Editing features using the Javascript Editor
The Server Component of the ArcGIS Editor for OSM allows you to edit features in OSM by submitting changes through an ArcGIS Server feature service. This feature service can be consumed by a variety of clients. One of those clients is a Javascript Editor provided by the Server Component as a sample editor. This topic discusses how to use the Javascript Editor to edit OpenStreetMap.
The features that are supported for editing are shown to the left of the Javascript Editor in the Feature List. You can use the search field on the top to filter the feature list for features of interest. For example, if you are looking for the stopsign feature, you could enter the term 'stop' and click 'Search', and the Feature List will show features that have the term 'stop' in their name. You can also locate a feature in the list by scrolling down the list of features.
Once you've located what type of feature you'd like to add, click on the feature. You will notice that the selected feature will darken in the Feature List. This means that its active, and if you click on the map, that feature will be added. To deactivate the feature, just click it again in the Feature List.
After selecting a feature type that you want to edit, you add the feature by clicking on the map. To add a point, just click once where the point should be located. To add a line, click where you want the line to begin, and then click again to add vertices to the line. Doubleclick to complete the line. To add a polygon, click where you want the first corner of the polygon to be, and then click to create additional nodes in your polygon. Doubleclick to close the polygon. After the feature has been added, a dialog appears that shows you some information about the feature. This information can be changed. Save changes simply by making edits to the field and closing the dialog.
To add another feature, return to the Feature List and select the next feature type you want to add.
You can also edit existing features that are in the extent of the feature service. To edit existing features, click the feature. If it is a point, you can drag the feature to a new location. If it is a line, you can add vertices or change existing vertices to determine where the line goes. If it is a polygon, you can add vertices and drag them to redefine the shape of the polygon, or drag existing vertices to new locations. Once you are done editing, doubleclick to close the edit session on that feature.
By pressing the 'Ctrl' key while clicking, you can enable snapping to other features in the feature layer in the map. This is particularly useful when editing line features.
To delete a feature in the feature service extent, click on it to select it. A blue dialog box appears. If you scroll to the bottom of the dialog box, there is a 'delete' button. Click the delete button, and the feature will be deleted.
Edits through the feature service make changes to two datasets. The first is the underlying feature dataset upon which the feature service is based. These edits are made immediately as soon as you complete the edit. The second is a change to the OpenStreetMap data. Edits will only be synchronized with OSM if synchronization was enabled when the service was created (see [ArcGIS] for how to create the feature service). This synchronization with OSM is set to occur at specific intervals. When it occurs, your edits are published to OpenStreetMap, and other edits to the area that others users may have made are transferred back to your edit session. If you and someone else are editing the same feature at the same time, the first one uploaded to OSM is the one that is maintained. This is consistent with how most editors to OSM handle feature editing conflicts.