OpenStreetMap is a planet-scale database of tagged geographic features. There are three types of OpenStreetMap entities:
When we want to select part of OSM to use in our own projects, we must select:
The Export Tool provides two facilities for defining Tag Filters and Key Selections.
The tag tree is the simplest way to get started selecting features.
Each Parent Checkbox filters the data to a category of features, also including relevant tags.
Each parent checkbox can expanded, and individual Child Checkboxes can be selected to further filter down the data.
The Infobox on the right shows detailed information about the tags and filters specified by the hovered checkbox.
The Tag Tree generates YAML, so you can preview the YAML document created by switching tabs.
If you have suggestions for categories to add to the Tag Tree, please comment on this Google Spreadsheet. The HOT Team will update the Tag Tree periodically based on user requests.
YAML can be defined via the "Select Features" tab when creating an export. This can be edited inline or copy-pasted from a local file on your computer. Please note that YAML is whitespace-sensitive. For more information on the YAML format, see the documentation: YAML Specification.
YAML can be defined and saved for future re-use via the Configurations page. It's useful to create one Configuration for a project which is then used on all exports related to that project. Give your Configuration a name and description that will make it discoverable by other mappers. Unchecking the "Public" checkbox will make your Configuration only visible to yourself. Notably, Configurations can be edited, so this is useful for evolving a feature selection during the course of a project, e.g. adding additional key selections.
Saved Configurations can be selected via the "Stored Configuration" option on the Select Features tab when Creating an Export. Use the Search bar to find configurations related to your project.
Example YAML configurations are available in the osm-export-tool-python repository.