Jelf
Buck Fawn
Hello Everyone,
Thanks to TMIL for posting a link to Gmap4 in Chummer’s recent thread about the land he bought. I am the guy that developed the Gmap4 enhanced Google map viewer. Developing this software is part of my way to “pay it forward”.
Since Gmap4 is a browser app there is nothing to download, nothing to install. It works in most browsers on most devices from desktops to smartphones. If you open a Gmap4 map link on a mobile device, then you automatically see a touch-friendly interface.
Anyone can use Gmap4 to display the Google aerials and then turn on contour lines. Below is the recipe.
1. Start Gmap4. This link shows the default map of the world.
http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.php
2. Zoom and pan to your land or try Menu ==> Search
3. Click the basemap button and choose one of the Google aerials. The basemap button is in one corner of the map and always shows the name of the current basemap.
4. Click the scale symbol in the lower right corner. This will change the scale from meters to feet.
5. Click the basemap button again. On a desktop/laptop you will see two dropdown menus. Look at the “Overlays” menu and click USA_contour_lines. On a smartphone or other mobile device you will need to scroll down to the “Overlay” section.
6. If the contour lines do not appear, then zoom in more. You need to be zoomed in so the scale says either 500 feet or 200 feet. It varies in different parts of the country.
Or instead of looking at contour lines on the aerial, you can change the base map to “t4 Topo High” and view a high resolution USGS topographic map.
If you want to draw on the map you can do that too.
1. Click Menu ==> Draw and save
2. Select “Waypoint and linepoint” then hit continue.
3. Click the map. Each symbol is draggable. A rightclick on a symbol will display a context menu.
4. When you are done drawing on the map, rightclick any point and select “Gmap4 link - With description”. The link that is displayed will replicate the map on your screen.
Drawing on the map and saving a link as described above uses a delimited file syntax I designed. For simple maps you can use that syntax as parameters in the link. I call this “map-in-a-link”. For more complex maps you would put that delimited syntax into a text file, put the text file online (Google Sites provides free hosting) and make a Gmap4 link to point to your text file.
And of course everyone wants maps that do geolocation on smartphones and tablets. Simply open a Gmap4 link on a mobile device and touch Menu ==> My location.
The map will center at your position. If you move then the location symbol will follow you just like a dedicated GPS. Touch the symbol to see your coordinates.
If the Gmap4 link you are using includes coordinates that show your approximate property lines (map-in-a-link), then you can use this geolocation feature to see where you are on your land.
And speaking of property lines, if you need help getting approximate coordinates for your property corners, check out my site at:
http://www.propertylinemaps.com/
For those of you looking for land to buy, let’s say you know the county, section, township and range of a parcel. You can find that section with Gmap4. I have to give you just a bit of background before telling you how to do this.
Government agencies at all levels store a vast amount of data on GIS (Geographical Information System) servers. Think of that data as two kinds. One kind of GIS data can display symbols on a map. The other kind of GIS data is various fields of information (“attributes”) about each symbol. Gmap4 can display both kinds of GIS data.
I am working on a public service project to locate GIS servers and produce Gmap4 links that display maps showing (1) approximate boundaries for all kinds of public land and (2) related recreation information. You can use one of those maps to search for any section-township-range. The homepage for this project is:
http://www.propertylinemaps.com/p/public_land_map.html.
Open the map titled “Section Township Range Map”. Then click the “About this map” link in the upper left corner to learn how to use the map to search for a section.
And speaking about buying land...
One of my brothers and I are selling several acreage parcels in SW Kalkaska County, Michigan. Here is a Gmap4 map. Anyone that (1) tells our realtor they heard about our land via this thread and (2) buys through our realtor, gets a 5% discount. We suspect the 60 acres has an underground stream that drains the wetland to the north. The southernmost piece adjoins state land along the river.
http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gma...ingsupport.com/p/MI/TAAR/170_acres_labels.txt
The Gmap4 homepage has lots of examples and easy-to-read documentation. There is Quick Start info under the Help tab.
