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• 5 Dec 2012 : Map Channels v4 Bug Fix

A bug fix was made to the v4 javascript code after a change in the Google Maps API prevented some info windows from opening when markers were clicked. If you are using locally hosted v4 maps please update your files.

• 25 Nov 2012 : Map Channels v4 Update

Changes have been made to the way v4 Map Channels are embedded which fixes a problem where some maps were not displaying correctly in some browsers. It is recommended to change the code that you use to embed your v4 Map Channels.

• 25 Nov 2012 : New Subscriptions Ending

From 1st January 2013 the option to upgrade to subscriber status will no longer be available. This change will not affect existing subscribers who will continue to enjoy the benefits listed on the donation page. Even if you are not a subscriber you can still use Map Channels tools. Adverts are enabled for maps hosted on Map Channels but can be removed for v4 maps hosted on your own website. There will be a new Map Channels project announced early next year which will provide more powerful mapping tools through a new website. We are seeking resellers and integrators for this new project who can help us with development and marketing. To find out more please contact us.

• 2 Aug 2012 : Map Channels v4.09 and Tour Map Updates

Map Channels v4.09 contains a number of small improvements. There are major improvements for Tour Maps including a new info window style and local inline hosting. Tour Map settings are now stored between sessions.

• 24 Jul 2012 : Tour Maps for Map Channels v4

Tour Maps are a new mapping tool that can display an animated route and placemarks as they appear along the route. Tour Maps are available for all v4 Map Channels created using a KML feed (e.g. With Google My Maps/Places)

• 5 Jul 2012 : Map Channels v4.08 Update

This update contains a lot of improvements and new features. View the Map Channels home page for a full list of changes.

• 14 Mar 2012 : Trail Charts API

Trail Charts is a mapping API which can be used on your website to display a large number of separate KML feeds (trails) on a map. A speadsheet is the main data source, containing one row per trail. Any number of additional columns (fields) can be contained in the speadsheet. Template functions allow you to easily customize how these fields are displayed within the map. Two maps are used, the first map displays the overall area and the second map displays the currently selected trail. Menus and submenus can filter your trails by category or by date.

• 11 Nov 2011 : Google's new usage charges for the Maps API

Google have recently announced that they will be introducing usage charges for websites which exceed 25,000 Map API calls per day, see http://googlegeodevelopers.blogspot.com/2011/10/introduction-of-usage-limits-to-maps.html. These changes may affect Map Channels as the usage will be applied to the combined maps total for the domain which is currently in excess of this limit. I am working on ways to avoid these charges and am still hopeful that Google will revise the plan to offer a better deal for map developer sites such as Map Channels. Google intend to charge $4 per 1,000 map API 'hits' which would be far in excess of all site income from adsense and donations. The usage charges are not being applied until 'early 2012' so there will be no immediate effect on Map Channels. As an initial step Dual Maps and Mobile Place Maps have been moved to separate domains at www.dualmaps.com and www.mobileplacemaps.com. Additional map hosting domains may be added later to spread the load of maps usage and avoid the usage charges. Announcements will be made through the site should any major changes need to be made to Map Channels. Please subscribe to our Twitter and RSS News feeds for the latest information.

• 4 Nov 2011 : Map Channels v4.07 Update

1. Improved tooltips, now available for polylines and polygons. 2. Import data into edit enabled maps. 3. Geocoder for edit-enabled maps. Add or update place co-ordinates for your data. Interactive menus to select the correct address where multiple results are obtained. 4. Place Limit increased for edit-enabled maps from 50 to 500 places for non-subscribers. Subscribers have a limit of 1,000 places per map.

• 27 Sep 2011 : Map Channels v4.06 : Edit Enabled Maps

1. Manage your collection of places: add, edit or delete placemarks. 2. Option for visitors to contribute places to your map. 3. Add custom fields to places. 4. Customize the display of place data within the info window, sidebar and tooltip. 5. Access to all other v4 Map Channel features. Further features will be added for Edit Enabled Maps soon.

• 2 Aug 2011 : Map Channels Version 4.05 Update

New features 1. Search facility powered by the Google Places API. 2. Define a list of localities, giving quick links to map locations. 3. The footer bar can be customized using an HTML template to show categories, layers and localities. 4. An Information panel can be used in addition to the info window to display detailed place information. User Interface Improvements 1. A map is provided to (optionally) set the initial map centre and zoom level. 2. A preview of the feed data is displayed (useful to spot if an incorrect feed url has been supplied). 3. Additional help for setting up a data feed.

