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

I have a current .shp file that the city uses for it's mapping. Is it okay to delete the current boundary in OSM and upload the new one? I've been moving nodes to bring the current OSM boundary into conformance with this updated one. Thank goodness the City is a small one. If moving nodes is the safest way to update date, I will continue. But I would like to know if I would cause problems or would be crossing some kind of policy line by deleting the old boundary and just uploading the new one. I realize I would have to detach nodes to avoid ripping out whole streets.

This question is marked "community wiki".

asked 13 Aug '11, 03:29

QBL's gravatar image

QBL
1111
accept rate: 0%


When your shapefile has more details or is more exact then the already existing boundary, there is no reason to delete the old one to achieve better data.

Because the old boundary is possibly an element of one ore more relations, or even streets and ways are elements of the boundary.

And: As a matter of data amount, especially of the whole raw OSM data covering the planet, it can be always better not do delete old data and replace it with new, but to edit the existing ones. Because old Data is still stored in the history data.

A proper way to benefit from your new shapefile can be to load it into any editor that can handle shapefiles, but there in an extra layer. Then you can use this layer as a transparent overlay to adjust the already existing one.

Have a look at shapefile to see which editors or GIS programs can do that.

PS: do you really have the permission to use that shapefile for OSM purposes, according to the license that we are using and that is to come (ODBL)? (Please edit your question and add information if you have)

permanent link

answered 13 Aug '11, 06:53

stephan75's gravatar image

stephan75
12.6k556210
accept rate: 6%

edited 13 Aug '11, 08:19

Follow this question

By Email:

Once you sign in you will be able to subscribe for any updates here

By RSS:

Answers

Answers and Comments

Markdown Basics

  • *italic* or _italic_
  • **bold** or __bold__
  • link:[text](http://url.com/ "title")
  • image?![alt text](/path/img.jpg "title")
  • numbered list: 1. Foo 2. Bar
  • to add a line break simply add two spaces to where you would like the new line to be.
  • basic HTML tags are also supported

Question tags:

×199
×92
×87

question asked: 13 Aug '11, 03:29

question was seen: 5,565 times

last updated: 13 Aug '11, 08:19

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