Team Maps and Tracks
in this lesson
Topics on this Page:
- Working with Team Maps: including accessing team maps and saving new team maps.
- Sharing Team Maps
- Other Team Account Sharing: Layers, Icons, and Map Sheets
- Mobile App use by Team Members
- Mobile Tracks
Working with Team Maps
To access maps, login and click on the orange Your Data button on the upper right side of the map viewer, a dialog box will open with a number of tabs, the default tab that is open is Your Maps. There you'll see in bold Maps Saved To Your Account, if you belong to a team the Your Account part will be in a dropdown box. When you click the dropdown you’ll see all the Teams, Sub-Teams and/or Events you are a member of.
Accessing Team Maps
To view the map list for a particular team, use the dropdown menu and select the team. Once in the team you’ll see all the maps that team has in a list. You’ll see the map Name, Description, Sharing (the base permission the map was saved at), Account, and when it was last Updated. For most people, the Account column is static and lists the name of the team the map belongs to. Users with Manage or Admin permission to the team will have dropdown menus so you can move maps to sub-teams, events, or the main team. Manage and Admin users can move maps to and from the team account they also have the ability to delete maps. Moving or deleting a map will affect all users on the team.
Saving a Map to a Team Account
To save a map to the team account you must have Update or greater permission on the team. Follow the process for saving a map here. The mode you will likely want to use for a team map will be SAR, then choose the team you want to save it to. Finally set the base permission of the map for outside users. Check your settings because only those with admin or manage level can change which team it is in and the base permission once it is saved. Now click OK and your map is saved.
Base permission does not apply to team users. Team users can view any map saved to the team account, including private maps. For more information about map sharing settings, please check out the Sharing and Collaboration chapter. Now click Save to save your map.
Any team member with Update or greater permission can move a map from their personal account to a team account, but only Managers and Admin level can move a map back to their account.
Moving a map to a team account can be done in two ways; you can move a map from your personal account to a team account, either by using the Info button on the map viewer, or using the Your Data dialog.
From Your Data go to the Your Maps tab and use the account drop-down menu for the map you wish to move and choose which team you would like to move it to. Once saved to a team account, all team members can see and open the map. The ability to add to; edit, move, and delete the map depends on the user level of the team member as set in the team admin page. Only Manage and Admin users can remove a map from a team account by changing it to their personal account, they cannot move it back to someone else’s personal account however.
Team Account Map Sharing
Maps stored in the team account are shared with all team members, automatically. Any time that a map is added to the team account, all team members are able to view that map.
Each team member has an assigned access level that applies to all team maps. That level is set in the team admin page, and can be changed there also. See the chart in the previous lesson for more information on team access levels.
Team account maps can be shared outside the team account via the share settings for that specific map.
Tip: If a team member has update only permissions for team account maps, but needs full editing capabilities for a particular map, you can create a share link for them with write permission for that individual map only. Pretty neat!
Sharing Maps Outside the Team, or Giving Additional Permissions to Team Members on a Map-by-Map Basis
Let's dig a little deeper into sharing maps with users outside the team as well as giving additional permission to team members for a specific map. Before we begin, please visit the Map Sharing page if you want more information on base permissions and access types for individual maps.
Each time a team member creates a map, they will be able to select the outside share settings for that map. However, once they save the map to the team account, they may or may not be able to adjust those settings themselves if they aren't a Manage or Admin user. There are a lot of potential combinations, so let’s look at some examples:
- Team member has READ access to the team account:
This user cannot add maps to the team account or modify maps already in the account, so they have no control over team map sharing. If the map is set to share via URL, they will be able to share the link. If it is set to secret, they will not be able to access the share code unless someone gives it to them.
- Team member has UPDATE or WRITE access to the team account:
This user can create a map and save it to the team account. Once that person saves it to the team account, they can no longer remove it from the team account nor change the outside share settings. Thus, if they forgot to set it to secret and it’s set as URL, a Manage or Admin user would need to change that setting.
- Team member has MANAGE access to the team account:
This user can create a team map, change the sharing permissions for it, and remove it from the team account.
- Team member has READ access but needs to edit a map:
A team Manager or Admin must give this person a shareable link for the map that was created to give write access to that map. When the users opens the link, they will be able to edit the map and it will be in their bookmarks.
Other Features: Team Layers, Map Sheets, and Icons
Team accounts come with the ability to save custom layers, map sheets, and icons to the team account for all team members to access and use.
Some groups will have a need to store custom layers, map sheets, and icons for the whole team to access. To do this, follow the steps to set up a custom layer, as described in the Base Layers chapter, or to add a Map Sheet or icon. Once the layer, map sheet, or icon is saved to your account, you can easily switch it to the team account. The same permission levels apply here as covered above regarding saving and sharing team maps.
The same method applies to map sheets and icons. Just find the appropriate tab in Your Data.
Using the Mobile App with a Team Account
Team account members have access to team maps via the mobile app also. The two main differences in the mobile app for team members are the list of maps and the share location button.
Team members can tap on the three-bar menu in the upper left to open the main app menu. At the top of this menu, all teams, sub teams, and events are listed as map folders, in addition to their own maps. These will sync to the mobile device automatically.
The Share Location button allows team members to actively share their location with the team account. Anyone who turns on the shared locations overlay will see a dot representing each person who is sharing a location. Every person on the team can both share their own location and see other's locations, regardless of the map they have open.
Team Members and Track Recording
Team members with update access or higher can record a track straight onto a map, using the CalTopo mobile app. The tracks belong to the user's account and to the map, but are not saved to the team account as track objects.
The track will display on the team map in real time if cell service is available. Otherwise, it will show on the map when the user returns to cell service and the app is able to sync with the cloud.
For more about using tracks and location updates on team maps, check out the next lesson for live tracking.