Building a Custom Category Set
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About Categories in CoMapeo
What is a category in CoMapeo?
A category is a predetermined icon, label, and detail questions for any data type being collected. For each observation made with CoMapeo, participants select a category to classify it, and may answer questions or respond to prompts to provide more detail about what is being documented.
What are Category Sets in CoMapeo?
Previously known as Config in Mapeo, Category Sets are files that contain and define the distinct Categories for a Project. Creating config used to require coding skills that limited the possibility for people to customize their own categories. We have now made it more accessible through a spreadsheet template that we explain in this section.
CoMapeo’s Default Category Set
When you first install CoMapeo, it comes with a default category set that includes general icons and questions for territory mapping and monitoring. Depending on your needs and capacity, you may find that the Default Category Set that comes with CoMapeo does the job well enough, or you might want to set up a custom Category Set with your own icons and questions tailored to your specific needs.
Reviewing the Default Category Set within CoMapeo Mobile
To review CoMapeo’s Default Category Set within the app itself, use the following steps.
👣 Try it
Step 1 Go to CoMapeo and go to the map view. Click on the orange button.
Step 2 Scroll down to find all the icons displayed in the default category.
Step 3 Click on the icons and explore the Details section in the bottom left corner of each category to find the kinds of information you can add using this category.
Creating Custom Category Sets
[VIDEO WALKTHROUGH]
Reasons for customizing CoMapeo Category Sets
- Custom Categories are a powerful tool for customization in CoMapeo, allowing users to define specific icons, and questionnaires for their projects.
- Text can be written in any language that can be typed, ensuring that key parts of the data collection interface can appear in the native language of the groups using it.
Reflect and organize information you will need
Initial planning and consultation with project participants is essential to designing effective ways of organizing your data. To start the customization process, project participants should reflect on the project goals, what kind of data will be needed, and what properties might be required for data outputs.
You will need to think through what to include for each of the key customizable areas of CoMapeo.
| Categories component | Description | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Category Name | When collecting or creating data with CoMapeo, users assign a top-level category to each observation or element on the map | text (recommended less than x characters for best display |
| Icon | Each Category you include must have an icon or a small graphic to display to users when selecting a category. | png, (max 100px) |
| Details fields | For each Category in your Category Set, you can include one or more structured data fields (like a mini form or questionnaire) that users can optionally fill out when creating a new observation or map element with that category. | text prompt and with fields that can be filled with values that are typed text, single select, or multiple select. The values can be text. Note that single select options may be preferred for data processing when organizing or doing analysis |
Once you have this information, use the to create your categories. This tool will allow you to create and edit Categories, icons, details fields and language, and export all this information into a .comapeocat file, which you will import to your phone (and share among participants if you are on the same project) to start documenting and exchanging information.
[About the CoMapeo Category Generator and where to download it.]
Using the CoMapeo Category Generator Spreadsheet
Whether you imported a Mapeo config or are starting from scratch, you will find these two main tabs. CATEGORIES TAB Here you can create each category, customizing name, icon (image), and details you want each to contain. You can also add a thematic color that will be the color of the dot displayed on the map.
👣 Importing a legacy Mapeo configuration file into a CoMapeo Category Generator Spreadsheet
This tool will transfer the information structure into the spreadsheet into the columns described below.
Download Mapeo config file (ending in .mapeosettings)into the computer that you will use to customize your CoMapeo Category Set. If you have it in a zip file, make sure you unzip it first and extract your file to have it available as .mapeosettings file where you can easily find it.
Open this spreadsheet template in your browser and make your own copy. We recommend including the name of your project and version in the name file and date, considering you might go through different iterations of customizing your categories, and you will want to know which is the most updated file.
NOTE! This tool does not work with any Google spreadsheet. Make sure that the copy you make of the template has “CoMapeo Tools” on the right of the top menu. This means this spreadsheet has the script that will generate your .comapeocat file. If you want access to previous iterations of your category file, create a copy for each iteration, rather than just editing their version, and update the name and date fo the copy.
Go to the top menu (below file title) and click on CoMapeo Tools -> Import CoMapeo Config. If you can’t find it, reload the page.
Locate the Mapeo config file you want to convert and click “Upload”. You may get a warning about authorisation needed -> Click Ok -> give all permissions requested -> select “Continue”.
