Overview of Explore by Map

The "Explore by Map" functionality offers an alternate way for visitors to browse the site. When we asked prospective students what they really wanted from an online experience, it was clear that getting a sense of space and place was critical in understanding what their university experience might be like.

Sidebar & Map Content

Rather than having to explore by topic in each of the sections, the "Explore by Map" feature allows users to see all grouped content positioned physically on a map, as well as listed on an expandable sidebar; this includes posts, groups, and events. Furthermore, where multiple locations are geographically positioned near to one another, they'll automatically be grouped together into marker clusters, for example, the “2” cluster in this screenshot:

Simply click into a location from a list, or click/tap into a map pointer, and you’ll be handed a context screen with the location titles, descriptions, and the available options: view the Vepple content in detail (for example, going into a 360 photograph, a post, or an event; or get directions).

Filtered content

Alongside map categories, as with everything else in Vepple, it’s also possible to filter content based on a user's personalisation so that users only see locations that are relevant to them. 

For example, having an undergraduate art & design event assigned to the “Specialist facility” map category, and filtered to the Art & Design subject area filter will allow you to be able to provide users with content with varying degrees of specificity if a user filters based on map categories as well.

Clearing the map categories filter and/or active location

For the desktop, when the sidebar is open or closed and one or more map categories are filtering the results, click on the filter with a cross button to remove all refinements.  Meanwhile, when the sidebar is closed on a desktop, or you’re on a mobile phone, alongside the filter with a cross button, if an active location is open, pressing the cross button will clear it.

Nearby places and landmarks

The map also shows places you have not added yourself. Nearby places are cafés, shops, gyms and similar, found live from Mapbox, which students filter by eight categories and see ranked by distance. Landmarks are the notable buildings Mapbox draws on the basemap, which students can select to see the name and, where Mapbox supplies one, a category. Neither needs setting up, though filtering by one of your own Map categories shows only your locations. See Nearby places and landmarks for what students can do with them.

Directions to the content

For some directions features to work, e.g., the direction you’re pointing, you need to make sure the geolocate button is blue, which means it's activated. 

Then, once you’re on a location's details, pressing the “Get Direction” button will show you the direction path on the map itself; but also a list of instructions within the sidebar along with the amount of time and distance it’ll take you to reach the destination. 

The default directions mode a user gets assigned to is walking, however, at the click of a button, it’s very easy to switch modes to either driving or cycling. Moreover, clicking either the current location or destination location input allows you to swap out the location with another out of the list. A swap control reverses the two endpoints in one click. Each step of the route reports its time and distance, rounded to the nearest minute, so the steps may not add up exactly to the total. After pressing Get directions, and before a route has been worked out, selecting a pin on the map sets the starting point.