Gmap4 homepage: http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.html
Joseph, the Gmap4 guy
Thanks to TMIL for posting a link to Gmap4 in Chummer’s recent thread about the land he bought. I am the guy that developed the Gmap4 enhanced Google map viewer. Developing this software is part of my way to “pay it forward”.
Since Gmap4 is a browser app there is nothing to download, nothing to install. It works in most browsers on most devices from desktops to smartphones. If you open a Gmap4 map link on a mobile device, then you automatically see a touch-friendly interface.
Anyone can use Gmap4 to display the Google aerials and then turn on contour lines. Below is the recipe.
1. Start Gmap4. This link shows the default map of the world.
http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.php
2. Zoom and pan to your land or try Menu ==> Search
3. Click the basemap button and choose one of the Google aerials. The basemap button is in one corner of the map and always shows the name of the current basemap.
4. Click the scale symbol in the lower right corner. This will change the scale from meters to feet.
5. Click the basemap button again. On a desktop/laptop you will see two dropdown menus. Look at the “Overlays” menu and click USA_contour_lines. On a smartphone or other mobile device you will need to scroll down to the “Overlay” section.
6. If the contour lines do not appear, then zoom in more. You need to be zoomed in so the scale says either 500 feet or 200 feet. It varies in different parts of the country.
Or instead of looking at contour lines on the aerial, you can change the base map to “t4 Topo High” and view a high resolution USGS topographic map.
If you want to draw on the map you can do that too.
1. Click Menu ==> Draw and save
2. Select “Waypoint and linepoint” then hit continue.
3. Click the map. Each symbol is draggable. A rightclick on a symbol will display a context menu.
4. When you are done drawing on the map, rightclick any point and select “Gmap4 link - With description”. The link that is displayed will replicate the map on your screen.
Drawing on the map and saving a link as described above uses a delimited file syntax I designed. For simple maps you can use that syntax as parameters in the link. I call this “map-in-a-link”. For more complex maps you would put that delimited syntax into a text file, put the text file online (Google Sites provides free hosting) and make a Gmap4 link to point to your text file.
And of course everyone wants maps that do geolocation on smartphones and tablets. Simply open a Gmap4 link on a mobile device and touch Menu ==> My location.
The map will center at your position. If you move then the location symbol will follow you just like a dedicated GPS. Touch the symbol to see your coordinates.
If the Gmap4 link you are using includes coordinates that show your approximate property lines (map-in-a-link), then you can use this geolocation feature to see where you are on your land.
And speaking of property lines, if you need help getting approximate coordinates for your property corners, check out my site at:
http://www.propertylinemaps.com/
For those of you looking for land to buy, let’s say you know the county, section, township and range of a parcel. You can find that section with Gmap4. I have to give you just a bit of background before telling you how to do this.
Government agencies at all levels store a vast amount of data on GIS (Geographical Information System) servers. Think of that data as two kinds. One kind of GIS data can display symbols on a map. The other kind of GIS data is various fields of information (“attributes”) about each symbol. Gmap4 can display both kinds of GIS data.
I am working on a public service project to locate GIS servers and produce Gmap4 links that display maps showing (1) approximate boundaries for all kinds of public land and (2) related recreation information. You can use one of those maps to search for any section-township-range. The homepage for this project is:
http://www.propertylinemaps.com/p/public_land_map.html.
Open the map titled “Section Township Range Map”. Then click the “About this map” link in the upper left corner to learn how to use the map to search for a section.
And speaking about buying land...
One of my brothers and I are selling several acreage parcels in SW Kalkaska County, Michigan. Here is a Gmap4 map. Anyone that (1) tells our realtor they heard about our land via this thread and (2) buys through our realtor, gets a 5% discount. We suspect the 60 acres has an underground stream that drains the wetland to the north. The southernmost piece adjoins state land along the river.
http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gma...ingsupport.com/p/MI/TAAR/170_acres_labels.txt
The Gmap4 homepage has lots of examples and easy-to-read documentation. There is Quick Start info under the Help tab.
Gmap4 homepage: http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.html
Joseph, the Gmap4 guy
