Overlay URL Patterns
Overlay Type | Georectified? | URL Pattern |
---|---|---|
Image | No | http://[servername]/[path]/[imagefilename].[png|jpg] |
Tile Server | Yes | http://[servername]/[path]/{z}/{x}/{y}.png |
Web Map Server (WMS) | Yes | http://[servername]/[path]?request=[getMap|getCapabilities] |
KML | Possible | http://[servername]/[path]/[filename].[kml|kmz] |
Text in [brackets] you must swap for real URL text, and text in {braces} is for Running Reality to swap for number values.
- MapBox describes how a tiled web mapping server works.
- Open Streetmap technical discussion of using a tiled map server.
- Wikipedia description of a KML file for describing a web map service.
Map Sources
This is a collection of websites which provide map data. Care should be taken regarding copyright when doing research with an online map.

EdMaps
Historical maps collection, mostly for Europe, and links to university map collections.