Area Plotter

The MAPublisher Area Plotter creates new rectangle or ellipse polygons on MAP Area layers by using page or world coordinates, and by location type (using either a bounding box or by a single coordinate position). Use it to create precise area shapes based on coordinate locations.

Requirements

Area Plotter only works with Area layers.

Using Area Plotter

On the MAPublisher Toolbar, click Plot > Area Plotter button or from the menu Object > MAPublisher > Area Plotter.

Input Coordinates

The Input sets the coordinate system in which the starting point coordinates are entered. Input coordinates can either be Page Coordinates or World Coordinates.

When the Page coordinates (Global Rulers) option is chosen, page coordinate values (in pixels) can be entered for the Corner and Opposite Corner coordinates.

When the World coordinates option is chosen, the MAP View drop-down list becomes enabled. Choose the appropriate MAP View to use. Its coordinate system is displayed directly below the MAP View drop-down list. The options in the dialog box will change to reflect a geodetic or projected coordinate system and corner values can be entered either as (a variation of) decimal degrees or in projected units. To use an alternative coordinate system, click the Use check box, and click the coordinate system link. Choose an appropriate coordinate system in the Select Coordinate System dialog box.

Shape and Location Type Options

There are two shape options to choose from when plotting areas: rectangle and ellipse. More importantly, two location types determine how the shapes are plotted: Bounding box and Position.

When Bounding box location type is chosen, enter (map page or map world) coordinates into the Corner and Opposite Corner coordinates to define the area. A preview of the area can be seen on the artboard (you may have to move the Area Plotter dialog box to see it). Note: Any corner and its opposing corner can be used for the bounding box.

 The bounding box for an ellipse is the same as the rectangle.

When Position location type is chosen, choose a coordinate point position relative to the shape.

These point position options include Center, Upper left, Upper right, Lower left, and Lower right. In the Dimensions section, enter a width and height and the appropriate units to plot. A preview of the area can be seen on the artboard (you may have to move the Area Plotter dialog box to see it).

Use of MAP Locations as Coordinates

To use MAP Locations as coordinates, click the MAP Locations button and choose an appropriate one from the context menu. Alternatively, choose MAP Page Locations or Artboard Locations from the same context menu.

Click the More MAP Locations in the context menu to open the Select MAP Location dialog box. The X and Y coordinates and coordinate system are displayed in a list. The Artboard Locations tab shows the page coordinates for the Upper left, Upper right, Lower left, and Lower right corners.