Potlatch, the Online Editor

Potlatch is an editor for OSM data. It is recommended for beginners. To use it, you first must sign in or register (see the top right of the Potlatch screen for the "log in" and "sign up" links). Then, to start, navigate to a map location on www.openstreetmap.org and click on the 'Edit' tab along the top of the screen.

There are several places to get help about using Potlatch:

• The online help of potlatch itself
• These video screencasts on how to use OSM and Potlatch.
• Potlatch/Primer

Some tips

• It is important to allow data to load, before presuming it isn't there. A relatively common mistake is to duplicate data by adding, before it's clear what's already been added.
• Be sure to check if something is where it is for a reason before shifting it to a seemingly better location.
• At the bottom left of the editing page, the centre bottom button allows you to view GPS data. Shortcut 'G'.
• Shift-click anywhere on a way to add a node.
• Click on a way, then click on any node on the way to select that node. You can now move it by simply dragging it.
• Shift-click on a node to start a new way. This is helpful for joining roads.
• To delete a node, select the way, then select a node as above, then press DELETE.
• To copy attributes from a previously-selected way, press 'R'. This is good for adding speed limits to a way that someone else has added previously, e.g. "maxspeed=60".
• To extend a way, select this way, click the node at the end from which you would like to extend, then click for each node to go ahead with the route of the way. Set new nodes or snap to a node of an existing way by moving over the node (it will be highlighted blue). To finish a way, press ENTER. Repeat the attributes from the previously-selected way as described above.
• Select a node to drag it. Save the changes as described above.
• Pressing D will allow you to see GPS traces more clearly.

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