Release notes for MapsAlive version 2.05.2 (9 September 2008)
2.05.2 is a minor release focused on markers. You now choose a slide's marker on the Slide Content Page instead of having to go to the Marker Options page. And you can get from the Slide Content page to the Edit Marker page in one click if you need to modify a marker you created.
You can now set a filter on the My Markers page so that you only see markers used on the current page or current tour. For those of you with lots of symbols and markers, you should notice a big improvement in the page loading speed of the Edit Marker, My Markers, and My Symbols pages. Clicking the Update Preview link on the Edit Marker page responds much faster too.
We hope these refinements make using MapsAlive just that much more enjoyable.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 2.05 (29 August 2008)
The changes in this release are summarized below. Details follow, but if you don't want to read them all, just skim for the important notes highlighted in red.
- User interface modifications
- Improved page layout features
- Menu and Title Bar changes
- Banner improvements
- Bug fixes
1. User Interface Modifications
We have made a number of adjustments to the user interface that are designed to make the Tour Builder easier to use.
• The coloring of some buttons and text has changed. We deemphasized less commonly used elements by making them faded and emphasized others by making them more bold.
• Action links like Add Slide and Go To Map no longer appear in the upper right corner. All action links are now located in the Tour Builder Menu so that you only need to look in one place for them.
• The following items have been added to the Tour Builder Menu: Add Page, Create New Tour, and Upload Map.
• Closely related pages now display links to each other in white-on-green like this:
Banner Options . These links allow you to quickly go back and forth between two related pages.
• A plus sign (+) in the Tour Builder Menu indicates which pages have child pages (a child page has additional options related to its parent page).
• The step-by-step instructions for new users have a new look and text designed to make it easier to tell at a glance what step needs to be performed.
2. Improved Page Layout Features
We have greatly improved the layout features to make it as easy as possible for you to create and maintain a great looking tour.
• The Auto Layout logic is much smarter now and runs automatically to keep your tour looking good. Auto Layout now does extensive analysis of your map image and photos to choose the best possible layout for you, or to adjust the elements in a layout that you choose.
• The Page Layout page has been renamed to Layout Options and all layout options are now accessible from there. The Margins & Spacing page is now called Edit Sizes.
• The term "canvas" has been introduced to describe the part of the tour page used to display the map, photo, and text for Fixed slides or just the map for Popup slides.
• You can now explicitly set the position of the horizontal and vertical layout splitters to prevent Auto Layout from changing their location. This feature eliminates the need for the Auto Image checkbox that used to appear on the Tour Options page.
• The fields for setting the width and height of your tour, and the options for auto width and auto height, have been moved from the Tour Options page to the Edit Sizes page.
• There are now three options for setting the tour width and height: Exact, Max, and Canvas. Please read the Explain text next to these options for details. To prevent auto layout from modifying tours you have already created, the width and height of existings tours has been set to Exact even if they were previously set to Auto. You can change this setting on the Edit Sizes page.
• You can now undo layout changes by clicking Undo Layout Changes on the Layout Options page. This feature will let you freely experiment with layout variations and still restore your tour to its original look.
• The Layout Editor now shows a preview of the entire page instead of just the canvas as it did in prior releases. Now you can see the page's banner, title, and menu while editing its layout.
• The option to switch between FIxed and Popup slides has been moved from the Page Options page to the Layout Options page. You now set the size of popups on the Edit Sizes page. When you are using a popup layout, you now see the Layout Editor for the popup followed by a preview of the page.
• You can now set the width of popup slides that only contain text. A text-only slide is one that has text, but no image. Prior to this release, the width of text-only slides was the same as the popup slide max width. This setting is located on the Layout Sizes page.
• To choose a new layout, you now go to the Choose New Layout page (a child page of Layout Options). The algorithm for computing the various layouts has been completely rewritten to show you the best tour size and best combination of map and images sizes for each layout.
• When you create a new tour, or add a page to a tour, you can choose whether to use Fixed or Popup slides. Prior to the release, the page was always created with Fixed slides.
• You can now create a Map page (as opposed to an Info page) and choose a layout that does not have a map. This is useful when you want to show multiple slides, but don't have a map image. The user picks the slide they want to see from the directory since there is no map with markers to mouse over.
3. Menu and Title Bar changes
• The Tour Options page has a new choice for the Menu Location. If you select Auto Top Menu, the tour will automatically add a top menu if the tour has 2 or more pages. With this setting, a one page tour will not display a menu. This is the default for new tours.
• You can now control whether a stripe of color (or gray, depending on the tour's color scheme) appears near the top and/or bottom of the tour by using the Show Header Stripe and Show Footer Stripe check boxes on the Tour Options page. Prior to this release, the stripes only appeared if the Show Title Bar option was checked.
