Use Cartograf on a daily basis!

Location, location, location. It is something you can refer to every day,
for every topic, in pretty much every subject area!. Cartograf is your new wall map!

In other words, yes, it's okay to use Cartograf as a "teaching tool" too, upfront while you locate the topic of your lesson when showing documents in context on a map, even for playing videos embedded inside a map! Cartograf is a great motivation tool and will help students make sense of space and time. And when you model all the mapping skills within Cartograf, they too will understand its capabilities.

HAVE A GREAT IDEA for using Cartograf in class? Share it to me on at https://twitter.com/paulrombo

Creating mapping scenarios for your students?

Teachers may want to create learning scenarios that use the Cartograf mapping space. Typically the Description area of the map is used to add instructions. However, you can also add instructions inside a Point of Interest markers, Shapes or Lines. Similarly, students can respond to questions in either place, once they have duplicated the original map or started their own.

But what is a "scenario"? Click HOME to view a few samples! Scenarios are not really complete units or Learning Situations (though they could be part of one!) Often shorter, a Cartograf scenario is more like series of activities that involve mapping skills and possibly image editing inside the tool. Usually only a few intellectual operations are practiced, and sometimes even evaluated.

Again browse some of our public scenarios on our Homepage, to get a better idea of what is possible. Return the Help page to browse how students might use the tool.

And learn what to include in a scenario by reading the following document ( by S. Lussier, LBPSB):
- What are the essential elements of a scenario?
- Quels sont les éléments essentiels d’un scénario?

NEW - A Combine Maps feature for teachers only!

Note that we now have a new feature that allows you to combine all elements on a share code into a new map. This feature copies all points, lines, and legend items (but not the description of maps except your own) into a new map. Its intended uses are 1) either to work collaboratively, and in the end save a single project map, or 2) to backup all student work into a new map for safekeeping. Note that only users in the Teachers group will see this function, in the Description tab under Duplicate. Please use this feature sparingly, and only once at the end of projects if possible, since it will continually make copies of all files on the share code, and could use up your file quota too quickly.

IFRAMES - Insert other documents. Only for experienced teachers!

You might notice an iFrame option when editing descriptions in points or lines, or even in the map description. This is a very advance functionality that can be used to insert live Google documents, especially drawings. It is open only to experienced Cartograf users and teachers. Please request this functionality by writing to Paul R at LEARN.

NEW - Control what happens when a map first opens!

Often you will want to share your map, or link to it from a site, Tweet or from inside a document. You might even want to embed it in a webpage. First off, remember NOT to use the url in the browser's address bar up top. Use the links available in the SHARE tab after you enter in a secret, unrepeatable share code. These url tricks can be used by students too:

To help refine what happens when someone first opens a map, we have enabled certain endings to the URL, which you can use to replace the normal #Map or #Carte. You may need to experiment with these to understand how they work:
#EmbedMode removes the overview, prevents the description popup, and also makes the logo 50% size
#NoDescription prevents the description popup which usually appears over a map the first time you view it
#Controls allows you to set the Open Layers maps controls, any of: controls, layers, search_location, levels, current_location, scale, streetview, navigation or coordinates
#Layer sets the map base layer to the number indicated, same order as the layers menu (starting at 0)
#Legend will popup the Legend when the map opens (this may not work with other functions)

For example, the ending of your map URL might look like this, where three of the four functions above are used:

#EmbedMode&Controls=controls,scale,levels&Layer=2

Print maps to PDF

You can now print your maps! Open the Share tab and make sure you have a entered a share code. You will then notice two buttons, both of which print your maps onto several pages. And by maps we mean, they will print your legend, and the points, shapes, and lines of your map... and of ALL the maps on the same share code! (Note: This print function may still be temporarily not functioning past the first few pages, since a 2019 update. Try it out to see.)

Notes: The second button prints large versions of the attachments inside points and shapes. Also, it is advisable to print to PDF first. (Google Chrome has this option built in). This is because, depending on your map's description length and the initial shape of your browser window, to get your pages to fit correctly into the PDF you must first choose Landscape setup, and then you may need to try Letter, A4 and sometimes even Legal sizes to get your map to print correctly. Careful, PDFs can be very long! You may want to print only certain pages. Press Okay to return to your map once done!

Making instructions more visual: Inserting "System Icons"

Sometimes to make instructions clearer, you may want to insert icons into your description.
Below you will find the codes to insert system icons. You can also just open then Duplicate this map! If you edit its description you will find these codes and other too, including codes for Intellectual Operations icons.

Zoom tool |The Reset Zoom function
Pan/Zoom hand |Select/Modify arrow
LINES button |Draw Polygon button
Panorama mode |Point of Interest marker
Edit/Draw on image

Inserting Custom Icons into descriptions

Similar to above, the Custom icons available for point labels can also be inserted into descriptions and into texts in points. In your instructions you might also want to specify which point a student must examine, by referring to the icon itself, and it helps when students can see what the icon looks like.

To insert an icon from our collections into a description, you can use the same format as above, but you first need to get the image url of the original icon. For example, to get the image address for this Farm icon you have to open any point of interest, edit the icon, then browse to that icon's category, which in this case is Agriculture. There you can right-click the icon itself to get its URL which is http://cartograf.learnquebec.ca/dl800. So, the code for the farm icon would be (Note: If you have a suggestion for an icon to be added, send it to cartograf AT learnquebec DOT ca)

Attaching vs. Inserting Images

There are now two ways to add images to Points of Interest and to Shapes and Lines.
The normal way is via the Attachment tab.
We have increased the number of photos to add to 4. They will display to fill up to the width of the description box, and when clicking they will open a new window to display a larger size (if available) for other uses.
A second way is now available. You can now see a "Choose or upload images" button in the editors.
If you click it you will be able to "Browse Files" to your "User File Galleries". Double-clicking an image will insert the code in this form
which will display your image as a thumbnail that will enlarge when clicked.
You can also edit that code to display the image differently, by using these sort of options:

Note: You should either own or have the right to use the images you use in Cartograf.
A great place to find Creative Commons licensed images, which already have the source information on them, is at Photos For Class.

Neat trick! A print version of the description!

Not sure if this bug/feature will carry over into future versions of Cartograf, but it is possible to link directly to a printable page that contains your map's description. This will also show up in search engines and occasionally you might find your map this way. Examine the link below. The object number is your map number. If you can see your map number in your map's URL, replace it into this format and you get a link to your map's description that is printable. Click the link below to see the description for my Cairo activity.
http://cartograf.learnquebec.ca/tiki-object-infobox?type=trackeritem&object=13206&mode=divs

Manage your files!

Again, this is for advanced users and be careful what you change, but there is a way to access your "Files" in a separate window, rather than while attaching images to descriptions and instructions. Visit https://cartograf.learnquebec.ca/tiki-user_information.php where there are some options for each user. Click the MORE dropdown and open MyFiles. Then, at the right in the little drop-down triangle choose Finder. You will then have access to where all your images are stored. You can upload many items at once by dragging, and you can even upload documents! Careful when you delete images. They could be being used in several of your different Cartograf maps!