Each map in MyRoute-app also has its own Toolkit. This includes various route options and route tools to help you create a beautiful route. The OpenStreetMap toolkit is part of the OpenStreetMap, our standard map.
Most Toolkit features are only available to MyRoute-app Gold users but the route options and editor settings can also be used with a MyRoute-app Basic account. This is clearly shown in the toolkit.
In order to use this toolkit, select the OpenStreetMap to plan your route.
OpenStreetMap Toolkit
Click the 'Toolkit' button to display the different options (as shown in the image above). There are 'Route options' on the one hand and 'Route utilities' on the other hand. Route options are settings that are applied to the calculation of the total route. Route utilities are tools for creating the route that often results in a one-off action. Finally, there are 'editor settings' that influence the total settings of the routelab. The various aspects are explained in detail below.
Route options
Route options are settings that are applied to the calculation of the total route. Clicking one of the toolkit functions adjusts the route. When you open the toolkit again, a check mark will appear behind the activated function. To stop the function being applied to the route (anyway), click the function again. This will remove the checkmark and the route will return to its original state.
1 - Offroad
If you click the 'Offroad' option, the OpenStreetMap will draw a straight line from waypoint A to waypoint B. In other words, there is no route calculation over roads (see also the picture). This way you can place waypoints next to the road and find your way off-road by driving from waypoint to waypoint.
Route utilities
Route utilities are tools for planning the route that often results in a one-off action. These actions cannot be undone by clicking on them again. However, they can be undone (like all other actions that like to reverse) by clicking 'restore' at the bottom right.
2 - Expand (Gold)
Expanding refers to increasing the number of waypoints on the route. An extended route can do a lot of good for the experience while driving the route. After clicking on 'expand' in the toolkit, the window below appears. Here you indicate how many waypoints the route should have in total.
Attention! After expanding the number of route points, always zoom in on the route to check that all the new points are also on the road and after intersections, roundabouts and exits.
3 - Reduce (Gold)
Reducing refers to reducing the number of waypoints on the route. After clicking 'reduce' in the toolkit, the window below appears. Here you indicate how many waypoints the route should get in total.
Attention! After reducing the number of waypoints, always zoom in on the route to check that all the waypoints are correct and the route still runs as before.
4 - Reverse (Gold)
This functionality reverses the route. The beginning of the route becomes the endpoint and the old endpoint becomes the new starting point. This feature can be very useful when, for example, you want to plan a route for a return trip.
5 - Split (Gold)
With this utility, the route can be split into several parts. After clicking on the tool, a list of the waypoints is displayed. Clicking on a waypoint makes it the endpoint of one section and the starting point of the next section. It is possible not to indicate a waypoint as a 'cutting-point' by clicking on it again. The indentation is then undone. It is possible to create multiple route sections.
- A. This is the default starting point (cannot be changed).
- B&C. These route points are clicked on, to split the route there. This can be seen by the fact that the waypoints are indented and have a black line in front of them.
- D. This is the default endpoint (cannot be modified).
- The orange part is route 1 (A-B), the green part is route 2 (B-C) and the purple part is route 2 (C-D).
- At the bottom, it shows how many new routes have been created.
- Click on 'next' if the distribution of the waypoints is as you wish. The next window is then displayed:
- The name of the route is automatically adopted with a number behind it. In this window, it is possible to customise the name of the routes.
- Finally, click 'Split'.
The new route(s) are now shown as new routes in the Route archive. In the image, it becomes clear that it is useful to choose a clear title so that it is still exactly clear which part of the route is under which name.
6 - Compare route with (Gold)
Compare the route with the calculation of another map service. The black line shown is the original calculation of the OpenStreetMap route, the coloured line shows the calculation of the other map service. See also the Manual 'Compare Route calculation' (Gold).
The image on the left shows how the route of the OpenStreetMap is compared to the HERE map. It is visible that the HERE map shows a different route between the two given waypoints than the OpenStreetMap. This can be due to available information about the roads as well as set route options. To ensure that both maps (and therefore navigation systems) take the same route from one route point to the next, it is necessary to add an additional waypoint. This 'forces' both lines to take the same road. This is very beneficial if you are going to export the route file to a GPX file that will be used for different navigation systems.
See also our webinars for more detailed explanations!
7 - Fit screen
Clicking on the 'Fit screen' option will automatically zoom the screen to the ideal format to view the route.
Editor settings
Finally, the Toolkit shows the so-called 'editor settings'. These are general settings, which mainly concern the functionalities of the Routelab in general. By means of the checkmark, you can see which settings are activated. These settings are remembered for each subsequent route, but can also be changed at any time.
8 - Ask for waypoint name
By checking this functionality, a window is always opened when placing a new waypoint, in which the name of the waypoint must be modified and confirmed. Even if this functionality is deactivated, it is possible to modify the name of a waypoint. This is done as follows: click on a waypoint and then on the 'rename' button.
9 - 'Place waypoint' button
By clicking on this button an extra button appears on the screen together with an indicator where the centre of the screen is. Clicking this button will place a waypoint exactly in the middle of your screen. This way a route point can be placed very precisely (if zoomed in sufficiently). This is very useful on devices with small screens such as tablets and smartphones.
10 - Route line transparency
The route line runs along roads and therefore it is sometimes not visible what a particular street is called. It is possible to set the transparency of the route line so that this kind of information is more visible. The higher the percentage, the more transparent the line. At 0% the line is black while at 100% the line is fully transparent.
