[OSM-talk] Role of the Wiki

[Martin Koppenhoefer]

2012/12/5 Russ Nelson <nelson at crynwr.com>:
> Roland Olbricht writes:
>  > In general: the wiki is only descriptive, but often it sounds normative.
>  >
>  > It is a good idea to
>  > - use tags or tag keys that have been used quite often
>  > http://taginfo.openstreetmap.org/


+1, but only for what they are defined, the mere existence of a tag
doesn't automatically imply it was invented for the feature you are
going to map. If your feature doesn't fit perfectly with the
description of a tag it is better to not use this tag.


>  > - search the wiki for keywords of the thing to tag
>  > - read the relevant pages and take them as advice, not as a law


+1


>  > - if the pages don't make sense to you or don't match, ask at
>  > http://help.openstreetmap.org


and or on the mailing lists (i.e. tagging ML)


>  > - add an additional, new tag if the often used tags don't describe the
>  > situation appropriately


+1


> My rule of thumb is:
>  1) If the wiki describes a tag, tag according to the description.
>  2) If the wiki is silent on a tag, then feel free to add it.
>  3) If the wiki describes something, and you think there's a better
>     way, then feel free to tag that way, but follow rule #1 and #2.
>  4) But never change what the wiki says, because the people who came
>     before you followed rules #1, #2, and #3.


+1
I'd like to add that when in doubt or something looks strange in the
wiki it is often useful to have a look at the history of the page:
maybe someone recently introduced contradicting or otherwise strange
advice that isn't in line with the established meaning of a tag (or
way to map). This happens from time to time, and usually it gets
reverted or otherwise sorted out after a short time, but maybe you
just found the page between those 2 actions ;-)

cheers,
Martin