ol-ishare - a modern iShare Maps OpenLayers client

Owned by Matt Walker
Last updated: 04 Oct, 2021 by Peter Goulborn
2 min read

ol-ishare is a new embedded map JavaScript client using the latest OpenLayers library which was itself designed from the outset for use on mobile devices.

Using ol-ishare we have produced an embedded map component that is similar in functionality to iShare Lite maps, along with the new Spotlight map creator and a rewrite of Logger.

Latest version

If you want to dive into ol-ishare immediately, go to: https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1/. See below for details and the availability of other releases.

Examples

A number of examples of using ol-ishare can be found in each release, e.g.:

https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1/examples/index.html

A significant benefit of ol-ishare is that we have structured the JavaScript code in such a way (using UMD bundles) so as to make it far easier for other developers to work with and develop custom solutions by themselves - or for Astun to build and maintain customer specific embedded map components containing bespoke functionality.

Documentation

API documentation for developers can be found in each branch, e.g. https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1/apidoc/. As the code changes, so does the documentation and the correct version for each release is kept alongside that release.

Releases

We use semantic versioning for ol-ishare. This means that the main, or major, version number will only be increased when changes are made that will break existing applications. The next, or minor, version number will change whenever new features are added. The last, or patch, release number increments when bugs are fixed for a given minor version. We make all these releases available publicly to allow you to develop with, and test against, the versions of your choice.

'v1'

https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1/

Where the latest code for this version will be available.

Use this if: You always want the most recent features and patches implemented automatically.

'v1.x'

E.g.: https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1.1/

Where the latest patch for a given feature release will be available. 

Use this if: You want to progress to a given set of new features at a time of your choosing. While we will not break compatibility with previous feature releases for this version, you may want to rollout changes to your users in a measured way, or update documentation first.

'v1.x.y'

E.g.: https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/v1.0.2/

Where a particular patch release will be available. 

Use this if: You are ultra-cautious about implementing new patches or wish to test against a given patch.

'main'

https://ol-ishare.services.astuntechnology.com/main/

This isn’t a release as-such, but it provides access to the main unstable development branch. This should never be used for production apps, but can be used for testing fixes, etc. prior to a release.

Other notable releases