On 21-Jun-08, at 2:23 AM, Sanjay B wrote:
doing some work on it and since they're going to be down, i thought it might be useful to get their inputs on what their plans were, vis a vis not just mapping, but software development, etc. as well, especially as no one had come forth to do the presentation yet. With regards to "why dont you guys do some mapping?" - i think the point is also to address the tools, etc. with which we can do that mapping and see what holes are there to be filled, what tools can normal people use?, apart from just taking out gps devices and uploading tracks .. Just doing the directions to CAMP page today, I had to resort to using an iframe because I couldn't figure out the OSM / OpenLayers Javascript API and the different projections it seemed to use in the limited time I had to put the page up.. w/ regards to the mumbai scene - : P - only time will tell, no?
to put it very briefly, the outline for India as well as most towns, some rivers and major roads have been imported from AND database (a database built by the american CIA). This varies in detail, depending on the CIA's priorities. Our job is to correct the mistakes and fill in the blanks. For this we have several tools:
1. The online editor Potlatch. This can be used in two ways. One - if you have a gps device, you can use Potlatch to trace out the details from your tracks. If you do not have a device, you can use Yahoo satellite imagery to trace features. OSM has permission to use Yahoo imagery and the use is with no strings tied, so the data created is free. The problem of course is how good the images are for your area. For Ooty, the resolution is so poor that even the town cannot be seen. This is true for the whole of Tamilnadu except for Chennai. If you look at chennai you will find excellent detail, most of it done from yahoo imagery with some use of gps tracks for fine tuning. Mysre, Bangalore, a lot of Karnataka, Delhi and Mumbai have very good imagery. So for the older parts of these places, a hell of a lot of work can be done without a gps device. If this work is done, it helps those with devices to concentrate on newer features like recently built flyovers etc. The other day, I was stuck in a meeting and was able to trace the Yamuna river from Delhi upto allahabad and the ganga from there to somewhere in Bihar. I was also able to do most of the Kabini and the Kaveri in the south.
2. JOSM is a java editor for creating and editing maps. It can be used to create maps from gps tracks. It can also be used along with Yahoo imagery for tracing maps as described above.
What needs to be done in Mumbai is to fill in the blanks. And then coordinate those guys with gps instruments to do the fine tuning and the new features.
Err.. anyways - apologies for speaking up there - I honestly have been quite clueless about the OSM/Freemap project for the past year or so - really hope someone can give a good update on it at the meet tho .. would love to be able to / know how to "go do some mapping" ...
http://openstreetmap.org <-------- wiki has details on how to use potlatch and josm. If you need any help just mail the list, I will help you out. Remember the old proverb - 'A road a day keeps the big G away'