Configuring iShare Spotlight

Overview

iShare Spotlight allows a GIS user to create interactive maps that can be embedded within their own web pages and web applications.

Spotlight uses your iShare ADS Base Mapping and existing My Maps Map Source(s) so you have access to all your iShare Maps data, although you can only include one Map Source within a Spotlight map.

Using the Spotlight tools a GIS user can easily, (without coding) decide which functionality to include in the map such as, Map Navigation Controls, Address Search box, Layer controls etc. as well as allowing you to choose the map size and content.

When you are happy with your choices the Export Map button will publish a URL which you can share or HTML which you can embed into a web page, or put control in the hands of your web manager.

Spotlight is hosted by Astun Technology and uses Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS), which is an HTTP-header based mechanism that allows a server to indicate any other origins (domain, scheme, or port) than its own from which a browser should permit loading of resources, to allow the Astun Cloud to talk to your Cloud.

The following image is taken from our centrally hosted installation https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1/apps/spotlight/index.html

Open

Enabled CORS for iShare Maps

See Enabling CORS for details of how to enable CORS on your iShare Maps instance.

Pointing Spotlight to your iShare instance

The first task is to enter your iShare URL in the box provided and click the UPDATE button. This should be the path to your iShare Web application without a page e.g. if the URL to your iShare Web application was https://demo.astuntechnology.com/maps/mycouncil.aspx then you would enter https://demo.astuntechnology.com/maps/ in the iShare URL.

This will load your iShare My Maps Map Sources & Base Maps into the Map content section.

Configuring Map Tools and Content

Now you can use the Spotlight tools to configure the Map controls you wish to include and the Layers you wish to be available to the end user.

Map controls

Decide which of the Map controls you wish to display on your Spotlight map and, in the case of the Layer control, how you want the Legend to be displayed.

Open

Navigation

This displays the Navigation buttons at the bottom right of the map e.g.

Users can then use these buttons to Zoom In / Out on the map.

Address search

This displays a box where you can type in and Address or postcode… to search for e.g.

Info popup

If you tick Info popup then a Attributions button will be displayed at the bottom right of the map e.g.

Users can select the button and then click on an icon on the map to display its details e.g.

Layer control

Selecting Layer control will add a Layer control to the map with a Legend. You can decide how much information you wish to add to this control and whether or not you want it to be displayed by default. Also if you select images only for the Legend this will mean that users cannot turn the Layers on and off.

If you leave the Open by default unticked but you have selected to display the Layer control then you will see the following Legend button (top right of map) which, when clicked, will display the Layer control.

Full screen

Ticking this will display a Toggle full-screen button at the bottom right of the map e.g.

If you have embedded the map into your web page using an IFrame then the map will appear at specific size. The Toggle full-screen button with allow the user to view the map in full screen without the content from the rest of the webpage.

Map size

You can use the sliders or boxes provided to configure the size of the map (IFrame) you wish to create.

Map info

If you select to display the Information panel then you will be able to customise the Title and Description that is shown on the map.

If you select to display a Map pin then you can choose where you wish this to appear. Either manually enter the Easting & Northing values or you can use one of the two buttons to update these values. To use either of the two buttons you first need to use the Search or Pan to position the map to the location of your choice and then either click PLACE AT CENTRE to put the pin at the centre of the current map position or select CLICK ON MAP and click on the map where you wish the pin to be displayed, the map will then centre on your location. The Easting & Northing for your chosen location will be updated with these coordinates.

Map content

First pick the Map Source you wish to use from the selection provided e.g.

This will be a list of the My Maps Map Sources you have configured in iShare Studio. The Base maps choices displayed will be those that have been configured for your chosen My Maps Map Source.

Once you have selected a Map Source you can then decide which Layer Groups / Layers you wish to include in this Spotlight map but ticking the relevant boxes. If you have selected to display the Layer Control then any Layer Group / Layer selected here will be displayed in the Layer Control for users to switch on and off as they see fit.

Clicking SHOW WHOLE MAP will zoom the map to the Boundary Settings, and clicking RESET MAP VIEW will reset the map to the Startup Position, configured under the Start up options for your chosen Map Source.

Publishing your Spotlight map

Once you are happy with your map configuration click the EXPORT MAP button. This will provide you with the HTML for the IFrame which you can embed within a web page or a link for you to open a full page map which you could then copy and share if required e.g.

Changing an existing Spotlight map

If you wish to change an existing Spotlight map then click the IMPORT MAP button and you will be asked to paste in either the URL or IFrame HTML for your existing Spotlight map e.g.