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written by Nigel James
 
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MAPINFO How to...  
No. 17: Creating a legend for your map  
(References to tables, folders etc., are not applicable outside the Map Room, so if you are located elsewhere, you should substitute your own)  
   

All maps need a legend. This How to shows you how to create a legend. The legend-creating ability of MapInfo has developed over each version, with improvements each time. This example uses MapInfo 6.5. It is assumed that you have created a map. See MapInfo How to No. 1 if you require more information on this

 
   
MapInfo creates legends by displaying an example of each table in a group, with a description to the right of each object.
The legend can then be added to the layout, or embedded into the mapper window.
 
   
1. Open the Map menu and click Create Legend.
 
   

2. You will now see the Step 1 of 3 dialog. On the right, under Legend Frames, you will see each table in your map listed:

Create Legend step 1 of 3

 
3. You can remove any features from the legend you do not need by selecting the table name in the Legend Frames list and clicking the Remove button.  
   
4. After removing any unwanted tables, use the Up and Down buttons to arrange the layers in the order you require:  


Legend Frames

 
5. Now click the Next button. This will display the Step 2 of 3 dialog:  

Create Legend Step 2 of 3
 
6. In this dialog, you can choose a title for the window. Note that this is the title which appears in the Legend window, not the actual legend which will be on your map, so you can leave it as it is.  
   
7. Delete the text in the Title Pattern box in the Legend Frame Defaults group. If you do not do this, a subheading will appear above each object in the legend, which unless you have several related layers, is not required. (You can always go back and add these if you wish).  
   
8. Now click Finish, as the other procedures can be carried out after the legend is displayed. It will now look something like this:  
Legend
 
9. The last step is to change the description of each object. You do this for each object in turn. Double-click on the first legend item and you will see the Legend Frame Properties dialog:  
Legend Frame Properties
 
In the Edit selected text here box, change the existing text to a proper description, e.g: in this case Urban areas:  

 
10. Click OK. You will now see the lengend with the new label:  

 
11. Repeat steps 9-10 for each item in the legend. If you wish to add a sub-heading for groups of features, then do this by adding a title in the Frame Title box (see step 9 above) for the first item in the group:  

 
12. The legend will appear when you create a layout ( see MapInfo How to No. 1 for more information). If you have created a layout before creating a legend (or you delete it by mistake!), draw a frame on your layout with the Frame tool (the button has a yellow box and is to the right of the Text tool). When you release the mouse after drawing a frame, select the legend window from the Window list in the Frame Object dialog which appears.  
   
13. If you are saving your map as an image file (File>Save Window As) and are saving the mapper window, rather than the layout, you can embed thematic legends into the mapper window. Thematic legends are those assocuated with thematic maps, e.g: popluation distribution. It does not work with other legends. To do this, use the Legend Manager tool. This may already be in the Tools menu, but if it is not, click Tool Manager in the Tools menu to display the Tool Manager dialog. Find the tool Legend Manager and click the Loaded checkbox, then OK. It will now be in the Tools menu.  
   
14. Open the Tools menu again and click Legend Manager>Manage Legends. Click Show Embedded Legend in Map/Graph. It will now be added to the map. It can be removed again by clicking Remove Embedded Legend in the Legend Manager menu.  
   
   
This is a brief and specific guide to this topic, for more general information, see: MapInfo l - an easy guide for new users  
Nigel James
Bodleian Library 2002
 
Bodleian Library Map Room