Examples of Clickable Maps
This page provides links to various sample clickable maps, or imagemaps. If you have any comments or suggestions regarding this page, please send them via email to johng@mail.duke.edu.
Clickable Maps as Graphic Menus
In the examples below, the developer has used a graphic design package and the clickable map
technology to break out of the restrictive text-based menu format. Some of these examples
are strong in that the graphic menus are particularly attractive, or they organize the options in
a format that the user should find easy-to-understand.
Some Weak Examples
Some Stronger Examples
The Best Examples
Clickable Maps as Geographic Menus
Clickable maps can be based on physical, geographical maps. Examples would be floor plans,
road maps, regional maps, and the like. In the strongest examples, the "menu-ness" of the
clickable map is not obscured by the underlying geograhical map. In the weaker examples, the
developer just scanned in some existing image and attempted to overlay "hot spots". The original
image was not well suited to perform as a menu, as it was designed for another purpose. The
result is a confusing menu for the user.
Some Weak Examples
Some Stronger Examples
The Best Examples
Clickable Maps as Data Query Interfaces
In these examples, clickable map images are used to allow users to request data from a
back-end process. In this sense, the use of clickable maps overlaps with forms as interfaces
to data services. Each of the examples below provide interesting models of a graphical interface that creates a request for data retreival.
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