Moving Around with Maps - Online Communications - Macs All-in-One For Dummies, 4th Edition (2014)

Macs All-in-One For Dummies, 4th Edition (2014)

Book II. Online Communications

Chapter 4. Moving Around with Maps

In This Chapter

arrow Finding your place

arrow Seeing the view from here

arrow Getting from here to there

arrow Sharing locations and directions

Maps may seem an app that you just want on a mobile device such as an iPhone or iPad — and you find it there — but with Mac OS 10.9 Mavericks, Maps is available on your Mac, too, and with good reason. With an Internet connection, Maps can find your current location, provide directions between two locations, and calculate the travel time from where you are to your next appointment, taking traffic conditions into consideration, and give you that information in the Notification Center — talk about app integration. What’s more, with its built-in search function, you can find specific types of businesses that are near a location, such as restaurants near your hotel.

In this chapter, we tell you how to find your present location and locate an address you know. We talk about how to get directions from one place to another, and then make those indications available on your mobile device. We also explain how to share or save the locations and directions you use.

Wherever You Go, There You Are

When you first open the Maps app (click the Maps icon on the Dock or Launchpad), a map of the United States appears in the window. (Look for the icon with a road map under a compass needle; that's the Maps icon.) In the following sections, we tell you how to find your location and use the Mac’s gestures to navigate.

Finding your location

Maps uses network data to determine your location, and various apps, including Maps and Reminders, use a feature called Location Services to access your location to complete their tasks. If you want Maps to find your location, you have to enable Location Services by following these steps:

1. Click the System Preferences icon on the Dock.

Or choose image⇒System Preferences.

image

Figure 4-1: Enable Location Services in the Security & Privacy preferences.

2. Click the Security & Privacy button.

3. Click the Privacy tab at the top of the window.

4. Click Location Services, as shown in Figure 4-1.

5. Select the check boxes for Enable Location Services and then for Maps.

If the Location Services icons are dimmed and can’t be selected, click the Lock button in the bottom-left corner, type an Administrator password for your Mac, and then select the check boxes. Click the Lock button again to prevent further changes.

image Learn more about the Security & Privacy preferences in Book III, Chapter 2.

6. Click the Close button of the System Preferences window.

When your Mac accesses Location Services, the Location Services icon appears on the status bar. Click the Current Position button in the upper-left corner, and a map of your neighborhood appears. Your exact location is the blue dot on the map, like you see in Figure 4-2. If there is a pulsing circle around the blue dot, your location is approximate; the smaller the circle, the more precise your exact (or nearly exact) location. A compass appears in the lower-right corner and points north.

image

Figure 4-2: The blue dot indicates your present position.

Navigating the Maps interface

Maps has buttons and menus to change the view and navigate the map, but Maps also takes advantage of the multitouch gestures offered by a trackpad. To change the style of the map, click one of the three buttons at the top of the window:

· Standard: Shows you a map. This is the default view.

· Hybrid: Shows the street names on a satellite view.

· Satellite: Shows a satellite view.

Click none, one, two, or all three of the following buttons:

· Current Position: Shows where you are presently located.

· 3D view: Displays the map in three-dimensions, showing the highs and lows of mountains and buildings.

· Traffic conditions: Reveals any available information about traffic jams, roadwork, or smooth sailing. This service doesn’t cover all areas.

Choose View⇒Show Scale if you want to place a scale on the map. Change the orientation and size of the map by doing the following:

· Click the plus and minus buttons next to the compass to zoom in and out of the map.

· Double-click the mouse or trackpad to zoom in; hold the Option key while double-clicking to zoom out.

· On a trackpad, use the spread and pinch gestures with your thumb and forefinger (or the two fingers that are comfortable for you) to zoom in and out of the map, respectively.

· On a trackpad, double-tap with one finger to zoom in or double-tap with two fingers to zoom out.

· Scroll to move the map up, down, or sideways.

· Click the compass or the 3D button at the top of the window to switch to 3D view, which just tilts the map in Standard view but becomes 3D in Hybrid and Satellite view.

