If you are collaborating on a project with another team member, it is possible to share your work by exporting and importing features within your MapBrowser Project. Features are objects that you place on the map, such as measurements, text annotations and markers.
Exporting feature layers
To export the features in your project:
- Click on the Layers Manager icon.
- Click the '+' icon to view the menu options.
- Select Export Feature Layers.
All features on the map will be exported to your computer as a JSON file.
NOTE: The exported file can only be imported into MapBrowser; it cannot be used in other applications.
Importing feature layers
Importing feature layers is only possible using a JSON file that has been generated from MapBrowser. JSON files containing data generated from a different source will not load.
To import a MapBrowser Feature Layer file into your project:
- Navigate to the MapBrowser project you want to import the features into. You can also import features into the project.
- Click the '+' icon to view the menu options.
- Select Import Feature Layers.
- Select the JSON file that you want to import from your computer file manager and click Open.
The features in the JSON file will be imported into MapBrowser.
It is recommended you read through the workflow tips and limitations section below.
NOTE: If you edit the JSON file exported from MapBrowser and attempt to import the edited file, the file will not load.
Workflow tips and limitations
When using the feature layer import and export, we recommend following the below guidelines.
Exporting feature layers
If you intend to share your work with a team member using the Import/Export feature, it is best practice to start your work in a new MapBrowser project. Alternatively, you can clear the features from your current project by manually deleting each object/annotation in the project or deleting the object from the Feature Layers panel.
All features that are present in the project will be included in the Export - whether they are visible within the current map view or not. If you only want to export some features, there are two options.
- Delete the features you don't want to include in the export.
- If you wish to keep a copy of the project with all features, you can duplicate the project, and then delete the unwanted features from the duplicated project.
Importing feature layers
When importing a feature layer JSON file for the first time, it is recommended that you import the file into a new MapBrowser project.
If features (e.g. Lines, Polygons, Text Annotations etc) already exist in your project with the same name as the features contained in the JSON file, the new features will be copied into the project with the same name. Feature names do not need to be unique, and will not be overwritten by the imported features.
The MapBrowser location will not automatically change to the same location as the imported features. This is because the imported features may be spread over a wide geographical area. To quickly navigate to specific features, right-click on the feature layer name and select 'Zoom to layer'.
Error handlingJSON files that are not recognized will fail to load with the following error:
