Editorial Policy & Corrections

Our editorial promise

Guides exist to help readers use mapping tools safely and efficiently. Articles should answer the main task quickly, explain assumptions in plain language, show relevant limitations and link to a working tool when one is available. Search keywords inform coverage; they do not justify repetitive or fabricated paragraphs.

Research and source hierarchy

1. Prefer primary sources for technical standards, geographical data, licenses and official figures.
2. Use open-source project documentation to explain a library’s capabilities without claiming a live website necessarily implements every feature.
3. Check worked examples independently, with inputs, units and calculation steps recorded.
4. Differentiate site-tested behavior from vendor-advertised functionality.
5. Use current versions and explicit source dates where a dataset or regulation changes over time.

For common geographic concepts, the methodology summarizes formulas and source limitations. Links to provider pages do not imply partnership or independent certification.

Review and update process

Substantive guides should be checked when the underlying API, routing engine, map library, census dataset or product feature changes. We also revisit content following reader reports. The date shown on a page should reflect a real editorial change, not an automatic refresh for search rankings.

Updates may correct facts, screenshots, link targets, source-year notes, unit conversions, usability steps and accessibility issues. Editors should document material changes in an internal change log before publishing.

What we will not publish

• Invented counts, unnamed official datasets or fake accuracy percentages.
• Made-up degrees, credentials, client lists or company affiliations.
• Supposed user testimonials or rankings without attributable evidence.
• Claims that a feature works when API access or data coverage has not been confirmed.
• Copied competitor prose, images, branded designs or proprietary screenshots without permission.

Corrections policy

Anyone can report an inaccuracy through Contact Us. A useful report includes the URL, the inaccurate sentence or behavior, reproduction steps and a source or reference value. We prioritize problems that could affect user decisions, such as incorrect units, overstated drive-time precision or stale legal limits. When a material error is confirmed, the affected content should be corrected with a dated editorial note where appropriate.

Disagreement is not automatically a factual error. We assess documentary evidence, reproducibility and geographical applicability. Corrections do not require accepting promotional links in place of real evidence.

Independence, advertising and affiliates

If the website carries advertising, sponsored placement or affiliate links, those commercial relationships should be disclosed close to the relevant content. They do not change calculation formulas, data sources or review standards. Comparisons must identify what was actually tested and the date of verification, especially where commercial prices and plan features change.

Reader privacy

We prefer bug reports without personal addresses, coordinates for a private home or screenshots that expose private account details. The privacy policy describes contact-message handling and the disclosures operators need to verify before publication.