Plan your first trip

If this is the first time you've used MapPoint or you want a quick reminder about some of its features, this topic shows you how to create a simple route and to save the map associated with that route. Then, you can explore more advanced features that unleash the full mapping and travel planning power of MapPoint.

Step 1: Create a route

The first thing to do is to create a route that has a starting point and an ending point.

To create a route

  1. On the Route menu, click Route planner.

  2. In the Route planner pane, under Type place or address, type the address of your starting point.

    Note   Include the street address, city, and state (all separated by commas), as well as the ZIP Code.

  3. Click Add to route.

    Note   If the Find dialog box appears, verify that the correct address is selected, and then click OK.

  4. Type the address of your ending point, and then click Add to route.

After you have completed these steps, a stop with the number 1 appears at the top of the route list, followed by a stop with the number 2. This is your basic route.

Note   To see the Directions pane with a list of turn-by-turn driving directions, simply click Get directions.

For more information about creating a route, see Create a route with Route Planner.

Step 2: Save a map

Now that you have created a route, you can save the route. By saving your route, you can refer to the route later and make changes. Technically, you are saving the map associated with the route. When you open the map, the route comes with it.

To save a map

  1. Make sure that the route you just created appears in the Route planner pane.

  2. On the File menu, click Save.

  3. In the Save in box, type or select the name of the folder where you want to save your map.

  4. In the Save As dialog box, in the File name box, type the name of the route, and then click Save.

Your map has been saved. Now you can open the map and your saved route whenever you want.

For more information about saving a map, see Save a map.

Step 3: Open a map

You can open a saved map to view the map and an associated route, if there is an associated route. After the map is open, you can find nearby places, send the map to a friend, and more.

To open a saved map

  1. On the File menu, click Open.

  2. In the Open dialog box, click the file you want to open, and then click Open.

Your map opens, along with the route that is saved with it.

For more information about working with map files, see About map files.

Go to the next level

Congratulations! You've mastered the basics of MapPoint. It's time to look at some of the more advanced features.

Print a map

Do you prefer driving directions in text only for easy reading or detailed maps showing every turn? MapPoint has options and settings for printing your maps just the way you like them. Here are some of the varieties and styles you can select:

  • Current map view. Prints the area of the map currently displayed on your screen.

  • Driving directions only. Prints the driving directions for your calculated route as text. Does not print maps.

  • Turn-by-turn maps. Prints small maps of the intersection of every turn along the route. The driving directions for each turn are printed below the associated map.

  • Selected area map. Prints only the area of the map you have selected.

To print a map

  1. On the File menu, click Print.

  2. In the Print dialog box, under Print, click the type of map you want to print.

  3. Click OK.

You can resize the map pane to display the map the way you want it to print. In the Print dialog box, select Current map view to print the map exactly as it appears on the screen.

For more information about printing maps, see About printing.

Find nearby places

Suppose you want to see a list of restaurants within two miles of your destination. Here's how:

To find nearby places

  1. Open the map associated with your route.

  2. In the Route planner pane, click the ending point of your route.

  3. On the Tools menu, click Find nearby places.

  4. Click Categories.

  5. Click the Restaurants tab.

  6. Select the check box next to each category of restaurant that you'd like to see on the map, and then click OK.

    Tip   To quickly select just a few categories, click Clear all, and then select the check box next to each category that you'd like to see on the map.

  7. In the Find nearby places pane, in the Search box, type or select 2.0.

  8. In the Around list, click Point, and then click Refresh.

A list of restaurants appears in the Find nearby places pane. Click a restaurant name in the list, and the name appears on the map. Double-click the name on the map, and a pushpin with the restaurant's address and phone number appears on the map as well.

For more information about locating places of interest, see About finding places on the map.

Note

Think of the Map settings pane as the master switch for turning on and off labels and symbols on your map. If the map does not display certain items that you expect, such as nearby places, make sure that the symbols you want are selected in the Map settings pane.

Find information about places and businesses

If your computer is connected to the Internet, MapPoint provides seamless links to the most current online information available about places and businesses. Search for any category in any location—for example, all the pizza restaurants in [your city]—regardless of the visible map area. To help narrow the search, type as much as you know of the name, city, state, or province that you're looking for.

If your computer is not connected to the Internet, you can still access all of the information stored within the MapPoint program, which contains information about more than 2.5 million businesses and points of interest.

To find information about a place or business

  1. In the Find box near the upper-left corner of the screen, type the name of a place or business, and then press ENTER.

  2. If there are both businesses and places associated with your search term, the Find dialog box appears. Select an item in the list, and then click OK.

  3. Explore the information and links in the Search results list.

For more detailed information about what you can do with this feature, see About online content and About travel planning resources.

Send a map to a friend

After you create a map, you can share it in an e-mail message with your family and friends. For example, the next time you send party invitations, add a map with directions to your home. Or, when you're planning your next big trip, send your travel partners a proposed route to get their comments and suggestions.

If you have Microsoft Office Outlook, it's easy to send an e-mail message with a copy of the map you currently have on your screen. If you don't have Office Outlook, you can save a map as a Web page and send the map as an attachment by using another e-mail program.

To send an on-screen map in an e-mail message

  • On the File menu, point to Send To, and then click Mail recipient (as picture) or Mail recipient (as attachment).

For more information about using e-mail to send maps, see About sending maps by e-mail.

Become a MapPoint power user

You're ready now for the most powerful mapping and traveling planning features in MapPoint. The following table suggests some topics you might want to explore next.

To

See

Find your way around the map

About moving around the map

Customize MapPoint to meet your specific travel needs

About customizing MapPoint

Mark places of interest on the map

About pushpins

Plan more elaborate routes and set routing options (such as road preferences)

About routing

Get real-time written and spoken navigation

About navigation

See your current location on the map

About GPS receivers

Send information from Search results to your mobile device

About sending MapPoint data to a mobile phone

Plan your next big trip

About travel planning resources

More information

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