How to Add Custom Map Shape Files to the Bold BI Map Widget

This Knowledge Base article provides step-by-step instructions on how to upload custom map shape files to the Bold BI Map widget. This feature allows users to add their own map shapes, such as those representing towns or local authorities, enhancing the flexibility and customization of the map visualization. To do this, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Download the Shape File

• Downloading a shape file from any open-source data provider that suits your needs.
• After downloading, extract the contents of the shape file.

Step 2: Rename the Shape File

• Locate the extracted shape file and proceed to rename it. As an illustration, let’s consider the scenario where we have downloaded a custom Map shape file for the United Kingdom and rename it as ‘customuk.js’.
• Note: Ensure that the name is in lowercase, and spaces in the name should be replaced with underscores. For example, ‘united_kingdom.js’.

Step 3: Paste the Custom Shape File to the Bold BI

• Navigate to the directory where Bold BI is installed on your system. Location: “{Installed Location}\app_data\bi\shapefiles”.
• Move or copy the renamed ‘customuk.js’ shape file into this directory.

Step 4: Update the ‘shapefile.json’ File

• In the Bold BI installation directory {Installed Location}\app_data\bi\shapefiles, locate the shapefile.json file.
• Open the file in any text editor.
• Add the name of the custom shape file (customuk.js) into the shapefile.json file as follows:
  
  

With these steps, you can successfully upload your custom map shape files to the Bold BI Map widget, allowing you to visualize and analyze data with your own map shapes. This feature enhances the customization capabilities of Bold BI’s map visualizations and provides greater flexibility for displaying geographic data.