InfoMap - Installation

Map Standards Compliant UIs

The InfoMap UI mod is designed to be used either as a standalone mod for the default Vanguard UI or as a map plugin for any player-made UIs which comply with the map standards agreed upon by the Vanguard modding community.

InfoMap is typically tested with CoreUI3. Other player-made UIs should generally be compatible, however if you do encounter difficulties please contact the author of your UI mod in the first instance. I am not responsible for ensuring the compatibilty of every UI mod and UI compilation released by the playerbase!

UI authors seeking guidance on the map standards are advised to visit VGInterface.com.

NB: At Game Update 4 the RiftMaps.xml and RiftAnimations.xml files were added to the default UI, and alternative versions of these now also included in InfoMap.

Downloads

There are two types of downloads available on the InfoMap Advanced page, the full mod and replacement data layers.

Whilst the full mod is also available from the VGInterface.com's InfoMap Advanced page, the new data will only be available here. This is simply an attempt to cut down the work involved and therefore be able to provide more regular data updates for InfoMap. The RSS feed on this website will be updated whenever new data is available.

The map data may not always match the latest database updates seen on the PoI Database page. However I aim to provide new map data whenever significantly more PoIs become available in the database.

NB: The full mod will not always contain the latest data layers. If you are downloading InfoMap for the first time, check the dates in the filenames to determine if you need both downloads.

Instructions

Further details and downloads for the InfoMapAdvanced UI mod.

Installing InfoMap

For Use In Another UI Mod

If you are already using another player-made UI mod, do the following.

  1. Download the full mod zip file.
  2. Find out whether your UI mod has a "Map" folder, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map
    If a "Map" folder exists, delete the entire folder.
  3. Unzip the full mod file. Look under the "InfoMapAdvanced" folder and you will find a "Map" folder.
  4. Copy the entire "Map" folder from the InfoMap download into your UI, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map

NB: You should not have an "InfoMapAdvanced" folder anywhere in your Vanguard installation. Nor should you do anything with the Index.xml and SkinInfo.xml files that come with the InfoMap download, they are only for the stand-alone use.

For Stand-Alone Use

If you are using the default Vanguard UI, do the following.

  1. Download the full mod zip file.
  2. If you have been using an older version of InfoMap Advanced delete the entire "InfoMapAdvanced" folder, at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced
  3. Unzip the full mod file. Inside you will find an "InfoMapAdvanced" folder.
  4. Copy the entire "InfoMapAdvanced" folder into your Vanguard installation, at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced
  5. Find the following file:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\bin\vgclient.ini
    Open the file and find the following line:
    ShellName=Default
    Change this line to read:
    ShellName=InfoMapAdvanced
    Save the file and close it.

NB: You do not need to do anything with the content below the "InfoMapAdvanced" folder. You should be using the entire contents of the folder, exactly as found in the zip file.

Installing Replacement Data Layers For InfoMap Advanced

If you have InfoMap Advanced installed, do the following.

  1. Download the data layers zip file.
  2. Find the "InfoMapOverlays" folder in your InfoMap installation, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\InfoMapOverlays
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\InfoMapOverlays
    Delete the entire "InfoMapOverlays" folder.
  3. Unzip the data layers file. Inside you will find an "InfoMapOverlays" folder.
  4. Copy the entire "InfoMapOverlays" folder into in your InfoMap installation, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\InfoMapOverlays
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\InfoMapOverlays

Installing Alternative Maps For InfoMap Advanced

If you have InfoMap Advanced installed, do the following.

  1. Download the old style maps zip file.
  2. Find the "CobalMaps" folder in your InfoMap installation, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\CobalMaps
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\CobalMaps
    Delete the entire folder.
  3. Unzip the old style maps file. Inside you will find a "CobalMaps" folder.
  4. Copy the entire "CobalMaps" folder from the download into your InfoMap installation, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\CobalMaps
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\CobalMaps
  5. Find the "MapSkin.xml" file in your InfoMap installation, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\MapSkin.xml
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\MapSkin.xml
    Open the file and find the following line:
    <SkinAssets name="CityMap" displayName="CityMap">
    Change this line to the following:
    <!--<SkinAssets name="CityMap" displayName="CityMap">
    Then find the following line further down the file:
    </SkinAssets>
    Change this line to the following:
    </SkinAssets>-->
    Save the file and close it.

Troubleshooting

  1. When upgrading from a previous version of the InfoMap mod, make sure you perform a clean installation. Do not mix old and new files or directories. If your installation fails, delete the entire installed copy of the mod, download a fresh copy and start again.
  2. Do not attempt to update the InfoMap mod whilst running the game. This will not work, reloading the UI does not cause the game to load new images. Exit the game completely, install the mod, then reload the game.
  3. If you are using Vista, you must open, edit and save the vgclient.ini file as an Administrator.
  4. The "ShellName=Default" line should be the first line under the "[UI]" section in your vgclient.ini file. If you are sure the line really isn't there, add it at this point in the file.

Configuring InfoMap

UI Customizer

Most of the options for InfoMap are controlled from outside the game, using the UI Customizer program. This allows you to disable unwanted components of the mod, which may help to improve performance/FPS although this is dependant on other factors as well such as graphics cards and graphics settings.

The program can actually be used whilst Vanguard is running, followed by using the /reloadui command ingame.

  1. Run the program found at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map\UICustomizer\UICustomizer.exe
    or:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced\Map\UICustomizer\UICustomizer.exe
    If the UI Customizer program won't run, you need to install .NET 2.0. This is a free download from Microsoft.
  2. Set the various options as desired.
  3. Use the "Save Changes" button to make the changes to the mod. Then quit the program.

There are also options within the UI Customizer to backup, and later restore, your preferred settings for InfoMap.

CoreUI3 Users

You only need to run the UI Customizer for CoreUI3 and it will include the InfoMap configuration as well. However make sure you save your changes for both CoreUI3 and InfoMap, since the configurations work independently within the program.

Removing InfoMap

From Use In Another UI Mod

To remove the mod from within another UI, do the following.

  1. Delete the entire "Map" folder from your UI mod, e.g. at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\YourUI\Map
  2. If your UI mod previously had it's own "Map" folder that you replaced with InfoMap, download a fresh copy of your UI and replace the original folder.

From Stand-Alone Use

To remove the mod and return to the default Vanguard UI map, do the following.

  1. Delete the entire "InfoMapAdvanced" folder from your Vanguard installation, at:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\VGUIAssets\Shells\InfoMapAdvanced
  2. Find the following file:
    C:\Program Files\Vanguard\bin\vgclient.ini
    Open the file and find the following line:
    ShellName=InfoMapAdvanced
    Change this line to read:
    ShellName=Default
    Save the file and close it.