1. Browser choice
- The site has been developed to work with Firefox v1.5 onwards, Internet Explorer v6 and v7 and Safari.
- It is highly recommended to use Firefox when browsing the site on a PC. Firefox is a faster, smoother, all round better browser than either v6 or v7 or Internet Explorer.
- It is recommended to view the site using a resolution of at least 1024 x 768 pixels.
|
2. Site navigation
The main pages of the site are listed below. Nearly all pages contain the standard site menu containing links to the main pages.
- Home - the default page where you first visit the site.
- Map - the main content of the website is the map.
- Links - view a list of useful links here.
- Shop - a collection of sponsor links organised into a directory.
- Help - this page
- Contact - use the contact form to send a message to the site Administrator.
- Account - to use some site features requires a user account. Select account from the menu to create an account or to log into an existing account.
|
3. Map basics
The Map has many navigation features in common with other Google maps. These common features are:
- The Main Navigation Control - In the top left of the map. Click on one of the top arrows to pan in that direction.
Use the slider to change the zoom levels.
- The Map View Controls - choose whether to view the map in standard map view, satellite view or hybrid view. Standard view is quickest.
Note that for some areas there is a limit to the amount of detail visible in satellite view.
- Filters Panel - select this to choose which place categories to view on the map
- Navigation Panel - lets you move quickly to view a country or detination (town or city).
- The Map Cursor - the map cursor by default is a crosshair. You can perform the following cursor operations
- Double click - Zoom the map in one level.
- Drag and drop - hold the left mouse button down on the map (the map itself not a marker) and move the cursor to a map location, then release the mouse button. When dragging, the map will pan by the same amount as the cursor.
- Mouse wheel zoom - if your mouse has a scroll wheel, move the wheel back to zoom out and forwards to zoom in.
- Site Menu Panel - this is not a standard Google Map feature. The panel is located in the top left corner of the map and contains some controls and indicators
- Home - return to the site home page.
- Print - print the current map view.
- Link - right click on this item and select 'Bookmark this link' or 'copy link location' to bookmark or copy a web link to the current map view.
- Sidebar - hides or shows the navigation panel on the right hand side of the screen. This feature gives you a full size map.
Tip - click F11 select full screen browser view and maximize the map size.
|
4.The Main Map
The map displays markers that match the filter settings on the right hand side of the page.
There is a limit to the number of markers that can be displayed on the map at any one time. When all markers cannot be displayed on the map, the 'Zoom' icon
is displayed in the menu panel. Markers of places which are nearby are grouped using a single marker. In the Information Window for the marker, a tab
marked 'nearby' lists the other places at this location.
|
5. The menu panel
This panel offers additional views of a place or entity. These are : description, videos, eBay and products.
|
6. Credits and acknowledgments
Thanks to people who helped by contributing code, ideas and information for the site.
-
Mike Williams who runs an excellent Map Tutorial Site which was invaluable in getting the earlier code started and on several occasions afterwards.
As well as Google Maps his site also has features about POV-Ray, Photoshop, plus galleries of computer generated artwork and factals.
-
Peter Jones from Pixel Development for the PdMarker javascript code which assisted development a lot.
|
Technical Notes
1. The aims of the Mashed World web sites are to
- Present a continuous map that self-updates when the viewpoint is changed.
- Display as many markers as possible on the map.
- Maximize the map size.
- Present information in a straightforward intuitive way.
2. Please let us know if you have any comments, questions or suggestions about the site using the Contact Page.
|