - it is not a good term actually. Specifically, include in the examples: lesson plans and other learning design elements.
The purpose of using "text, audio and video" was support the notion that resources can take several different forms. Your point is taken, though, and I've made an attempt to adjust the wording.
>>Reference? - find it on this page.
Reference added.
>>Surman and Schmidt, 2007)" reference them and ask permission if the text is very close to the original.
We have blanket permission from Schmidt to use his material from the OER toolkit. I'll send an e-mail to confirm.
>> I am not sure if that is really always the case. Many initiatives have arisen as part of a broader "open"/"libre" phenomenon...
Point taken and I agree that open/libre has been a part of the internet for a long time.
Sorry to belabour this, but what is "the cause of OER"? The existing and emerging libre and open initiatives we see are really bound by a universal desire to share and collaborate for some other (greater) benefit: better education, a knowledgable and wise society, world peace, access, scholarship, etc..
I would end with "to share and collaborate." I'm not sure you could get consensus on the ultimate goal of OER beyond that.
>> "This includes initiatives focused on: ..." - I think you have particular initiatives in mind - reference them as examples (URLs as footnotes?)
Examples and links added.
>>I would prefer the second paragraph to be expounding on the rapid progress in the early years 2002 - 2007 as evidenced in the Atkins paper...
I think I'll add a third paragraph with to cover those years. We do mention each of the more prominent repositories in the Get OER section, so they will become more familiar some of the repositories throughout the handbook.
>>The last paragraph is excellent! :-) - adapt the preceding to be in the same spirit
Thank you. I'll try to adjust it in the next few days.
