How to view, annotate and print maps

• What is Roam?
• Roam variations
• Functions in left panel
• Lots of the functions in Roam can be found in the left panel. If you can't see it select the arrow at the bottom left of Roam.
• Zoom and pan
• Search
• Select basemaps
• Select map features
• Add drawings
• Save your map
• View saved maps
• Print your map

What is Roam?

Roam is an application where you can view, print and annotate maps. The guidance below will help you get started with the key functions.

Roam variations

Roam applications vary slightly between collections. See the individual help pages for information on how they work:

• Ordnance Survey Roam
• Historic Roam
• Geology Roam
• Marine Roam - to view Marine vector data
• Chart Roam - to view nautical charts
• Aerial Roam
• Environment Roam
• Global Roam
• Society Roam

Functions in left panel

Lots of the functions in Roam can be found in the left panel. If you can't see it select the arrow at the bottom left of Roam.

Zoom and pan

Zoom

You can zoom by:

• using the scroll wheel on your mouse,

• the zoom bar on the right of the map,

• double clicking on the map

• using the zoom tool  found at the top right of the map.

• you can use the plus and minus keys on your keyboard to zoom in/out.

Pan

You can pan the map by:

• clicking and dragging the map.

• using your keyboards arrow keys to move around the map.

Search

You can search for a location in Roam using a place name, road name, postcode, grid reference, easting/northing or latitude/longitude.

• Type your placename, postcode or coordinates in the search box at the top left

• Select the magnifying tool button or select return.
• Your search results will be divided into different categories e.g. "Places", "Roads" etc.
• Select a result to generate a map centred on that location.

Select basemaps

Some collections offer a selection of basemaps.

1. Use the Basemaps button  to change the default Basemap that is being displayed.

Select map features

Some collections offer feature selection.

1. The Map Content area in the left panel can be used to turn different features of the map on and off.
2. Note: Map Content is not available for every map. To find a map where you can do this, try checking the different Basemaps.
3. Uncheck the boxes next to any unwanted layers and customise your map display.  

Add drawings

The drawing tools in Digimap Roam allow you to draw symbols, lines, shapes and text on your maps.

You can add labels to your features and select colours and styles.

Click Drawing Tools on the left panel:

For more detail help on the Drawing Tools, please see the How to use the Drawing Tools help page.

Save your map

• Select My Maps, then Save on the left panel.
• Give the map a name and select the Save button.
• NOTE: Other details about the map such as the map view and the date it was created will be saved. Any drawings you have added to the map will also be saved.

View saved maps

• Select My Maps, then Open .
• Select any saved map to view it.

Print your map

The  print button on the top menu bar takes you to a print window where you can create A4 to A0 files to print.

• Options include: page size, title, print scale, print format, page layout, as well as options to include your name, your annotations, national grid lines, hill shading and legend.
• The Content Preview  tab shows a small area of map content.
• The Layout Preview   tab shows the extents of the area that your map will cover. The map can be dragged in either preview tab to change the extents covered.
• With your options made, select the Generate Print File button 
• Open your print download file in your PDF reader software and click print.
• NOTE: Legends are provided as a separate pdf file.