Shaping Data for Point Collections

The easiest tool to create or edit .csv files is Google Sheets — it can open both .csv and .xlsx files, and can export .csv files for upload to Wazimap NG. Any point collection requires the following three fields (as highlighted in red in Figure 2, below):

1. name;

2. longitude; and

3. latitude.

Figure 2: The three fields (in red) required for any point collection

As shown in Figure 2, above, additional fields can be included as attributes for each point in the collection. In the Point Mapper view, these additional attributes are displayed in the More Info section of each point’s tooltip (refer to Navigating Point Mapper).

The name field (column) of your point collection cannot be formatted as a number. It may be necessary to format the entire column to plain text by selecting the entire column and clicking Format > Number > Plain text (see Figure 3, below).

Since the attributes under the name column are displayed on the tooltip in Wazimap NG, it is important to label your points appropriately (refer again to Navigating Point Mapper).

Figure 3: Formatting the Name column to plain text in Google Sheets

Additionally, column headings cannot start with a number (e.g., 2019 HDI), contain periods (e.g., SDG 3.1), or contain square brackets (e.g., HDI over the Years [Average]).

No cell within the first row below the column headers can be left blank either — if no attribute exists in these cells, simply add no data. A blank cell will result in that attribute not being displayed for any points (even if they have a value).

Once your point collection is complete (has the three required fields, is formatted correctly, and contains no blank cells in the first row), it can be exported as a .csv file. To do this, click File > Download > Comma-separated values (.csv) (see Figure 4, below).

Figure 4: Exporting a point collection as a .csv file from Google Sheets

Take note of where this .csv file downloads to — you will need to locate it for upload to Wazimap NG later.