WebMaps Help Page

This is a simple, web-based Land Information System (LIS).  Currently it only works on Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5+, but someday it will be cross-browser compatible.  The browser window is divided into frames.  The arrangement is diagramed below.  All but the Tools & Buttons Frame are re-sizeable.

Menus Tools & Buttons
Map
Query Results


Menu Frame

Map   
Legend   
Scale   
Identify   
Search   
Search Results   
Specs & Options   
Places   
Print   
Reference Map   

The Menu Frame holds a collection of expandable divisions with options and settings that allow you to customize, navigate, search and print the map.  Click the icon to expand any menu, and the icon to collapse it.  Clicking on the menu name will also expand and collapse the menu.   Refer to the menu descriptions below.


Map   The Map menu allows you to select a map.  Each map has a distinct theme, or focus.  The selection of a map will not change your current position or scale.  This means that once you've found a specific location, a piece of property for example, you can see various aspects of the area by simply changing the map.  Note that when you change the map the contents of the Legend changes.
Legend  
The Legend menu allows you to turn on and off the individual layers of the current map.  The check boxes next to each layer determine whether or not the layer should be drawn.  When a map is selected, not all the available layers are initially visible.  Once you've checked the layers that you want visible, click on the Re-Draw Button which is duplicated here for convenience.
Some layers are actually groups of layers.  Expanding a group displays the layers within it, while expanding a layer displays the symbol(s) used in the map to represent that layer.  Although some of the layers in a group may be checked, they will not be displayed on the map unless the group itself is checked.
Sometimes a checked layer may not be displayed on the map because the scale of the map is not within the preset minimum and maximum scale of the layer.  In this case, a (+) or (-) will be displayed next to the layer to let you know that you'll need to zoom in or out respectively to make the layer visible on the map.
Scale  
The Scale menu allows you to set the scale of the map.  The current scale is displayed next to the menu heading.  You can click on one of the common scales, or type in a custom scale.  All scales have units of inches per foot.
There is also an option of displaying a scale bar on the map itself.  This is convenient when printing.
Identify  
The Identify menu allows you to select the layer that will be identified when you use the Identify Tool.  The ID layer doesn't have to be in the current map.  However, there will probably be at least one map that is optimized to display each ID layer.
You can use a buffer with the Identify Tool, but it only works when you click, not when you click and drag.  For example, to find all the addresses within 750 feet of a point, make addresses the identify layer, click the buffer check box, enter 750, and then click on the map using the identify tool.
Search  
The Search menu allows you to search the map layers for specific features, like an address or a survey.  The Search menu allows you to search any searchable layer regardless of whether it is in the current Map or Legend.  However, there will probably be at least one map that is optimized to display each search layer.
Expand the layer you want to search and enter the search criteria in the appropriate field boxes.  All field boxes with text will be used for the search, so delete all the text from any field that you do not want to include in the search.  Some fields are represented with a drop-down selection box instead of a text box.  This makes searching easier by insuring that the text is in the correct format.
Search Results  
The Search Results menu displays the selected record of the Query Table in a easy to read format.  The fields displayed in the Search Results menu may not necessarily be the same as those in the Query Table.  This allows for a more detailed description of the selected record.  Some fields may provide links to other pages.
Specs & Options  
The Specifications & Options menu is currently pretty slim.  There is one option to expand only one menu at a time.  By checking this, all expanded menus collapse when you expand another; In other words, only one menu is allowed to be expanded at a time.
The specifications include the map size and coordinates.  The world file is include if you want to save and project the current map image.
Places  
The Places menu allows for quick navigation to common locations.  Expand the groups and click on a Place name to pan and zoom to the extent of that place.
Print  
The Print menu is also pretty slim.  The idea is that there would be a number of 'Options' and a list of printer-friendly 'Pages'.  Currently the only option is the Title text, and there are only a few Pages.  Click on one of the Pages to open a new window for the page.  You will still need to set the printer settings (page size, orientation, margins, etc.) for the page you choose to print out right.
Reference Map  
The Reference Map menu allows you to show or hide the Reference Map.  Someday this will be an interactive map, but for now it just shows you, with a red box, the extent of the current map relative to the entire map.  If there is no red box, it means you are zoomed out far enough that you probably don't need it.  If you are zoomed in close enough a box would be too small so a red cross-hairs is displayed.

Tools & Buttons Frame

The Tools & Buttons Frame has tools on the left, buttons in the middle, and a space on the right for additional help text.

