Atlas of New South Wales NSW Government Land & Property Information

How to use the ATLAS

Welcome to the ATLAS of New South Wales. We hope you find this site useful and educational, as well as illuminating and entertaining.

Getting started

There are two main ways to navigate the ATLAS of New South Wales:

  • Topics (text-based) : read the articles, which include photos, charts and tables
  • ATLAS Explorer (map-based) : navigate the interactive maps of New South Wales

Figure 1. The ATLAS of NSW contains both articles and maps Figure 1. The ATLAS of NSW contains both articles and maps.

The two sections of the ATLAS are linked, so it is easy to flip between the text-based and map-based views.

 

Topics View

To get started reading a text-based article, click on the topic (eg People) and choose the article (eg Crime):

Figure 2. The People topic contains a number of articles, including Crime Figure 2. The People topic contains a number of articles, including Crime

Figure 3 shows the article on Crime within New South Wales – the layout is similar for all articles.

Figure 3. An example of an article page, showing elements which are found on most article pages Figure 3. An example of an article page, showing elements which are found on most article pages

The blue toolbar, found across the top of all article pages, contains handy options including:

  • Home – return to the front page of the ATLAS of NSW
  • Explorer – open the ATLAS Explorer map showing NSW
  • Topics – choose from the full list of topics within the ATLAS of NSW
  • Search – find anything (article, map, chart, photograph) in the ATLAS by keyword

The orange buttons at the top left and right contain links to the previous and next articles within this topic (“Ancestry” and “Health” in this example).

Move your mouse over any images, photos, charts or tables to enlarge them and reveal more details.

The orange ATLAS Explorer button at the top right of the article page will open the interactive map, associated with the current article (eg, from the Crime article this button will open the Crime map).

Note that not all topics have an associated ATLAS Explorer map.

ATLAS Explorer (map-based view)

Choose the map

Depending on how you opened the ATLAS Explorer, you may need to load a map using the Change Map option at the top left:

Figure 4. When the ATLAS Explorer first opens, you may need to choose the map topic from the Change Map button Figure 4. When the ATLAS Explorer first opens, you may need to choose the map topic from the Change Map button

Some maps allow you to choose the categories to display. For example, the Crime map contains categories for the type of crime. Choose the category from the list as shown in figure 5.

Figure 5. Choosing the type of crime to display Figure 5. Choosing the type of crime to display

Navigation

Tools within the ATLAS Explorer allow you to navigate around New South Wales. Move your mouse over any control to see a description of its function.

Figure 6. Map controls and their functions Figure 6. Map controls and their functions

Tips

  • Zoom In or Out using the control at the top left of the map, or with your mouse scroll wheel
  • Zoom In by double-clicking the mouse within the map
  • Zoom to an area by holding the Shift key while drawing a box
  • Move the map in any direction by holding the left-mouse button while dragging the mouse
  • Reset the view using the Zoom to NSW button
  • Search for a city, town or suburb using the Placename Search option

Many maps contain detailed information, which you can reveal by clicking on an area. For example, the Population maps contain a breakdown of the population by Age and Sex.

Figure 7. Click on an area to reveal further information Figure 7. Click on an area to reveal further information

Returning to Topic view

The About This Map button, located at the top right of the map, contains a link to the Topic related to the current map. Use this link if you’d like to find out more detailed information.