Map creation

Hi,

Acrobat 9 Pro Extended can open and convert geoTIFF and JPEG200 files with embedded geospatial data, and preserve that geospatial information in the resulting PDF file. However, Acrobat 9 Pro Extended CANNOT import raw GIS data to create a PDF map. That is done by specialized GIS systems such as those from ESRI and Bentley, which can generate a geospatially-aware PDF map (as well as the aforementioned geoTIFF and JPEG2000 files) that can be consumed by Acrobat 9 and Reader 9. Acrobat Pro Extended 9 can also add Shape file layers to an existing PDF Map.

What Acrobat 9 Pro Extended also includes is a geospatial registration tool. This allows someone to manually add the necessary information to the static image of the map on a PDF (bounding box of co-ords, correct azimuth, etc), so that the geospatial location tool in the Acrobat 9 family can be used to read, find, measure distances and markup latitude and longitude co-ords on a map.

Reader 9 can also read and find locations on these geospatially-aware PDF maps, and if the PDF map is enabled for commenting and analysis in Reader, can also markup and measure the map.

HTH,

Ali

Thanks Ali,
This sounds exciting.

Will these methods be exposed to Javascript?

Cheers
AlanK

No JavaScript for these methods. However, one can use the Batch Processing in Acrobat 9 on the local machine (per the EULA) to open and convert those image files to PDF, just as you can do today with "regular" PDF files.

What about the coordinates? If I have get a map that is not made from a geoTIFF or JPEG2000 file and need to add the latitude and longitude for at least 3 corners as I keeping reading about then where do I get the coordinates? I guess I should be looking for maps that have that information listed with it.

StevenD - ultimately it's down to you to find those coordinates, but if it's a map of a real location (i.e. one you can find in Google Earth, etc.) you can find the latitude/longitude from there, by picking identifiable features like road intersections, bends in rivers, building corners, etc. - the registration tool in Acrobat needs 3 or 4 points but they can be anyplace on the page, not specifically the corners.

The biggest problem, and one that'll thwart 90% of people trying to georegister a map from a random image or sketch, is you have to tell Acrobat what the map projection and datum system is - you can't guess, it's often impossible to tell by eye, and there are no automated projection-recognition features in Acrobat (in theory we could ask you for 6 or more points and deduce it from the distortion, but that feature wasn't included in the code this time round. It's on the list of requests though I have no idea if it'll appear in APEX-X). If it's a very small area in the map (a few acres or less) and you pick the wrong projection you may not notice, but anything over a few tens of miles each side and your measurements/position info will be off by enough to care.

Thanks for the info. I don't work with maps but reading about how to work with geospatial maps in Acrobat has got me thinking. So again thanks for the education.