   Zoom In Tool: Click (or click-and-drag) on the image to zoom in to a larger scale.   

Tools allow you to do things on the Map Frame with your mouse.  You can select a tool by clicking an icon.  Only one tool can be selected at any time.  Depending on which tool is selected, you can click and/or click-and-drag on the map to perform the tool's action.  Refer to the tool descriptions below.

Re-Center Tool : Click somewhere on the map and it will move so that your point becomes the center of the map.
Pan Tool : Click-and-drag to move the map in any direction.
Zoom In Tool : Either click or click-and-drag on the map to zoom in closer.  A single click will re-center the map around the clicked point and increase the scale.  Click-and-drag to make a box; The map will re-center and zoom in to the area represented by the box.
Zoom Out Tool : Either click or click-and-drag on the map to zoom out from the map.  A single click will re-center the map around the clicked point and decrease the scale.  Click-and-drag to make a box; The current map will be scaled down and re-centered in the box.
Identify Tool : Either click or click-and-drag on the map to identify (get more information about) the features of the selected layer.  Use the Identify Select option in the menu frame to select the layer that you want to identify.  A single click will return all features that the point touches.  Click-and-drag to make a box and return all features that the box touches.  The results of the identify action will be displayed in the Table Frame.
Measure Tool : Click-and-drag on the map to make a line.  As you drag, the length of the line will be displayed in the status bar on the bottom of the window.

Buttons allow you to do things with just a click.  They are described below.

Re-Draw Button : Click to redraw the map.  You'll want to do this after making changes to the Legend, resizing the browser window, moving the frame borders, etc.
Extent Button : Click to zoom to the full extent and see the whole map.
Print Button : Click to go to a printer-friendly page.  If there is more than one printer friendly page, the list can be found in the Print Menu.
Help Button : Click this button to open this help page.

Map Frame

The Map Frame contains the map image.  Refer to the Legend Menu to see and manipulate the layers that are visible.  It is on the map frame that you actually apply a tool after selecting it in the Tools & Buttons Frame.  For example, to zoom in you would select the Zoom In Tool, and then click on the map.  There's probably a lot more to say here; Any suggestions?

Query Results Frame

The Query Results Frame displays the results of a query.  The results are in the form of a table of records.  You can scroll through the table and select individual records .  The selected record, or row, has a different background color.  The contents of the selected record are reproduced in the Search Results Menu.  Be sure to check there because often there is more detailed information in the Menu.

Above the results table is a button bar.  These buttons allow you to manipulate the display of the query results and navigate the table.  On the map, the result features that correspond to the result records, such as road lines or property outlines, are highlighted.  The feature that corresponds to the selected record is highlighted in a different color.  Refer to the tool descriptions below.

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Full Extent : Click to zoom/pan to the extent of all the query result features.
Clear Selected : Click to clear any selected feature from the map display.  This will make all the result features display the same way.
Highlight Selected : Click to highlight the corresponding feature of the selected record.  This does not change the position or the scale of the map; If the selected feature is not visible in the current map, this will not help.  Use one of the next two buttons. Hold shift to toggle whether this button is always on.  If it is always on, any row selection in the results table will automatically highlight the corresponding feature.
Highlight & Pan to Selected : Click to highlight and pan to the corresponding feature of the selected record.  This does not change the scale of the map; The current scale may not allow for the display of the entire feature. Hold shift to toggle whether this button is always on.  If it is always on, any row selection in the results table will automatically highlight and pan to the corresponding feature.
Highlight, Pan and Zoom to Selected : Click to highlight, pan and zoom to the corresponding feature of the selected record.  This changes the position and scale of the map so as to center the map around the extent of the selected feature. Hold shift to toggle whether this button is always on.  If it is always on, any row selection in the results table will automatically highlight, pan and zoom to the corresponding feature.
First Record : Click to select the first record of the results table.  If one of the highlight buttons is toggled on, this will trigger the corresponding event.
Previous Record : Click to select the previous record of the results table.  If one of the highlight buttons is toggled on, this will trigger the corresponding event.
Next Record : Click to select the next record of the results table.  If one of the highlight buttons is toggled on, this will trigger the corresponding event.
Last Record : Click to select the last record of the results table.  If one of the highlight buttons is toggled on, this will trigger the corresponding event.
Close Results : Click to close the Query Results Frame and remove the result features from the map.