Spring
2001 Spring
2001FEDORA is developing a new website as an additional service to our members and to improve the flow of information between the Committee and members. This will replace the now out-of-date FEDORA information on the Elmbridge-on-line website.
The objectives of the FEDORA website are to provide:
The website is still in the throes of being built, but can be seen in its current stage at www.fedora.org.uk. If you have ideas regarding how to improve the website or information to include in it, you can send an e-mail to Alec Robinson at website@fedora.freeserve.co.uk. In addition to information about local events and facilities, you will also find current contact information for the FEDORA Committee members including their names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
Please contact us - we want to hear from you in order to learn about your concerns, so that we can help you better. Also, for your diary, we will include a calendar of FEDORA meetings and other activities of interest in the village.
On a regular basis on the FEDORA website and in this newsletter, we will try to highlight other websites that might be of interest to readers. For now, let’s look at where we are, literally. Have you ever been invited to someone’s house for the evening, and you were not quite sure how to get there? There are several sites that can help.
For example, go to www.multimap.co.uk, enter the postcode, and you will come up with a 1:10,000 scale street map centered on the postcode. Most postcodes cover quite a small area, so you should have no difficulty finding the address that you need. On the screen to the left of the map you will also see the button "Click here for aerial photo". This does exactly what it says, and brings up an aerial photograph of the area. You can count the swimming pools and tennis courts in your neighbourhood, and zoom in to a scale of 1:1000, which almost allows you to identify the cars parked in your driveway!
On the other hand, if you find that you have the address and no postcode (or the postcode and no address) just go to the Royal Mail website and you can find the address you need by entering the postcode.
If you find you are in the unfortunate position of having the name and no address, all is not lost. Try BT’s online directory enquiries, which allows you to enter a name and area and will give you a list of all the people whose details fit your input, with their address and phone number - if they are not ex-directory.
On the subject of maps, the Ordnance Survey has an excellent website that allows you to see maps of Oxshott as it is, or as it was in 1871. You find that Warren Lane did not exist and Copsem Lane ended at the intersection with Sandy Lane. The sandpits on the heath existed, though with a different shape than they have today. To see these maps you can go directly to the maps, or you can go via the Ordnance Survey site The Ordnance Survey is updating the web-page for access to old maps and has a new experimental page. I find the old access to be far superior and recommend that you use that option while it still exists. While on this website, if you are thinking of making some alterations to your home and require planning permission, you can order a site-plan at 1:500 scale from the Ordnance Survey, and get a detailed plan of your property boundaries to use with your application.
For those who prefer to use maps in a more recreational way, try Walking World. This website contains information on scenic walks throughout the UK with, of course, many in southern England. Their database of walks can be searched by geographic area, difficulty, length, and other features such as the availability of pubs.
You can search for walks that are by rivers, in towns, in the hills or have views of the sea. Walks are graded from gentle strolls to "Mountain Challenges" (it lists none of those in Surrey!). You need to register to be able to download information from the database of walks, but registration is free.
Once you have found a walk that is of interest to you, you can print-out detailed instructions together with photographs taken along the walk and a 1:50,000 scale map. There are lots of walks in Surrey but none of the Oxshott area yet, so there is an opportunity here for those who enjoy walking. After you have registered you can submit your own favourite walks to be included in the database - and you will be paid commission every time your walk is downloaded! Just check the "Contributors’ Guide" on the website for instructions on how to submit your favourite walk.