Hyper MapEdit is a useful program for creating imagemap configuration files. It has got to be one of the oldest Macintosh-based WWW utilities. (It's dated November 23, 1993.) What's more, it still works great! The program requires HyperCard 2.1 or better. This is very important because Hyper MapEdit does not work with HyperCard Player.
If you are going to use Hyper MapEdit to write your imagemap configuration file, then the first step is to create your graphic and save it in PICT file format. After launching Hyper MapEdit, a number of palettes appear. By clicking the "Load Picture..." button on one of those pallets you are prompted for a graphic to import. If successful, Hyper MapEdit will import your picture and convert it to a black and white image. (This procedure has met with mixed success and you may have to resort to copying your graphic to the clipboard and pasting it into Hyper MapEdit.)
Now that the image is displayed you begin defining regions of your graphic using the circle, rectangle, and irregular polygon buttons. This is done by clicking on the buttons and then clicking on the graphic. Circles are defined by a radius. Rectangles are defined by opposite corners. Irregular polygons are defined by a number of points. After each region is defined you are prompted for a URL to be associated with the region. When you are finished defining your map, click the "Save Map..." button. You will be prompted for a default URL (a URL to return when the end-user does not click in a defined region) and then a file name for your map. It is a good idea to give your map a .map extension, and it is a good idea to save it in the same folder as your imagemapping CGI program.
Hyper MapEdit is not as pretty as WebMap, but it is just as effective. Furthermore, its free.
Eric last edited this page on September 26, 1995. Please feel free to send comments.