navigation
Blue dot
WHAT The blue dot pattern allows mobile users to see their current location in a map to understand their surroundings. Blue dot is specific to mobile apps where movement and change in position of the user’s device is expected. Tracking this movement means that the user can focus on their task without expending energy to […]
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Scroll to pan
WHAT The scroll to pan pattern is a technique to walk users through a series of maps one step at a time. It uses the browser’s scroll bar to move through a series of predefined map content. WHY The existence of a scroll bar indicates that more content is available below the fold, as in […]
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Placemarks
WHAT Having shortcuts to places reduces the effort to position the map at a certain pre-defined extent. WHY Navigating a map to a desired location using standard map tools is difficult and cumbersome. Placemarks provide quick links to shortcut the navigation process. The fact that placemarks exist also adds special meaning and importance to the […]
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Home button
WHAT Easy way to navigate to a known or initial extent or boundary. WHY Map navigation is non-directional without a clear start and end point. Users are free to zoom in and out or pan the map in any direction leaving the original starting extent behind. The home button offers a way to navigate to that initial and […]
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Zoom control
WHAT The zoom control, sometimes called zoom buttons or map navigation, is the most important control of an interactive map. Zoom control is used when the current viewport doesn’t show the appropriate level of detail, and the user needs to see a larger or smaller map scale. WHY Although modern map apps provide alternative means […]
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