The Interface
The left menu contains all available raster layers distributed by WMS servers selected in the configuration file. Cesium library support drag and drop displaying for GeoJSON files: in order to display planetary GeoJSON they must contain coordinate reference system information following the planetary standard described here.
The Save button allows to save a geoJSON file containing local datasources and drawn entities.
The Trash button allows to remove all vector data displayed on the surface planet (remote catalogs, drawn entities, local datasources,...): be careful, vector data are lost if removed via the Trash button.
In order to just hide them a 'Hide vectorial data' feature is available on the bottom of the left menu.
The Tools Widget contains all available analysis tools: one-click on it will open the tools menu, one-click again will close it.
The coordinate tool allows to display longitude and latitude coordinates when mouse is over the planet: one-left-click on it will open the display, one-left-click again will close it.
The grid tool is the standard Cesium [ShowGrid](https://github.com/epn-vespa/cesium/tree/planetary/Source/Widgets/ShowGrid) widget. It allows to display a dynamical pixel grid on the planet. One-left-click on it will display the grid, one-left-click again will remove it.
GeoJSON does not define circular entities. 'Point' features can be displayed as circles if they are provided with the 'radius' property (in meters). The circle/point switch tool allows to switch from point to circle representation. Notice that first display is always as point.
The draw tool provides basic draw functions as in classic GIS applications. One-left-click on it will display the feature menu, detailed below.
To draw a polyline click on the 'draw polylines' button.
Left-clicks on the planet define the polyline nodes. Right-click will allow to undo the last left-click. A middle-click cut the line and close the polyline. The length of each segment is displayed, and the total length of the polyline is computed at the end.
Three options are available to draw circles.
Center and radius defined: one-left-click on the map defines the center of the circle, distance from center is displayed and a double-left-click will create a circle.
Diameter defined: one-left-click on the map defines the diameter starting point, a second one the diameter ending point.
Three-point defined: three one-left-clicks define the three points belonging to the circle.
Circle entities can be undone with a one-right-click.
To draw a polygon click on the 'draw polygons' button.
Left-clicks on the planet define the polygon nodes. Right-click will allow to undo the last left-click. A middle-click cut the line and close the polygon. The length of each segment is displayed, and the total length of the polygon is computed at the end.
The edit tool provides some options to modify available datasources. One-left-click on it will display the feature menu, detailed below.
Feature classification is an important aspect in mapping activities.
When left-clicking on the flag button two panels open: using the color picker panel a list of properties and correspondent values could be defined for subsequent visual classification. The chosen legend is then displayed in the legend panel and could be saved (with the specific extension .legendjson) for future use. If a .legendjson is already available, just drag and drop it in the legend panel to load it.
Classification is performed picking the chosen color in the legend and left-clicking on the entity to be classified. The result of the classification can be saved and reload later: a flag counter display the number of entities already classified.
Objects in catalogs can be moved using the marker edit feature. Left-click on the button to activate it: then left-click on an object to select it and right-click on the position to replace it. Moved object are flagged with a different color: the catalog can be saved and reload later.
The virtual Observatory Widget allows to select and display vector layers available from VO servers defined in the configuration file. One-click on it will open the widget menu, one-click again will close it.
Be careful: the number of sources comfortably displayable in the interface depends on the memory of your system, a clustered or hierarchic visualization is not yet implemented. Global queries are not recommended at this stage.