We have been working hard these last few months to make Map Mavin robust and (mostly) bug free. It may not be exciting, with a lack of fancy new features, but sometimes a little spring cleaning is in order. Here’s a little rundown of our most recent clean-up projects, in case you thought we were just vacationing in the Maldives.

In the map creation process, we patched up an error with sharing a map through the map editor. Password-protected maps didn’t feel like sharing, so we had to scold them into letting users download layers from the map.

On the choropleth mapping front, we fixed a bug that didn’t like when two layers with the same color ramp were added to the same map. We whipped it into shape with a plethora of colorful words. We also felt choropleth mapping was old enough to make its own decisions and gave it more freedom to pick colors, stops and label. We’ll see if it makes good decisions.

If you started to make a map, then decided you’d rather grab a cheese burger and pressed Cancel, the silly thing would create a blank map. Now you can eat that burger without a blank map cluttering up your Maps tab.

It was getting a bit crowded in the style editor for points. Grouping, heat maps and point density took up residence all across the menu. We corralled these pointy options into their own drop-down menu.

There was a thing were one system wasn’t talking nicely to another system and after much squabbling a random amount of time was chosen for the free trial. After shaking and banging on the computer, it finally gave in to the 31-day trial period.

If you find yourself tinkering in Map Mavin and it’s giving you some attitude or refusing to cooperate, just send us a line and we’ll make sure it’s plugged in or we’ll turn it off and on again.

This isn’t the first time we’ve highlighted our choropleth styling tool in Map Mavin Methods. After some extensive reworking and added functionality, we are revisiting the topic to give you an update. Choropleth mapping is a powerful and effective way to compare data in a thematic map. Whether you’re looking at population density by county or poverty levels by zip code, choropleth maps provide an instant visual representation of data in a map.

With this in mind, we extended the functionality of our choropleth styling. After you’ve uploaded the layer you want to style, go to the Style Editor and click on Choropleth. Choose the attribute whose data you want to display. One new feature is the option to customize the attribute legend label, in case the attribute name isn’t descriptive enough. From there, you can choose from our list of pre-set color ramps in the drop-down menu. Then select a color for datasets that have no data.

The biggest addition to the tool is the ability to manually set your own colors and styles for each stop value. You can even change the outline color and add custom labels. Enjoy!

For the past month or so, we’ve been focusing on improving our existing functionality and usability of Map Mavin. These changes are small but mighty! So for this Map Mavin Methods I will highlight some of my favorite system changes and improvements from the past month.

You might notice that the map cards in the Maps tab have a new look and feel. We took the action buttons out of the dropdown menu and gave them their own icons at the bottom of each card, giving you one less button to press. We did the same with the Data Catalog cards as well.

In the attribute table, we’ve improved and revamped the features there by adding a drop down menu that includes SQL and simple searches, download selected and select by location. Select by location lets you select features and their attributes by drawing a polygon on the map and capturing all the elements in the polygon. You can then flip a switch to view only the selected features and their attributes.

We also brought back simple searches, so you can search an attribute table without using SQL. Once you have all the features and their attributes selected, by any means, you can download the selected items to a GeoJSON file.

We’ve also added a Point Density mapping feature. Now, you can create a heat map based on the proximity of points to each other, not just on the values in a selected attribute column.

Our ArcGIS-to-Map Mavin plugin got an upgrade as well. You can now export geodatabase attachments form ArcGIS to your Map Mavin account. Check it out, and as always, send us your feedback!

Another month means another installment of Map Mavin Methods. Last month we talked about Map Galleries and before that we unveiled our ArcGIS-to-Map Mavin plugin. This month we are taking a dive into our new SQL tool. SQL queries allows users to search through their database quickly and with little fuss. On the advanced end, it can send back solutions to a query made through our Manual PostgreSQL 9.6 and PostGIS 2.3.4 Editor.

To access the SQL tool, open the web map with the features you want to query. Click on the menu icon to the right of the feature and select View Attributes. On the top bar of the attribute table you will see the SQL button. Click on the button to open the SQL tool. There are two ways to query your attributes, either using the SQL Wizard or the Manual SQL Editor. With the SQL Wizard, you can add conditions using a drop down menu that includes all the attribute table columns; then you select an operation, whether that’s equals, not equals or contains, to name a few. After selecting the operation, you enter your search term. You can add numerous conditions and groups of conditions to narrow down your search.

The second option is to use the Manual SQL Editor. Here you can create your own expressions using PostgreSQL 9.6 and PostGIS 2.3.4, including calculations, subqueries, string functions, numeric functions and number searching. All of the results from Manual SQL entries will appear in the attribute table.

Map Mavin now gives you and your users the power to query features and make the most of your data.

Welcome back to another episode of Map Mavin Methods, where we explore a new feature every month. Last month we talked about our new ArcGIS-to-Map Mavin plugin that lets you export data from ArcGIS directly to your Map Mavin account.

This month we dropped a brand new feature: map galleries! Now, you can take a collection of public maps, create a gallery and share it with whomever you choose. It’s easy as pie, and around the holidays we eat a lot of pie.

To create a new gallery, click on the Galleries tab in the Admin panel. Then, click on the Create Gallery button at the top right. Name your gallery and add a description. You can choose from all the public maps you’ve previously created. To view your new gallery, click on the Eye icon to the right of the gallery name. This will open a new tab and take you straight to your public gallery.

To share the gallery, copy the URL link at the top and send it to whomever you please. With our galleries, you can create and share unlimited combinations of maps. Viewers don’t need an account to access all the information in the maps. We strive to make sharing important–and sometimes unimportant–information as easy as possible. Map Galleries are another way we are working to make this goal a reality.