· Click and hold the pointer on the compass and drag left or right to rotate the map.

· On a trackpad, use two fingers to rotate the map.

· Tap the Compass button that appears in the upper-right corner to return to a north-facing orientation.

image Use the selections in the View menu as alternatives to Maps’ buttons.

Asking For Directions

Even though you may not take your computer with you, or have Internet access while traveling, you can calmly plot your journey before grabbing your car keys. After planning your itinerary, print the directions or send them to your iPhone or iPad and be on your way, secure to find your way. First we show you how to find addresses or points of interest and store them in Maps, and then we show you how to get from one place to another.

Finding what you seek

You may know your way around your city or town but not know some of the street names — or perhaps you’re headed to a city on business and want to find bookstores near your hotel. In these situations, you don’t need directions as much as a location or information. Maps can work with a specific street name and number as well as inexact addresses, such as an intersection, a neighborhood, or a landmark. Use these steps to find either:

1. Click Maps on the Dock or Launchpad.

2. (Optional) Click the Current Position button if you want to find something right in your neighborhood.

3. Click the Search field at the top right of the window.

4. Type one of the following in the search field. (If an address is already in the search field, click the X at the right end of the field to delete the text.)

· An address in the form of a street name and number or an intersection, with the city and state or just the name of a city or town

· A neighborhood, landmark, or service such as SOMA (South of Market) San Francisco, Liberty Bell, or bookstores Philadelphia

· The name of a person or business that’s stored in your Contacts

A list of potential matches from Contacts and the Maps database appears; when you type a word, the results list is divided by category such as Businesses (that contain those letters or word), Queries (potential words you could use to define your search), and Addresses (that contain those letters or word) as shown in Figure 4-3.

image After you search for addresses, Maps remembers them. In subsequent searches, a Bookmarks and History category appears.

image

Figure 4-3: Type the first few letters of your search to generate potential matches.

5. If you see the address you seek in the list, click it to open a map showing that location.

Otherwise, finish typing the complete search terms or address and press Return.

A red pin on the map indicates the address you seek, and multiple results and pins appear if you searched for a service in a location, as shown in Figure 4-4. The address is written on a flag attached to the pin.

image

Figure 4-4: A red pin and flag indicate the sought-after address.

6. (Optional) Click the Info button on the right end of the flag or double-click the item in the results list to see information about the location.

An information window opens that shows the distance of the location from your current location (determined by Location Services), along with information like the phone number and address of the selected site, the site’s web address, or a link to Yelp!, as shown in Figure 4-5. When available, you’ll also see Reviews and Photos buttons that give you reviews to read and photos to look at of the location.

Click the web page address to find out more about the location you found, such as the menu of a restaurant or special exhibits at a museum.

image If you want to keep the found address in Maps for future use, click the Add Bookmark button in the information window or choose View⇒Add Bookmark. Clicking the Add to Contacts button automatically opens Contacts and creates a new card with the address and associated information for the location.

image

Figure 4-5: The Info window shows details.

7. Memorize what you found or go to the next section to learn how to save and share it.

Sharing what you find

Often times, a glance at a map is all you need to orient yourself to a location. Other times, you want to keep the location information you found. Two easy ways to keep the information are

· Choose File⇒Print to print a copy of the map and results list.

· Choose File⇒Export as PDF to save a PDF of the map and results.

To share the map and location information with yourself to your iPhone or iPad or with someone else, do the following:

1. Find the address you want to share with someone, either by searching or choosing from a bookmark or Contacts.

2. Tap the Share button at the top of the screen or at the top of the information window for a location.

Or choose File⇒Share.

The Share menu opens, as shown in Figure 4-6.

image

Figure 4-6: Share the location you found.

3. Click one of the sharing options:

· Send to iOS device: The location will be shared in the Maps’ bookmarks on your iOS device.

· Email or Messages: Click one of these to open an outgoing message that contains the location. Fill in the address for one or more recipients and then click Send. (See Book II, Chapters 2 and 3 to learn about Mail and Messages, respectively.)

