Articles

Import from File

by osedok · Published December 20, 2014 · Updated January 3, 2024

MapIt is capable of importing features into layer. This function might be useful if you need to gather new attributes data for already known locations.

At the moment supported formats are:

– Shapefile (zipped), CSV, KML, geojson for Point layers,
– Shapefile (zipped), KML and geojson for Polyline and Polygon layers

When importing from Shapefile, please make sure that the name of the ZIP file (e.g. Layer.zip) matches actual name of the layer inside the ZIP (e.g. Layer.shp, Layer.shx, Layer.dbf)

To import the data please copy your file to Mapit->Import folder on your device and access the import menu from layers’ context menu:

Import data into layer.

Import from file

To be able to import from file please copy and paste your kml or geojson files to MapIt->Import folder

Imported features.

To maximise application performance it’s recommended that you do not load more than 1000 records into one layer. The app was tested with more than 5000 points loaded however on lower spec devices there could be potential issues with the speed of the map related actions.

CSV file must be in format LATITUDE, LONGITUDE, NAME, DESCRIPTION or LATITUDE, LONGITUDE (first row should contain the names of the fields) – please see sample data below:

lat,lng,name, desc 57.131086,-2.122482,AB10,Description 1 57.13121,-2.082261,AB11,Description 2 57.098381,-2.1724,AB12,Description 3 57.108,-2.237,AB13,Description 4 57.101,-2.27,AB14,Description 5 lat,lng 57.131086,-2.122482 57.13121,-2.082261 57.098381,-2.1724 57.108,-2.237 57.101,-2.27

If you import the data from KML or geojson one file can contain single or multiple geometries – only matching geometries will be imported into the layer (e.g. if one file contains 2 polygons, 2 lines and 2 points only 2 features will be imported into particular layer type). You can download sample import files below:

Tags: csv data features import map it mapit

osedok

If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. Albert Einstein

Ray Moran says:

March 7, 2015 at 12:54 am

I have downloaded Mapit and all the in app purchases. I really like this app and would like to suggest a few must have features
1) in app purchase for enhanced Point Features
– select pushpins for point layers
– change pushpins according to an attribute value
2) ability to import and export KMZ
– to inlude photos and cuztom pushpins
– import directly from an email enclosure
3) add/remove vertices in polylines and polygons
4) Add Labels for all features

Appreciate your consideration and keep up the great work.

Ray
- osedok says:
  
  March 12, 2015 at 11:03 am
  
  Hi Ray,
  Thanks for your feedback. The app is being improved constantly and some of your ideas are already on the development plan. I will look closer at your request and will consider it for future updates.
Idan Elingold says:

March 22, 2015 at 2:14 pm

Hellow, iam using your app to colect data in agriculture monitoring and its awsom.
When i am importing a csv file containig lat,lon,name and other attribute fields of data for the location only the lat lon and the name comes to the app. It will be very importent and helpfull if all the data of the file will come with it. Thanks
Idan
- Idan Elingold says:
  
  March 29, 2015 at 11:59 am
  
  No response???
  - osedok says:
    
    March 29, 2015 at 1:42 pm
    
    Hi Idan, at the moment impot of existing attributes is not supported, however it’s a good idea and we will look at possible options to implement this functionality in the future.
    - marius heiss says:
      
      October 4, 2016 at 8:53 am
      
      Hi,
      are there any news about importing features with attributes: I think a feature like that would be very useful.
      
      Cheers
      Marius
      - osedok says:
        
        October 5, 2016 at 8:31 pm
        
        Hi Marius, not at the moment – only “name” and “description” can be imported. It’s quite complex task to link imported data with attribute set and at the moment MapIt does not support this kind of imports. We are however aware of such a need and this feature might be available at some point in the future.
Justin Brown says:

April 1, 2015 at 7:05 pm

I was recently informed of your app by a coworker and I believe it’ll be a useful tool for environmental sample data collection. Is there a way to import features without using an SD Card slot, or perhaps plans to allow for importing data from another source? I use a Google Nexus 10 and your app runs very well but it would be nice to be able to import pre-defined sample locations.

