When symbolizing points in a GIS layer your options are virtually limitless. XMap includes dozens of preformatted symbols and it provides the means for you to create your own symbology. Choose from the following alternatives:
Stock Symbols
The default appearance for all point objects imported to, or created in, the GIS tab is a green circle with a diameter of 6 pixels. This is an example of a Stock symbol in the Symbolize Layer dialog box. Other Stock symbols include a square, a star, and a triangle. These simple shapes are often the most effective way to represent points in a GIS layer as they are easily distinguishable and they produce a relatively tidy map. Another advantage of using stock symbols is that their size and color can be customized so a single shape can be used to represent several groups or classes of related features that can be differentiated by variations in size or color.
DeLorme Symbol Sets
When XMap is installed, a folder called Symbols is created on your local hard drive. This folder contains several symbol sets that can be assigned to objects in either the Draw or GIS tabs. Options include pushpins, flags, dots, and an extensive and stylish set of symbols that were created for use with DeLorme’s handheld PN-20 GPS receiver. The Set dropdown list in the Symbolize Layer dialog box provides the means to select a symbol set and to choose the individual symbol for the objects in your layer. Note that symbols of this type cannot be resized and their color cannot be customized.
Custom Symbol Sets
If you have used the draw tools to add points to the map, you are probably familiar with XSym, the simple graphic tool for creating and editing symbols. XSym can be used to open an existing symbol set for editing or for creating a new symbol set. In either case, symbols can be created using the included drawing tools and color palette or by importing a bitmap image, such as a company logo. Bear in mind that the final size of the symbols is 24 pixels square so a complex image file, such as one with a wide variety of colors, will likely not work well as a symbol. After a symbol set is saved using XSym, it can be added to the list of available symbol sets in the GIS tab. In the Symbolize Layer dialog box, click the Add button and browse to the Symbols folder in your DeLorme Docs folder to select the new symbol set (*.dim). Now the new symbols can be selected in the same way as the DeLorme symbols as noted above.
Bitmap Images
When using the Add button to locate a newly created symbol set, as outlined in the previous paragraph, you may notice that there is an alternative to the .dim format in the browse window. The Files of Type dropdown list also includes bitmap files, which means that an individual image can be added to the symbol set list. This approach allows any bitmap, regardless of its native dimensions, to be attributed to a point object on the map and, therefore, is a viable alternative to XSym for assigning a complex image file to a point on the map. Because there is no size constraint or scaling of the original image, care must be taken when choosing a bitmap for this application. It is quite likely that a large image assigned to each point on the map will result in an untidy cluster of overlapping images.
For more information on symbolization or any other XMap feature or function, check the Help Topics or PDF User Guide that were installed with the software and are accessible from the Help menu on the toolbar in XMap.
