[OSM-newbies] Update Drawing Guidelines (Editing Standards and Conventions)

Andy Robinson (blackadder) blackadderajr at googlemail.com
Fri Feb 15 10:18:49 GMT 2008


Helge Hafting wrote:
>Sent: 14 February 2008 11:31 AM
>To: newbies at openstreetmap.org
>Subject: Re: [OSM-newbies] Update Drawing Guidelines (Editing Standards and
>Conventions)
>
>Hagen Riedel wrote:
>> I think it is very important to update the following site:
>http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/index.php/Editing_Standards_and_Conventions.
>>
>> For myself as a newbie it is important to see some examples and have some
>guidelines. Even more it does not make a good impression if new users are
>linked to an out-of-date information site.
>>
>> In my opinion the page should answer the following questions:
>> Can I already use proposed features?
>>
>You can use any tag you want to - but only tags used by more people will
>be useful.
>Consider voting for the proposed features you want to use - that way
>they become
>"official" faster.
>
>Instead of just making up a new tag -  propose it. anyone can propose
>new tags.
>

Indeed, anyone can propose tags but it's not a requirement to have them
"approved" before you use them. The best advice is always this:

1. Check the map features or any other tagging related pages on the wiki to
see if there is a logical tag that fits your needs.
2. Check the proposed_features pages to pick up the tagging ideas of others.
3. If you find tags from 1 or 2 above that match your criteria and you
believe they are logical then use those.
4. If what you want to tag doesn't fit any of the existing documented tags
or proposed tags then make up your own using a logical process. Use your new
tag(s) and add a page on the wiki explaining what the tag is.

No tag needs approval or to become "official" before use. Any tag (keyname
or value) is valid in OSM and the approval process simply offers a mechanism
to discuss tags as they become used.

Best of luck Hagen and enjoy your mapping. It's highly addictive ;-)

Cheers

Andy


>> How accurate one should map? How many points roundabouts
>A roundabout needs at least one point per connected road - and at the
>very least three.
>Many roundabouts are made with 4 points. Feel free to use more - *if* your
>pretty roundabout is accurate. I.e. don't make a 12-point roundabout
>if all you have is 2 gps points at the location. You can get accurate
>roundabouts by going all around in the outermost lane with a good gps.
>Don't
>do this when there is heavy traffic though. You can get accurate
>connections
>by driving in and out each connected road. Sometimes the connecting roads
>split into an Y-shape as they connect. If you map such detail, use the
>oneway
>tag appropriately so navigation software won't think there are
>twice as many exits.
>
>How much work you put into this is up to you. The 4-point roundabouts are
>sufficient for navigation purposes. Elaborately mapped roundabouts with
>12-16 points and Y-shaped connections look slightly better when you zoom
>in a lot. Josm has a tool for turning a set of points into a perfect
>circle. After using it,
>reposition the roundabout by dragging, as it tend to get offset.
>
>Remember that roundabouts are directional - don't make them the wrong
>way around.
>> and slopes should have at least/most? Is it best to use as few as
>possible points with straight ways?
>If the road isn't straight - don't make it straight. Be aware that gps
>has limited precision.
>So don't bother forcing the road to follow your gps track withing 0.5m
>precision. The data
>isn't that good anyway.  Still, a road with sharp turns may need points
>with 2s distance
>or so in the turns. You can get away with a lot less in wide turns and
>almost straight
>sections. To put it simple, the straight pieces you make shouldn't  be
>further
>away from the stripe of gps points than the gps precision. And it is
>usually a good idea
>to do better than that too. GPS may be 10-20m off, but that error is
>almost the same
>for many points. The shape of the road (points relative to each other)
>has higher
>precision, and it is nice to preserve that. If the road consist of a series
>of slight curves (road in the hills/mountains) then it is useful
>if each curve actually is on the map. People can then use
>instructions like "third left curve after the intersection."
>
>> Is it recommended to use overlapping ways (car, tram, bike)?
>>
>Usually not - josm will even warn you about it because it is usually a
>mapping error.
>car+bike: make a car road, and add cycleway=lane (if there are bike lanes)
>or bicycle=yes. A cycleway next to the main road can be mapped separately.
>
>The tramline may overlap - if cars really drive in the tram lane. If not,
>perhaps it is a dual carriageway with a tramline in-between?
>> How to make nodes aligned in pairs (separated highway)?
>>
>Drive down both ways - then your gps will log two lines.  Make both roads.
>Set down the nodes in pairs, that way the road-road distance will be
>constant even in turns. Like this:
>*-------*-------*
>*-------*-------*
>
>Not:
>*-------*-------*
>----*------*--------*
>
>
>> How areas should be tagged (adjacent or with space between)? Mark big
>buildings or just the outline of residential areas? How to tag towns and
>its suburbs? Is it sometimes good additionally to add a point, e.g. with
>parking areas?
>>
>Add anything that you _can_ add. My gps isn't accurate enough for
>small/medium buildings. Large
>buildings are often tall too - creating other problems if you go too
>near with a gps. Of course there
>are other tricks, like satellite images or measuring distance between
>walls and roads.
>
>Also, bear in mind that you don't _have_ to map everything you _can_
>map. Getting the
>roads, cycleways and parking lots are probably more useful than the
>buildings. Buildings are
>a bonus - I can plan my shopping trip even if all I see is the road, the
>parking lot and
>a shop node. I will assume that there is a building there. :-)
>
>
>Many questions can be answered by looking at the work of others. Download
>pieces that are very well mapped and have a look! Note that some countries
>have different standards - preferably look at your own country.
>
>
>Helge Hafting
>
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