This month in Map Mavin Methods, we are excited to announce the release of our brand new ArcGIS plugin for Map Mavin. Now you can export your data layers directly from ArcGIS to Map Mavin with the click of a button. You’ve spent your precious time creating the perfect map, now you want to share it with the world. ArcGIS Online only allows you to export one layer at a time and doesn’t save the symbology. On top of that, your users need a pricey ArcGIS Online account. Not with MapMavin! We believe that sharing data should be easy.

Whether the users are far away or don’t have expensive GIS software, you can use our plugin to export your data directly to a platform that quickly and easily shares maps with people around the world. Your users don’t need hours of training or a costly software license. Once you share your map, they can sign up for a free account and get down to business.

Let’s get started. First, make sure you have your own Basic or Premium Map Mavin account set up and ready to go. Next, download our free plug-in from here. Make sure ArcGIS is closed before installing the application. Double-click on the application and it will automatically install. When you open ArcGIS, you’ll see a new window pane on the right side of the screen. Click the Log in button at the top and enter the username and password for your Map Mavin account.

In ArcGIS, open the map you want to share on Map Mavin. Then, click on the Upload to Map Mavin button. All the layers in your map, along with their colors, will automatically upload to your layers tab in Map Mavin. The layers will also be added to a new map in your Maps tab. From here, you can share your map with anyone around the world.

It’s as easy as that! If you don’t believe me, try it for yourself. Sign up for a free 31-day trial and give it a whirl. What have you got to lose? Except maybe ArcGIS Online.

Here in our monthly Map Mavin Methods column we try to showcase a particular feature, ability or “hack” of our system that can help you make better maps. This month, however, I thought it would be best to bring together the facts and tips of several of our published articles and videos, and consolidate them to give you a clearer picture of the particular topic.

When it comes to making maps, the real key to creating something of value (both informationally and aesthetically) is to obtain good, high-quality data. Yes, you can absolutely create your own data and with Map Mavin doing so is a breeze. Yet whether with Map Mavin or other software options, a threshold of human ability will inevitably be reached as one approaches larger scale problems. Sure, I can map out every building’s footprint on my block or maybe in my neighborhood, but in the City of New York…no way! To do so requires the collaborative efforts of many people across multiple agencies and teams. If it sounds daunting, that’s because it would be for one person! Fortunately, the “open data movement” has encouraged large institutions to release some of their data for free to the public. Everything from the species of trees in a city to 311 noise complaints can now be found online and downloaded onto your device. How, then, do we go about finding these sources?

There are two main sources of open data in the context of Map Mavin. First, we can seek out data by using an Internet search engine and mentioning the given area or type of data we’d like to find. As a general guiding principal (this is subjective but very often the case), large cities are a fantastic place to start. American cities such as Chicago and New York, counties such as Boulder, CO and Los Angeles County and many others have particularly robust open data portals (this is due in part to some of these being early adopters of the idea). This extends to states, the US Federal government, and other nations as well so be sure to dig around and see what you can find! In searching for files, you’ll simply want to keep an eye out for the formats that Map Mavin accepts (.shp, .tif, .kml, .kmz, .json and .geojson) and you’ll be good to go!

Now if this sounds like a hassle or beyond your skill level (or desire), do not panic! After considering it in internal discussions for some time we’re proud to announce the release of our own internal data portal! With constant updates and already over 11,000 spatial files inside, chances are it contains data that would prove valuable to your next project. To access it, you’ll want to go to the Layers tab and then click Open Data Library. Alternatively you can visit the portal directly by visiting the following URL: client.mapmavin.com/library

Please note that you can import files directly into your Map Mavin account and also download them as GeoJSONs.

­As always, Happy Mapping!

Fletcher Berryman
Cloud Tamer
(970) 710-0909
fletcher@apollomapping.com

Welcome back to Map Mavin Methods, where we walk you through the endless list of things you can do with our web-based mapping platform! While we always have more to share with our readers than we cover at any given time, this past month has been quite possibly our busiest ever. So many features and tools have been added that I honestly was unsure where to begin for this month’s article! And since we try to highlight one particular function here, I highly, HIGHLY encourage you to head over to www.mapmavin.com to sign up for our free 31 day trial. I know what you’re thinking, “great, one more thing to sign up for”… I often feel the same way. We’ve gone ahead and done away with any need for a credit card number to get started on your trial to make this process as simple as possible. Why? Because we’re confident that once you see Map Mavin you’ll understand why we’re all so excited to share it with the world!

Now with my shameless plug out of the way, let’s jump right into this month’s Map Mavin Methods. For September, we’re highlighting one of the biggest additions to the system to date: the integration of DigitalGlobe’s global imagery basemap. As longtime partners with DigitalGlobe (DG) on the imagery side of our business, we’ve always championed their data as the best out there. Now you can go to your web maps and toggle several DG basemap options with the click of a button. So how do you do it? Here’s how!

Adding DigitalGlobe basemaps to your web maps is no different than toggling on any of the other basemaps available in Map Mavin. To do so, go to a map you’ve made by clicking on the “Eye” icon on the bottom-right corner of a project under the Maps tab in the Admin Panel. Once inside your map, click the basemap button in the bottom-left of the screen (the icon looks like a series of three stacked layers).

From here you’ll notice a wide range of options to choose from. The options Satellite, Satellite with Labels, Recent Satellite and Recent Satellite with Labels are all DigitalGlobe options. You might be wondering, “what’s the difference here?” Satellite and Satellite with Labels will generally be less cloudy or cloud-free but possibly older imagery, whereas Recent Satellite and Recent Satellite with Labels are more recent but may be cloudier. Try out both to see what’s best for your project!

For any other questions or comments regarding Map Mavin, don’t hesitate to reach out to me (Fletcher) directly!

Fletcher Berryman
Cloud Tamer
(970) 710-0909
fletcher@apollomapping.com