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by devnill 4324 days ago
I really want to like OSM, but the default UI is really holding me back. Even with its limitations, Google maps looks great out of the box. Open Street Maps is downright ugly.

Aesthetics is a huge selling point, especially when used for business, and I can't help but think that its the factor that is holding OSM back from prime time.
2 comments
stephen_g 4324 days ago
Mapbox are killing it with awesome OSM renders. Their 'Mapbox Streets' you can get if you use their API is amazing (better in some ways than Google Maps) and they also have a quite nice open source style called 'OSM Bright' that you can use on your own render server.

I would like the default style on OSM.org to be a bit nicer, but the problem is that that site is designed more for editors than users - the point of that map is to try and show as much info as possible - half the battle to get a really good looking map is getting rid of information you don't need to show.

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clockwerx 4324 days ago
This is changing too, with the move to cartocss. Follow the github repo perhaps!
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seren 4324 days ago
The default layer in OSM is not optimized for the best possible user experience, it is primarily the front end of an editing tool. It has to be useful for mappers first. It is why it looks rather crowded and slightly unpleasant.

If you want to "consume" OSM data, you better find an app or site using the best rendering for your use case. (cycling, trekking, accessibility, etc). OSM is 'just' a database.

I am not saying your wrong, but it is a common misunderstanding that OSM is an open equivalent to Google Maps. It is more a common data source for Google Maps competitor. Where you're right in your assessment is that there might be currently no prominent apps using OSM as its source.

See the following list if you find something nicer :

http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/List_of_OSM_based_Service...

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