OM Guru Journey

One of the best choices I’ve made in recent years was joining the Open Mapping Guru program initiated by the HOT Open Mapping Hub Asia Pacific. In 2024, I joined the validation track team. The challenges and tasks given each month are very interesting and help us, as OM Gurus, to make an impact on the community. So far, more than 300 tasks have been validated. However, that’s not all.

My Favorite Challenge

The OM Guru Climate Change Challenge is the peak of this year’s challenges, I must say. At first, I didn’t really pay much attention to the challenge since I saw many great teams out there ready for all the challenges. Until I saw a sub-challenge called the POI’s Mapping challenge. The best part is that for this challenge, I was only asked to map Points of Interest (POIs) in my area using local knowledge. Coincidentally, the area where I live, Bogor City and its surroundings, needed a significant data update. With my relatively high mobility in this area, I really used my local knowledge because I have almost passed through every corner of the city and some main roads I pass almost every week.

Surveying, Skating, Hanging Out

The way I update and gather each POI is basically by maximizing my daily mobility. From taking my wife shopping while observing the surroundings, walking around the mall and making observations and updates on POIs, and my favorite, observing POIs while roller skating at several spots in Bogor City. I don’t specifically set aside time for surveys; instead, every activity I do is essentially a survey, whether passing through main roads, minor roads, narrow alleys, or residential streets. Mostly, I added and updated amenities like place of worship (amenity=place_of_worship), bank (amenity=bank), atm (amenity=atm), cafe and restaurant (amenity=cafe/restaurant), school (amenity=school) and many more.

My Tools?

On my phone, I have the GoMap application for iOS installed, which I often use when going to the mall or a café with my wife while updating POIs in the surrounding area. However, the most powerful tool is the 360 camera that I always carry, especially when inline skating. With the ability to take 360 photos, I can see if there have been changes at certain points on the road because I worry that by the time I get home, I will forget the names of the POIs. With the 360 camera results, I just need to take one photo and then at home, I can simply recheck that one photo, which I can adjust the angle to look around. Sometimes from one 360 photo I can update more than 5 amenities.

Impact

Up to the time of writing this OSM Diary, I have successfully added and updated more than 1000 POIs in the Bogor City area with the help of GoMap, the 360 camera, and some help from StreetView Mapillary. This number will continue to grow. I also received a report from one of the residents in Bogor City through my friend that he was very happy because his child’s school location had been updated and corrected, as online transportation often picked up his child from the wrong location. At least one of the impacts I have made is reducing waiting time for someone waiting for online transportation.

Impression

The challenges given by OM Guru have given me the idea to continue updating in the city where I live using the resources I have. I will keep trying to update POIs while inline skating, especially!