[Tagging] Quality and the Openstreetmap value chain

[Graeme Fitzpatrick]

On Tue, 12 May 2020 at 20:36, Jean-Marc Liotier <jm at liotier.org> wrote:

> On 5/12/20 11:42 AM, Richard Fairhurst wrote:
> Yes. Users are the ultimate measure of quality, yet they are most often
> absent from our discussions.


>From comments on the "contact point" thread

On Tue, 12 May 2020 at 20:43, Sören alias Valor Naram <valinora at gmx.net>
wrote:

>
> I am a "data customer" ... But mappers are not listening to data customers


I'd really like somebody to come up with simple definitions of

mappers,

data consumers / customers,

users?

OK, I map, & I then also "use" OSMand for navigation purposes, so what am I?

Our history explains why: in the beginning, we had a blank map, which we
> set upon filling with whatever we could


Perhaps unfortunately, this was filled with a British / Western European /
American view that because it's like this "here", the rest of the World
must be the same, so must follow along with our set rules.

Looking at the world and thinking about how we should model it should be
> done with an understanding of how users want it.


Agree entirely, but as we have seen a few times in recent weeks. just
because "this" definition doesn't apply in UK, EU / USA, there's no reason
to wipe it from the map entirely, because it very well could, & does, apply
perfectly  in other parts of the World.

This is difficult when we have few users around and very little feedback
> from downstream. So, if one has
> opportunities to bring that to our knowledge, please do:


I, & others, have done so a few times, to basically be told sorry, that's
not how it works in OSM - these are the rules & you have to follow them.

One in particular, roads in remote areas - yes, it's a dirt road,
connecting very small centres of population / remote "farms" (if it's still
a "farm" when it's bigger in area than some countries ‽) only, so it
"can't" be important, so it doesn't appear on OSM till you zoom right in,
*but* it's also the *only* "main" road for 1000 k's in any direction, so
you would think that it should be shown at high level zoom?

Same, same with the (OSM) villages / hamlets / remote dwellings that this
road serves. A single building out in the middle of nowhere, in the OSM
universe, is too small & insignificant to be noticed, *but* that pub, with
attached service (gas) station, general store & camping ground, is also the
major point of civilisation for that 1000 k's!, so how important is it in
real life to those people who are travelling through that area? Extremely!

Thanks

Graeme
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openstreetmap.org/pipermail/tagging/attachments/20200513/26042d58/attachment.htm>