[OSM-newbies] OpenStreetMap is cool but confusing!

[Steve Coast]

On 24 Jul 2007, at 01:29, k6web at petesguide.com wrote:

> I've been trying to add streets to my hometown (Foster City, CA),  
> but have
> been stymied by the extremely fragmented and confusing operation and
> documentation of everything.

It's a wiki, you can fix it :-)

I'm bouncing this to the newbies mailing list where people can help you.

>
> I've uploaded a simple GPX tracklog, loaded it into JOSM, converted it
> into a way, tagged it with the right highway class and street name,  
> and
> then uploaded the result. I did this Friday, yet still see no  
> results on
> the published map (either renderer), or even any way to confirm my  
> edits
> have been recieved. (not even my GPS tracklog shows up, even though  
> others
> in the city do)
>
> And I found the entire editing process counter-intuitive (and I've  
> been
> using AutoCAD and other CAD software since 1992!)
>
> It's basic questions that I have difficulty finding answers to,  
> such as:
> * Should I record just one tracklog per street, or two (one going  
> in each
> direction)? I've seen both in this town, and the double-line ones look
> bigger and uglier, and both "sides" don't consistently follow each  
> other.
> Which is the right way?
>
> * When collecting tracklogs, should they be of the middle of the  
> road, the
> curb edge, or the center median?
>
> * In converting the tracklogs to ways, it doesn't seem there's  
> actually a
> way to use the data other than tracing over it, and the "tracing"  
> provides
> no means of snapping, thus reducing the accuracy of the input.  
> Surly there
> must be a way to convert a GPS tracklog directly to a way, or at least
> snap to it?
>
> * Perhaps most confusing, at least one page on the wiki talks about  
> using
> the timestamps from the GPS tracklogs for computing road speeds,  
> but if
> you're just visually tracing the GPX files, how is this data ever  
> used,
> and how relevant is it if I'm collecting tracks while driving my  
> bicycle
> on a street meant for cars, for instance?
>
>
>

have fun,

SteveC | steve at asklater.com | http://www.asklater.com/steve/