Talk:Using OS Shapefiles

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Naming shape files

The VectorMap District shape files will rapidly get out of hand. I personally name them with the layer (NFA=NaturalFeature_Area, etc), the OSGB 10km square (octad) and the projection, so something like SK57_NFA_WGS84.shp ... etc. As I use ogr2osm the equivalent OSM XML file will be similarly named. My early experiences with QGIS were compromised by not knowing the projection of the file I was opening.

Descendants (subsets etc) of the base files will also need to be distinguished, particularly if they are used for uploading via JOSM, as they will then include valid planet_osm ids. It is probably worth keeping these in separate directories from the base tile shape and osm files.

To give some idea, a mid-sized English county Nottinghamshire encompasses 45 or so tiles. This is likely to be a reasonable work unit for many people.

Simpler just to load into Merkaartor and use

It's a lot easier just to open or import the relevant shapefiles into a recent (SVN) Merkaartor, and "Force upload" of the features of interest, tagging as you go. This is what I use for adding streams and refining coastlines. No need to mess about reprojecting or anything, just unzip the OpenData archives and off you go...