Is there a way to prevent the rendering of names in certain circumstances? E.g. the canal name is still rendered in locks which makes them almost invisible (see http://www.openstreetmap.org/?lat=48.90286&lon=7.0031&zoom=17&layers=M)). Besides shouldn’t the alternate name (in this case lock name) instead be rendered if one exists?
You shouldn’t add tags to influence renderer behaviour, and Osmarender is wrong for suggesting that you do. wyo - best thing you can do is log a trac ticket for the Mapnik rendering.
Before I submit a ticket, I’d like to know if there are other cases where alternate names exist and should (or already are) rendered. IMO whenever an alternate name tag (…_name) is present, this name should be preferred.
I don’t know how complex name rendering is, yet IMO as a general rule whenever a name overlaps map features, it should be rendered next and not across them. E.g a lock_name should not overlap lock_gate points.
In this case, a separate node was created with a waterway=lock node, in addition to the piece of canal with lock=yes and tagged lock gates on either end. Is this separate node really necessary here?
Well this separate POI was done by somebody else before I mapped the lock. I don’t want do delete it since it’s another reference to the exact position of the lock. Yet sure enough that’s another case where an element shouldn’t be rendered. Is there a solution to keep elements without being rendered?
Remove them. Or don’t tag them the same as something that should be rendered. You’re imparting a kind of psychic ability on the renderers that they cannot live up to.