Potlatch/FAQs
From OpenStreetMap
FAQs
What is Potlatch?
Potlatch is the name for the OpenStreetMap website's built-in editor.
You can find it on the 'Edit' tab of the main website. It uses Adobe Flash, so you will need a Flash Player to use it.
My work hasn't been uploaded to the server. What's happening?
First of all, remember that your work won't show on the main map immediately. The map is only updated once a week.
However, if you've returned to Potlatch and found that your ways are no longer there, it might indeed be the case that they haven't been saved. This can occasionally happen when the OpenStreetMap server is under very heavy load and not able to register all the uploads.
You will generally be alerted when this happens by a flashing '!' symbol at the bottom left of the Potlatch window. If you see this, simply click it, then click 'Retry' to upload the ways again.
Another sign is when the way 'id' (the number identifying each way, displayed at the bottom left under the word 'Way') stays negative. A way is negative when you first draw it in Potlatch, but receives a positive number when it is uploaded. If this number stays negative, the way has not been uploaded.
Why do international (accented) characters come out wrong?
This is a bug in Flash Player for Linux (Windows and Mac are unaffected) - see this report. Until Adobe fixes it, you can copy and paste accented characters from another application (using ctrl-C and ctrl-V).
I've got two ways with the same end point. How do I merge them?
Click one way to select it, then hold Shift while clicking the other.
I want to change the tags of a point at the end of the way. But whenever I click it, a new line appears for me to extend the way.
Click it, but then press Enter to stop drawing the way. You can then change the properties of the point.
I'm pressing a key but nothing's happening!
When you first open Potlatch in your browser, you'll need to click somewhere - anywhere - in the Potlatch area before you can press any keys. Also, while running you might click outside of the Potlatch area which would also stop keyboard input. (It would be a security bug if this could be "fixed"!)
How do I select a way which is hidden "underneath" another one?
This happens if the two ways share the same points - for example, a forest outline and a road along its edge. Just select one of the shared points, and press /. (Do this again if you need to cycle through more than one.)
Displayed ways are too thick: they are obscuring the map at higher zoom levels.
Potlatch makes the ways thicker when you zoom in, to make them easier to click. You can turn this off in the options window (the 'tick' icon).
If this doesn't solve the problem, you might be using an obsolete version of the Adobe Flash Player, such as Flash 7. Upgrade to Flash 8 or 9 and the problem should go away.
FAQs for advanced users
What happens if I merge two ways which have different tags?
The tags from both ways will be brought into the new way. Where they have conflicting values (e.g. one is 'highway: primary' and the other 'highway: secondary'), the two will be combined with a semi-colon ('highway: primary;secondary').
Can I use an open source Flash player?
Unfortunately not at present. Gnash version 0.81 does not yet support all the ActionScript instructions used by Potlatch. However, the Gnash developers are making good progress and actively testing against Potlatch, and we are very optimistic that their great work will help to make it compatible with core Potlatch. (The Yahoo! Flash API is a little more demanding.)
The Gnash project is also looking for developers and would doubtless welcome support.
Can I use Flash on a 64-bit Linux machine?
Try NSPluginWrapper.
FAQs for advanced OSM users
Does Potlatch support relations?
Since march 2008 this is supported. For more information about creating relation take a look at Relations/Multipolygon#Potlatch.
How are Potlatch edits tagged?
Ways and standalone (POI) nodes are tagged as 'created_by=Potlatch v???', with the appropriate version number. Nodes that are part of a way aren't tagged: you can identify them as Potlatch edits by looking for a way written at the same time. Note that Potlatch does not show any 'created_by' and 'edited_by' tags to the user.
Infrequently Asked Questions
What's a potlatch?
Potlatch was the journal of the Lettrist International, psychogeographical pioneers in 1950s France and the predecessors of the Situationist International. They took the name from a Native American custom of gift exchange.
Categories: Potlatch | Editing | Editors
