129 lines
6.7 KiB
Markdown
129 lines
6.7 KiB
Markdown
# Leaflet FAQ
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This is a collection of answers to the most frequently asked questions about Leaflet.
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1. [Data Providers](#data-providers)
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2. [Commercial Use and Licensing](#commercial-use-and-licensing)
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3. [Features](#features)
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4. [Performance](#performance)
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5. [Misc](#misc)
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## Data Providers
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#### What map tiles can I use with Leaflet? Is it limited to OpenStreetMap?
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Leaflet is provider-agnostic, meaning you can use any map provider as long as you conform to its terms of use.
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You can roll your own tiles as well.
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[OpenStreetMap](http://openstreetmap.org) is the most popular data source among different tile providers,
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but there are providers that use other sources.
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Check out [this example](http://leaflet-extras.github.io/leaflet-providers/preview/)
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with half a hundred different layers to choose from.
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Popular commercial options, free up to a particular number of requests, include
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[MapBox](http://mapbox.com),
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[CloudMade](http://cloudmade.com),
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[Bing Maps](http://www.microsoft.com/maps/choose-your-binge's-maps-API.aspx) (using a [plugin](https://github.com/shramov/leaflet-plugins)),
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[Esri ArcGIS](http://www.arcgis.com/features/maps/imagery.html) ([official plugin](https://github.com/Esri/esri-leaflet))
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and [Nokia Here](http://developer.here.com/web-experiences).
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Notable exception is [MapQuest Open](http://developer.mapquest.com/web/products/open/map), free for any number of requests.
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Always be sure to **read terms of use** of a chosen tile provider, **know its limitations**, and **attribute it properly** in your app.
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#### I'm looking for satellite imagery to use with my Leaflet map, any options?
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[MapBox](http://mapbox.com),
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[Bing Maps](http://www.microsoft.com/maps/choose-your-bing-maps-API.aspx),
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[ArcGIS](http://www.arcgis.com/features/maps/imagery.html)
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and [MapQuest Open](http://developer.mapquest.com/web/products/open/map) provide satellite imagery among others.
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#### I want to use Google Maps API tiles with Leaflet, can I do that?
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The problem with Google is that its [Terms of Use](https://developers.google.com/maps/terms?hl=ru) forbid any means of tile access other than through Google Maps API.
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You can add Google Maps API as a Leaflet layer with a [plugin](https://github.com/shramov/leaflet-plugins). But note that the map experience will not be perfect, because Leaflet will just act as a proxy to the Google Maps JS engine, so you won't get all the performance and usability benefits of using Leaflet when the Google layer is on.
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#### I want to roll my own OSM tile server for Leaflet, where do I start?
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Check out [this excellent guide](http://switch2osm.org/serving-tiles/).
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#### I want to create tiles from my own data for use with Leaflet, what are the options?
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There's a number of services that allow you to do this easily,
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notably [MapBox](https://www.mapbox.com/), [CartoDB](http://cartodb.com/) and [GIS Cloud](http://www.giscloud.com/).
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If you want to make tiles on your own, probably the easiest way is using [TileMill](https://www.mapbox.com/tilemill/).
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## Commercial Use and Licensing
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#### I have an app that gets lots of hits a day, and I want to switch from Google/Bing/whatever to Leaflet. Is there a fee for using it?
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Leaflet, unlike Google Maps and other all-in-one solutions, is just a JavaScript library.
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It's free to use, but doesn't provide map imagery on its own —
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you have to choose a tile service to combine with it.
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There are [plenty of options](#what-map-tiles-can-i-use-with-leaflet-is-it-limited-to-openstreetmap) for a tile service,
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each with their own terms of use, prices (some of them free), features, limitations, etc.
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Choice is yours.
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#### I'm building a commercial app that I plan to sell. Can I use Leaflet in it?
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You're welcome, as the code is published under the very permissive [2-clause BSD License](https://github.com/Leaflet/Leaflet/blob/master/LICENSE).
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Just make sure to attribute the use of the library somewhere in the app UI or the distribution
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(e.g. keep the Leaflet link on the map, or mention the use on the About page or a Readme file, etc.) and you'll be fine.
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That only applies to the code though.
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Make sure you conform to the terms of use of the tile images provider(s) that you choose as well.
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## Features
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#### Why is there still no feature X in Leaflet?
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First of all, did you check out the [Leaflet plugins page](http://leafletjs.com/plugins.html)?
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It lists about a hundred plugins doing all kinds of crazy stuff,
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and there's a high possibility that it has what you're looking for.
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Generally, we do our best to keep the Leaflet core small, lightweight and simple,
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focusing on _quality_ instead of _quantity_, and leaving all the rest to plugin authors.
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Check out [this video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_P2SaCPbJ4w) of a talk by the Leaflet creator for more background on the story and philosophy behind Leaflet.
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Another essential read is [Advocating Simplicity in Open Source](http://blog.universalmind.com/advocating-simplicity-in-open-source/) by the same guy.
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## Performance
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#### I have thousands of markers on my map. How do I make it faster and more usable?
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Check out the [Leaflet.markercluster](https://github.com/Leaflet/Leaflet.markercluster) plugin. It's amazing.
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#### I have vector data with many thousands of points on my map. Any performance tips?
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Leaflet generally does a pretty good job of handling heavy vector data
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with its real-time clipping and simplification algorithms,
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but browser technology still has its limits.
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Try [switching from SVG to Canvas as the default rendering back-end](http://leafletjs.com/reference.html#global),
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it may help considerably (depends on the app and the data).
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If you still have too much data to render, you'll have to use some help of a server-side service
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like [MapBox](https://www.mapbox.com/),
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[CartoDB](http://cartodb.com/)
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and [GIS Cloud](http://www.giscloud.com/)
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(they all work great with Leaflet).
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What they do under the hood is serving rendered data as image tiles,
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along with additional data to enable interactivity like hovering shapes
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(e.g. done using [UTFGrid](https://www.mapbox.com/developers/utfgrid/) —
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Leaflet [has a nice plugin](https://github.com/danzel/Leaflet.utfgrid) for it).
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## Misc
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#### I downloaded the Leaflet source but didn't find `leaflet.js` there. Why is that?
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You can download the built versions using links from the [download page](http://leafletjs.com/download.html).
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It even includes the latest build of the development version (`master` branch),
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updated automatically on each commit to the repo.
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We removed the built versions from the repository because it's a chore to build and commit them manually on each change,
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and it often complicates merging branches and managing contributions.
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There's a common complaint that Leaflet can't be used with [Bower](http://bower.io/) because of that, but we'll resolve the issue soon.
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