• 8 Jul 2011 : Map Channels Version 4.04 Update

Custom Map Styles are now available for Map Channels v4.

• 30 Jun 2011 : Map Channels Version 4.03 Update

New Features include : Support for Fusion Table and KML Map Layers, Header and Footer Panels, Map Information Panel, New Category Filter Options, Direct Upload of Map Feeds.

• 15 Jun 2011 : Map Channels Version 4.02 Update

New Features include : Support for Fusion Table and KML Map Layers, Header and Footer Panels, Map Information Panel, New Category Filter Options, Direct Upload of Map Feeds.

• 28 May 2011 : Dual Maps v3.03 Update

Combine Google Maps, Street View and Bing Maps. There is a new option for Dual Maps to set the street view direction automatically. Additionally, the street view is hidden if no panorama is found for the initial location.

• 12 May 2011 : Map Channels Hotels

Find your hotel bargain using Map Channels Hotels. The website has been updated to show hotels from multiple suppliers with a new, easy to use search interface. See hotels in Street View, filter results by name or price. Search and compare to book your rooms effortlessly.

• 23 Apr 2011 : Route Maps

Use Route Maps to animate your journey and preview the route from multiple view points. Route Maps is a new control combining directions, maps, street view and birds eye imagery. Route Maps are easy to create and embed in your web page, an API is also included.

• 10 Apr 2011 : Dual Maps v3.02 Update

Dual Maps has been updated. Added display of Current Direction. Added Traffic, Panoramio and Wikipedia Layers. Made Google Search Bar Optional. Restored the pegman icon option. Fixed bug preventing the Bing map from displaying correctly in some cases.

• 4 Apr 2011 : Map Channels Version 4 Released

Map Channels v4 is now out of beta and ready to use. Create embedded maps from KML, GeoRSS or Spreadsheet data with the new easy-to-use interface. Development is ongoing and more features will be added soon. Contact us if you would like custom features added.

• 23 Mar 2011 : Map Channels Version 4 Beta Available

Using the latest Google Maps API for better performance and new features.

• 15 Feb 2011 : Upcoming Changes To The Donation System

The current donation system for www.mapchannels.com will be no longer be available from 7th March, 2011. A new subscription system will be introduced later in the year, so there will be a period where upgrading to Pro User will not be possible. If you would like to upgrade to Pro User status before the changes occur please visit http://www.mapchannels.com/donate Existing Pro Users will be unaffected by these changes, all Pro Users will continue to have the option to disable ads for v2 and v3 Map Channels.

• 26 Aug 2010 : Location Maps

Location Maps are a new simple map control. Display a Google Map and/or Street View for a selected location. Uses the Google Maps v3 API.

• 8 Aug 2010 : New Server and Menus

The site is now hosted on a much more powerful server than before. The menu system has also been redesigned to improve site navigation.

• 1 Jun 2010 : New Donation System

Upgrade to Pro User for extra options.

• 28 Jan 2010 : Mobile GeoRSS Maps

The easy way to add mapping for mobile websites

• 10 Jan 2010 : Switch Maps

Combine multiple map types - simple embeddable control

• 17 Jun 2009 : Iran Election Twitter Map

Mapping tweets about the Iran Election

• 15 Jun 2009 : Map Feed Converter v1

A utility to convert data between KML and tab-delimited format

• 1 Jun 2009 : Map Channels Version 3.02

Updated to fix some bugs and add new features.

• 12 Apr 2009 : Dual Maps version 3

Dual Maps has been updated to include extra options and Google Local Search. The project has also moved to a faster server at Mashed World.

• 30 Mar 2009 : Street Tours

Use Street Tours to map your favourite Google street views. Share Street Tours with other users and embed them into your own website.

• 22 Mar 2009 : EntCal.com

An example site using Map Channels v3 to display event and venue maps.

• 20 Mar 2009 : World Holiday Map

An example site using Map Channels v3 to map hotels.

• 7 Mar 2009 : Instant Map Creator

Easily create a map and 'find directions' panel for a single location. Built on the Map Channels v3 code.

