Over the last month or so, following feedback from users of the Digimap service, we made a few additions and enhancements to Digimap.  We will be running a webinar on these early in the new term but here is a quick run down of the new features:

• New Overlays added to OS Roam: Points of Interest (POI), Contours, Spot Heights and Postcode boundaries
• Ability to view attributes of the POI, Contours and Spot Heights Overlays using the Information Tool
• A5 printing in PDF, PNG and JPG now available in Roam
• Ability to view attributes for imported data
• Search results are now split into tabs
• Digimap data now available via Web Map Service (WMS) feeds allowing the data to be streamed directly in to GIS applications and other Digimap Collections
• Transparency slider added to all basemaps allowing you to fade out the basemap so that additional data stands out more clearly

Overlays

All Overlays in OS Roam can be found in the Overlays panel on the left hand side. Each Overlay has independent settings which allow control of the transparency of the Overlay layer and the ability to control which elements of the Overlay dataset are visible (or not). When printing a map which contains customised overlays, the customisation will not appear on your printed map. This means that if you select only one POI category on the screen, all POI categories will appear on the printed map. This is something that will be improved in the future.

It is also possible to view the attributes of the new Overlays using the Information tool in the header bar of the main window. Clicking on an Overlay feature will display the attribute information available for the feature. This includes, in the POI dataset, what type of business is represented, the address and postcode as well as the business or feature’s name.

View attributes of uploaded data

It is now possible to view the attributes of datasets loaded in to Roam.  A variety of common spatial data formats, including Shapefile, GeoJSON and KML can be imported using the Drawing Tools > Import function. Once imported, attributes associated with each feature can be viewed using the Information tool. Below is an example of some imported postcode polygons with the Information tool identifying the postcode of the selected polygon.

Improved search results

We’ve made a small improvement to the way search results are displayed. When you search for a term, the results are now displayed in tabs according to the type of object you’ve searched for (Places, Roads, Postcodes and Grid References). This means that it’s much easier to find the result you want in a long list.

Digimap data now available as WMS feeds

A significant new feature is the delivery of WMS (Web Map Service) feeds for all the maps appearing in Digimap’s Roam applications.  A WMS feed allows you to stream any of the Roam maps directly in to GIS software (e.g. QGIS or ArcGIS) or another Roam application.  Select your Collection and look for the Web Services box below Data Download. This is currently available in all Collections except Lidar, Global and Society.

You can paste the URLs given into the WMS Server Connection interface in your GIS or use the “Add WMS Feed” button in Roam. This will give you a window in which to paste the WMS URL:

Aug 15, 2019

We are pleased to say that the 2018 update to the CEH Land Cover® Plus: Crops dataset is now available through Environment Digimap.

CEH Land Cover® Plus: Crops has been produced by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology in partnership with Remote Sensing Applications Consultants and provides annually updated arable crop information for the whole of Great Britain. You can read more about it in our previous blog post.

You can find the 2018 data under the Basemaps in Environment Roam and under the Crop Data heading in Environment Download.

May 15, 2019

Last week we granted access to two new Digimap collections for all registered Digimap users. All Digimap users now have access to Global Digimap and Society Digimap. You should have received an email about this on Thursday 21st March.

The free trial will run until 31st July 2019. Access beyond that date will require your institution to have a subscription.

Global Digimap offers three datasets for mapping and data download: Open Street Map, Natural Earth and Collins Bartholomew World Panorama maps.

We are really keen to know what you think of the service and the data available. You can complete our online feedback form to tell us.  We can’t answer questions submitted through this form; please contact our helpdesk if you need assistance.

 

 

 

Society Digimap offers a wealth of census and socio-economic data for Great Britain.  This includes over 40 layers of data from a range of 2011 Census data, broadband availability and Output Area Classification (OAC).  The complexity of census data is sometimes off-putting, despite the tremendous insights it can offer.  Society Digimap aims to provide easy access to some key variables as an introduction to these complex data.

We are still working on providing a Data Download facility and a print facility for Society Roam, among other things.  If you have suggestions on what else you would like to see in Society Digimap, we’d love to hear your views through our online feedback form. Please note that we cannot respond to queries submitted through this feedback form. If you need help, please get in touch: digimap@ed.ac.uk

Mar 28, 2019

Our provisional programme for the event can be found in a previous blog post.  We’d be delighted to see you.  Please book a place online if you would like to attend.

Feb 12, 2019

We are very pleased to share our provisional programme for this year’s GeoForum event on Thursday 28th February 2019 at Lancaster House, Lancaster University, LA1 4GJ.

GeoForum is a free all day event aimed at lecturers, researchers and support staff who promote and support the use of geospatial data and services at their institution. Throughout the day we there will be talks and demonstrations to showcase recent geospatial developments at EDINA and opportunity to offer your feedback on the services we provide and discuss geospatial issues with the EDINA team.

10:30 Registration and coffee
10:55 Welcome – EDINA
11:00 CEH Land Cover© Plus: Crops – Highly accurate satellite-based crop maps, production and use – Dan Morton and John Redhead, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
11:30 Landmark and Higher Education –  Rick Crowhurst, Public Sector Manager, Landmark Information Group
11:45 Coffee
12:00 OpenStreetMap: what is it and how did it get there?  – Steve Chilton, Chair of Society of Cartographers and OSM Advocate and Contributor
12:40 EDINA Update  – EDINA
13:00 Lunch
14:00 Mapping from Collins Bartholomew – Kenneth Gibson
14:15 Ordnance Survey and Higher Education – Nick Groome, External Research Manager, Ordnance Survey
14:30 Intelligent Marine and Coastal Mapping data –  Katie Eades, Marketing Coordinator, OceanWise Ltd
14:45 More than just rocks: smart ways to use geological data – British Geological Survey
15:00 Tea
15:15 Solutions to GeoSpatial Challenges – Jake Lauder, Business Development Manager, Getmapping plc
15:30 Q&A – Ask EDINA anything!
16:00 Close

If you would like to attend, please register online. If you are unsure whether this event is for you or not, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Jan 30, 2019

As advertised earlier this year, the previous versions of Roam and Data Download will be withdrawn from service on 8th December 2018.

Since we understand that transition from one version to another takes time, both new and old versions have been running in parallel for many months now.  The upgraded Roam and Data Download applications have been available since November 2017 and June 2018 respectively. These are both easier to use, more flexible on a range of devices and offer a more modern, slick user experience.  Feedback on both has been very positive. Full instructions on how to use the new applications are available in the Digimap help pages. The data available remains identical.

New versions of Roam and Data Download

We continue to work to improve the facilities Digimap offers and hope to have some new developments avaliable over the coming months.  If you have any questions about the withdrawal of the two older applications or any feedback or requests regarding the new applications, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Nov 27, 2018