Once you have given permissions, go back to the “CoMapeo Tools” menu and click again on “Import Configuration File” -> Drag or drop your .mapeosettings file here. If you imported your file from Mapeo, the cells will be filled automatically.
Contents of the spreadsheet
- Names (COLUMN A) Use the column titled English (by default) to type the name of each category. You can change the language to the one you are using as your default language.
- Icons (COLUMN B) If you are working from a Mapeo config open your Mapeo configuration file and within the list of files and folders find the one that says “Icons”. Upload it to a GDrive folder. If you are working from scratch, open a folder in your GDrive and name it “icons”. In the folder, make sure the sharing settings are “anyone with the link”. Then, right-click on the icon of your choice and click on Share -> Copy Link. Copy the link and paste it in the Icon column, next to the category name that you want it to represent.
- Icon images need to be saved as svg files. You can do this your way, or you can use the Mapeo icon generator to create images into svg files, choosing among colors and options it provides. Follow the steps displayed on the tool, and once you have downloaded them into your computer, upload them into your “icons” folder and continue with step 10. NOTE: Naming the file with the name of the category will help you keep order and make sure you have the right image for the right category.
- Details (COLUMN C) This is where you choose the list of questions you want to add to each category. In this column, you will select the details that you want to add to each category. To add details to the list of details, go to the Details tab. Every detail you add to that tab, will be reflected on the Details column in the Categories tab.
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Color of the icon (COLUMN D) When you create an icon using the CoMapeo Icon Generator, you will find a color code below your svg file options (see example #1F8C55). This code indicates the color you have chosen in the color grid. Documenting this code is useful if you want to use it again in the future for this or other icons, in this or other design tools. On Column D you can keep record of this color code. NOTE: This is an optional step as typing it in the spreadsheet will not determine the color of your icon. It is just a convenient place to have it documented.
Thematic colors for your categories This is optional, but it helps visualize and manage your data. This means you will choose the color in which each observation will be shown as a point in the map. To do this, click on the cells of the “name” and “icon” of each category and use the “Fill color” feature on the spreadsheet menu to fill them in with the color of your choice. NOTE: This will not determine the color of the icon, but the circle around it, and the color of the point in the map in a map view. Example of icons grouped in thematic colors within the default category set. Dark blue circles - water Light blue circles - human activity Dark red - threats Green - plants and trees Purple - human made paths or buildings
- DETAILS TAB Here you can customize the questions you want to ask for each category. You can label them (which works like a title), add a helper text (that explains what that detail field is for or a prompt question) and indicate the type of response you want to get as detail: Text for written responses Multiple for a list of options Number for numerical responses To write the list of multiple options for a response, write them within the same cell under the Column D. Write a comma after each option to indicate these are separate options.
👣 Exporting file / Creating the Category File for CoMapeo
To export the category file, first review that all tabs are ready and do not show any red, orange or yellow color indicating an error. If you want to double check, go to CoMapeo Tools -> Lint Sheets and it will show you any of these.
Once its ready go to the top menu and click on CoMapeo Tools -> Generate CoMapeo Category.
Choose a language to translate to. At this moment, you have to choose at least one language for the export to work.
After completing 8 automatic steps, the spreadsheet will show a “Download file” button. The file will be in a zip folder, open it and find it ending in comapeocat.
Loading a new category set file (.comapeocat)
Look for the file in your downloads folder and transfer it to the Mobile phone you are using CoMapeo on. You can use an email, Google Drive, WhatsApp or the tool that works best for you to get files to your phone.
Open CoMapeo and go to the Project Categories. You will be able to import the Category files if you are a Project Coordinator.
Find the file and Import Categories.
Invite people in your team to your project, and they will have your categories once they join your project. If they are already on your project and you want them to have the updated Category Files, exchange information with them and this will update their categories.
Translations When you generate a CoMapeo Category File, the spreadsheet automatically creates other tabs that you will see at the bottom of your spreadsheet. There you can see the automated translations from the language you selected. NOTE: These translations use Google Translate and will likely need your revision and improvement. Click on each cell to edit or improve the translations.
See Also
New Tool: Mapeo Icons Generator blogpost by Luandro Vieira.
- Welcome to CoMapeo Cateogries Library blogpost by María Alvarez
Troubleshooting
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