• 2 Mar 2009 : Map Channels Version 3.01

Updated to fix some bugs and add new features. Google Map Maker tiles can now be selected.

• 22 Feb 2009 : Map Channels Version 3

Version 3 is a full re-write of the Map Channels Code. New features include clustering, spreadsheet feed support, Virtual Earth, Street View and more.

• 23 Dec 2008 : Team Maps

Team Maps are maps which you can embed on your web page and which can be edited by your site visitors.

• 5 Dec 2008 : Quiz maps

Quiz Maps are geographical quizes using Google Maps and Panoramio Images.

• 24 Sep 2008 : Map Channels Events

Interactive event calendars and venue maps. Find events by name, category, date or location. Ticket price comparison. View city tours, attractions and activities. Explore venues with Google Street View and Google Earth

News Archive

• (v2.13) Fix for maps which use the Maps-for-Free relief layer (the url used by these map tiles changed).
• (v2.12) Support for custom markers in My Maps which use a size other than the standard 32 x 32 pixel size.
• Fix for a bug where the 'Get Directions' link was not being displayed.
• A 'pointer' cursor (hand shape) is displayed when the mouse is over a sidebar element.
• The colour of the 'Previous' and 'Next' links is set to the user specified text colour.

• Dual Maps - combine Google Maps with Microsoft Virtual Earth Maps. Dual Maps let you compare imagery between the map APIs, use the Virtual Earth bird's eye view and the Google Street View. Dual Maps version 2 features a number of improvements for the display of Google Street Views. Street Views are now displayed in a separate pane above the Google map. A vehicle marker and 'Field of View' overlay tracks your current location on both maps as you move through the Street View panorama.
• Street View Driver - Drive-Thru Street Views (just for fun)

• A new advert option allows you to earn money from your maps through Lat 49 mapvertising.
• The Map Channels Food Directory is a map-based site profiling restuarants around the world. The site is currently beta, more restaurants and features will be added soon.
• A new flight search form has been added to the home page. This feature uses Momondo, the world's best flight search engine. Flight Search has also been added to the Map Channels Hotel and Attractions Directory
• Further support for geoRSS - now showing lines and polygons.
• Fix for a bug which was preventing the refresh of map data when a KML source was modified.
• Display of the Zoom In/Out links in info windows is now optional.

• A preload option to size info windows correctly, preventing overflow of the images.
• A fix for display of markers in Internet Explorer 6 (the transparent background is shown correctly).
• Filters can be created for polygons and polylines.
• Line length in miles and km can be optionally added to the description of polylines.
• Horizontal and vertical scrollbars are only displayed in the sidebar when required.

• Website Atlas - a new feature we are developing. The atlas indexes websites which use maps, including Map Channels and APIs such as the Google, Yahoo and Microsoft APIs. This feature replaces the Big Map page that used to display users' Map Channels.
• Terrain Layer - a new Google Map Layer and a new style for the Map Type Control.
• Extra Map Channel Options - 100 % width option and reduced size icons for the side bar.
• Batch Geocoding Example - preview the free batch geocoding service in action.
• Various Bugfixes - A bug preventing display of maps in Opera has been fixed. The sidebar scrollbar works correctly for all supported browsers. The width bug affecting Internet Explorer 6 info windows is fixed.

• Geocoding - the new Geocoding section lets you look up the location of an address or lat long value. The Batch Geocoding facility allows you to geocode a tab-delimited file containing up to 200 addresses and create a Map Channel directly from the data. An additional feature lets you compare the geocoded location against an existing location, useful for improving the accuracy of an existing location database.
• Slide Show - the slide show feature has been restored and improved. An customizable on-map control lets you play or pause the slideshow.
• Maximizable Info Windows - this feature is a useful alternative for displaying info windows which have a lengthy description or large images. When first clicked a small info window containing the place name is displayed. Click the 'Expand' control to expand the info window to nearly the full map area using the same style that Google use on their local map pages. Google Bar - This is an improvement on the Google Local Search control, taking up less screen space than before
• Relief Layer - this can be added as an extra map type and shows terrain elevation by colour up to zoom level 11.
• Improved Support for GeoRSS files - RSS files using Simple GeoRSS, GML or W3C formats can now be imported. Only single point placemarks are supported (we are working on support for lines and polygons).