MicroMaps Interactive Map Software for Websites

Creating an Online Interactive Map System or Virtual Tour with MicroMaps is easy and requires NO technical skills. We designed the Administrative area to be straightforward and uncomplicated so that each section presents a simple step-by-step process which you follow to complete the tasks at hand.

Preparation

Virtually any map or illustration can be made interactive with MicroMaps. Whatever file type your original is in needs to be converted (published) as a Flash swf file format before you can import it into the MicroMaps system, this can be easily accomplished by seasoned graphics designers or we can do the conversion for you.

Once you have the map/illustration ready then it’s time to begin the creative process within the MicroMaps System. Log on to your MicroMaps web-based Administration Control Center via any web-browser.

Select Maps > Create Map in Admin

Step 1 - Map Info

• Give your Map a Name
• Browse to your hard drive and select the map or illustration file to be uploaded
• Select a Time Zone (Optional) - the system may be time stamped to show when the system was last updated.
• Browse to your hard drive and select the Logo image file to be displayed on the front-end.
• Enter the URL hyperlink for the Logo, which when clicked on opens the destination URL in a new browser window.

Click "Next" and your map and logo are uploaded into the system.

Step 2 - Map Settings
As your Map and log have been uploaded you are now presented with a preview of the front end interface showing your map and logo. Now you proceed to configuring certain parameters with real time preview and undo.

A. Configure Panel Settings

Control Panel Settings - choose on/off (show/hide)

• Show Control Panel
• Show Categories Panel
• Expand All Categories by default
• Show Search Panel
• Show Navigation Tools Panel
• Show Mouse Types Panel
• Show Total Points - displays the number of POIs contained within a Category of Sub Category in parentheses

Panel Settings

• Lock Panels in Position - select on/off for Control Panel and Mini Navigation Map (off allows the user to move/reposition the Control Panel and Mini Navigation Panel on the interface)
• Drop Shadow - on/off - by default this is set to on - it gives the appearance that the panels are floating above the map.

Logo Settings
Show Logo Panel - choose on/off
Show logo on map (system) preloading - choose on/off

Panel Alignment
The three panels: Control Panel, Mini Map Navigation Panel and Logo can be positioned on either the Right or Left side of the Interface. By default the Logo and Mini Map Navigation Panels appear on the Left and the Control Panel appears on the Right.

B. Configure Mini-Map Settings
Here you can select to show (or not) the Mini-Map panel. The Mini-Map is a small version of the map which you uploaded into the system - it is automatically created for you. The purpose of the minimap is to show where you are zoomed into on the main map. As you zoom in on the main map a rectangle appears on the mini-map showing the area you are zoomed into on the main map. Additionally, the rectangle on the Mini-Map can be dragged around to reposition where to display on the main map.

• Show Mini-Map Panel on/off (show/hide)
• Choose Mini-Map Panel Size = 150x150 pixels (small), 180x180 pixels (medium) or 210x210 pixels (large)

C. Configure Maps' Controls
All maps and Illustrations are NOT created equal! The Map / Illustration which can be uploaded into the MicroMaps system can be up to 2880 pixels wide by 2880 pixels high but it is certain that no two are ever going to be alike in size. This section allows you select how your map is initially displayed and to choose how several controls work.

Initial Map Display Positions
As mentioned, not every map / illustration is going to be the same size (dimension). The MicroMaps system takes this into account and thus you can select a setting which will display the map on initial load exactly as you define. When a user goes to your online map, the MicroMaps system detects the users Screen Size and Screen Resolution settings for their particular computer and then displays the map based on your defined preference as follows:

• Fit to Screen Width
• Fit to Screen Height
• Fir to Screen
• Set Initial Zoom - as a % of the original map file (useful for Kiosk uses)

Map Control Settings
In this section you can set default settings for Zooming and Panning as follows:

• Zooming Step (% to Current) - input the value = to the incremental % the zoom level increases or decreases as related to the current level displayed
• Panning Step - input the value = to the number of pixels which the map will shift when panned up, down or diagonally
• Maximum Zoom - input a value = to the maximum % the map is allowed to be displayed at as related to the original file. This is useful to restrict the maximum zoom on maps or illustrations which are bitmap based (like jpg file formats) so that the user cannot zoom beyond a range which would display pixilation.
• Minimal Zoom - input a value = to the minimum zoom level the map is allowed to be displayed as related to the original file size. The value here needs to be less than the % which is required to display the Initial Map Position as explained above.

Initial Mouse Tool
By default, the Initial Mouse Tool (function) is set to Zoom In / Click and Drag - so when a user clicks on the map the map zooms in, however if the user clicks and holds down the mouse button the pointer switches from a magnifying glass to a hand and the user can drag the map around. The choices for the initial mouse tool are:

• No Tool - the user uses the Control Panel's Interface to interact with the map
• Zoom In
• Zoom Out
• Click and Drag
• Zoom In / Click and Drag

D. Configure Icon Settings
By default, every MicroMaps system is provisioned with 6 Icons which are used to show a Point of Interest's location (if an icon is selected for this purpose). In addition you can ADD your own Icons. In this section you can define global attributes for the following:

• Choose a Default Icon
• Set the Icon Scale on Map Display - when POIs are displayed (on the map) on selection of a Category, Sub Category or Search Results
• Set Icon Scale for Selected POI - when a POI is selected either in the Category / Sub Category list or by direct click on the Icon displayed on the Map - normally this parameter is set to a higher value than on Map Display so the Icon for the Select POI appears to grow.
• Set Icon Scale for Category Panel - sets the size of the Icon displayed next to the corresponding Category or Sub-Category in the Control Panel

Show Icons next to Category Title (in the Control Panel) = on/off
Show Icons next to Sub-Category Title (in the Control Panel) = on/off

Scales (sizes) are defined as a % of the original size in pixels of the icon selected.

Note: For Icons, you can override these "Global Settings" on a Category, Sub-Category or even POI level.


Click the Submit Button to Save Settings or Changes on all or any of the above