Blog – randymajors.org Research Hub

More is more: data, legends and maps!

November 18, 2024 by Randy Majors

For a while now, you have been able to use our mapBuilder tool to create color-coded maps using ZIP Codes, counties and points. We love all the creative ways our users have leveraged mapBuilder! And we also knew we could make some things more flexible for you to map more of your data in the ways that you want. More data columns It used to be that you could only map one data column from your Google sheet: ZIP Code, a data column and a color. Or County, State, a data column and a color. Or latitude, longitude, a data … Read more

New: Elevate your mapping experience with GPS data

February 7, 2024 by Randy Majors

Whether you’re a hiker trekking wilderness trails, a traveler documenting your journeys, or a professional analyzing geographical data, our latest update enables you to overlay your own GPS routes, waypoints, tracks and adventures on any map. By supporting the popular GPS exchange format (GPX files), we’ve made it easy for you to bring your real-world explorations into any of the map tools. To try it out, click the Draw & Measure module found in mapBuilder below each map tool, such as Section Township Range, Elevation and City Limits. Then, choose the GPX file you want to import: Click OK, and … Read more

A Quick Update about Quicker Maps

January 16, 2024 by Randy Majors

Remember when randymajors.org map tools took 10 seconds or more to draw, especially more complex tools such as ZIP Codes or especially Section Township Range? Now, based on some exciting technology improvements, most of the maps draw nearly instantly! Check out the following map tools and their much faster drawing speeds as you move around the map: We hope these improvements, together with last year’s improvements to map labels, make your mapping experience that much more productive and enjoyable! Happy New Year and Happy Mapping!

Quick update: Map labels that don’t suck

July 17, 2023 by Randy Majors

Have you tried showing map labels in the past and notice they take sooooo long to draw (especially on very detailed map tools like Section Township Range)? Us too, and we finally found a way to improve it. In fact, labels now draw nearly instantly rather than the 10-20 seconds that it would take labels to finish drawing in the past. And we think they look better now too (old on the left, new on the right):

Two Enhancements: Search by GPS Coordinates (lat, long) and New Blog Home

May 4, 2023 by Randy Majors

The “Find lat long” button flexibly accepts a variety of formats, including: In all cases, once you hit the Enter key, the map will be re-centered on your chosen location and the decimal degrees version of the location will be shown in the “Lat, Long” label found in the light blue bar above the map. I hope you enjoy this new latitude longitude functionality! Also, a new home for the map tool updates and tips The tool updates and tips can now be found on the Blog link on the right side of the menu bar on every page on … Read more

Bring your maps to life with Dynamic Maps!

March 19, 2023 by Randy Majors

A much-requested map feature is now available — Dynamic Maps. By “Dynamic Maps” we mean maps that show you the answer you’re looking for simply by hovering your mouse over the map! Of course, you can still click the map as before and it will drop a blue dot at the location you clicked and display the full information about the location in the blue bar above the map. Pro Tips This feature is very useful if you’re using the Selection Tools or Drawing Tools to select ZIP Codes, counties, etc as it will show you what you’re about to … Read more

By Popular Demand: Improved Map Printing and Screenshots!

June 23, 2023 by Randy Majors

The ability to print your maps is one of the most requested features we’ve been asked about over the years. For various boring yet tedious technical reasons, printing was not possible or highly inconsistent up until now. Now there is a new “Print” button available to take the pain out of printing your map and taking screenshots. Just click the “Print” button located in the upper right corner of the map on your desktop browser: You will then be presented with a Print preview window where you can print to your connected printer or save to a PDF file: Note … Read more

Update: Historical Counties and Drawing Tools

March 24, 2024 by Randy Majors

Screenshot showing both historical county labels and civil township labels

First, the popular Historical U.S. Counties Auto-Checker chrome extension has been updated to work with the latest version of Ancestry’s website. Also, now when you use the Historical U.S. Counties map tool, you can explore the historical counties for any historical date in the context of civil townships. As you likely know, civil townships are often used in a lot of historical records from census to land ownership and more. Now, when you turn on labels for historical counties by checking the “Show historical county labels” box in the lower left corner of the map, if you also check the … Read more

Quick Tip: Hide the blue dot

June 14, 2022 by Randy Majors

This one is easy now. Just click the blue dot, and it will disappear from the map: Click the map again and it will re-appear at the spot you clicked (or the address or place you searched for): So why is the blue dot there to begin with? It lets you know the location that the light blue bar above the map is reporting the information for. In the above example, that’s Merrimack County, New Hampshire. So if you want to get rid of the blue dot before, say, taking a screenshot, now you know how! Sometimes you feel like … Read more

Now you can combine 5-digit and 3-digit ZIP Codes to create your custom territories

July 7, 2023 by Randy Majors

3-digit and 5-digit Map ZIP Code expansion

Using mapBuilder, found below most map tools on randymajors.org, you can create custom territory/area maps using a spreadsheet containing ZIP Codes. Now you can include 3-digit ZIP Codes in your spreadsheet, which are simply the first 3-digits of a 5-digit ZIP Code. 3-digit ZIP Codes are a great option because there are just under 1,000 of them in the U.S. vs over 40,000 5-digit ZIP Codes. The benefit: Much smaller spreadsheets and faster maps. Here is an example of 3-digit ZIP Codes to define some territories in the New York City metro area: Now, let’s say you want to expand … Read more