Extension:Maps/Future

Future work on Maps

Feel free to add new feature requests to the new proposals section. Please review the turned down proposals first. Adding your vote or objection to proposals will help determining which ones will get the priority. If you have any comments on the already accepted or turned down proposals, please add them to the talk page, but refer from adding them to the lists themselves.

Accepted to-do's
Items that have strikethrough have been completed/fixed.

New features

 * Added display_map parser function, to display maps without any markers.


 * Added parsing of marker-specific title and label values.


 * Added geocoding support for the centre parameter. This is based on automatic detection of non-coordinates to see if geocoding is required, similar to the modified behaviour of display_point(s).


 * Added minimum and maximum map size restrictions, like done in SlippyMap.


 * Add OSM mapping service, which uses OL, but only allows OSM layers and is optimized for OSM.


 * Add support for DM and DD coordinate notations.

Refactoring

 * Created a hook system for the parser functions, allowing the adding or removing of additional parser function support.


 * Removed redundant absolute script path variable. This absolute value caused problems for some installations.


 * Changed the geocoding functionality into a true feature hook element, enabling easy removal.


 * Created service hook for the geocoding feature, loose from the mapping services hook.


 * Changed display_point(s) and display_address(es) to display_point(s), with auto detect functionality to see if the provided value are coordinates or addresses. display_address and display_addresses have been retained for backward compatibility, but will be removed from the docs. Backward compatibility will be removed at some point, so the use of these functions is discouraged.

Bug fixes

 * Fixed issue with the default parameter for the display_address(es) parser functions.


 * Fixed major bug in the initialization method causing hook code to get executed at a probably wrong moment. This bug can be the cause of some weird problems that surfaced since 0.3.3.


 * Fixed issue with size of popups in Google Maps. They did not stretch far enough vertically for large contents.

New features

 * Static map support, similar and based upon SlippyMap.


 * Strict parameter validation with specific error feedback, like done in SlippyMap, but with the current fall-back mechanisms.

Refactoring

 * Remove backward compatibility (to 0.2.x) of the earth parameter.


 * Big overhaul of the JavaScript. Currently the code is badly structured, not optimal for performance, and scattered over several files (which is bad for page load times).

New features

 * Ability to add custom base layers (with images) for OpenLayers. example, example


 * Functionality similar to Tetherless Map (list of points next to maps). Example.

New features

 * General geocoding support for forms, with a geocervice parameter
 * Add GeoNames geocoding support for all mapping services


 * Bing Maps (formerly called Virtual Earth) support


 * Mapstraction support


 * Display_route parser function, to auto generate routes


 * KML support for Google Earth


 * KML support for Open Layers


 * Google Earth moon/mars/skye support (3D)


 * Street view support for Google Maps


 * Allow for complex wiki-text in the title and label parameters, such as being able to specify parameters for an image. This is now not possible cause Maps can not determine if a parameter separator (|) is coming from one of it's parser function, or a nested one.

Bug fixes

 * Marker popups in Yahoo! Maps show up with a white background under them (probably a CSS issue) -Yaron


 * Strange behavior with the Bing Maps base layer in OpenLayers - when it's the default layer, it shows points in the wrong place, and when it's not, it doesn't show anything when selected - see the last two maps here. -Yaron

Turned down proposals

 * Scrolling up and down the page with the arrow keys also scrolls the map, for Yahoo! Maps (it doesn't do this for Google Maps or OpenLayers).

- Yaron

This is not really a bug I guess, just part of the Yahoo! API. I you set autoszoom=off, the hotkey stuff will also be disabled. I'm going to have a look if scroll wheel zoom and key controls can be set individually for 0.3 though.

- Jeroen De Dauw 18:02, 31 July 2009 (UTC)

The Yahoo! API does not allow turning that off/on separately from the scroll wheel zoom. So that issue can't be fixed.

- Jeroen De Dauw 23:14, 20 August 2009 (UTC)

New proposals

 * Add some kind of custom route tool, like done by the Google Maps extension? vid - Jeroen De Dauw 01:30, 22 July 2009 (UTC)


 * Add based syntaxis for the parser functions - Jeroen De Dauw 22:48, 23 July 2009 (UTC)


 * General zoom level system: one zoom level scale for all services. This would make it easier for users to get the hang of the zoom levels, and would not affect the zoom when changing the service parameter. However, this would not allow backward compatibility, by affecting the zoom of all maps using one of the current zoom scales. Even if this is a good idea, there needs to be voted for the scale system to use. - Jeroen De Dauw 01:43, 24 July 2009 (UTC)


 * Add support for optional Directions controls (From here - To here) or any parameter to facilitate generating directions to or from a location on the map. Directions could be generated in a new view, not necessarily on the embedded map, although that would be a nice addition. - Laurent Alquier 11:50, 03 August 2009

Can you provided a link to an example?

-Jeroen De Dauw 20:36, 9 August 2009 (UTC)

Did you mean something similar to this?

-Jeroen De Dauw 21:55, 9 August 2009 (UTC)

How about having custom marker icons? Also having a flexible width?

--Jhoogy 04:44, 26 October 2009 (UTC)

Maps already allows custom marker icons. A flexible size for the map might be neat to have, but won't be done by me any time soon.

--Jeroen De Dauw 08:43, 27 October 2009 (UTC)