[db-wg] country codes in the RIPE Database (was: ORGANISATION country code)

On Thu, 26 Jan 2023 at 03:55, denis walker via db-wg <db-wg at ripe.net> wrote:
>
> Hi Ed
>
> Thanks for the explanation. But as I explained to Cynthia, "org-name:"
> and "country:" are very different attributes. The org-name is just a
> free text label by which an organisation is known. Whatever label is
> specified, people know what its purpose is, even if the value is not
> verified by the NCC. With country, the country codes have a well
> defined meaning, but when entered by users no one knows what it's
> purpose is.

I think you have this the wrong way around.

ISO 3166 has a well defined purpose: "The purpose of ISO 3166 is to
define internationally recognized codes of letters and/or numbers that
we can use when we refer to countries and their subdivisions."

https://www.iso.org/iso-3166-country-codes.html

What we are missing is a meaning for the application of these codes in
the context of the RIPE database.

But even if we started to define a meaning at this late stage, who
would choose to use it?