• The text displayed in a tour's title bar text now defaults to the tour name. In earlier MapsAlive releases it defaulted to the current page name.
4. Banner Improvements
When you upload a banner image on the Banner Options page, it is now automatically scaled to best fit the width of the page. If you change the page size either explicitly or by changing the page layout, the banner image will automatically be adjusted again. Note your banner image will never be sized larger than its original dimensions. If the image is too narrow for the page, blank space will appear to its right.
5. Bug Fixes
• If you imported area tags to create polygon markers for a map that did not have MapZoom turned on, the markers appeared too large and in the wrong location (or were not placed on the map at all). This feature now works correctly whether or not MapZoom is on.
• Polygon shaped markers did not scale when their map was scaled unless MapZoom was on. Polygons markers now scale whether or not MapsZoom is on.
• When you changed Tour Options such as the menu, title bar, or banner, the layout of the page could change in unpredictable ways. This has been corrected.
• The Tour Preview page's Code Snippets for an iframe showed width and height values that were too small if the Margin field on the Tour Options page had a value greater than zero. This has been fixed.
• The logic for positioning the Directory in a tour sometimes put it in the wrong place. This has been fixed.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 2.03 (4 June 2008)
Important : This is a major new release with many new features and some changes and improvements to the Tour Builder. Overview of new features .
1. Video and Other Media
You can now add video to your slides. When you mouse over a marker on your map, the slide containing the video displays right in your tour. You can also display HTML content such as web pages, Java applets, and even Google maps! Learn more .
2. Directory and Categories
The new Directory feature lets you automatically display a categorized directory of all the locations on your map. The directory feature is perfect for tours where you want to locate slides by name or category. You can search for slides in the directory and MapsAlive filters the list as you type. When you click an entry in the directory, MapsAlive positions the map, displays the slide for that entry, and blinks its markers. You can define your own categories, assign slides to one or more categories, and group slides by category in the directory. Learn more .
3. Live Data
The Live Data feature lets you access a database on your own or another server through JavaScript calls and view updated data in real time when you move your mouse over markers on your map. This is an advanced feature for web developers who are familiar with JavaScript, AJAX, and server-side technologies. We encourage you to contact us to learn more.
4. Flash Security Update
Adobe recently released a security update for Flash Player 9 (version 9,0,124,0) that causes some existing tours to not display slides when mousing over their markers. This is only an issue for users who install the latest version of flash. Read more about the Adobe Security Update.
If you have encountered this problem or you just want to ensure your tours function correctly with the Flash update, all you need to do is publish your tour(s) again. To publish a tour, go to My Tours and click the thumbnail or Edit button for the tour. Click Tour Preview and then click the Publish link.
5. Tour Builder changes
We have made a number of changes to the Tour Builder to support the new features above and to improve the workflow when creating tours. We encourage you to explore these changes and use the Explain boxes on the Tour Builder pages to learn more.
- The Slide Content page has been reorganized and now includes an option to choose what kind of media (photo, video, live data) you want to display in your slide.
- You can now override the size of a popup slide.
- The Slide Content page displays your list of categories and lets you choose categories for your slide.
- The Slide Marker page is now called Marker Options.
- The Tooltip field for a slide in now on the Slide Content page
6. Slide Macros
MapsAlive supports several macros that let you insert images, links, and other objects into the Text area of a slide. The purpose of the macros is to make it easy to create richer text content without having to know HTML. Refer to the Slide Content FAQ for additional information.
(4 June 2008) : This is a major new release with many new features and some changes and improvements to the Tour Builder. . You can now add video to your slides. When you mouse over a marker on your map, the slide containing the video displays right in your tour. You can also display HTML content such as web pages, Java applets, and even Google maps! .
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.55 (4 February 2008)
1. Tour URL
There are now two ways to specify the URL for tours you create with MapsAlive. The old form of URL for tour 1234 is www.mapsalive.com/tour/1234. You can now also specify the URL like this: tour.mapsalive.com/1234. The new way is a little more compact, but you can use either notation. This feature applies to existing tours as well as new tours.
(4 February 2008)
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.54 (1 February 2008)
1. New Pricing
People told us our pricing was too confusing so we made it simple. The old Trial, Basic and Pro Plans have been replaced with a MapsAlive Membership. You should have received an email from us explaining the changes and how they affect your account. If not, or if you have questions or concerns, please contact us. You can send mail to support@mapsalive.com or call 802-496-9140.
(1 February 2008)
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.52 (27 December 2007)
1. Import Slide Content
The Import Slide Content feature lets you import slide content from an Excel or CSV (comma separated values) file. MapsAlive automatically creates one slide for each record in your import file. You can also use the Import Slide Content feature to quickly update the content for existing slides. Import Slides is a beta feature.