· AirDrop: Click to share the location with other people on your local network who use Macs with AirDrop access. (See Book III, Chapter 4 to learn about AirDrop.)

· Twitter or Facebook: Click to post to either of these social networks. You must be logged in to your account.

image You can also click Add Bookmark or Add to Contacts to save the location in either place.

Accessing a saved location

To view and use an address you’ve recently used or bookmarked, or from your Contacts list, do the following:

1. Click Maps on the Dock or Launchpad.

2. Click the Bookmarks button to the left of the Search field.

The window shown in Figure 4-7 opens.

3. Do one of the following:

· Click Recents to use an address you’ve recently accessed.

A list of recently used addresses opens.

· Click Bookmarks to use a bookmarked location.

A list of bookmarks opens.

image

Figure 4-7: Click the Bookmarks button to access your Maps history, bookmarks, and Contacts.

· Click All Contacts or one of the groups in Contacts to choose a person or business from Contacts.

Scroll through the list to open the Info screen that contains the address you seek.

4. Tap the address you wish to use.

A map opens, and a red pin indicates the address or location you’re looking for.

image If you want a clean slate, you can clear your bookmarks by opening the list and clicking Edit, and then clicking the X to the right of the bookmark you want to delete. While you delete bookmarks one at a time, removing recent locations is an all-or-nothing deal. Click Recents and then click the Clear button, and the list is emptied. If you want to save a Recents address, open it and then save it as a bookmark or an addition to Contacts.

Dropping a pin

If there’s no pin on the location you want to save or share, choose View⇒Drop Pin. A purple pin shows up on the map with a flag that reads Dropped Pin. If the pin isn’t exactly where you want it, click and drag it to the location you want. Click the Info button on the flag to display an information screen with the standard options.

To remove the pin, click Remove Pin. You can add a bookmark for the pin and use it as a starting or ending point when asking for directions, which we explain next.

Getting directions

Maps finds directions from your current location to where you’re going or between two addresses that you provide or find. Follow these steps to ask Maps for directions:

1. Open Maps and click the Directions button, if it isn’t highlighted.

The words Current Location appear in the Start field, and the End field is blank.

2. Leave the Start field as your Current Location or click the X on the right end of the field to create an empty field as shown in Figure 4-8, and type a new address for the starting point.

As you type, potential matches appear; click one or type the complete address.

image A quick way to get directions from your current location is to click the Current Location button (refer to Figure 4-2), and then search for the address you want to go to. When the map is pinned, click the Info button on the right end of the flag and then click the Directions button. A route is immediately calculated.

image

Figure 4-8: Fill in the starting point and destination you want on the Directions screen.

3. Click the End field and type the address of where you want to go.

As you type, potential matches appear; click one or type the complete address.

Swap the Start and End points of the directions by clicking the Swap button to the left of the Start and End fields.

If you want directions and travel time for walking between destinations, click the Pedestrian button (next to the Driving button).

4. Click the Directions button or click a match in the list.

A list of point-to-point indications appears, and the map shows the route from your starting point to your destination, as shown in Figure 4-9.

The distance and estimated travel time are displayed above the directions. If more than one route is available, Maps displays alternate routes in light blue and the travel time for each. Click the route you want to follow to make it the main route.

image

Figure 4-9: Point-to-point directions are shown in a list and on the map.

5. (Optional) Click the buttons at the top of the window to change the view.

6. (Optional) Click the Show Traffic button (refer to Figure 4-2).

image This feature is available in some locations only.

The roads on the map show you traffic conditions:

· Red dashes show where traffic is heavy and stop-and-go.

· Orange dots mean traffic is moving slowly.

· White dash in a red circle (Road Closed) icons mean what they show — road closed.

· Men at Work icons indicate road work.

· Car bumper in a red square indicate accidents.

· Yellow triangles (Yield icons) indicate general alerts.

7. (Optional) Print, save, or share the directions as we explain earlier.