What GridPin checks, and what it does not
An address can exist on a map and still not receive mail. Before you put an address check in front of a form or a billing run, know which question it answers.
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What you have
No input file: one address at a time, on the United States file.
Steps
1. A house that is in the file:
$ gridpin exists usa.bin "233 S Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL 60606"
{"exists":"yes","reason":"house_found"}
2. A real street, a number that is not on it:
$ gridpin exists usa.bin "99999 S Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL 60606"
{"exists":"no","reason":"number_not_on_street"}
3. A street the file does not know:
$ gridpin exists usa.bin "12 Nowhere Rd, Chicago, IL 60606"
{"exists":"no","reason":"empty"}
4. A flat in a building that exists:
$ gridpin exists usa.bin "233 S Wacker Dr Apt 4B, Chicago, IL 60606"
{"exists":"yes","reason":"house_found"}
What you get
| Question | Answered? | How |
|---|---|---|
| Is the street in this town? | yes | the country's address data |
| Is this house number on the street? | yes | number_not_on_street when it is not |
| Is the postcode the one of the house? | yes | the answer says when it inferred or corrected it |
| Is the flat or suite real? | no | the last example answers yes for the building |
| Is mail delivered there (USPS DPV, a vacancy flag)? | no | not in the open address data |
| Who lives or works there? | no | GridPin holds no names |
Why it works
The answer comes from the address points of one country: a house is there or it is not, a number is on the street or the street ends before it. Delivery status, vacancy and occupants live in postal and commercial databases that GridPin does not hold, so it cannot answer for them and does not try.
Limits
existscan answermaybe: a number between two known houses, placed by interpolation.- Coverage differs by country and by region inside a country: see where GridPin works.
- A new building can be missing until the next release of the country file.
All its keys: command reference. The function: exists and explain.