Key Features

The Map control allows you to create powerful map applications. Make the most of Map by taking advantage of the following key features:

• Draw any Geometry

  Maps vector layer allows you to draw geometries/shapes/polygons/paths with geo coordinates on top of the map. The vector layer is useful to draw Political borders, Geo details (showing automobile or airplane routes) and Choropleth maps (based on statistical data, such as population per country and other demographic data). Also, you can use the vector layer instead of the regular Microsoft Virtual Earth source to show a world map representation.

• KML Support

  The vector layer supports basic KML import/export (KML is the standard file format to exchange drawings on top of maps). For more information, see the topic KML.

• GeoJSON Support

  Map allows reading GeoJSON data that represents simple geographic features based on open standard geospatial data interchange format.

• Rich Geographical Information

  Display rich geographical information from various sources, including Bing Map or any custom source. For example, you can build your own source for Google Maps.

• Display a Large Number of Elements on the Map

  Map allows virtualization of local and server data. Using its virtual layer, Maps only displays and requests the elements currently visible.

• Enhanced End-User Interaction

  Map supports zooming, panning and distance scaling using the mouse or the keyboard. It also supports mapping between screen and geographical coordinates as well. For more information, see End-User Interaction topic.

• Layers Support

  Use layers to draw data and add your own custom elements to the maps. Elements are linked to geographical locations. For more information, see Layers topic.