MapInfo Exponare

Exponare provides the framework to create relationships between an object and the various data sets related to that object that may be residing in disparate number of data formats and locations.  For example, when a utility company wants to undertake repair work on a particular cable, it can select the cable section in Exponare and locate all affected properties, residing in a customer database.  Using a number of possible customer service channels like mail and telephone, residents can be kept informed of the work order.

Exponare provides one-to-many data relationship capabilities for a selected object.  This means that one map object can have multiple records from multiple databases associated with it.  For example, in the case of a council, a selected land parcel can list attributes like zoning, planning schemes, lot/plan number, electorate, elected members, owners, council rates, garbage routes/days, notices and any set of data related to that land parcel. 

An important feature of Exponare is its ability to access data in any* format.  The data can come from a disparate number of systems including MapInfo tables, non-spatial databases, and spatial databases.  As from the image above, it is clear that the data is not limited to a single system or format.

(*- As long as that data can be accessed using open standards)

Queries allow users to locate features on the map quickly and easily.  More importantly, they provide a quick mechanism for answering Frequently Asked Questions.  A simple query would be “Where is the closest school?”  Or a slightly more complex query like “List all the restaurants within 1 km of my house…” or an even more complex query like “Where are my customers that buy more than $1000 each year and include premium items and need delivery and …..”

The administrator can configure queries to suit the data needs of the users, ranging from quick, preset queries, to more complex, open queries where the user can change the search parameters.  Queries can be configured on spatial tables (MapInfo TAB files), textual databases that are bound to a TAB file (e.g. MS Access, SQL Server) and spatial databases such as Oracle Spatial and SpatialWare.  It is seamless to the end user where the data is being extracted from.

Using Exponare Public, a customer is able to mark arbitrary points on a map to indicate any number of issues.  For example, by marking a point of the map a customer can register a complaint to their council about a location of an abandoned car.  By sketching a circle on a map they can report damaged footpaths and help limit accidents and public liability concerns.

When the user makes a selection either by executing a query or by selecting objects on the map using the selection tools, the textual results associated with that selection are shown in an Info Results tabular format for quick and effective communication.  They are designed to provide the most effective method of using space on a computer screen.  So, for example, a customer service representative fielding a question about the closest parks within 5 kms of a location is able to provide quick and effective response using the tabulated results.

Exponare is a centrally managed solution that enables an organization to control access to data and functionality and gives the administrator ability to configure the look and feel of the application to suit the responsibilities and data needs of all users within and outside the organization.  So, by using the configuration tool, the administrator is able to create a certain interface for customer support teams and different ones for the senior management with each having its own specific set of data relationships, queries, print templates, etc.

Standard mapping tools are provided that help users locate, visualize, and analyze data from disparate data sources.  The tools include:

•  Zoom in and out
  
•  Pan and re-center
  
•  Scale bar
  
•  View and set zoom distance
  
•  Back and Forward
  
•  Selection tools (point, rectangle, radius, polyline, region)
  
•  Measure Distance
  
•  Measure Area
  
•  Toggle auto-labels
  
•  Home/Reset
  
•  Export point, polyline and polygon coordinates in Public

A combined legend and layer control shows information about the state of layers currently shown on the map.  It allows the user to:

•  View the symbology of the objects in that layer.  If there are multiple object styles in a  layer (such as different colors and thicknesses for different road types), the user is able to drop down a list showing the various styles
  
•  View the descriptive name for the layer, as specified by the
• dministrator
  
•  View and change the layer visibility status
  
•  View and change the layer selectability status
  
•  View and change the layer auto-label status
  
•  Move layers up and down in the map window
  
•  Click on a layer name hyperlink to view information associated with that layer such as metadata (if configured by the administrator)
  
•  Reset the layer control to the default settings of the work context

Users can activate thematic maps to quickly and easily visualize the data associated with the map layers.  Map objects are color coded to reflect the information associated with the objects.  For example, suburb boundaries could be shaded by population density or literacy rates.  The thematics are configured by the administrator using the standard thematic generation tools in the Workspace Manager.  When the user activates the thematic, it creates the thematic on the fly (thus using the latest data), but uses the settings as configured by the administrator.

Users can print maps based on administrator defined templates.  Templates are a highly effective method of minimizing effort during printing.  The administrator can build print templates using either Microsoft Word or HTML.  When the user chooses the print command, they can select the print template to use (the administrator can create multiple templates), the scale at which to print the map (current map scale, zoom to selection, or enter a custom scale), and if configured by the administrator, prompts for custom tags.  Templates can also include fixed information such as company logo, north arrow, disclaimers, etc.  Because a standard Word document is created, the user can print it, save it, or if they have Adobe Acrobat software installed, could convert to PDF.

Using mail merge with certain print templates, a user is able to create a multi-record merged document.  The template would define the data to be included in the merged document and help simplify the task of the user.

Enquiry users have the ability to add annotations to the map window as a method of making temporary notes.  The key purpose of the tool is to provide users with the option to annotate the map prior to printing.

Exponare Enquiry features functionality that enables integration with one or more external applications.

An external application may be:

• A document management system;
  
• Property and ratings system;
  
• Other GIS application or
  
• Any other arbitrary application that can be started from the command line.

In many cases, a two-way link allows users the ability to switch between applications using an object as the common thread.  For instance, selecting a pipe section in Exponare, a user is able to switch to a web casting application that provides real-time video feed of the actual pipe.  By selecting a different section of the pipe through the web casting application the user is able to switch back to Exponare and see details relating to the new selection.