2. Import HTML Image Map
The Import HTML Image Map feature lets you import one or more HTML Area tags and their shape coordinates and have MapsAlive automatically create a slide and a marker for each shape. This saves you from having to create slides and markers one at a time. You can also use the Import HTML Image Map feature to quickly update the coordinates for markers that already exist. Import HTML Image Map is a beta feature.
3. Line and Hybrid Marker Shapes
You can now use lines as marker shapes (in addition to circles, rectangles, and polygons). You can also combine multiple shapes to create a hybrid shape for use with a single marker. For example, on a map of the world you could combine Alaska, Hawaii, and the 48 states into a single USA shape even though the individual shapes don't touch each other. When you mouse over any of the individual shapes, they all highlight. You create hybrid shapes using the new Import HTML Image Map feature.
4. Auto Map Zoom
When the new Auto Map Zoom option is checked (located in the Page Size & Layout Options Options section of the Tour Options page), MapsAlive will automatically turn Map Zoom on or off depending on how large of a map image you upload. The option is checked by default in new tours and unchecked in existing tours.
(27 December 2007) You can now use lines as marker shapes (in addition to circles, rectangles, and polygons). You can also combine multiple shapes to create a hybrid shape for use with a single marker. For example, on a map of the world you could combine Alaska, Hawaii, and the 48 states into a single USA shape even though the individual shapes don't touch each other. When you mouse over any of the individual shapes, they all highlight. You create hybrid shapes using the new Import HTML Image Map feature. When the new option is checked (located in the Page Size & Layout Options Options section of the Tour Options page), MapsAlive will automatically turn Map Zoom on or off depending on how large of a map image you upload. The option is checked by default in new tours and unchecked in existing tours.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.51.2 (24 November 2007)
1. Private Tours
A new Private checkbox in the Developer Options section of the Tour Options page lets you prevent your tour from being seen by other people on the internet. A private tour cannot be published, but it can be downloaded so that you can host it on your own server or run it from a computer. Use the private option for tours containing sensitive photos or information that you do not want publicly accessible. This option is not available in Trial accounts.
(24 November 2007) A new checkbox in the Developer Options section of the Tour Options page lets you prevent your tour from being seen by other people on the internet. A private tour cannot be published, but it can be downloaded so that you can host it on your own server or run it from a computer. Use the private option for tours containing sensitive photos or information that you do not want publicly accessible. This option is not available in Trial accounts.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.51.1 (11 November 2007)
1. Bulk Photo Upload
The new Import Slides feature lets you upload a zip file of images and have MapsAlive automatically create a slide for each one. This saves you from having to add slides and upload images one at a time. To use this feature choose Import Slides from your tour's Page menu.
2. Get to your Most Recent Tour from the Home page
The Most Recent Tour icon now appears on the MapsAlive home page, right above the My Tours menu item. Use it to get back to the last tour you were working on with just one click.
3. Change Password
You can now change your MapsAlive account password by going to My Account and choosing Change Password from the menu.
(11 November 2007) The new Import Slides feature lets you upload a zip file of images and have MapsAlive automatically create a slide for each one. This saves you from having to add slides and upload images one at a time. To use this feature choose Import Slides from your tour's Page menu. The icon now appears on the MapsAlive home page, right above the My Tours menu item. Use it to get back to the last tour you were working on with just one click. You can now change your MapsAlive account password by going to My Account and choosing Change Password from the menu.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.49.0 (23 October 2007)
1. Workflow improvements
Some of the Tour Builder and My Account pages and menu items have moved to improve workflow. A new Resources panel appears on all Tour Builder pages so that you can get to your markers and symbols from any page with just one-click. A new Most Recent Tour icon now appears on all the My Tour, My Markers, and My Symbols pages pages so that with just one more click you can get right back to the last tour you were editing. These changes reduce the amount of navigation you have to perform to get from a tour to your markers and back again. You can also logout from any page with the new Logout icon.
2. Get Help from the Tour Builder
A Help icon now appears on all Tour Builder pages so that you can get to the new How To FAQ with one-click. The FAQ pages have a Tour Builder icon so that with just one more click you can get back to where you were in the Tour Builder.
3. Text Editor Enhancements
The Slide Content page text editor has been upgraded with these new features:
(23 October 2007) Some of the Tour Builder and My Account pages and menu items have moved to improve workflow. A new Resources panel appears on all Tour Builder pages so that you can get to your markers and symbols from any page with just one-click. A new icon now appears on all the My Tour, My Markers, and My Symbols pages pages so that with just one more click you can get right back to the last tour you were editing. These changes reduce the amount of navigation you have to perform to get from a tour to your markers and back again. You can also logout from any page with the new icon. A icon now appears on all Tour Builder pages so that you can get to the new How To FAQ with one-click. The FAQ pages have a icon so that with just one more click you can get back to where you were in the Tour Builder. The Slide Content page text editor has been upgraded with these new features:
- Spell checker
- Find and Replace
- Hyperlink Editor
- Number and Bullet lists (not supported on Safari)
- Special Symbols like © and ½
- Font Selection
- Font Size
- Ability to edit text as HTML
4. Unbranded tours
You can now run the same tour with or without the top banner showing by using a new checkbox in the Branding Options section of the Tour Options page. When the Allow Banner Hiding option is checked, you can run the tour branded or unbranded to comply with realtor.com and MLS rules for virtual tours. You can also check the Hide MapsAlive Link box to hide the "Created with MapsAlive" message in the tour footer.
