[OSM-talk] [Talk-GB] "Unsurfaced road" and "Byway"?

[David Dean]

Whoops, forwarded to list as well.

On 17/12/2007, David Dean <ddean at ieee.org> wrote:
> I tend to agree.
>
> I think it would be very useful to have a simple interface to search
> for text fragments used by OSMers would wide. This would allow me to
> check if anyone has done a similar feature before.
>
> I understand you can use osmxapi do sort-of do this at the moment, but
> I think you need to know each possible name/value combination?
>
> For example, say I wanted to map a fenced off-leash canine exercise
> area, I could search the planet.osm file  (online) for 'canine' or
> 'dog' or 'leash' in either the name or value field and choose the most
> common pair that seemed appropriate. If no such pair existed, then I
> could feel free to invent my own.
>
> I would also tend to agree that features actual use count should be an
> important part of the Map features page.
>
> - David
>
> On 17/12/2007, Andy Allan <gravitystorm at gmail.com> wrote:
> > On Dec 16, 2007 4:37 PM, Mike Collinson <mike at ayeltd.biz> wrote:
> >
> > >  > Are you going to re-tag every way in the database that uses this?.
> > >  Nope, everyone is free to use whatever tag they want.  Same goes for
> > > rendering.  If its useful locally in the UK  that is fine, but it should not
> > > suddenly appear on the Map Features page, certainly not without
> > > discussion/voting.  If it was used during early mapping, a "depreciated"
> > > note would an alternative.
> >
> > (cross-posted to talk)
> >
> > I must have missed the point where the discussion / voting system
> > became the *only* way for a tag to appear on the Map Features page. I
> > think widespread use, flawed or not, historical or not, voted on or
> > not, is also sufficient.
> >
> > In fact, if I were to make any comment on the voting system, I would
> > say that nothing should be proposed for voting *until* there is a
> > sufficient use of the tag. I see a awful lot of tags being proposed
> > through someone trying to scratch an itch - which is why you're
> > allowed to use whatever tag you feel like, without having to get
> > things voted on Map Features first. And in another thread there was
> > someone having problems with the length of Map Features page on the
> > wiki - an indication, perhaps, that including so many sparsely used
> > tags (whilst ignoring those in common use because of "procedural
> > irregularities") is making the signal to noise ratio on that page
> > worse and worse.
> >
> > So having nothing other than a cursory flick through my mailing list
> > archives for some approved tags and comparing them with tags that I
> > know haven't gone through the voting process:
> >
> > shop = outdoor ('approved') - 10
> > crossing = toucan (not approved) - 49
> > railway = subway_entrance ('approved') - 224
> > shop = doityourself ('approved') - 22
> > ncn_milepost = * (not approved) - 113
> > amenity = car sharing (approved) - 23
> > rcn = * or rcn_ref = * or route = rcn (none approved) - 2109
> >
> > and, of course, the original discussion was about:
> >
> > highway = unsurfaced (not approved) - 1938
> >
> > And more importantly, I know that every one of the not-approved tags
> > is not only in use in the database, but even being rendered too (no
> > prizes for guessing where!)
> >
> > So lets all be a little less bureaucratic when trying to exclude
> > things from "Map Features", or alternatively return the page to its
> > original use (a useful guide to what tags we use) and take the
> > bureaucracy elsewhere.
> >
> > Cheers,
> > Andy
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > talk mailing list
> > talk at openstreetmap.org
> > http://lists.openstreetmap.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/talk
> >
>
>
> --
> David Dean
> PhD Research Student, RP-SAIVT, QUT
> (me) http://www.davidbdean.com
> (saivt) http://www.bee.qut.edu.au/projects/saivt/
> (post) Room S1102, GPO Box 2434, Brisbane, Australia 4001
> (p) +61 7 3138 1414 (m) 0407 151 912 (f) +61 7 3138 1516
> (CRICOS) 00213J
>


-- 
David Dean
PhD Research Student, RP-SAIVT, QUT
(me) http://www.davidbdean.com
(saivt) http://www.bee.qut.edu.au/projects/saivt/
(post) Room S1102, GPO Box 2434, Brisbane, Australia 4001
(p) +61 7 3138 1414 (m) 0407 151 912 (f) +61 7 3138 1516
(CRICOS) 00213J