Xrmap is an X-based program that displays interactive portions of the Earth using the CIA world vector map. It's ideal for exploring and studying geographic locations.
Xrmap is an exceptional program that operates under X and allows users to interactively display various parts of the Earth. One of the most significant advantages of this program is its use of the enormous CIA world vector map to generate images of the Earth. The Xrmap program provides a user-friendly X client that quickly and efficiently manipulates the CIA World data bank II global vector information which is a massive dataset of about 45 MB.
The program offers an extensive range of features that include essential information such as coastlines, islands, political boundaries, major and minor rivers, glaciers, lakes, canals, reefs, and much more. Additionally, it is possible to zoom images accurately by up to a factor of 100 or more, making it easier to examine specific features in detail. The package also includes a rich data set of world cities and locations, comprising around 20,000 cities that are listed in alphabetical order for ease of use.
Xrmap is derived from the rmap console-only utility created by Reza Naima. However, Xrmap offers many more features than the original 'rmap', including the ability to implement Rectangular, Mercator, Miller projections in addition to the Spherical projection, as well as reverse search of coordinates. All parameters and configurations can be set interactively from the GUI. Xrmap supports writing images in ppm, xpm, ps or compressed ppm.gz, xpm.gz, ps.gz formats. It can also produce images without entering the GUI, while most parameters can alternatively be set via the command line options. It is worth noting that Xrmap requires the X environment to operate, in contrast with rmap.
The latest version of the program includes the ability to directly read vector formats EPS, SVG or bitmap formats PNG, GIF, JPG, which is a significant improvement. The encapsulated PostScript format EPS is the preferred format for flags since it is fast, easily resizable, and provides better-looking flags. Other formats are no longer needed to run Xrmap, although slower machines can benefit from installing the xpm_150 flags as a fallback since they load much faster and occupy less disk space. Furthermore, the overall handling of images has been improved, including the use of memory cache and more explicit error messages, among others.
Xrmap also features a smarter exit routine that asks confirmation before quitting abruptly, making it much easier and more convenient to use. The program has undergone many other small fixes and bug fixes, including the option -define "exec|..." being fixed, thanks to the FreeBSD port maintainer Serge Gagnon for pointing out the bug. The latest version is an abbreviated menu with the most common functions opened by default, making it easier and more accessible for users. The file explorer has also been improved to recognize more file types, while the data window GUI has been reworked, hopefully improving user experience.
Overall, the latest release of Xrmap is an excellent software that enables users to generate high-quality images of the Earth and manipulate the CIA World data bank II global vector information effectively. The program is easy to use and navigate, making it an ideal choice for professionals and amateurs alike looking for a powerful tool to generate maps and visualizations. The binary size has increased by more than 14%, while Sloccount indicates more than 25,000 lines of code in total, a 7% increase compared to the 2.32 version.
The program offers an extensive range of features that include essential information such as coastlines, islands, political boundaries, major and minor rivers, glaciers, lakes, canals, reefs, and much more. Additionally, it is possible to zoom images accurately by up to a factor of 100 or more, making it easier to examine specific features in detail. The package also includes a rich data set of world cities and locations, comprising around 20,000 cities that are listed in alphabetical order for ease of use.
Xrmap is derived from the rmap console-only utility created by Reza Naima. However, Xrmap offers many more features than the original 'rmap', including the ability to implement Rectangular, Mercator, Miller projections in addition to the Spherical projection, as well as reverse search of coordinates. All parameters and configurations can be set interactively from the GUI. Xrmap supports writing images in ppm, xpm, ps or compressed ppm.gz, xpm.gz, ps.gz formats. It can also produce images without entering the GUI, while most parameters can alternatively be set via the command line options. It is worth noting that Xrmap requires the X environment to operate, in contrast with rmap.
The latest version of the program includes the ability to directly read vector formats EPS, SVG or bitmap formats PNG, GIF, JPG, which is a significant improvement. The encapsulated PostScript format EPS is the preferred format for flags since it is fast, easily resizable, and provides better-looking flags. Other formats are no longer needed to run Xrmap, although slower machines can benefit from installing the xpm_150 flags as a fallback since they load much faster and occupy less disk space. Furthermore, the overall handling of images has been improved, including the use of memory cache and more explicit error messages, among others.
Xrmap also features a smarter exit routine that asks confirmation before quitting abruptly, making it much easier and more convenient to use. The program has undergone many other small fixes and bug fixes, including the option -define "exec|..." being fixed, thanks to the FreeBSD port maintainer Serge Gagnon for pointing out the bug. The latest version is an abbreviated menu with the most common functions opened by default, making it easier and more accessible for users. The file explorer has also been improved to recognize more file types, while the data window GUI has been reworked, hopefully improving user experience.
Overall, the latest release of Xrmap is an excellent software that enables users to generate high-quality images of the Earth and manipulate the CIA World data bank II global vector information effectively. The program is easy to use and navigate, making it an ideal choice for professionals and amateurs alike looking for a powerful tool to generate maps and visualizations. The binary size has increased by more than 14%, while Sloccount indicates more than 25,000 lines of code in total, a 7% increase compared to the 2.32 version.
What's New
Version 2.33: N/A