Project Detail

Description

Need an "engine" for maps. Today I have an interactive atlas consisting of static gifs. Some maps have layered function, all maps are clickable, allowing users to jump to articles on the places on the maps. Most maps have information that is not clickable too.

The new engine, would preferrably be in flash. This way the actual graphical content of the gifs should be possible to transfer into a flash format. Not so that the pixels become pixels in flash format, but so that areas become areas.... hope this makes sense.

There are a few example pages you really have to check to understand what is done until now, to understand what you should help me in doing.

http://looklex.com/e.o/atlas/mena.htm (most of the functionality of this page I would like to keep)
http://looklex.com/e.o/atlas/iran.htm (test out the options in the left menu!!!)
http://looklex.com/e.o/atlas/h-ottomans.htm (note that you can change maps by year)

These are the basic functions of the map engine:

1. Keep the layer function, but improve it to allow several layers to act together. Let's say you have three layers: topography showing mountains etc; cities, rivers and roads; ethnic groups. When mixing these, the colours of the areas with ethnic groups "colour" the mountains, putting names of cities on top.
2. Enhance zoom function, so that perhaps there are cities shown low zoom, cities shown on middle zoom, and all the other cities shown on max zoom. Zoom should happen without reload of web page.
3. Information like those squares indicating city size, and text, should not be graphical, but easily editable like from a txt file or something.
4. Maps should be possible to made larger than what is shown. By this I mean that let's say the map for Iran could on max zoom be 3000x3000 pixels (to talk in gif terms) while the map shown is like 600x600 pixels. Then the user should be permitted to drag the map around to see other parts then the first he opened.
5. If you select Ethnic groups for the Iran map, you will see that it can be confusing. I would like to connect the explanation box (lower left corner) and the information on the map. Like you move the mouse over the explanation box's "Gilakis", then the fields corresponding to this become brighter and all the other fields are made weaker in colour. Also, if you move the mouse over a field, a a text box appears saying the name of that group. All fields, and all text, should be hyperlinked....
6. Maps should be possible to render in articles. Like if you look at http://looklex.com/e.o/ottomans.htm, there is a smaller map. Now this is also static gif, but I would like it to be taken directly from the map engine, and reproduced here with a certain height and width and with clear indications to click to open a big map.
7. Text information in maps, like a city name, should be possible to be made highlighted. If you look at http://looklex.com/e.o/riyadh.htm, you will see a small map showing here right now where Riyadh is in its country. You can click this little map, but the map you then open does not help the reader finding the location of Riyadh.
8. The maps should be possible to search. What you search is at this stage the geographical information that is registered as text. There is presently a search engine for the underlying encyclopaedia, http://looklex.com/e.o. I would like it to be seamlessly integrated with this, but also allow direct search in the atlas alone....