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Quick Start Guide

Basics

Thank you for your interest in improving the Waze client experience in Namibia

Before you blindly start editing, make sure you look at the Tips for successful editing.

To get started, make sure you are up to speed with the basics of how to use the WME. Editing is a time consuming activity, so it could be handy to use the Keyboard Shortcuts (by pressing "?" while using WME shows a panel thereof).

Logging in

Be sure to select the appropriate server based on the part of the world you are editing. For Namibia select under the Environment drop down, the "World" setting from the setting tab on the left of the screen. The URL in the browser should look similar to: https://www.waze.com/editor

If prompted to login, use the same username and password as you do on the Waze client app and the rest of the Waze website.

Copyrighted Material

Consulting a map book or looking up the name of the road should be ok, but do not trace roads from Google maps or Google aerial images. In areas which have been gated off, Google is not always accurate anyway. Please ensure you read the section on external sources of data as using these may infringe copyrights. It is preferable to use Geographic Information System (GIS) information supplied by local authorities, should this be available.

Join us in Slack

wazeinternational.slack.com

Invite Link

Join us in the #namibia channel

The Namibian editors community use Slack to keep in contact with other Waze editors. It focuses on text communications with the ability to share images and files. It includes special notification options to keep you informed when topics come up for which you are interested.

It also allows for direct communication with senior editors, making it easier and quicker to request "Down Locks" or "Up Locks" as well as relying on them for expert editing knowledge.

Namibian Road Classification

The following is background information to explains the Namibian road numbering system, road type, surface finish and route numbering and how "Road type" is named in WME. In short Namibian roads/streets are named from higher order to lowest as follows:

-Route name (if a route name is known enter it as "street name" in WME)

-Road name (if a road name is known enter it as "street name" in WME, or alternative name when part of a route)

-Street name (if street name is known enter it as "street name" in WME) - Common Abbreviations

-unnamed (if street name is not known select none checkbox) - IMPORTANT

Trunk Roads

• The most important roads, which connect main centres in the country with centres in neighbouring countries; proclaimed with a road reserve of 60m.
• Signposted with TRxxxx on the particular section, example T0101 or T0501
• Entered as Alt name in WME, forms parts of A or B routes
• Route name signposted

Main Roads

District Roads

Farm Roads

Numbered Routes

A - Routes

B -Routes

C - Routes

Namibian Regional and Trans Continental Highways

Highways

Freeway

Major Highway

Minor Highway

Ramps

Streets

Primary Street -

Street

Service Road

Other roads

Dirt Roads/4x4 Trails

Private Road

Private Road

Non drivable road

Editing

Toll Roads

Setting Directionality

Setting Turn Restrictions

Controlling Turn Instructions

Setting Road Levels

Road Names & Types

Naming the Road

Country

City

Name

Alternate name

Cardinals

Examples:

Ramps

Acceptable suffix abbreviations

Tips for successful editing.

(not updated for Namibia yet - 08/072020)

FAQ

A lot of Frequently Asked Questions are already covered in the current FAQ.

Glossary

The Glossary explains some of the abbreviations and terminology used in the Waze world.

Final words

Just have fun and happy Wazing. Hope to see you on the roads soon!

1. Get acquainted with the basics. The Wiki is a reference for both new and experienced editors alike.
   1. Understand how Waze calculates routes
   2. Watch the intro video
   3. Learn to create and edit street segments
   4. Read the Map Editing Quick-start Guide
   5. Know and follow the best map editing practices
2. Always keep things as simple as possible. Do not draw all roads exactly as they appear. Dual laned roads causes a lot of complications and errors.
3. Before you connect or disconnect any roads to/from existing junctions, ensure that you verify the existing turn restrictions that are in place for all the connected segments.
4. Drawing two roads so that they touch, does not automatically mean Waze will route from the one to the other. To allow routing, make sure they form a new junction (round node) if you drag them together. A square geometry node is not a connection. To make your life easier, make sure you always override the "Enable all turns" after creating a junction. Highlight the junction and press 'Q' and then 'W'. This means you can then restrict just the turns that are not possible.
5. If you drag two segments together and they refuse to create a connection node, you can try connecting them by dragging one slightly past the other so they cross, and then selecting both segments using the 'Control+Left-Click' method. This would usually bring up the intersection popup where they overlap, allowing you to connect them if you click on it. Click on the extra piece sticking over, and delete that.
6. When mapping new areas, always verify turn restrictions after you have created all of the roads. For best results, zoom out to the 100m/500ft zoom level and press the 'Shift-Z' key. This will highlight any turns that are not allowed using the normal Red Arrows around junctions. You can then verify that the correct restrictions are in place by zooming back in to each of the locations where the arrows show up. If they should be allowed, you can select the junction and press the 'Q' and 'W' keys to allow turns. Pressing 'Shift-A' will toggle this functionality on and off.
7. When connecting roads, the 'soft turn restrictions' (not visible in the editor) will automatically allow all valid turns for the connectivity based on road directionality. The 'hard turn restrictions' (visible via the red & green arrows) will be set not to allow any turns to and from the newly connected segment. To ensure that soft turn restrictions do not cause routing problems later on, click on the connection node and press the 'Q' key to disallow all turns for soft and hard turn restrictions. You can then allow each individual turn for each segment by selecting the connected segments in turn. If all turns should be allowed for all directions, press the 'W' key while the junction node is still selected.
8. Do not add new segments into the middle of busy roads. Rather re-use and split a piece from an existing adjacent segment of the same road. This way the existing speed information and history is retained. Adding a new segment with no speed information or history could initially cause some weird routing if the segment goes live on the map. This might then persist until new history is built up for the newly added segment.
9. If you need to move two connected roads far from where they currently are, disconnect them from each other. To do this, click the road, then click and drag both of the junctions where they connect, away from the main junction. As roads cannot be moved with WME while retaining their geometry or layout, you would be better off deleting all the geometry nodes by hovering over them while holding the 'D' key down.
10. To select multiple roads, hold down the 'Control' key while click on the roads.
11. When looking at URs (User Reported problems) or Map Problems, always test existing routing on the Livemap if the problem involves invalid routing. If the problem is not evident, you can always ask for assistance in the Waze Forum. If you cannot work out what the problem is, it might be a small piece of a road underneath. Try moving some of the roads out the way to see if a latent piece of road was left cut off when a junction was added.
12. Some members of the Waze community have written a few helpful scripts that helps identifying problems. Use them to your advantage. A complete up to date list is available at WME Scripts.

Sources: