IRC meetings: Mapping Techniques, Tips and Tricks
We used to have a regular IRC meeting on the subject of Mapping Techniques, Tips and Tricks, held on the second Tuesday of each month at 21:00 GMT (22:00 CET/MEZ) at irc.oftc.net channel #osm. There hasn't been one of these scheduled since January 2007, but there's no reason why we shouldn't do more, if they are helpful. It is for newbies (and more experienced OSMers) who want to compare notes and learn more about the process of turning a base gps track into OSM map data suitable for further use.
The meeting is aimed at those people who may be new to OSM and who want to go out in the rain (or sun) with a GPS unit, record tracks, set down nodes and line segments using the applet or an off-line editor, mark up nodes, segments and ways with additional tagging, and produce meaningful maps at the end. It's an opportunity for new people to learn and for those who've already tried it to share their experiences, compare notes and maybe learn some tips and tricks from other OSMers.
The scope of the meetings will include:
- collecting gps tracks
- creating and tagging segments and ways
- how to represent roundabouts, junctions and other features
- what tags to use for what
- the use of historical mapping information
- rendering
- tricks and tips
To avoid getting bogged down in well trodden territory the scope will not include the following unless directly relevant to the above topics:
- Features of GPS units
- OSM database, server, performance, etc
- editing tools
- licensing, copyright and all that stuff
- non-existent/future features
Some of the more experienced OSMers will usually be there to share their wisdom and experiences. We hope you can join us.
Next Scheduled Meeting
The next scheduled meeting will be... whenever someone would care to schedule it. Originaly we did it on the second Tuesday of each month at 21:00 GMT (22:00 CET/MEZ)
Connecting to the channel
- Those familiar with IRC, connect to #osm on irc.oftc.net
- If you are unfamiliar with IRC, you can connect with a Java-enabled web browser here http://files.dixo.net/osmchat/ (unofficial page maintained by User:Lordelph)
- If connecting with a web browser you can change your screen name by typing something like /nick YourNameHere
Logs of Previous Meetings
You can read the logs of previous meetings here.
