Open Map

• Open an image file
• Import from an image file
• Import from PDF File
• Photograph a map
• Map Setup
• Multiple Maps
• Too Large Maps

MapOnMap is an Android GPS navigation tool for Overlay Maps. You can use images as Map Overlays.

Opening a map you will get these choices. One that opens an existing file and three that creates new files. After opening or creating a file you will come to Map Setup, where you specify where the map is located etc.

Open an image file

With this you open a normal image that contains a map. The settings you make in the Map Setup is then stored inside the image.

Import from an image file

If you have large files you need to import those. So they need to be converted to smaller Files.

In the example below we have a very big map file. There are two ways you can reduce the size. First way explained is increase of the sample size. And the second cut the image to smaller pieces.

As you can see in the marked area the size is very big.

• Increase sample size
  One way to handle these large maps is to increase the sample size. The default value is 1. This means every pixel is used. If we instead set it to 2 as in the example below. Then every second pixel is used. And if we use 3, then every third is used etc. Please note that this takes down the resolution of the map. So you might lose important details.

  
  A sample size of 2 reduces the width and height to half and the total size to a quarter.

• Cut the map into smaller pieces
  Increasing the sample size will reduce the resolution of the map. You may therefore consider to cut it up into smaller pieces instead. So in this way you may keep high resolution, and potentially important details.
  
  Since the app can switch the loaded map when you scroll to a new location, smaller map pieces may therefore be a solution if you want to keep the detail level. To make a cut you swipe the image edges so they cover a smaller part of the total image. See below.

  
  Cut the map into smaller pieces can also reduce the map size.

Import from PDF File

When importing from a PDF File, you will get a new view, where you have to select page. Please note that you are also able to cut out a smaller part of the page. When you clicked the OK button, you will get a dialog were you have to set the resolution if you are not happy with the default one. Please note that it is not necessary to set a resolution higher than the one that map's image already has.

Import from PDF File.

Photograph a map

Note that you also can take a picture of a map.

Photographing a map.

Map Setup

All opening methods described above will end in the map setup.

Note that the first time an image is loaded into MapOnMap, it needs to be setup, so the app can know where in the world the map should be located. To do this you need to setup four different match points. A good practice is to choose locations close to the corner of the map, as far from each other as possible.

1. Select pin edit. 2. Add new match pin point. 3. Find same location in both maps.

The map needs to be setup with four different match pin points. And every pin needs to define the correct location in the world. So you therefore need to make sure that the aiming cross points to the same location.

			Add mode In this mode you can add new match pin points.
			Modification mode In this mode you can modify existing match pin points.
			Remove mode In this mode you can remove match pin points.
			Scroll mode In this mode you can scroll and zoom freely without risking of making any unintended changes.

In the example map you can see that the image contains some white areas on the right side. Since you are making an overlay map that will be drawn on top of the underlying online map, you therefore probably don't want to have non map parts covering it. See the example below.

1. Areas that should have been cut away. 2. Select edit mask.

To solve this, you can add a clipping mask.

			Add mode In this mode you can add new clipping points.
			Modification mode In this mode you can modify existing clipping points.
			Insert mode In this mode you can insert new clipping points.
			Remove mode In this mode you can remove clipping points.
			Scroll mode In this mode you can scroll and zoom freely without risking of making any unintended changes.

A mask is gradually built up point by point.

Please note that the map also have a name parameter you can set. This will help you later when you want to select between the maps.

A map name tag can be set.

When all settings are done, click the ADD-button. You may need to confirm that you want to modify the image by clicking approve. Only the EXIF data will be modified. When accepting this, the converting process starts so a new map is created for the app.

Instead of the map to the left you will now have a map with much more details.

Multiple Maps

Please note that it is possible to open several maps. Even though only one is loaded to memory at the time, they will be stored in the active map collection and will be automatically be loaded into memory when you scroll in the map view. The location in the center of the screen is used to decide which map to display. If that location intersect with the map surface in the map collection, then it will be used.

When you have have more than one active map, you get a map browser when clicking the map button.

Too Large Maps

Since phones has limited memory resources, they therefore can't handle to large images. This limit varies depending on the phone model.

When this failure happens you should either reduce the resolution or cut it into smaller pieces. See more Import from an image file.

© Copyright by Mattias Nilsson. All rights reserved.