RecPath v2.0 Help

The Point of it All

This software plots routes across Google Maps and keeps track of how far the route travels. I wrote most of it to help me plan my training in Phoenix after MAG published the front and back sides of a map showing every bike lane and multi-use path in my area. You can still use that version if you only want to see Phoenix.

RecPath Controls

Add a Point
Click the map to add a point to the end of the route. Double-click to add a point and re-center the map on it. This is the tool that will be selected by default when you open RecPath.

Insert a Point
Adds a point to the middle of the route. When it is selected and you click the map, it finds the nearest line, breaks it, and inserts the new point where you clicked.

Remove a Point
When this tool is selected and you click within a few pixels of a point, that point is removed.

Remove the Last Point
This button removes a point from the end of the route. It does not necessarily remove the most recently added point (unless that happens to be at the end).

Remove All Points
This removes every point from the route and resets the distance to 0 miles. There is no "are you sure?" dialog box, but you can use "undo" if you click it by mistake.

Undo Last Action
This button will undo the last change you made to the route.

Create a Link
This button will generate a link that RecPath can read so you can save your route. When you click it, it generates the link and sends your browser to the new link.

There is a 2000-character limit on link size, so you can only squeeze about 80 points into a big link.

Create a Compact Link
This button works like the "Create a Link" button, but the link it creates is smaller. It does this by being a little less precise about point placement and removing unnecessary points. Precision is reduced to about 2 feet. Unnecessary points are ones that introduce less than a 3° turn. These links come out a lot smaller, so if you keep a route to less than about 30 points, you can send it through MSN Messenger.

There is a 2000-character limit on link size, so you can only squeeze about 160 points into a compact link.

If you want a smaller link, check out TinyURL. That'll get you a link to any route in less than 30 characters, but it still has a 2000 character limit, so you can't use it for really, really long routes.

Save Route as Text
Since the link buttons can't be used for very long routes, there's an option to save the route as text. This button opens a text dialog with buttons to convert a route to text and back

I am not aware of any limit on the number of points that can be saved this way, but if you have a couple hundred, it will take your browser a few seconds to encode or decode the route.

Change Color
Clicking this button cycles through all available colors for drawing the route.

Change Line Weight
Clicking this button cycles through line weights. The default is medium, but you could also use fine or bold.

Change Opacity
By default the route line is only 50% opaque so you can still kind of read street names through it. If you click this button, you can also cycle among 25%, 75% and 100% opaque.

Address Search
When you click this, an address search box will open. Enter an address and click "Search." If the address is found, the map centers on it and zooms in.

Geocoding services (address lookups) are provided by geocoder.us. They rule.

Help
You obviously know how to use this.

Me

You can contact me using the Feedback form. I'm always interested to hear from people who use this.

Google Map Controls

Disclaimers

This tool is provided as-is with no warranties and confers no rights.
This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any disease.
If itching or rash develops, discontinue use.

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