Waze Map Editor/Welcome

This is a work in progress, obviously. Please help work this out at: https://www.waze.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=276&t=108515 or to type the right stuff right here.

So you want to be a waze editor? You are about to join a community working together to improve wazers' drives by improving the Waze map. If you've seen the slightly-out-of-date video, you've figured out that you have the power to tremendously improve wazers' commutes. To do that, just start simple, learn the basic principles, and connect with the community.

Waze is an app that helps its users avoid traffic while navigating to their destinations. It relies on a map suitable for a small smart-phone screen. It needs a map that accurately represents where motor vehicles can drive, is simple and uncluttered, and retains the road segments with the traffic data. These three basic principles of map editing are usability, simplicity, and retention. Keep that in mind and get started!

Your first editing session

• If you haven't already, watch the tutorial videos at waze.com/editor. They are a little out of date, but still introduce some of the basic skills you'll be using.
• Try out some of these skills. Choose practice mode at waze.com/editor (log out if you have to) .Try out what you learned in the video. For the things that look different, see the Editing_manual, especially Creating and editing road segments.
• Ready? Log in and open chat . Send "Good Morning. This is my first time editing!". Experienced editors will be very glad to talk to you before you make your first edit.
• You might have come here to fix a problem you had while wazing. Most problems are easy to fix, but there are some things you should ask about before you try:
  1. Delete roads -- that deletes traffic data.
  2. Create parking lots or area places -- there are good reasons not to do this.
  3. Add lots of roads or lanes in parking lots -- that confuses waze and clutters the map.
  4. Make changes to major roads and their on-ramps or turn lanes.
• What is safe to do your first time out? Correct spellings, Check road direction (one-way or two way), check whether turns are allowed or not. If you have recently "paved" a road using the app, you can confirm the road to make it show up in the app.
• Ask a more experienced editor to check your work. Ask a level 4 or 5 editor or an area manager if you can find one. Highlight the object you just edited and share a permalink to it.
  • Ask in chat for help checking your work on your first edit.
  • If you can't find anyone free in chat, PM your area manager. How to find the area manager? How to send a PM?on the wiki (how to do that?)

After your first editing session

• Check your forum personal messages. You may have a welcome message from another waze editor.
• Check the email you used to register with waze. You'll get a notification there if anyone sends you a new PM, or if you get any other kind of notification from waze.
• Come back to editor chat and ask lots of questions.
• Check your work
  • Good tools for checking your own work
    • WME validator
    • The letter Z
    • Color Highlighter
• Start reading the wiki
• Using the forums