Suggestion: Atlas enhancement - find and draw routes between two cities

For example, I know that Terah and Abram's family moved from Ur to Haran. I'd like to see a map that depicts both Ur and Haran, and ideally a rough route plotted from the former to the latter. Not that we know what route they family took, but just to get an idea of the relative distance and direction they traveled.

There are plenty of maps that already have such routes drawn on them for specific journeys mentioned in Scripture, like Paul's missionary trips, etc. But it would be great if Logos could locate any two random ancient cities on a map together and show the approximate route between them. In other words, automatically generate a lovely route map like the ones that are so painstakingly manually put together by editors of Atlases. Kind of like Google Maps navigation for the ancient world.

It would also be great if you could type in two city names and have Logos tell you the distance between them (along normal/expected routes, not as the bird flies), again the way Google Maps can do. I'm thinking again of Abraham and his migration. Trying to prepare a talk and wanting to help people understand just how massive a move that would be for them. I'd love to have this as really quick way to find that distance. The current only method is to open up the Atlas, find one or the other of the cities, visually scan the surroundings to find the other one, and measure the distance (as the bird flies) using Ctrl+drag. Too cumbersome, and in many cases not possible under the present Atlas. For example, I search for Ur and find its approximate location marked on this map. But Haran is nowhere to be found on this map, so I can't measure the distance between them.

And I can find Haran on this map, but Ur is nowhere to be found, so I can't measure the distance. I just want to be able to type something like "locate Ur to Haran" in the command bar and have Logos do the legwork: show me a map that depicts both cities on it, with the distance and route marked.

Perhaps this is a pie-in-the-sky feature, but I like to dream big.

Comments

  • Graham Criddle
    Graham Criddle Member, MVP Posts: 32,418 ✭✭✭

    Hi Rosie

    Agree these would be good things to have in the Atlas

    In the meantime, the chart below might help

  • Rosie Perera
    Rosie Perera Member Posts: 26,202

    Thanks, I could have found that. But different types of searches are required to find such maps for each particular case. Really do need an easy one-size-fits-all quick way of doing it, so as not to have to waste all kinds of time doing multiple searches when the first couple of ones you tried didn't work.

    Also, how would I estimate how long such a journey would take. For example Harran to Shechem. I was able to enter it into Google Maps and it knew enough to substitute modern-day Nablus for Shechem (impressive!) and generated this map in seconds:

    So I can see that the distance by road is roughly 900km and would take over 13 hours by car. But of course they would have been traveling by foot and/or camel and having to stop a lot along the way, to rest, water their camels, sleep, etc. How much ground would they cover in a day? How long would such a journey have taken (if they didn't stop long enough to "settle" any more times along the way)? These are all things I'd love to have factored into a Logos Atlas "ancient world trip-planner" feature. And what else might they have passed along the way on their journey? Think: Logos meets RoadTrippers.com. [:)]

  • John Brumett
    John Brumett Member Posts: 612

    Rosie:  Look under Files

    I have created 7 Personal Books dealing with Bible Atlases

    I went through some of the Main Atlases and added Scripture to the Biblical Events.

    I Suggest:

    1.  Create Persona Books out of all 7 that I list

    2.  Put them in one collection

    3.  Create a custom guide with that collection

    4. When you are in your favorite Bible such as Genesis 12 right click and choose Scripture  reference then your custom guide.  The guide will take you to maps for that custom event such as Abraham's Journeys.  Give it a try and let me know that you think.

    Here are the Persona Books

    Esv Bible Maps Links in Biblical Order

    A Biblical guide to Gospel Events Maps Links and Scripture

    A Biblical guide to Bible Events Maps Links and Scripture

    Zondervan Bible Atlas Map Links and Scripture

    Holman Bible Atlas Map links and Scripture

    Links to Maps in Rose then and Now Bible Map Atlas

    Logos 5 Maps with Scripture 

       

  • Veli Voipio
    Veli Voipio Member, MVP Posts: 2,013 ✭✭✭

    "ancient world trip-planner" feature

    I like this idea. 

    I've been dreaming of a good vector-based topographic map that show features of a selected period (roads, wells, vegetation, Dead sea surface level, populated areas etc.)

    Would be nice to be able to zoom to archaeological sites seeing the dig results of the period.

    Maybe also 3D visualizations of buildings in the location, etc... [H]

    (one source of GIS know-how might be http://www.gmi.org/ )

    Gold package, and original language material and ancient text material, SIL and UBS books, discourse Hebrew OT and Greek NT. PC with Windows 11

  • Rosie Perera
    Rosie Perera Member Posts: 26,202

    Rosie:  Look under Files

    I have created 7 Personal Books dealing with Bible Atlases

    I went through some of the Main Atlases and added Scripture to the Biblical Events.

    I Suggest:

    1.  Create Persona Books out of all 7 that I list

    2.  Put them in one collection

    3.  Create a custom guide with that collection

    4. When you are in your favorite Bible such as Genesis 12 right click and choose Scripture  reference then your custom guide.  The guide will take you to maps for that custom event such as Abraham's Journeys.  Give it a try and let me know that you think.

    Here are the Persona Books

    Esv Bible Maps Links in Biblical Order

    A Biblical guide to Gospel Events Maps Links and Scripture

    A Biblical guide to Bible Events Maps Links and Scripture

    Zondervan Bible Atlas Map Links and Scripture

    Holman Bible Atlas Map links and Scripture

    Links to Maps in Rose then and Now Bible Map Atlas

    Logos 5 Maps with Scripture 

    Thanks, John. This is great. I made one PB out of all seven of the files instead of seven separate PBs, just to save time. The results are the same.

    I still stand by my suggestion, though.

  • DMB
    DMB Member Posts: 13,406 ✭✭✭

    Just curious.  I tried the app Footpath, and it was pretty impossible for a do-it-yourself approach. First, I had to guess Ur, though following the river to Haran was not too hard.  

    Then I tried Haran to Nablus. But I had to guess where the water/springs would be. Plus assuming donkeys and forage / water-refills. However, google does supply a solid 6000 ft drop from north of Damascus into the Jorden rift. Happy donkeys.  On the Mormon honeymoon trail, they had to carry the forage.

    "If myth is ideology in narrative form, then scholarship is myth with footnotes." B. Lincolm 1999.

  • Bruce Dunning
    Bruce Dunning Member, MVP Posts: 11,125 ✭✭✭

    It would also be great if you could type in two city names and have Logos tell you the distance between them (along normal/expected routes, not as the bird flies), again the way Google Maps can do.

    I stand by your suggestion too Rosie!

    Using adventure and community to challenge young people to continually say "yes" to God

  • Rich DeRuiter
    Rich DeRuiter Member, MVP Posts: 6,729

    This is a really good idea. It may be pie in the sky, but many of the current data sets are pretty amazing too.

    I would actually find this to be extremely useful, especially when teaching/preaching OT narrative. I would love to be able to type in the name of two places and automatically see a calculated route and distance between them. 

     Help links: WIKI;  Logos 6 FAQ. (Phil. 2:14, NIV)