Adding custom background maps to Mapeo Desktop

By default, Mapeo Desktop in Observations mode uses a background map that shows some geographical elements such as rivers and hills, as well as some political and urban elements such as borders, cities, roads, etc. Mapeo Desktop in Territory mode offers a range of background maps including satellite imagery, OpenStreetMap, and more.

If you have a custom background map, you can add it and use it in Mapeo Desktop without affecting the data collected. (For more on creating custom background maps, see Custom background maps.)

Adding a background map to Mapeo Desktop requires some technical skills and should be done by someone comfortable copying and pasting files within the internal file system. A mistake in this process could cause irreversible undesired effects.

To add a background map to Mapeo Desktop, follow the instructions below for your operating system:

• Windows computer

• macOS computer

Windows computer

Locate and copy the contents of the Mapeo background map package

Mapeo background maps will often be shared as a compressed file(.zip). If your background map is a .zip file, double click the file to unzip it.

Standard vector background maps for Mapeo will contain the file elements listed below: 3 folders and 2 files.

Raster background maps will contain different files and folders than those pictured above. Raster maps for Mapeo consist of one folder (tiles) and one file (style.json).

Select and copy all of the elements found inside your background map folder.

Paste the copied elements into the Mapeo/styles/default folder

1. In the Windows search engine, type %APPDATA% , and open the folder that appears with this name.

2. Inside the AppData folder, click on the Mapeo subfolder, then click on the styles subfolder.

3. If there is not already a default folder inside your styles folder, you will need to create one. To do so, right-click inside the styles folder and create a new folder named default.

4. Paste the background map elements you copied into the default folder.

Reload Mapeo Desktop

Use Ctrl + R on your keyboard to reload Mapeo or restart Mapeo Desktop to begin using the custom background map.

For more on loading custom background maps into Territory mode in Mapeo Desktop, see Changing background maps in Territory mode in the Mapeo Desktop for creating territory data (Territory mode) section.

macOS computer

Locate and copy the contents of the Mapeo background map package

Mapeo background maps will often be shared as a compressed file(.zip). If your background map is a .zip file, double click the file to unzip it.

A Mapeo background map consists of several folders and files that need to be copied into the file system of Mapeo Desktop. Standard vector background maps for Mapeo will contain the file elements listed below - 3 folders and 2 files.

Raster background maps will contain different files and folders than those pictured above. Raster maps for Mapeo consist of one folder (tiles) and one file (style.json).

Select and copy all of the elements found inside your background map folder.

Navigate to the Mapeo/styles folder

1. Click on Finder on your computer.

2. In the top menu bar, click on Go, then select Go to Folder...

3. Type in ~/Library/Application Support/Mapeo/styles in the address bar and click on Go.

Paste the copied elements into the Mapeo/styles/default folder

If there is not already a default folder inside your styles folder, you will need to create one. To do so, control-click inside the styles folder and create a new folder named default.

Paste the background map elements you copied into the default folder.

Restart Mapeo Desktop

Use Command (⌘)-R on your keyboard to reload Mapeo or restart Mapeo Desktop to begin using the custom background map.

For more on loading custom background maps into Territory mode in Mapeo Desktop, see Changing background maps in Territory mode in the Mapeo Desktop for creating territory data (Territory mode) section.