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I have a couple very related questions: Is there a community consensus on whether users should modify their GPX traces before uploading to OSM ? If yes, what should one do ? There's several filters available for gpsbabel (removing unreliable points and removing duplicate points that may be helpful to clarify the trace for OSM users. (For example, here's one trace - http://www.openstreetmap.org/user/skorasaurus/traces/1253111 where in some areas the trace appears to be very 'bunched together').

asked 17 Jun '12, 16:44

skorasaurus's gravatar image

skorasaurus
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edited 17 Jun '12, 16:44


Since we only use GPS traces as source material (and evidence), you don't need to tidy up your traces before uploading. People who are familiar with the area will be able to spot when the traces are wildly inaccurate, so a certain amount of inaccuracy won't cause a problem. Equally, when multiple traces of the same roads and paths are uploaded, it's easy to see where they coincide and where they don't. Providing yours isn't the only trace in the area, and the only form of suitable source material, and someone unfamiliar with the area doesn't choose to use it to armchair map, it'll be fine.

That said, if you have the time and inclination to remove points with a high Dilution of Precision, it's not going to do any harm, for much the same reasons as above.

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answered 17 Jun '12, 17:43

Jonathan%20Bennett's gravatar image

Jonathan Ben...
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accept rate: 18%

Thanks for the great overview but there's a few instances where I'm uploading traces to areas that do not have any aerial imagery available (besides landsat) and there are few, if any, traces besides mine.

I'm willing to invest a bit of time to figure out how to remove points that do not have good accuracy, but the problem is figuring out what is 'good' and good enough for OSM.

(20 Jun '12, 20:06) skorasaurus

You may want to cut traces before they enter private property, your home, friend's homes or other areas that are not open access. I do not see any need to upload data that is not needed in OSM and only takes up storage space. The "bunched together bits" can some times be good to pinpoint a park bench or other place you stopped at and can see on bing and use check alignment.

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answered 18 Jun '12, 20:33

andy%20mackey's gravatar image

andy mackey
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accept rate: 4%

edited 18 Jun '12, 20:40

I doubt storage space of GPS traces is an issue.

(18 Jun '12, 22:04) scai ♦
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question asked: 17 Jun '12, 16:44

question was seen: 5,190 times

last updated: 20 Jun '12, 20:06

NOTICE: help.openstreetmap.org is no longer in use from 1st March 2024. Please use the OpenStreetMap Community Forum