Caveat: Progress Made! – The map got served…

[This is a cross-post from my other blog.]

[Update 20180923: continued from here]

The OSM “Rails Port” is now running on my server, and I have successfully connected to the api via JOSM and rebuilt my test-version of my planet, Rahet.

It took me an entire week of googling and meditating before I solved the port problem. Ultimately, I was looking in the wrong place for clear documentation about it – I was hoping someone would write about it from the perspective of Rails, but finally I found the documentation that made it possible on the Passenger website, buried in an example. There’s a line that belongs in the apache config file, “PassengerRuby /usr/bin/ruby2.3” (or whatever version).

And that made all the difference.

Here’s the link: MAP. [UPDATE 20210530: that link is broken – the test server is closed down. I am running a “live” planet for multiple users based on this original, at arhet.rent-a-planet.com]

So now you can look around. It’s just the “out-of-the-box” OpenStreetMap website (AKA Rails Port), with some minimal customization where I could find where to do it easily. I’ll continue working on that. I might actually disable the iD and Potlatch editing tools – I always use JOSM, and if it ever reaches a point where I’m allowing or inviting others to edit, I would make JOSM-use a prerequisite, I’m certain. JOSM, with its steep learning curve, seems like it would be a good way to “filter” people on the question of how serious they’re taking a project.

There are a number of features that don’t work. I would like to figure out a way to disable the user sign-up page. That’s a kind of vulnerability for the types of use I’m intending for this set-up. Meanwhile, I’ve disabled in a rather inelegant way by “breaking” the sign-up page (by changing its name inside the appropriate folder on the app/views/user path).

I’m happy.

I’ll write up how I figured out the coastline problem, tomorrow, and begin working on deciding what features to retain versus which to change in the Rails Port (i.e. think about customization).

[Update 20180923: continues here]

Music to map by: Run The Jewels, “Talk To Me.”

CaveatDumpTruck Logo

Caveat: my thoughts are strange

I had some weird dreams. I was in some kind of future-dystopian world where everything was subdivided into these enclosed hive-like spaces, but each space was the size of a city. So you could go from city to city via these doors in the hive walls. And most of the cities were run down, post-apocalyptic places, with gangs of wild children and insane people running things.

So I was trying to find the city where life was tolerable. It was like traversing a scaled-up version Borges' infinite library, but each room, instead of being a small study stocked with books, was a city. This might be a nice conceit for a novel. I'll get right on that.


What I'm listening to right now.

Cold, "Bleed."

Lyrics.

I'm feeling crossed, I take it inside
Burn up the pain, my thoughts are strange
Just like the things I used to know
Just like the tree that fell, I heard it
If art is still inside I feel it

I wanna' bleed, show the world all that I have inside
(I wanna' show you all the pain)
I wanna' scream, let the blood flow that keeps me alive
(I wanna' make you feel the same)

Take all these strings, they call my veins
Wrap them around, every fucking thing
Presence of people not for me
Well I must remain in tune forever
My love is music, I will marry melody

I wanna' bleed show the world all that I have inside
(I wanna' show you all the pain)
I wanna' scream let the blood flow that keeps me alive
(I wanna' make you feel the same)
I said
I wanna bleed
I wanna feel
(Show you all the pain)
I wanna scream
I wanna feel
(Make you feel the same)

Won't you let me take you for a ride
You can stop the world, try to change my mind
Won't you let me show you how it feels
You can stop the world, but you won't change me
I need music
I need music
I need music
To set me free
To let me bleed

[daily log: walking, 7km]

Back to Top