Using the Overview Map

The Overview Map provides a dockable visual reference indicating the full extent of all loaded data. It can also be used to quickly navigate to a new location. If multiple map views are displayed, as was covered in the previous section, separate coverage boxes will appear in the Overview Map indicating the extent of each map.

Enabling the Display of the Overview Map

Follow these steps to add the Overview Map to Global Mapper’s interface

  1. From Global Mapper’s introductory screen, click the Load Default Data button
  2. From the File toolbar, click the Overview Map button
    The Overview map appears as a floating window which we will now dock below the Control Center
  3. Using the left mouse button, click and drag the Overview Map title bar to the left of the interface so the cursor is within the Control Center window
  4. A series of arrow buttons will appear in the middle of the window allowing the Overview Map to be docked to the top, left, right, or bottom of the Control Center

  5. Release the mouse button when the cursor coincides with the arrow button pointing down
  6. If necessary, expand the width of the combined Control Center/Overview Map window by clicking and dragging its border with the main map window
  7. In the main map window, zoom and pan the view and note the corresponding box in the Overview Map changes accordingly
  8. Zoom to a specific country so the box in the Overview Map is relatively small
  9. In the Overview Map, click at another location and note that the main map view redraws accordingly
  10. Click, hold and move your mouse to create a box in the Overview Map and release to define the extent of the main map view

Customizing the Overview Map

The Overview Map can be customized using the settings available in the Global Mapper’s Configuration dialog box. The easiest way to access this specific section of Configuration is to right-click on the Overview Map and choose Overview Map Options. Note that we will explore the Configuration options in more detail later in the course.

Options include customization of the style applied to the box (border style, color, etc.), whether to display labels, and whether to adjust the extent of the Overview Map to reflect the layers that are currently displayed (checked) in the Control Center.

Note that, unlike the multiple map view functionality that was introduced in the previous section, the contents or zoom level of the Overview Map cannot be manually set

  • The optional Overview Map provides a geographic perspective of the current map view, relative to the full extent of all loaded layers
  • The window can be docked or moved to a second monitor to limit its interference with the main map view
  • By clicking at a location within the Overview Map, the main map will be redrawn to reflect that location
  • Click here for more information

This concludes the Navigating the Interface lesson. Before moving on to the next lesson, click here to take a five-question quiz.