6 replies to this topic

[Martin Gamache]

Anyone know of a source for a Ghengis Khan, Mongol Empire Maximum Extent dataset?

I've exhausted the googling opportunities I think....before I start tracing an older Nat. Geo map I though I should ask if anyone knows of an existing dataset.

mg

[Martin Gamache]

I was able to find a KML file now the problem is that both the converters and Manifold can't seem to read this particular KML file. Would someone with access to FME ( Hans) be kind enough to try to run this file through the FME KML to SHP ( or another format) to see if they can get it to convert properly.

http://bbs.keyhole.c...p?Number=758258

Attached Files

•  Mongol_Empire_1292.zip   45.98K   75 downloads

[benbakelaar]

Martin I tried to convert it using ogr2ogr, but no luck. Then I uploaded it and tried to open it in Google Maps, no luck either! I think there must be something wrong with the KML file.

To check with Google Maps, go to main site and then enter http://216.69.187.179/mongol.kml in the address bar.

To do command-line conversion using ogr2ogr, check out http://bbs.keyhole.c.../0/Number/65960 (but their ogr2ogr command is more complicated than it needs to be - I think).

[Hans van der Maarel]

Martin I tried to convert it using ogr2ogr, but no luck. Then I uploaded it and tried to open it in Google Maps, no luck either! I think there must be something wrong with the KML file.

To check with Google Maps, go to main site and then enter http://216.69.187.179/mongol.kml in the address bar.

To do command-line conversion using ogr2ogr, check out http://bbs.keyhole.c.../0/Number/65960 (but their ogr2ogr command is more complicated than it needs to be - I think).

I had a look too and FME couldn't open the file either. That's usually a bad sign...

So I opened it up in Textpad, copied the coordinate list, let FME cut that up into individual coordinate pairs and plot them. It looks like it should be a donut polygon (Caspian Sea is cut out), but it's stored as a single linearRing entity in KML, I'm guessing that may have something to do with it. Sent the result to Martin and he can work with it.

[mattm]

Hi Martin,

I opened the KML file in MAPublisher 7.5 and then exported it out to a shapefile for you.

Like Hans mentioned the file did contain a donut polygon, the Caspian Sea.

The exported shapefile is identical to the original KML file when viewed in Google Earth or MAPublisher 7.5

Hope this helps.

Attached Files

•  Mongol_Empire.zip   39.96K   65 downloads

[benbakelaar]

That's interesting matt, I thought Google Earth and Google Maps would have the same support for KML, but apparently not!

[Andrew Patterson]

That's interesting matt, I thought Google Earth and Google Maps would have the same support for KML, but apparently not!

I talked to one of Google's KML guys last summer at GeoWeb and he told me that they planned to support "as much of KML as possible" in Google Maps, but that they didn't think they'd be able to do it all. So Google Maps isn't bad to test a file, but you'll need Google Earth if you want to be absolutely sure