Introduction to Felt

Site:	OpenCourseWare for GIS
Course:	Planning for Urban Climate Adaptation
Book:	Introduction to Felt

Printed by:	Guest user
Date:	Tuesday, 3 December 2024, 8:47 PM

1. Introduction

Felt is an online map-making platform. It allows users to create, visualize, analyze, and share maps.

Felt integrates with QGIS through a plugin. This enables users to turn their QGIS projects into interactive web maps with features like live collaboration and commenting.

The tool makes it easy for users to work together on maps and data, and to gather feedback from teammates, guests, or the public. Furthermore, Felt offers a range of analysis tools to manipulate and process spatial data, as well as options to customize the appearance and functionality of maps.

2. Create an account

1. Create a free account through Felt: https://felt.com/

2. Click Get started for free.

3. At Work email, you must type your IHE Delft e-mail address. Add your Full Name and choose a password.

3. Click Create account.

3. Learn to use Felt

Now you have your account, let's get familiar with the basics of Felt.

1. Go to the "Learn to Use Felt" tutorial here: https://felt.com/map/Tutorial-Learn-to-Use-Felt-ScwGqgRZTY6Qr0vW2KbDsC

2. Click on Felt in the upper left corner and from the menu, choose File | Duplicate to my maps.

3. Follow the tutorial and get familiar with the features

4. Look at examples

Check out the following examples:

5. Create a new workspace

For this exercise, you're creating a new personal workspace where you can experiment with Felt.

1. Click on Felt in the upper left.

2. From the menu choose Create workspace.

3. Type My Workspace and click Create.

4. Don't invite teammates, just click Done.

6. Create a new project

In the left panel, you'll now see:

Recents: your recent maps
Drafts: draft maps

Then under projects there's always General and you can create your own private or public projects below.

1. Click Create project.

2. Call the new project My first project. You can also upload an icon. With your free personal account you can only select to give access to all members.

3. Click Create.

So now you have a project under your workspace. You can have multiple projects under a workspace. Here we'll use the one just created.

7. Create your first map

Let's create our first map in this project. You can have multiple maps per project. You can also create folders to organize your maps, using . Here we don't need folders.

1. Click or on Create a map here.

2. In the upper left change the name from Untitled Map to Delft.

3. Click and search for Delft.

4. Choose Delft, South Holland, Netherlands.

Note that the map zooms to Delft and also places a pin with the label Delft.

7.1. Extract objects

Let's first extract the IHE Delft building.

1. Zoom in to IHE Delft.

2. Click on and then on the IHE Delft building.

3. Change the colour to blue, which is nicer for a water institute. Click Done.

4. Click on the IHE building and add a name an description. You can also upload a picture.

Now when someone clicks on the building, the information will show up.

7.2. Add text

Let's add a label to the building.

1. Click Text.

2. Click close to the IHE Delft building and type IHE Delft. Make sure the colour is also blue.

7.3. Add a pin

Now let's add a pin at the student housing at Mina Krusemanstraat.

You can use to search for the address or pan the map to the correct building.

1. Click on Pin.

2. Click on the building of the student housing and type Mina as a label.

3. Add a description: Student housing.

4. Choose an icon. You can search for example for an emoji.

7.4. Add a route

Now we're going to add the route from Mina to IHE Delft.

1. Click on Route.

2. Click on Mina and IHE Delft and the route will be automatically added.

3. Change the Color to red.

4. Change Routing to pedestrian .

5. Add Route to IHE as name.

6. Switch on Endcaps and Distance.

7. Add pins around the route with a pedestrian, so it's clear that it's a walking route. You can copy and paste several along the route.

7.5. Add a circle

In the same way, we can add circles and polygons.

1. Zoom in to the Old Church.

2. Choose Circle.

3. Draw a circle around the Old Church.

4. Change the Color to green. Add the name Old Church.

7.6. Add a note

Let's add a note next to the Old Church.

1. Select Note.

2. Click close to the Old Church outside of the circle.

3. Add the text: Here I will graduate for my masters in Water and Sustainable Development.

4. Center the text and choose an orange colour.

7.7. Add a link

Now we're going to add a link to the IHE Delft webpage about the MSc programme.

1. Choose the Link tool.

2. Click under the Old Church outside of the circle.

3. Paste the following link: https://www.un-ihe.org/education/master-programmes/msc-programme-water-and-sustainable-development and click Add.

Note that you can edit the Name, add a description and hide the preview.

7.8. Add a video

Now let's add a YouTube video.

1. Choose the Video tool.

2. Click left of the circle and paste the following link:

https://youtu.be/bjdjxhf-nGI?si=7KZOs7DQ193BjmrE

3. Resize the box.

4. Play the video to test if it works.

7.9. Add an arrow

Now create an arrow that points from the video to the old church.

1. Choose the Marker tool

2. Draw an arrow.

7.10. Add a comment

Let's add a comment. If you share your map with other users, they can also add comments and you'll see their cursors in real time.

1. Click the Comment tool.

2. Zoom out and click close to the IHE Delft building.

3. Add the following comment: I'm now following the course Planning for Urban Climate Adaptation here.

Note that if you have shared your map, you can mention someone by clicking @.

4. Click to post the comment.

If you type ESC, the comment will be hidden and you'll just see your avatar. When someone clicks on the avatar, the comment appears and you can reply.