The reputation of a contributor in OpenStreetMap (OSM) plays a significant role, especially when considering the quality assessment of the collected data. Sometimes it’s difficult to make a meaningful statement about a contributor by simply looking at the raw mapping work represented by the number of created objects or used tags. Therefore, it would be really helpful if we would have some additional information about the person who contributes to the project. For example: Does she/he help other contributors? Is her/his work somehow documented or based on one of the “discussed” proposals? Or does she/he work as a lone warrior in the OSM world?
In 2010 I created “How did you contribute to OpenStreetMap?” (HDYC) as a kind of fun side project. Nowadays many people use it to get some detailed information about OSM contributors. Some of you are probably familiar with the “verified” icon used on some celebrity Twitter accounts. I created a similar new feature for the aforementioned HDYC page. If you connect your related OSM accounts, your profile will be marked as “verified”.
What do you have to do to get a verified contributor profile, you ask? First of all, you have to create at least 100 OSM changesets. Secondly, you need a login (username) for the OSM Help Forum, for the common OSM Forum and for the OSM Wiki. Last but not least, you have to list your OSM related accounts on your OSM profile page. After that, you should be able to see your accounts in your HDYC profile and your account will be automatically marked as verified.
Malenki already mentioned his usernames as an example in his profile. He also described it in a tiny OSM diary. Overall this feature is optional. So if you don’t want to “connect” or show your accounts for privacy protection, please don’t mention them on your OSM profile. My script checks the OSM profiles of the latest active OSM contributors every 24h. That’s it.
The HDYC profile now also shows the number of your changeset discussions and, if mentioned in your OSM profile, the page shows your Mapillary account as well.
Notice: If someone is trying to cheat with other people’s accounts, I will blacklist her/his username.
Thanks to maɪˈæmɪ Dennis.
Comments
35 responses to “Verified OpenStreetMap contributor profiles?”
Thank you for adding these enhancements and making me your guinea pig. 🙂
Could we get an alternative method for folks who have zero interest in the forums?
Sure, you can also use your Mapillary and/or Github account.
Sounds like an interesting concept to analyze the community (or at least that part who opt-in). I expect, that at least the senior contributors and evangelists will unlock this feature 🙂
How long will it take, till the OSM user profile is crawled again?
Oh and would it be possible to refer multiple accounts to one person? For example some users have private and company accounts?
The OSM user profiles are parsed every day.
Sorry, this first version “only” supports one account for each service/tool.
When I saw this in Weekly OSM, I thought the feature was going to be about automatic guesses of related OSM accounts, e.g. likely to be controlled by the same human, or may go to the same mapping events together (similar times/places).
I’m not sure how clever that could be, but the feature so-far you’ve implemented makes sense.
`has the following ranks: ` it would be nice to have a percentile e.g top 10% of contributors
Christian, there is always my own table of OSM ranks in case you are curious about the accounts with similar rank, at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ygwiqs1TBTKX-UvKJ58ROdsqfa6W5jYMZguMH79xqHU/edit?usp=sharing
Ben, Thanks. That’s a great resource that I poke at every once in a while. It feels like there is a ranking correspondence with daily editing. Whereas last year I didn’t miss a day editing per my numbers, this year I’ve seen a decline in my ranks on your page because I’ve missed more days mapping. I also like your new “Tiger node/way burndown” graph. Thanks for the interesting data.
Useful feature, but some refinement might be needed. I have not changed my profile page to adhere to some format, but suddenly Andy Allan’s GitHub profile appears under my “related accounts”: http://hdyc.neis-one.org/?nebulon42
Maybe there should be some special formatted block that is parsed and the rest is left untouched?
Thank you very much for your comment. Just changed the parsing of the profile page. Wiki and Github project paths, shouldn’t be parsed anymore.
Hi Pascal. Can you say why the parser runs into troubles at my profile? https://www.openstreetmap.org/user/!i!
Before I added the linklist, parsing the wiki ref worked fine :/
I think everything is fine now, right? Had to delete some wiki information of several contributors. See http://hdyc.neis-one.org/?!i!
Yeah, it’s fine now. Thanks! 🙂
Still doesn’t seem to work for my account: http://osm.org/user/tyr_asd 🙁
As I mentioned, my script only checks OSM profiles of the latest active OSM contributors (24 hours). So I think you should map something 🙂
ps. I updated your HDYC profile.
Oh, right. Thanks!
It didn’t pick up my wiki account, perhaps because I linked to http not https.
It’s the first link it hasn’t picked up, I’ve only just added the list at the bottom. https://www.openstreetmap.org/user/LivingWithDragons/
Although you seem to say you’ve now removed the Wiki account linking anyway?
“Therefore, it would be really helpful if we would have some additional information about the person who contributes to the project. For example: Does she/he help other contributors? Is her/his work somehow documented or based on one of the “discussed” proposals? Or does she/he work as a lone warrior in the OSM world?
I get the idea but the wording is wrong. You have not verified anything. It’s not like the Twitter verification that you are trying to emulate. Your recent work that shows the “Activity calendar” and “Hashtags” is far more interesting that the verification check. I am not sure that it follows that if I have a bunch of accounts that I am a better contributor or my map edits are any better.
Mapillary has changed the URL to user profiles so it isn’t picking up what I just added to my profile. It is now https://www.mapillary.com/app/user/
Well I guess I shouldn’t have used angle brackets there. The comment parser ate the last part of that URL. The user name goes on the end.
Hi ToeBee,
thank you very much. Should be fixed now, see: http://hdyc.neis-one.org/?TooBee
All the best,
Pascal
Dear Pascal,
Thanks a lot for this great tool!!!
I wonder, what is meant by saying “has the following ranks” (row 5) and how it was calculated?
Thank you very much.
Hi Lia,
it’s described here: http://neis-one.org/2010/12/osm-rank/
All the best,
Pascal
OpenStreetCam user profiles example
http://openstreetcam.org/user/LogicalViolinist
would be kind of the same as Mapillary support
Hi James,
thanks for your comment. Done. Check: http://hdyc.neis-one.org/?LogicalViolinist
All the best,
Pascal
+1 Thanks 😀
Hi Pascal, thanks for your great work!!
It would be nice to add the support to national HOT tasking mangers (Italy, Spain, France…): https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OSM_Tasking_Manager#Operational_installations_of_the_Tasking_Manager
Hi dan980, thank you very much for comment. Sorry, but I have to say, that this could be a little bit difficult. Too many different instances … :-/
Hi Pascal,
is there a possibility to add the mapswipe stats from missing maps?
thanks for an answer
Markus
Hi Markus,
it’s already available. See e.g. Joost’s HDYC profile: http://hdyc.neis-one.org/?joost%20schouppe
His OSM profile: http://www.openstreetmap.org/user/joost%20schouppe
All the best,
Pascal
Thanks so much. Couldn’t figure out that one on myself 🙁
You’re welcome! Have to say, that it’s not well documented :-/
Big fan of your tools, please keep up the awesome work. Can we use a local tasking manager link (osmcolorado for me) to get our verified contributor designation? Trying to troubleshoot why mine isn’t getting verified (added links before 2/24/17).
Thank you!
Big fan of your tools, please keep up the awesome work. Can we use a local tasking manager link (osmcolorado for me) to get our verified contributor designation? Trying to troubleshoot why mine isn’t getting verified (added links before 2/24/17).
Thank you!