JOSM Plugins

Reviewed 2015-07-14

As you become more advanced in your editing techniques, you may want to use additional JOSM features to improve your mapping skills. JOSM allows you to install numerous plugins, which add extra functionality to the software.

In this section we will take a look at how to install plugins, and some of the most useful plugins that are available.

Installing Plugins

Any time you want to install a new plugin, go to Edit > Preferences and click on the Plugins tab.

Plugins

  • If you don’t see a list of available plugins, click Download List.
  • To install a plugin you simply must check the box next to it and click OK at the bottom.
  • Lastly, with some versions of JOSM you may have to restart JOSM when you install new plugins.

Some of our favorite plugins are:

  1. buildings_tools: If you draw a lot of buildings, this will make the process faster and easier

  2. DirectUpload: If you collect a lot of GPS tracks and would like to save them on the OSM database, this plugin makes it easy.

  3. editgpx: If you want to upload GPS tracks from a Garmin device, you might need this plugin. OSM won’t accept GPS tracks that have been saved on an external memory card in a Garmin, but this plugin can correct the files so they can be uploaded.

  4. fieldpapers: This plugin lets you load scanned Field Papers into JOSM.

  5. imagery_offset_db: This plugin lets you cooperate with other mappers who find that the Bing satellite imagery is a little bit misaligned. This issue is covered in more detail in a later chapter.

  6. print: Adds a Print function, in case you would like to make quick printouts of an area, that don’t need to look very good.

  7. utilsplugin2: Adds many additional tools and menus to JOSM for advanced users. This is covered in more detail in the next chapter

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