Intro

This speedy tutorial will thief you make a meaningful publication to OpenStreetMap (OSM) successful little than 15 minutes. By the end, you will person added an charismatic website tag to a adjacent shop aliases amenity. Soon after, your publication will beryllium ingested into dozens of free OSM-based services, helping group worldwide.

Why a website tag? Once a spot successful OSM has a website tag, it becomes measurement easier to find different adjuvant info astir that place. Nearly each place’s charismatic website has info astir its phone, opening_hours, email, and other tags. So adding a website tag is simply a awesome spot to get started.

Got your stopwatch out? Ready, set, go!

1. Create an OSM account

Sign up for a free OSM relationship and past corroborate your email.

2. Download and Run JOSM

Download JOSM (~365 MB) for your circumstantial operating strategy and past tally it.

JOSM, the Java OSM editor app, is simply a powerful instrumentality for querying and editing OSM data. While simpler in-browser editors exist, JOSM offers plugins that make your edit arsenic speedy and easy arsenic possible.

3. Download OSM Data

JOSM's Download sheet pinch an area of liking selected

  1. Press Ctrl+Shift+↓ (or ⌘+Shift+↓ connected Mac) to unfastened the Download dialog
  2. Determine your area of liking (AOI). It should beryllium location you’re acquainted with, nary larger than a fewer metropolis blocks.
  3. Locate your AOI connected the map. You tin cookware the representation pinch ctrl+click dragging and zoom successful by scrolling.
  4. Click and resistance to create a container astir your AOI
  5. Click ⬇️ Download. If this fails, your AOI was astir apt excessively large. Choose a smaller AOI and effort again.

4. Filter Irrelevant OSM Data

Unfiltered OpenStreetMap information for an area of interest

Filtered OpenStreetMap information for an area of interest

Now we’ll select the OSM information to only show shops and amenities that don’t person a website.

  1. Find the Filter sheet connected the correct broadside of the screen
  2. Click the + icon to unfastened the Filter dialog
  3. Copy/paste the pursuing query into the Search string matter field
    name=* ((amenity=* "addr:housenumber"=*) | shop=*) -website=* -"contact:website"=*
  4. Click Submit filter
  5. Check E, uncheck H, and cheque I successful the Filter panel. You should now only spot the applicable places successful your AOI.

5. Set Up the Website Wizard Plugin

The Plugins sheet successful JOSM's Preferences panel

  1. Press F12 (or ⌘+, connected Mac) to unfastened JOSM’s Preferences dialog
  2. Click the 🧩 puzzle piece icon connected the near broadside to unfastened the Plugins config
  3. Click ⬇️ Download list
  4. Scroll down the database of plugins until you spot 🌐 WebsiteWizard
  5. Check its checkbox
  6. Click OK to instal it

6. Search for an Official Website

Website Wizard demo hunt successful the JOSM editor

  1. Click the 🌐 icon connected the near broadside of the surface to show the 🌐 Website Wizard sheet connected the correct broadside of the screen
  2. Type your AOI’s metropolis and/or vicinity into Website Wizard’s Search Prefix matter field
  3. Click a shop aliases amenity successful your AOI
  4. Click Search to unfastened DuckDuckGo successful your default browser pinch the query autofilled arsenic the Search Prefix + the place’s name
  5. Determine if immoderate of the hunt results correspond the official website for your place. Do NOT usage hunt results for societal media profiles, reappraisal sites, aliases different business aggregators. When successful doubt, don’t usage it. If you don’t find one, conscionable repetition steps 3 to 5 pinch different spot successful your AOI.
  6. Copy/paste the official website URL into the Website URL matter field
  7. Click Save. If you make a mistake, you tin ever property ctrl+z (⌘+z connected Mac) to undo it.

7. Upload Your Changeset

JOSM's Upload sheet pinch our changeset's info

  1. Press Ctrl+Shift+↑ (or ⌘+Shift+↑ connected Mac) to unfastened the Upload dialog
  2. Type Add website to <city and/or neighborhood> shops and amenities successful the matter section branded Provide a little comment…
  3. Select study successful the dropdown branded Specify the information source…
  4. Click Upload Changes, which will unfastened OSM successful your browser
  5. Enter your OSM credentials
  6. Click Log In
  7. Click Authorize to let JOSM to create the changeset for you

Conclusion

🎉🎊🥳 Congratulations- you conscionable made OSM a small spot amended for everyone! Plus you sewage a preview of immoderate of the cool things you tin do pinch JOSM and OSM data.

So what next?

You could support going and adhd a website tag to each spot successful your AOI. For example, I quickly added 66 caller website tags successful Seattle’s Wallingford vicinity successful this changeset.

Or you could modify the select to show places successful your AOI pinch a website tag but nary telephone tag. Then you could adhd the telephone tag based connected info from the website.

Or you could dispersed the connection astir OSM and Website Wizard! The United States unsocial has much than 1 cardinal shops. So if we want to put them each connected the map, we’ll request to get galore much group to help.

No matter what’s next, consciousness proud for pushing OSM a small person toward becoming the world’s top map!