Difference between revisions of "Main Page"

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(Frequently Asked Questions)
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* Portugal
 
* Portugal
 
* Singapore
 
* Singapore
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=== Does This Support Non-English Character? ===
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Yes, it does. Since 1.2.37, you can choose the character encoding you wish to use from the "Localization & Google API Key" store locator admin page
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=== Why Am I Not Seeing Any Icons on the Map? ===
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If icons aren't showing up on the map, go to the "Map Designer" store locator admin page, and make sure to click on your desired icons.
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=== Why Are No Cities Showing Up in the City Dropdown Menu? ===
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Cities will only show up if the "State" field is also filled out in addition to the "City" field.  For non-United States locations, fill in the Province or the Country in the "State" field.
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=== On the "Manage Locations" Store Locator Admin Page, Why Are Some Locations Highlighted Red? ===
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Sometimes, Google's geocoding service may not recognize the address you've input.  On this rare occasion, it won't geocode the location, thus the red allows you to quickly identify such a location.  Suggestion:  Type the same address into Google.com's search field and use a reformatted version of the address that Google provides.

Revision as of 19:02, 20 January 2010

LotsOfLocales - Google Maps Store Locator for WordPress

Target Users

  • Those of you who create sites for clients using WordPress
  • Those of you who want to show your important locations (stores, buildings, points of interest, etc.) in an easily searchable manner.

Also referred to as a dealer locator (locater), shop finder, and zip code or zipcode search. Its strength is in its flexibility to allow you to easily manage a few or a thousand or more locations through the admin interface.

Great Built-In Functionality & Features

  • You can use it for numerous countries, which will continue to be added as Google adds new countries to their Google Maps API. See the documentation for the latest
  • Supports international languages and character sets
  • Allows you to use unique map icons or your own custom map icons --- great for branding your map
  • Gives your map the desired look by using our Map Designer™ interface in the WordPress admin section
  • Pick other cool Google Maps options, such as an inset box, zoom level, map types (street, satellite, hybrid, physical), and more
  • You can use miles or kilometers
  • Automatically restricts loading of Javascript & CSS to only pages that display the map (or that might need access to the JS & CSS) for better site performance
  • Option to show dropdown list of cities allows visitors to quickly see where your locations are and choose their search accordingly

Upgrades

If you need additional features, enhance your store locator with addons & themes. Upgrade Now

Important Links

Downloads | Upgrades | Blog - New Features & Updates | Documentation

Special Thanks to Translators

  • Simon Schmid: German (Deutsche), Italian (Italiano), Czech (Cestina), French (Francais)
  • Gwyn Fisher: Spanish (Espanol)

(Email new translations to info{at}viadat{dot}com. If you provide your web address, we'll link back to you also)


Installation

Main Plugin

  1. Upload the `store-locator` folder to the `/wp-content/plugins/` directory
  2. Activate the plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress
  3. Sign up for a Google Maps API Key for your domain at http://code.google.com/apis/maps/signup.html
  4. Add your locations through the 'Add Locations' page in the Store Locator admin panel
  5. Place the code '[STORE-LOCATOR]' (case-sensitive) in the body of a page or a post to display your store locator

Addons

  1. Unzip & Upload the entire add-on folder to the `/wp-content/plugins/store-locator/addons` directory.
  2. Activate the add-on by updating the Activation Key that you receive after purchase at the bottom of the "News & Upgrades" Page.

List of Current Addons

  1. CSV Importer / Geocoder / Exporter & XML Exporter
    1. ReadMe & Screenshots
  2. Database Importer
    1. Sample Database Queries
  3. Multiple Field Updater
  4. Point, Click, Add Mapper

Themes

  1. Unzip & Upload the entire theme folder to the `wp-content/uploads/sl-uploads/themes` directory (note the new location for themes as of v1.2.37).
  2. Select theme from the theme dropdown menu under the "Design" section on the "Map Designer"™ Page.

List of Current Themes

  1. Jack Black
  2. Ever Clear
  3. Silver Hawks
  4. Mellow Yellow
  5. Green Machine
  6. The Browns

Icons

  1. There are some default icons in the `/wp-content/plugins/store-locator/icons` directory.
  2. Add your own custom icons in to `wp-content/uploads/sl-uploads/custom-icons` (note the new location for custom icons as of v1.2.37).


Tutorials

  1. Tutorial: How to add forms to Store-Locator plugin in WordPress


Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a Google Account to use this store locator?

Yes, you will need a Google account in order to retrieve an API for your maps to work properly

  1. To sign up for a Google Account, visit: https://www.google.com/accounts/
  2. To sign up for a Google Maps API Key, visit: http://code.google.com/apis/maps/signup.html

How Do I use a Translation?

  1. Place .po & .mo translation files into the `/wp-content/plugins/store-locator/languages` folder, and then change the `WPLANG` constant to the corresponding language abbreviation in the `wp-config.php` file in the root wordpress directory
  2. Example: to use French, make sure `lol-fr_FR.po` & `lol-fr_FR.mo` are in the `languages` folder, then change make sure update the code in `wp-config.php` to read `define('WPLANG', 'fr_FR')`, and Voila, Il sera en francais (It will be in French).

Which countries is this compatible with?

This plugin is compatible with all countries that have Google Map domains. This includes:

  • Austria (updated as of v1.2.28)
  • Australia
  • Belgium
  • Brazil
  • Canada
  • Switzerland
  • Czech Republic
  • Germany
  • Denmark
  • Spain
  • Finland
  • France
  • Italy
  • Japan (updated as of v1.2.28)
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • New Zealand
  • Poland
  • Russia
  • Sweden
  • Taiwan (updated as of v1.2.28)
  • United Kingdom
  • United States

Added (as of v1.2.28):

  • China
  • India
  • Hong Kong
  • Liechtenstein
  • South Korea

Removed (inactive domain or domain can't be used to embed a map on a website yet):

  • Bosnia and Herzegovina (as of v1.2.28)
  • Hungary (as of v1.2.35.1)
  • Kenya (as of v1.2.35.1)
  • Malaysia (as of v1.2.35.1)
  • South Africa (as of v1.2.35.1)
  • Thailand (as of v1.2.35.1)

Added (as of v1.2.34):

  • Argentina
  • Chile
  • Mexico
  • Portugal
  • Singapore

Does This Support Non-English Character?

Yes, it does. Since 1.2.37, you can choose the character encoding you wish to use from the "Localization & Google API Key" store locator admin page

Why Am I Not Seeing Any Icons on the Map?

If icons aren't showing up on the map, go to the "Map Designer" store locator admin page, and make sure to click on your desired icons.

Why Are No Cities Showing Up in the City Dropdown Menu?

Cities will only show up if the "State" field is also filled out in addition to the "City" field. For non-United States locations, fill in the Province or the Country in the "State" field.

On the "Manage Locations" Store Locator Admin Page, Why Are Some Locations Highlighted Red?

Sometimes, Google's geocoding service may not recognize the address you've input. On this rare occasion, it won't geocode the location, thus the red allows you to quickly identify such a location. Suggestion: Type the same address into Google.com's search field and use a reformatted version of the address that Google provides.