myGME v2 - GSAK Google Maps Export

Yay! I finally got the macro and HTML file in good enough condition to release.

Find the macro here: http://gsak.net/board/index.php?showtopic=3781

<<Try a live copy, published here>> - 100 sample caches.

(Note: Firefox builds the map MUCH faster than IE, especially with a large collection of caches - 100 to 250 caches seems to provide reasonable performance. Larger sets will work, but load times can become long).



This is a work in progress, so please let me know of any issues or suggestions you may have in this thread.


Thanks!

Mark

This post has been edited by markp99 on December 29, 2006 10:25 pm

Very nice!

A few small questions:

Can you make the map respond to mousewheel for zoom in/out?

When I "hide labels" and then drag the radius in, the labels come back on. Is that expected? [Hmm. Tried it again and this didn't happen. I'm sure it happened once, but it doesn't happen every time.]

I'm using Netscape 8.1.2. When I do "print preview" the labels and the list of cache names disappears. Expected?

And please don't let any of that detract from my main message:

Excellent. I need to play with it for a while to learn everything I can do now.

This post has been edited by beejay on December 29, 2006 01:41 pm

Mark - great work!

Immediate comments from the on-line version:

1. Cannot close info windows without clicking on the (X) close box. You can normally close them by clicking anywhere on the map.

2. If you change zoom and then change the circle center or radius the old circle does not get erased so you end up with a rash of red circles on the map. (Firefox + Win XP)

Mike

Thanks for the comments:

1. Yes, I've noticed the infoWindow thing; I'll need to look at that. I have not added anything new with regards to the infoWindow; I'm not sure what's different now. There are a few other closeWindow() opportunities that should flush themselves out when a few new "eyes" look at the tool.

2. I've also seen the polygon (cirlce) persist after zooming in FF. I may need erase & redraw on zoomend() to avoid this. drawCircle() function is quite fast so it should redraw in a blink.

3. Mousewheel support. I had not thought about that. Should be do-able

4. The labels are intentionally shown when the zoomlevel < 12. I did this to avoid clutter of labels at higher zoomlevels. "12" seemed about the right level to turn them on. I can make the label_on zoomlevel a user config item if that helps.

5. Printing is problemmatic in FF. The opacity of the list and labels seems to be the issue. IE prints just fine. I was thinking about making the list/label opaque by default or by adding a "Print button" to do that.

Thanks Mark, great macro, I see in the macro text it says GSAK v6 will this also work in v7 or is that in the next update?

I'm running it with v7 (build 95) without any problems (well, except for some I mentioned above, but they aren't related to GSAK.)

Mark,

Thanks for your hard work the macro looks great. It will be very helpful for cache raids.

Two simple questions:
Could You make an option to turn the radius markers off? I find that markers print in FF (though not the red circle) and both the markers and circle print in IE.

Anyway to use the macro to define which browser to use? It might turn out I'd rather use the "other" one for this macro.

Great job!
Bob

Mark,

Very cool. Thanks for all of your efforts!

Thanks Bob,

Radius Markers: that's a great idea to turn off the radius markers! Currently when you move your mouse off the map, I hide the map controls; I think I could easily hide the markers then too. The radius markers would reappear when the mouse moves back over the map.

Browser Selection: I had thought to add branching in the macro to set the opacaity variables depending upon your choice (manual) of browser - very doable. I don't think I'd like to tackle launching a specific browser from the macro just yet - too many variables (browser, version, location, etc).

Known Firefox Issues (my preferred browser for performance):

1. Firefox cannot properly print transparent .png images. The geocache Google Maps pushpin markers are .pngs.

2. FireFox cannot print VML ploygons overlays (i.e., the circle) .

To avoid FF print issues, I actually take a screen capture using SnagIt to print my maps.



Mark

Using Snag It is a great idea! that will solve my issues.

Thanks again for a great macro.

Bob

Excellent job on the mapping macro. Kudos. From looking at the macro text you obviously spent alot of time working on this. I haven't had alot of time to play with it yet however it looks great.

Thank you for your time and effort.

Keep up the good work.

Ken

This post has been edited by knoffer on December 30, 2006 04:19 pm

Mark, this is one sweet macro.

The only problem is that it is starting to make my dedicated mapping program (which I haven't had need to use in a while) look like a silly purchase.

Great macro!
And an excellent example of proper and well documented programming with GSAK macro's too!

I use it in FF and have no problems.

For printing, if you want an excellent screen grabber, free for non commercial use, than consider FastStone Capture (http://www.faststone.org).
It has all the features of commercial programs like Snagit and Hypersnap, including grabbing while scrolling through a window.

Still loving this macro, Mark.

A few questions:

1. In previous versions, when the cache detail was displayed, it was possible to click anywhere on the map to remove it. Now it seems I have to click on the "x". It was more convenient for me the old way.

2. I load nearby new caches with LOC files (and later have daily PQs update with GPX). However, for the LOC-loaded caches, if I try to go to the cache page, I get:

Guid should contain 32 digits with 4 dashes (xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx).

(since the LOC files don't contain this information.) Since the LOC files have the cache URL, is there a reason you switched using from that? (At least, I think this is changed behavior.)

Can't say it often enough:

I use this macro many times a day and just love it.

beejay,

1. InfoWindow - Yes, something has unintentionally changed with the function of the infoWindow. It should close when you click away from the window. I'll fix that shortly.

2. GUIDs - In an attempt to minimize the resulting HTML file, I strip away the recurring elements (i.e., "http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid="), retaining and passing just the 32-char GUID. I was a bit concerned that the format of this string might not be consistent everywhere and you have proven this to be correct! I have not played with LOC files; I was unaware of the difference. Should be an easy fix.

- Thanks for the inputs.

I have done a little homework on the Google Maps API:

1. infoWindow - Version 2.x of the API brought us the need to click on the [x] to close the infoWindow. It has been filed as a bug and Google reports back they are working on it.

2. Markers in the shadow of an infoWindow - Markers in the "shadow" of an open infoWindow are not "clickable". The infoWindow needs to be closed [x] to reach these markers. This is an issue introduced somewhere in the v2x API updates. This has also been filed as a bug.

3. Persistent polylines - The issue noted by linguamaqua (above) that the circle may not clear if continuous zoom is used (double right/left mouse click) is a known issue in Firefox. The most recent release of the API this week (v2.71) supposedly corrects this issue. I will look at this version of the API and implement as appropriate.


Mark

With Opera the new map seems not to work
Are there any special setting needed?

I had only briefly looked at Opera.

I notice all the map elements are present (no errors), but everything is all bunched up at the top of the screen. I am guessing that Opera is not liking the "height" parameter that I use to set the map's height.

I really struggled with incompatibilities netween IE and Firefox. I might be able to create an Opera-only version, but I am quite hesitant to attempt a single fully compatible solution.

bsterix, let me know if you'd like me to take a more careful look at an Opera version

Mark

Great work, Mark. Thanks for all your work.

One question: Is there anyway to make the cache list window disappear? It always seems to land on top of some of the caches I need to print.

This post has been edited by drsecond on January 01, 2007 04:00 pm

drsecond,

I am hoping to add the option to hide/show the sidepanel list in the next version.