MP2Kmag Articles

MapPoint

MP2K Magazine is your source for independent news and information about MapPoint technologies and products and is home to the popular web forum for MapPoint users and developers.

MapPoint 2010

MP2K Magazine is now taking orders for MapPoint 2010. See ordering page for more details and shipping information.

Using Python to call ImportData and DisplayDataMap

This article is sort of an addendum to the previous three-part article on using ImportData and DisplayDataMap. As the title indicates, this articles contains code and examples in Python for using the ImportData and DisplayDataMap methods.

Using ImportData and DisplayDataMap

This three-part article by Richard Marsden discusses and demonstrates how to effectively use Microsft MapPoint's ImportData and DisplayDataMap methods.

Using MapPoint in a Routing Application Part 3 - Lessons Learned

In this final installment of a three part article, Doug Popken discusses "lessons learned" and provides insights into obtaining the time zone, obtaining optimal routes, and programming an application to work with both MapPoint North America and Europe.

Using MPMileCharter to create Mileage Charts with Microsoft MapPoint

Richard Marsden writes about how MPMileCharter (formerly MileCharter) can be used to compute a matrix of distances between pushpins and pushpins sets. A major re-write was recently released as MPMileCharter 3.0.

Using MapPoint in a Routing Application Part 2 - Required MapPoint Functionality

In part two of a three part article, Doug Popken discusses the implementation of several key aspects of Route Factory functionality that rely upon MapPoint including time and distance calculations, geocoding, and route display.

Using MapPoint in a Routing Application Part 1 - Route Factory Spreadsheet

Systems View Software, a provider of route management software and consulting, uses MapPoint in a new application known as Route Factory Spreadsheet. The C# .NET application, which has a MS Excel interface, creates optimal routes for fleets of transports subject to a variety of timing and capacity constraints. In this article, Dr. Doug Popken shares some of his experiences developing the application, including lessons learned, that readers may find useful in their own applications.

Add City Coverage to MapPoint using the GeoNames Database

Richard Marsden wrote this article on how to add cities for countries not covered by the North American or European versions of MapPoint using the free Geonames database. All programming is done using the powerful Python scripting language.

Developing with MapPoint and Visual Studio Part 2: The ActiveX component

In this follow-up to his article last year on Developing with Visual Studio 2010 and MapPoint, Wilfried Mestdagh now shows how to get started with the ActiveX Control

Evaluating MapPoint as a Replacement for BusinessMap

Kathleen Anne Gaiser writes about her experiences in looking for a replacement for BusinessMap (now discontinued by ESRI) for their mapping needs.

Automatically Publishing MapPoint Maps to Mobile Devices

In this article, Eric Frost shows how maps created with Microsoft MapPoint 2010 can be automatically published to the web and displayed on mobile devices.

MapPoint and Visual Studio 2010 Tutorial

Wilfried Mestdagh shows how to get started with Visual Studio 2010 and MapPoint 2010 development in this first of a two-part article.

Using the New Windows 7 Location API

Richard Marsden discusses the new �Location and Sensors� API and how to get started with development including a complete working example with source code available to download.

Using the New MapFeatures Collection and MapFeature Objects in MapPoint 2010

Richard Marsden explores the new MapFeatures Collection in MapPoint 2010 and how to programmatically control the "Map Settings" via the API. Includes a table with the complete list of the MapFeature indices.

An Overview of the New Features in Microsoft MapPoint 2010

Richard Marsden highlights the new features in MapPoint 2010 including the "Map Settings" or cartographic layer pane, new programmatic capabilities for GPS control, GPS import/export and several other major enhancements including MapPoint 2009 "Fixes".

BackAndForwardUtility: A Simple .NET Add-in for Microsoft MapPoint

MapPoint 2009 introduced a new redesigned and streamlined interfaced which eliminated a couple of little-used buttons - the back and forward buttons for navigating map views. Richard Marsden shows how to get the functionality back using a .NET Add-in.

Functional Programming with MapPoint and F#: Part 2

In this, the second of a two-part article on functional programming with MapPoint, Richard Marsden uses F# in a practical example classifying data points as wetlands based on hydrology, vegetation, and soil measurements.

Functional Programming with MapPoint and F#: Part 1

The first of two articles by Richard Marsden on MapPoint and F#. Recently released as a full product by Microsoft, F# can be used as a functional language or as an imperative or object-oriented language, and is useful for multi-threaded programming.

Calling MapPoint from C# with Late Binding

Richard Marsden shows how to call MapPoint from C# using late binding or dynamic invocation. Late binding has a number of advantages in certain scenarios including being about to support multiple type libraries.

Shape Name Utility

The Shape Name Utility is a simple utility developed by Richard Marsden that allows a user to examine and/or change the names of MapPoint shapes. This article describes the code and how it works.

Roll Your Own Commercial Routing System with MapPoint

Matt Fritz shares his experience developing a routing application including discussion of MapPoint's strengths and limitations. The articles includes several screenshots illustrating the various components of the routing application.

GPS and Other New Features in MapPoint 2009

Originally written for Laptop GPS World, this review of MapPoint 2009 focuses on users of GPS navigation. If you have questions about other aspects of this product, please address them to Map Forums.

"Excel Basics to Blackbelt": A Reference Text for MapPoint Integration

Dr. Elliot Bendoly shares information about his new textbook which includes information about integrating Excel and MapPoint.

Routene Excel and MapPoint Update

John Sewell introduces and explains the features in the latest version of Routene, an Excel spreadsheet for of physical supply chain and logistics applications. A full version of Routene is now available for purchase.

Using Virtual Earth with OpenLayers

This article by Richard Marsden shows you how to create a Virtual Earth base layer in an OpenLayers application. OpenLayers is an open source Javascript project which receives the layer map data from one or many different sources including WFS, Yahoo, WorldWind, Google, TileCache, TMS, and GML.

A Simple Add-in for MapPoint API Beginners

Richard Marsden's latest article shows step by step how to create a MapPoint COM Add-in using Visual Basic to draw circles around pushpins. Includes complete source code and screenshots.