STOP and POST - Aug 05

[Egg Bramhill]

Zee John Ed
Most of my maps I create in XaraX for use in Flash. My method is exactly like Johns, ie I hand trace over the map on the layer above. (I use a tablet) I use a seperate layer for each road colour (Green or Blue: Trunk Rds. Red: Main Rds. V Lt Yellow: Minor Rds)
I then duplicate these layers and apply different line widths depending on the road type, then convert the lines to shapes. Then Add Shapes. This way I still have the original lines on the original layers should I want to ammend the map.

The final stage is to copy all the shapes from the 3 road type shapes layers, paste them on yet another layer behind those 3, and Add shapes. Fill colour Black. Then use the Contour tool to apply a 2 or 3 pixel external contour. Inset Path to make one shape. This gives the Black outlines.

I can then export these via .swf to Flash. There are no lines only shapes. (Flash handles line resizing very badly so I try to avoid lines in Flash)

On Johns question of street name labels: I prefer to do this in Xara. You can get the labels to follow the curves in the road using the fit text to curve option. Unfortunately to export this to Flash you need to convert this to shapes. This increases the file size vastly and therefore I avoid it. So the labels have to be added in Flash. I hate doing any drawing work in Flash, but this is one that I get stuck with.

Zee. Map making can be tedious, but I also find it thereputic. The trick is to do a bit at a time. My pet hate is new housing estates. 'Don't create a road that runs in a single direction for more than 10 yards'!

Ed - Be very careful redrawing the old Indian Territories, they've been redrawn to often in the past .... there'll be war paint a slapping tonight!

Finally, the ultimate map

Egg

[John Rayner]

Hey Egg,

I do mine in print or PDF for the web. Get a cleaner print with smaller file size. Also it gives a more predictible print... Most people do not have a 'puter in there car, but print out the map and go from there...

Map keys can be the real pain in the tookas... I print out my street name layer to flash, cut and paste the htl street names into a word doc, searchand replace st. with st.(carriage return), Proof it then save it as a txt file. Import into access, sort and add the loacations, then cut and paste from Access back into xara. Sturgis can be done in an hour ( approximately 300 streets per hour) Rapid city is still 2 friggin days... Yuck!

What usually happens is the client adds 2 streets on the final proof and you have to rebuild the entire key for those 2 streets... (at least from the access part)

Very cool map if I do say so myself... they do not have my house in the detailed stuff and the satellite shots are at least a year old... So my maps are more accurate.

[Simon Beck]

I recently designed a T-shirt for one of my Yahoo-groups. It's available to buy (plug, plug) at http://www.cafepress.com/ciep. The group is dedicated to possibly the crummiest musical instruments ever made:

[John Rayner]

I think my mother had one of those... Or something about as cheap...

[cazza42]

Hi,

I wanted to thank Egg for the Ultimate Map link. I asked it to map the route from home to work and it cut it down from 7.5 miles to 6.2 miles. Will have to try it tomorrow. Every mile counts, thanks again.

Regards,

[zee]

Egg and John,
THANKS for all the information on how you create your maps. I'll have to give it a try sometime.
Zee

[John Rayner]

Your welcome zee... Any questions, just ask...

[Egg Bramhill]

Here's an example of Xara to Flash vector mapping

You will need to select the Maps / Street Finder to view the map in detail.

map

[John Rayner]

pretty cool Egg. Problem is.. you could not do it in one night. Same with mine...

[Mike S]

havent been playing with xara in a month or so but anyways from the few posts great stuff from all so far. maybe i will blow the dust off of xara and draw something in the next cple days.