All,
There is a new Scottish Weather Network map available for you to download and use on your websites.
This was created by Ken True, who constructed the website template we use on the network, and uses Google Maps instead of a map I have to create & edit each time a new station joins.
Have a look at the SCWN home page to see the new map in action.
You can download the map script direct from Ken's own website at:
http://saratoga-weather.org/scripts-mesonet-map.php
Here's what he wrote about it on the Weather-Watch Forum:
It's been about 10 years since the first regional weather network (Southwestern) offered a mesonet map with rotating conditions display. Now with 39 active regional networks, it was time for an update to the display software that makes it easier on both member stations and the regional admins to display and maintain the mesonet maps.
I've just completed a V3.00 of the Regional Mesonet Map code (formerly [netID]-mesomap.php, now just mesonet-map.php or wxmesonetmap.php with my template ). This could be completed only after I found a markerWithLabels that could work with markerClusterer in the maps.. that didn't exist until recently, and I'd been looking since 2014 for a good one.
This one code base is multilingual with built in mesonet-map-lang-LL.txt files and has settings in mesonet-map-settings.php. All the languages supported by the Regional networks are included. It does produce only ISO-9959-n character codes (sorry.. had to do that for template compatibility).
As it's Google-based, it needs a Google Browser JavaScript Map API key (like the global-map.php code) which can be set in the mesonet-map-settings.php or a global $SITE['googleAPI'] key like the global-map.php.
I've put together some docs at
http://saratoga-weather.org/scripts-mesonet-map.php and you can download the package from there.
Hopefully, it will make it easier for the regional network admins to maintain, as it's driven from the [netID]-stations-cc.txt and [netID]-conditions.txt files on each regional hub. I think each hub-master will have to decide to use the new one in place of the original one for their network, but anybody can use the new mesonet-map.php on their website.
The master regional networks definition file is maintained on northamericanweather.net/mesonet-map-networks.txt and the script fetches it every 6 hours normally. The data and stations files are fetched every 5 minutes from the regional hub for that network for display.
My thanks to Wim (Leuven template), for the idea to use tabber.js to have easy toggling between map, conditions, station features, and regional networks links tabs -- it made the presentation much easier and compact.
For regional network member stations, you won't have to run the mesomap-update-utility.php to keep your map in sync with the regional hub for your network -- the software will ensure the display is always up-to-date. Your network hub does not have to switch to the new map for you to use this map instead of the [netID]-mesomap.php on your site.
If your network hub does switch to this software, then you will need to use it too as the old map will no longer display accurately the conditions at station locations on the old graphic map.
For regional network admins, if you implement for your regional network, you can put '0,0,0,0' for the coordinates of new stations in the [netID]-stations-cc.txt file and just make sure the latitude/longitude is set correctly.
And, you won't need to use Paint.NET to edit the graphic any more.. just the one [netID]-stations-cc.txt file would need to be maintained in the same manner as before. Please let me know if you decide to implement on your network to replace the original [netID]-mesomap.php, and also let your member stations know if you elect to switch the network to using the V3 software for maps.
Best regards,
Ken
I will add the download file to the SCWN server soon, but I'm giving it a week or two before I do that in case there are any updates Ken wants to add now it's gone live.
Regards,
Martin.