Thanks,

Justin
- osedok says:
  
  April 1, 2015 at 10:21 pm
  
  Hi Justin, the SDCard in this article in fact is the internal device memory, you do not need to have separate SDCard (I am going to update article, so it’s clear for readers). The other option we are looking at is possibility to export/import from dropbox. The live implementation for it is planned for this summer (June-July).
  - Justin Brown says:
    
    April 2, 2015 at 4:22 pm
    
    Thanks for the reply. I was able to successfully import a KML file this morning with over 4000 pre-defined sample grid points without a problem. I used Nexus Media Importer to transfer the file from a microSD card attached via the microUSB port directly to the Import folder.
    - osedok says:
      
      April 3, 2015 at 8:13 pm
      
      Hi Justin, that’s good news. The only suggestion would be to split your data in few layers if possible for best performance. I have tested the app with max 5K points only.
Josh Habel says:

February 9, 2016 at 3:44 pm

I’ve been playing with this app for a few weeks now and it seems like a really solid app for gis data collection. I especially like the user forms you can create. Some suggestions perhaps you could consider…
1. Maybe an extension to create fields that will calculate a value based upon your entry. For instance, if I’m taking several measurements and I would like to see what the difference between a an b is. If it is less than or greater than a specified value that location gets flagged or that sets the value for a separate field.

2. Varying marker symbols perhaps based off a subtype field.

Thanks for making such a useful app!

Josh
- osedok says:
  
  February 11, 2016 at 10:35 am
  
  Hi Josh, Thank you for your feedback. Regarding point 1 – please email me with more details and I will get it considered for implementation if possible.
  Regarding point 2 – in terms of current database structure it’s a bit difficult to get it implemented at the moment, but it might be possible in the future.
  - Josh says:
    
    February 12, 2016 at 6:37 pm
    
    What I’m thinking of is a new field type that would allow you to perform either logic analysis or simple arithmetic on other fields. The results of the logic or arithmetic would set the value for the field.
    
    An example from my work…
    
    Field_1 Electric Wire Elevation
    User would enter a measured number for instance 20
    
    Field_2 Telephone Wire Elevation
    User would enter a measured number for instance 15
    
    New_Field Wire Clearance?
    User would create some basic logic rules for instance that would determine value of field.
    
    If Field 1 minus Field 2 3 then…output “Okay”
Georg Pudack says:

March 26, 2016 at 1:40 pm

It’s a great App.
I’m using it in the moment to collect data on the same Route several times. Therefore I try to import a existing Point Layer for Orientation and Help.

Is there any way to get the attributes with the imported Files?

I tried out to import a File (Type point) in several formats (json,kml,csv), I had exported with QGIS.

There came no attributes but only the Position..

Georg
- osedok says:
  
  March 27, 2016 at 9:48 am
  
  At the moment only name and description is being imported into the layer. Specifically for the KML it’s tag “name” and “description” and for geoJSON properties called “name” and “description”. In case of importing from CSV please check the sample above in the article.
  I will update sample files after I am back from holiday to include the name and description.
Jeff says:

July 27, 2016 at 6:57 pm

How do you import a CSV file? I have tried importing a CSV file into an empty layer but after importing, no points show up in the layer. The layer is active and visible so any CSV points I import should appear in the layer. So how do I import a CSV file?
- osedok says:
  
  August 18, 2016 at 8:02 am
  
  Hi Jeff, can you please email me and send a sample CSV? You can also include the backup copy of your database if possible.
Kai-Michael Thomsen says:

October 5, 2016 at 12:57 pm

I usesd Mapit last summer for maping breeding birds. It runs fine. Now I try to import a layer with random points which I created in ArcGis and exported to json and kml files. I copied the file in to the mapit Import folder on the sd card. But when I run the Import menue on “Manage layers” it dosen’t run an shows only the informations how to do it. What is wrong?
- osedok says:
  
  October 5, 2016 at 8:28 pm
  
  Hi Michael, what you mean by “it dosen’t run an shows only the informations” – can you please provide more information. You can also email me directly with more details or send sample file to mapitgis@gmail.com
Per Folkesson says:

November 22, 2016 at 11:28 am

Hello, and thanks for a great app!

I tried importing polygons from a ESRI Shapefile, it worked just fine as far as the shapes them selfes goes. How should I set up the shapefile and/or the layer in the app so that I allso bring some data from the shapefile along? At least a description field, to use with labeling in the app would be great!
- osedok says:
  
  November 22, 2016 at 12:19 pm
  
  Hi Per,
  At the moment only NAME and DESCRIPTION field will go through. Not all shpapefiles accept the field name longer than 8 characters, so I will modify the app in the next update to pick up everything which starts with DESC…

Import from File

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