Frequently Asked Questions

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We've tried to make the entire map creation process as simple as possible. We've even included a map creation wizard to help you get started. You can create a new map here: http://www.mapme.com/maps/new_map. If you get stuck, or you don't understand any part of the map creation wizard, please send us a message through our Contact Us page and tell us what the problem is.

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Good question (It actually took us a while to figure this out). Generally, a Public map is open to all registered users, and anyone who is logged in can add locations to a map. They're a free for all, unless the creator of the map has required new content to be moderated (which means the map owner can check over the new content before it's published). A Community map is designed for communities – it's like a Public map, but visitors to the map need to request membership before they can suggest locations. The owner of the map can either approve new members automatically, or they can review member applications manually. This extra control over what and who appears on a new map means that enthusiasts in a particular area can focus on building useful content that their map members might enjoy. A Personal map is for your own use, or maybe for you and your friends (you can invite your friends to join up and give them access to your map membership). You can also make your Personal map private (which means that it won't be listed in the map directory to anyone else but you).

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To add a place to a map, you'll need to add a “Hotspot” (See ‘What is a Hotspot?'). Hotspots are the interesting or unusual places that our users add to the maps. You can add as many places as you like to your own map, or you can suggest new locations on community and public maps that have been created by other users.

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If you want to remove a hotspot from the map (that you've created), you simply click the “Edit this Map” button and then look under the “Edit HotSpots” area on the left. You can then click [DEL] to delete the content you created. If your Hotspot (or place) was added to another a Community or a Public map owned by someone else, you won't be able to delete the content you've added. It will be up to the Moderator (or Moderators) of the map in question to approve and remove the content on their map or maps.

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If a map is open, registered users (for public maps) and members (for community maps) can suggest locations. If it's a closed map, it means that the owner of the map has disallowed other users from adding or suggesting new Hotspots.

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Some map owners like to review the content added to their new maps before it appears on their maps. If you've suggested a new Hotspot, or uploaded pictures, videos or comments to a location and this information hasn't appeared yet, chances are that the map owner hasn't had time to 'moderate' your contribution. If you think they might have missed something you've contributed, you can always send them a message.

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You can only delete a map that you own. The easiest way to delete a map is to go to “View Maps” in the navigation bar. Then sort maps by “Show maps that I own” - you can then click on “Delete” to remove your map from the system. You can't get your map back, so be careful when you are removing or deleting map the content. If you want someone else's map be deleted for one reason or another, you can click the “Flag” icon link for the MapMe Administrator’s approval (An orange flag is found on the information box under each map).

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Any map you own, or any public or community map where the user has allowed others to use the map on another website. If you can see an 'Export' tab, you can generally grab the map code and use it on your own personal blog or website. You can also download the KML or GPX information (to be used with Google Earth or a Portable GPS device). See ‘What’s the difference between KML and GPX and how do I use it?’.

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Yes, sometimes. Read the previous question. It depends if the owner of the map allows you to.

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You can control your map settings by changing the various permissions available to each map during the map creation process, or by “editing” your map after it's created. You can click on “edit” in the “my maps view” (Seen from View Maps, then sort by Show Maps that I own) or on the “edit” icon above the map in the view mode. Once you’re in, you can adjust the settings that determine whether or not which content is allowed automatically, and which content requires moderation. If you have settings that require new content to be approved before it's viewable on your map, you'll need to “moderate” any newly suggested location info (images, videos or comments) before it becomes live on your map. You can do this by clicking on the “new items” link near the logout link (top right) which will take you to a screen which displays your maps and the number of new items awaiting moderation. Click on moderate and you'll be taken to the moderation pool for the map in question, where you can edit, delete, unpublish or remove any content on your map.

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Go to your Control Panel (found on the top navigation bar or navigation drop menu), then click on the link to the maps that you've created. You'll see a list of maps that you own then you can click on “edit” to change your map settings. To upload a thumbnail, simply browse your local computer, find an image and click upload. A thumbnail will be automatically created for you (your image can be of any shape).

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Go to your Control Panel (found on the top navigation bar or the navigation drop menu on map pages), then click on the link to the maps that you've created. You'll see a list of maps that you own then you can click on “edit” to change your map settings.

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If you make a personal map, you can make it 'private' (either during the map creation process or through changing the map settings). Only people that you invite will be able to see your map, and it won't be listed in the MAPme directory... of course you'll be able to see your map in the directory, and you'll also be able to see a link to "share this map" - which you can distribute to other special people that should be allowed to see your map.

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Map owners can create 'Categories' to group together Hotspots that might be related to each other. For example, a travel guide for London might have a set of “Restaurants” and another set for “Art Galleries”. A visitor to the map can then view one or many sets at the same time to find the information that they are after. A user can also use sets as a filter to view content that they've added.

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Sets can only be created by map owners (we figured an owner should have control over the way information is ordered on their map). It's fairly easy to create a new set – you simply click on the categories tab and then give your new set a title and description. Once you've saved a category, you can assign Hotspots to it (currently only one) which in turn can be used as a filter to view map contents. You can also create new categories when you are making a new Hotspot. If you're working on a community map and you think your map could use a few new “catts”, the best thing you can do is to send a message to the owner of the map.

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Easy, click search – enter what you are looking for and where and then click search. If you are trying to navigate a map, you can enter a name of a place in the “jump to a specific placename” (the text box field on the top right) which will give you a list of suggestions from a database of over 100,000 locations (mostly cities with more than 10,000 inhabitants). From map pages, you can search within the map (filter by keywords in the Hotspot controller), or you can go straight to search form from the navigation menu (bottom left).

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No. It would be too confusing.

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You can't add images or videos to your map but you can add them to your Hotspots which you placed on your maps. Once you've created a new Hotspot, you can click on any of the image, video or comment icons which will take you to a different view where you can: a.) upload images from your computer (under 1MB per file) and, b.) add videos from Youtube.com by using the URL of the file like: http://youtube.com/watch?v=abcde12345

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Tags are descriptive words that provide a way for other users to find your map. Tagging your map will also mean that your map is displayed in search results for the particular keyword you're targeting, so it will be easier for other map enthusiasts to find content with similar subject matter.