[Tagging] The actual use of the level tag

[Minh Nguyen]

On 2019-01-20 05:49, Tobias Zwick wrote:
> Hi there,
> 
> In the wiki, the level tag is defined to be a 0-based-index so that
> level=0 is the ground floor, i.e. at the street level. In other words, a
> two-storey mall with no basement will have shops at level=0 and level=1.
> 
> This is intuitive for (at least) Europeans, people from Commonwealth
> countries and parts of Asia as this coincides with common language.
> However, in at least the USA, Canada, Japan, Korea, China and most
> probably more regions, the floor at street level is denominated as the
> "1st floor" in common language. In other words, it is a 1-based-index.

The numbering system can also vary by region within a country. Northern 
and central Vietnam uses a zero-based system while southern Vietnam uses 
a one-based system, and somehow both are national standards. [1] I'm 
unsure if there's a well-defined boundary between the two systems, but 
if there is, I like to think someone has built a building straddling the 
two, just to mess with us.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storey#East_Asian_schemes

-- 
minh at nguyen.cincinnati.oh.us