An Introduction to OpenStreetMap and Paper Mapping (2011 Software Freedom Day)

An Introduction to
OpenStreetMap

Yuwei Lin
Lecturer in Future Media
School of Media, Music and Performance
University of Salford

Software Freedom Day 17 September 2011 | Yuwei Lin | http://www.ylin.org

Psalter Map (1260)


Desceliers' World Map (1550)


Politics of Maps
● What information was recorded on a map?
● Who made/drew the map?
● Whom was the map made for?
● Maps produced by the rich, the powerful, and to
demonstrate certain views from certain
dominant cultures (e.g., religions, empires)
● More info - BBC4's The Beauty of Maps
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/beautyofmaps/index.s


Cartography 2.0
- possibility of reclaiming and remapping the
world


OpenStreetMap as Cartography 2.0
● Open Source technologies + free / open access
mapping data and geographical information
● User-generated and user-participatory
● A wiki map that gives users freedom to create,
update, distribute, copy, modify, read, and re-
distribute the mapping data and technologies
● Customisable and extensible
● Ideally, everyone can make maps for their own
needs!


OpenStreetMap Community History
● 2004 July, founded by Steve Coast
● 2006 April, a foundation was established to encourage the
growth, development and distribution of free geospatial data and
provide geospatial data for anybody to use and share.
● 2006 December, Yahoo confirmed that OpenStreetMap could use
its aerial photography as a backdrop for map production.
● 2007 July, the 1st The State of the Map conference was held
● Number of users to date 341630
http://www.openstreetmap.org/stats/data_stats.html
http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Stats
● http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/History


Achievements of OpenStreetMap
● Haiti and “Crises mapping” / Emergency mapping
/ Humanitarian mapping
● Disability – mapping for the blind
● Cycling Maps (Open Cycle Map, Cambridge) –
perspective different from drivers' ones (or
walkers' maps, mountaineers' maps)
● Overlaying data onto maps (e.g., tree data, open
public information, locations of voting stations,
poll results, crime data)


WikiProject Haiti


OSM for the Blind
● http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OSM_for_the_bli
● http://www.blind.accessiblemaps.org/
Software and maps for the blind is
usually expensive and also outdated.
The blind community can help
themselves update the maps.


Open Data & Maps


Locative Media
● http://www.maxamundo.com/cms/index.php
● Geo-referenced information, geo retailing,
location-based


Technical implications
● Open source – both the map and software are never finished
products; they are perpetual beta (always under testing and
improvement)
● Fix the problems as you spot them.
● User friendly tools such as Potlatch, the web-based map
rendering interface is important for less tech-savvy people
● Transparency
● User-led innovation
● Democratic design, public engagement and participation
● Customisation


Cultural Implications
● POI (Points of interests)
● You can define what is important (to be included in the maps) and how
to name a place / a town
● Encouraging local cultures and creativity
● Visualise and/or organise your own content on a map using free / open
content
● Preserving local cultures (documenting local names, indigenous names
)
● Collaboration (peer production), not just competition
● Acknowledgement, no plagiarism
● No pirate software – use free software
● Technologies are not black boxes; they can be opened up and
reconfigured.


Economic Implications
● Cheaper/Gratis maps
● Maps are free to be used → no need of
acquiring permission
● Lots of different business models built on OSM:
e.g., Bing, AOL, Ito, CloudMade
● New business models built on open content,
open data and open source technologies


Educational Implications
● Improve one's geospatial and computing literacy
● Knowing your neighbourhood better (Community engagement)
e.g., map the school, map the students' homes, map local monuments
and POIs (e.g., public telephone boxes)
● Relevant to the students → Can do at home after training & Self
motivating
● Good preparation prior to class important – so many details need
attention (e.g., health & safety regarding field trips, making map prints
from walkingpapers.org, school computers need updating, installing
Firefox, GPS did not work, performance problems with the OSM site,
Login Process to Mapzen )


Social Implications
● Building communities (a global OSM and many
local communities)
● Mapping parties (how to best organise mapping
parties)
● Social gatherings
● Mutual learning and knowledge exchange (glo-
cal)
● Memory sharing (memory of a place, of a story)


A Map Inspired by Free Software

● Freedom ● Diversity
● Openness ● Democracy
● Networking ● Equality
● Collaboration ● Mutuality


Conclusion
● It's your Map. Get involved!


