Using Map Resources

Maps don't make any sense to me. How can I access the data?

If you are not a map reader, you can go directly to the online data files which accompany the maps.  These data tables provide county-level or congressional district level population and geographic area data. Select a state from the map or drop-down menu, then a county or congressional district from the next drop-down menu.

Why are there two maps of the same image, and why is one of them so large?

The small images load quicker, and allow you to preview each map. If you want to see more state and county level detail, open a map's accompanying pdf format file. These bigger maps take longer to load, but will allow you to zoom in for greater detail.  Both Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader have a magnify tool you can use to get more detail. It looks like a magnifying glass Magnifying Glass in Adobe Acrobat Reader, or you can use the numerical percentage box The Zoom Tool in Adobe Acrobat Reader.

If you do not see these icons on your Adobe toolbar, make sure your Zoom tool is turned on. To do that, right click in the toolbars area, and click on zoom to enable it (view the graphic below). The magnifying glass icon and numerical percentage boxes should appear in the toolbar. If you're having trouble understanding these directions, please contact us for further assistance.

How to enable zoom in the Adobe Reader Program

Saving map files for offline viewing

The .pdf format files for each map are quite large.  If you do not have a fast online connection, you may not want to open them in your browser.  To download the map for offline browsing, you can right-click on the PDF links and choose the "save target as" option in Internet Explorer, or "save link as" option in Netscape Navigator. Once the files are downloaded to your computer they can easily be viewed with Adobe© Reader©, which can be downloaded for free from the Adobe© Reader© website.

Printing a section of a map

If you want to capture and print just a portion of a map, for example one state, use the snapshot tool  to select an area and copy it to the clipboard.
(hint: snapshot tool icon looks like a camera The snapshot tool in Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Copy the selected portion to another application (a document, a powerpoint slide, etc) and print it out.