[Edit July 19, 2012: PTV Mapserver SDK 5.7 available for download]
The new features are
- Remote Image Layer: This layer makes it possible to integrate images provided by external providers like BING or OpenStreetMap. In addition, standardized services like WMS (Web Map Services) can be integrated into the map rendering too:
- Type-Ahead-Geocoding (Address-Suggestion): It is possible now to start a quick geocoding when only parts of an address are typed-in by the user. The results of this quick search can be used to display a suggestion list in the user interface:
- Extended postcodes (new format): PTV Mapserver supports additional data content for extended postcodes. Extended postcodes are used in the Netherlands and in the United Kingdom for example.
The extended postcodes process works like the following: You are adding supplementary data files to the map. Every time you are entering an extended postcode in your search, we first have a look if we have corresponding data available in the supplementary files. If so, the result only contains this supplementary data. For example, in the Netherlands you get the town, town part, street and house number range which corresponds to the given extended postcode. If no fitting content is found in the supplementary files, a standard geocoding is processed.
In previous Mapserver versions, this all worked with files having the extension “.ezi”. These files are still supported for backwards compatibility, but now we deliver the extended postcode data in files with the extension “.gpi”. The new files are directly copied into the map if you install the additional data.If you were using the “.ezi” files before, please watch out for the following:- If neither an “.ezi” file nor a “.gpi” file is found, standard geocoding is executed.
- If both, an “.ezi” file and a “.gpi” file are found, the “.ezi” file is taken into account first and the “.gpi” file is only used if no result was returned by the “.ezi” file.
- So if you want to ensure that the new “.gpi” files are used, please delete the “.ezi” files.
- Extension of the Routing options for VB/VBA clients (interfaces derived from IDispatch): Many a time, some of the routing properties were only available for clients using interfaces derived from IUnknown (commonly C++ or Delphi clients). A new interface IRoutingOptions is introduced, containing sub interfaces focused on dedicated themes, such like drawing options for a route, or vehicle parameters. All these interfaces contain missing properties (from point of VB-view) and are available for VB/VBA-clients now.
An advanced accompanying webinar will take place on Thursday, July 12, 2012, 16.00 – 16.30 CEST, giving more details about the new features mentioned above. Read more …
If you are interested in the extended postcodes feature, please contact your sales partner at PTV Group. Extended postcode data is additional map content and has to be purchased separately. More information about PTV Mapserver …