5. Slide show interval
You can now choose how many seconds slides will display when you check the Run Slide Show When Page Loads box on the Page Options page.
6. Fixed: Slide names not always in alphabetical order
When you added a new slide and then previewed the tour, the new slide's title would appear at the end of the slide dropdown list instead of in alphabetical order. The new slide's thumbnail was also out of order on the Map page. Both of these problems have been fixed.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.48.5 (8 October 2007)
1. Marker Locator feature added
The Marker Locator feature lets you override the default first slide for a tour when you link to the tour from another web page. For example, if you had a locator map showing homes for sale, the listing page for a home could have a "show this home on map" link that when clicked would display the locator map with that home selected.
To use this feature, go to the Slide Marker page for a slide and look at the bottom of the page where it says Marker Locator URL. Copy the URL shown and paste it into your web page as the URL for a link.
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.48.1 (19 September 2007)
1. Popup windows can now be "pinned"
You now have the ability to display a slide in a popup window and have the window not disappear when the user mouses off of its marker. If before moving their mouse, the user clicks the marker, the window will be pinned in place and will stay visible until the user closes the window or clicks another marker (or pans/zooms the map). This feature allows you to create popup slides containing hyperlinks and/or lengthy text requiring scroll bars. In both cases the user needs to mouse over the window to click a link or scroll the text. To enable this feature simply check the Persist box in the Show Slides As Popups section of the Page Options page. Note that the Fixed Location box must be unchecked (if it is checked, the popup will always be visible). To see an example of this feature, click here .
Release notes for MapsAlive version 1.46.1 (12 August 2007)
1. The Build button has been replaced with Tour Preview
When you want to see your tour and try it out, click the new Tour Preview button. When you want other people to be able to use your tour, click the Publish button on the Tour Preview page (more on that next).
2. You now Preview your tour until you are ready to Publish it
With the previous version of MapsAlive, you pressed the Build button when you wanted to try using your tour and also make it available on the internet instantly. Now you can edit and preview your tour privately and only publish it to the rest of the world when you are ready. You do this by pressing the Publish button from the Tour Preview. Publishing only takes a few seconds and you can do it as often as you like.
3. The Tour Advisor helps you along
The new Tour Advisor is part of the Tour Preview page. Each time you preview your tour, the advisor analyzes it and makes suggestions for improvements. Advice that is shown in blue is strongly recommended. Advice in green is just a suggestion. Along with advice, there are links you can click that take you immediately to the right place in MapsAlive to make the improvement.
4. Code Snippets make it easy to integrate your tours with your web site
The new Code Snippets section of the Tour Preview page gives you the exact code you need to link or embed your MapsAlive tour on your web page. Just copy it from Code Snippets and paste it into your own HTML (or email it to whoever does that for you).
5. Support for Frameless tours
An important new feature is the ability to embed a tour into your own web page without using an iframe using just four lines of code (provided in the Code Snippets). This allows your tour to be seamlessly integrated with your own HTML and JavaScript. You can see a frameless tour in action by clicking on the Online Media sample on our home page. Notice how the popups appear over both the tour and the rest of the page (you can't do that with an iframe).
6. A few changes to the user interface
You may notice that some of the menu items have been rearranged or changed. For example, the Add Page and Add Info Page items are gone and there is a single Add Page button on the new Tour Manager page (formerly Tour Quickview). Also, you now delete a Tour from the My Tours page and delete a Tour Page from the Tour Manager.
7. MapZoom
MapZoom has been available for awhile, but if you haven't checked it out yet, now's the time. It lets you pan and zoom large map images so that you can show more in less space. To enable MapZoom, check the Enable MapZoom box in the Map Options section of the Page Options page.
8. Smarter slide layouts
Slide layouts now squeeze out empty space between the photo and text. This is especially important for popup slides that have varying sized images and text lengths. The overall size of the popup will automatically shrink down to best fit the image and text. There is also a new Show Arrow checkbox on Page Options to have the popup display an arrow pointing to its marker.
9. An all new video
If you are new to MapsAlive, or still just getting your feet wet, we encourage you to watch the all new video (available as a link from the all new home page!). It shows all the major features of MapsAlive, but hold on to your hat, it goes fast!