Devices for Mapping
● GPS (Global Positioning System)
● GPS-enabled devices e.g., GARMIN, TOMTOM,
PIONEER AVIC, MIO, NAVMAN, MAGELLAN,
Google Earth, GPS Exchange, LG Electronics,
Blaupunkt, More under development
● Digital camera
● Digital recorder for audio mapping
● Smart phones
● Mapping papers + a pen

Walking Papers
● Print maps, draw on them, scan them back in and help
OpenStreetMap improve its coverage of local points of
interests and street detail. Walking Papers is a product of
Stamen Design's Michal Migurski.
● There are two ways to edit OpenStreetMap using this
scanned map as a guide. 1) If you prefer to use the
advanced OSM editor JOSM, check out the JOSM
WalkingPapers Plugin. 2) You can also edit OpenStreetMap
on the web with the web-based OSM editor Potlatch. You’ll
need to log in with your OpenStreetMap account to do any
editing in an interactive editing window with your scanned
map in the background for a guide. .


Paris, FR
Print map of the
area surrounding
48°51'24"N,
2°16'22"E Muette
Sud, Paris, Ile-de-
France, FR,
France, created on
2 Sep. 2011 with a
print ID t757rh7p


Paris, FR (print map created on 02-
09-11 with a print ID 86rqnmp5)


Bremen, DE
Print map of the
area surrounding
53°04'28"N,
8°47'49"E
Altstadt, Bremen,
HB, DE, Germany,
created on 2 Sep.
2011 with a print
ID l4h47d5n


An annotated
scanned map
This scanned
Map covers the
area near
6°16'12"N,
75°37'37"W San
Cristóbal,
Antioquia,
Colombia
(uploaded 25 Aug
2011)


Annotating house
numbers
An annotated scanned map

номера домов, названия
улиц

Covers the area near
53°27'39"N, 56°01'59"E
Ishimbay, Bashkortostan,
Russia
Uploaded 25 Aug 2011


`


Point/Place of Interests (POI)
● POIs are places where you'd like to visit. Along with other information (e.g.,
description, address), each POI has a named set of coordinates which refer to a
specific point on the earth – made up of an intersection between a latitude
number and longitude number.
● Why are POIs important?
● POIs help you to record, present and locate information on a map
● POIs represent your interests, your preferences, your memories, your identities
● Why creating your own POIs?
● POIs information missing, incorrect or out-of-date
● Most POI data generic
● To ensure accuracy and adequate representation of the locations of stuffs (things,
monuments, attractions, restaurants, services...)
● How to record POIs?
● Standards and agreements on terms → Compatibility
● Privacy issue - where you've been, what you've created, what you're interested...


What POIs can you create?
● Favourite places – Share your favourite spots (restaurants, parks, pubs,
shopping, cafe, tourists attractions,…almost anything!)
● Bank/Cash machines – Ever have trouble finding a bank/cash machine
that is from your bank?
● Post Offices
● Gas/Petrol Stations – Have a credit card with one of the gas stations
you use? On the road, you often have no idea where your preferred gas
station chain is located.
● Car Park – with opening times and fares (if street parking, rules)
● Benches in a park, plants,
● Traffic and Construction – When driving, get a heads up on locations of
speed and red light cameras. Find out construction zones and avoid
them!


What can you use POIs for?
If you are a business owner -
● Sales & merchandising targets – provide specific easy-to-download
sales locations for your reps to visit and comment on
● Availability – set targets for your reps to expand product availability
● Tourism – promote tourist locations and expand the health of your
partners and economy
● Real Estate – help your clients locate properties with ease
● Business Visitors – set out a trade or facilities visit to key company
or competitive locations
● Geo-retailing (Anonymous Direct Marketing (ADM))
For everyday use
● Going on vacation? Browse through POIs for some great ideas!
● Events – Look up the locations of the places where events are held.


An Introduction to OpenStreetMap and Paper Mapping (2011 Software Freedom Day)

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