Search Grid Generator: Add labelling to cells

[GalenReich]

Currently each grid square is labelled with the coordinate of one of its corners.

It would be better if the grid was labelled with something more human readable like an alphanumeric grid (A1, B2, ... , ZA677, ZB678).

Figuring out a good way to present this to a user within the constraints of KML would be good too.

One possibility is to add polygons in the shapes of letters and numbers beyond the edges of the grid (Text -> SVG -> KML Polygon).

[Radu-Nicolae]

Greetings from Amsterdam. We would be glad to help with your open-source project and vision.

We are running Code for Humanity initiative, run at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam x Network Institute. This is us: https://networkinstitute.org/ :).

We're working on this issue (#22) -- live progress on our forked repository, this branch.

With best regards,
On behalf of the NI,
Radu

[GalenReich]

Hello Radu! And thank you very much for coming along to contribute. We definitely welcome PRs on this issue.

To make you aware, we also have the Vue JS implementation of the search grid generator here: https://github.com/bellingcat/search-grid-generator which is deployed at https://grid.bellingcat.com and might be of interest to your project too!

[LaraBaseggio]

Good evening,
I’m Lara Baseggio, currently collaborating with Radu Nicolae on the Code for Humanity Initiative.

Regarding Issue #22, we’re working on transforming the existing map grid into an alphanumeric format. As a first step, we've added a transparent overlay with a grid and a center point to help users easily identify specific areas on the map.

If we can agree on this update, our next step will be to implement alphanumeric indexing similar to an Excel spreadsheet, with numbers for rows and letters for columns. These will be added alongside the map borders.

We’re ready to create a pull request with this update if you’d like to review the changes.

Please take a look at the following screen recording, to see how the grid shows.

screen-recording-issue-22.zip

[GalenReich]

Hi Lara, is it possible to share the video via another means? Unzipping an unknown zip file from the internet is a no-go for me.

From what you describe, I really like the idea of adding indexing along the edges of the map. 🥳

I also like the idea of a transparent labelling overlay. I am keen to make sure that it doesn't interfere with the ability of users to select and alter the transparency of the grid cells.

Please feel free to open a PR, then I can take a look properly, and we can have more targeted discussion on the PR 🚀

[LaraBaseggio]

Good morning, sorry for the last reply.
Regarding the video, I published it as a private video on Youtube so that it can be shared safely. Please check it out at this link: [https://youtube.com/shorts/LdukfwyAmHw?feature=share].

I have now proceed with the PR.
Looking forward to hear back from you!.