E.3.2  Adding a Layer Based on Merged Regions

To add a new layer by merging together regions within an existing shapefile (for example, by merging together states in a “US2” map to form “CensusDivisions”), follow the steps below:

1. Open the shapefile containing the regions that you want to merge in OpenJUMP.

2. Perform any necessary simplification processing as described in Exporting a Shape File as a Style Intelligence Map.

3. Press the 'View/Edit Attributes' button in the OpenJUMP toolbar.

 

This displays the 'Attributes' table for the map.

4. Right-click on the table and select 'Editable' from the context menu.

 

5. Return to the map view. Shift-click to select the regions that you want to merge. For example, Shift-click to select all states belong­ing to the “Pacific Division” (California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii).

6. Right-click on one of the selected states, and choose 'Combine Selected Features'.

 

The selected states are now considered a single unit.

7. Repeat the above steps to create any additional desired units. (In this example, we combined states to create the additional census divisions: New England, Middle Atlantic, East North Central, West North Central, South Atlantic, East South Central, West South Cen­tral, and Mountain.)

8. (Optional) If necessary, create a new column to label the combined features. Follow the steps below:

a. Press the 'View/Edit Attributes' button in the OpenJUMP toolbar to display the 'Attributes' table.

b. Right-click on the table, and select 'View/Edit Schema'.

 

This opens the 'Edit Schema' dialog box.

c. Click in the table, and then press the 'Insert' (+) button to create a new column.

 

d. Enter the name and type of the new column (e.g., “CensusDivisions”).

 

e. Press 'Apply changes' and return to the 'Attributes' table. Note that a new column has been added.

f. Enter the appropriate labels into the blank cells.

 

Note that when you click on a blank cell, the corresponding map region is highlighted.

9. With the new column defined, proceed with the instructions in Exporting a Shape File as a Style Intelligence Map. When you select 'Export layer' from the 'InetSoft' menu, make the following settings:

a. For the 'Map file', select the same mapdata.xml file that already contains the other layer(s) of the map.

b. For the 'Map type', use the menu to select the map to which you want to add the layer (e.g., 'US2').

c. For the 'Layer name', enter the name of the desired new layer (e.g., 'CensusDivisions').

d. For the 'Feature ID' and 'Display name', select the new column that you added to the 'Attributes' table.

 

e. Complete the additional steps described in Exporting a Shape File as a Style Intelligence Map, and press 'OK'.

This exports the new layer into the existing mapdata.xml file, and associates the layer with the existing map.

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