Map Documents

Setting up for mapping

In order to use mapping fully, your database needs to have the following mapping record types:

• Heurist Map Document. This is a record type in Heurist, which describes the map you wish to display. It specifies a series of Map Layers which are to appear on the map, the order in which they appear and general characteristics about the map such as its name, the initial zoom of the map and bookmarks for different areas and sets of layers.
• Heurist Map Layer. This is another record type in Heurist. It specifies a Data Source (see below). It also expresses the way in which the data source is rendered on the map (i.e. its label, symbology, transparency and behaviours such as zoom range).
• Data Sources. These are a set of record types in Heurist. They specify an actual data file or, in the case of KML, they can contain a snippet of KML code in a memo text field. There is a separate record type for each different data file type: Google Maps (KML), Heurist Query, Raster (Tiled Image), geoTiff), Vector (SHP, KML), and potentially other types.

Note. These types are included by default in any new database, and are also available for import from the Heurist Reference Set database (Heurist ID # 3) using the Templates option.

You can then take two routes to creating a map document:

• A. From the top: create a map document, then add layers within the document, and data sources within layers (see below)
• B. From the bottom: create data sources, then layers for each data source, then a map document to group the layers.

Creating a map document

Create the map document, by clicking the Add Map Document button on the Map-Timeline tab (or use the Add Record button).

Note. If the required record types are not available, then you will get a message to download them from Templates. Once you have done this you can return to these steps.

In the Map Document record dialog, name the map and add the map layers:

Create a top map layer (at least), by clicking the Top Map Layer field and from the dialog selecting an existing map layer (or to create a new layer at this point click Create new map layer; see Adding a Map Layer below.

Optionally add any additional map layers (using the Map layer repeat field).

Complete the General Parameters section as appropriate.

When saved, the map document becomes available from the Map Document dropdown (see Map View).

(You can add additional map documents.)

Adding a Map Layer

You can create map layers from either the Map Document dialog or via the Map-Timeline view | Map Layer button:

Note. If you create a map layer using the Map Layer button, you will need to add it to any other map documents on which you wish it to appear, by editing each of the map documents in turn.

Complete the layer fields as required.

At this stage you will probably need to create a data source for each layer as part of the layer creation process. Later on, you may simply select one of the available Map Layers, or create new Map Layers but select one of the existing Data Sources.

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