CoMaps: The Offline App That Guided Rescuers Without a Signal in Venezuela
When an earthquake struck Venezuela, volunteers and rescue teams faced areas with no cell coverage. CoMaps, an open-source app built on OpenStreetMap data, worked fully offline, guiding responders through the disaster zone. Co-founders Anton Wenemoser and Bastian Greshake Tzovaras explain how the app's weekly map updates, powered by HOT's volunteer mapping, made it a crucial tool for organizations like Techo and the Red Cross, and how the team's vision for community-driven maps is shaping future emergency response.
The best camera is the one you actually have with you, because if the camera just sits at home, you never take any pictures.
- pietervdvn
OpenStreetMap is a great ecosystem - I'm a long term contributor.
Some pointers:
- CoMaps is a fork of Organic Maps, which forked long time ago from Maps.me
- OsmAnd is similar. It has more features but is slower and clunkier
- If you see errors/missing stuff on OpenStreetMap, fix them. You need a free account for this. There are various tools to help out, such as the editor on Osm.org. Beginner-friendly editors are https://MapComplete.org (which has thematic maps; disclaimer: I'm the main dev) and https://streetcomplete.app
- nickspacek
I used this for my family's recent trip in Lisbon and Prague. It worked great! The OSM data was reasonably up-to-date for all of our destinations; I don't remember encountering bad information, even though I often double-checked with other mapping providers (which aren't immune to issues with out-of-date information).
One awesome feature was being able to find "drinking water" while we were walking around. I did come across a tap that was shut off/unavailable, but only once. Again, this is more of an OSM data thing than CoMaps, but I generally found the app pleasant to use.
There sometimes feels like there is something slightly off with the "Route To/From" UX that I can't put my finger on, but no complaints.
- r0xsh
Funny to see this app pop up on Hacker News.
I recently started tinkering with CoMaps to make it more useful for bikepacking, since I do quite a bit of it. I don’t plan to turn this fork into a product, it’s mostly something I’m building for my own needs ; but I figured it might be interesting to share:
- bluebarbet
A potted history of mobile OSM-based mapping.
First there was Osmand. AKA OSMAnd or officially OsmAnd.
It was was powerful but complicated. Normies had never heard of it and preferred Maps.me, a user-friendly alternative with an opaque business model. Then something at Maps.me turned sour and the more privacy-minded normies turned to Organic Maps. Then something at Organic Maps turned sour and some of them moved to CoMaps.
During all this time (literally 15 years), Osmand improved steadily and became more powerful than ever. Even the UX got (a bit) better. It is by far the best mapping app, either FOSS or commercial. And yet somehow it continues to languish in relative obscurity.
- NoboruWataya
I use this regularly when I go on long walks out of the city (including the couple of times I've done stretches of the Camino de Santiago). The offline map support and being able to load and display GPX tracks are really helpful there. Not only because you can sometimes find yourself with spotty reception in remote areas, but also because if you are out all day and your phone battery is not the best, you can just stick on airplane mode which massively saves on battery.
CoMaps also makes it quite easy to edit information about businesses etc, so if you spot something that isn't right you can correct it right there.
Also, for long walks/hikes, OSM is excellent. Most people tend think think of OSM as "Google Maps but worse" but IMO it is clearly superior for this use case (at least, for reasonably popular routes). It will display a lot of paths that Google Maps won't and also has far more granular detail, so you can use it to find nearby water fountains, picnic benches, even bins and so on.