[OSM-talk] Think before you bot

[davespod]

This is just a general plea to those using bots. Please use your immense
powers with extreme caution. There seems to me to have been an increase in
bot edits lately, and some of them are becoming very bold. 

I've seen "shop=pet_supplies" changed to "shop=pet" and some similar
examples of late, that seem to me to be a bit too bold (though I've not
requested most of them be reverted, because I don't feel bold enough to
categorically state they are wrong). 

I've just seen an edit changing all amenity=retirement_home to
amenity=nursing_home. There is a difference (nursing is always available in
a nursing home - it's even documented on the wiki!). The author of the bot
was very quick to respond and is about to revert, when I contacted him, so
all credit to him. But I would like to urge all bot-inclined folk to stop
and think _before_ you bot. Before you make bold assumptions about what
mappers meant by using an unusual tag, try checking with some of them first.
(Even if you believe it is wrong to use tags without putting them in the
wiki, you will be creating incorrect data if you change them to "approved"
tags with different meanings!) 

In other words, follow:

http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Automated_Edits/Code_of_Conduct

Thanks

David
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