User:CKoerner (WMF)/Maps user guide

Maps provide an additional way to discover and learn about a place or an event that is mentioned in an article or page within Wikipedia. Making these maps interactive - where users zoom, pan, and interact with points of interest embedded in the map - can further enrich the way we learn about the world.

Interactive maps simplifies the tools needed to add a map to an article and reduces the need for complex image editing or geographic information system (GIS) tools.

Getting started
 The following code will insert a simple interactive map (like what is seen in this section), with the ability to maximize it by either double-clicking the map or clicking the icon in the right corner. The map can be panned by dragging the map and zoomed by the mouse scroll wheel.

Editors using the visual editor can add a map to a page by selecting "Map" from the "Insert" menu.



Adding a map with the visual editor gives you options to define its size, position, and add markers, lines, and polygons.

Editing maps
Maps can be edited and extended beyond showing a location to include:
 * Position (longitude and latitude)
 * Size (width and height)
 * Zoom level is a number that represents the size of the area represented within a map
 * zoom level 0 (zero) displays the entire globe
 * zoom level 13 could display a single village or a downtown area of a large city.
 * Text description
 * Alignment
 * Points of interest
 * Lines and polygons

Extending maps
Maps can be extended with external data and the Graph extension to add in things like:
 * geoshape
 * geomask
 * GeoShapes external data
 * Groups
 * Groups

Map examples
Here are a couple demos of sample maps...
 * https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mapframe_Kartographer_demo.webm
 * https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maplink_Kartographer_demo.webm

Where does map data come from?

 * OpenStreetMap
 * http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Welcome_to_Wikipedia_users
 * http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Beginners_Guide_1.3
 * Report a problem / Fix the map

How can I use these maps?
...
 * Terms of use