Embedding Icons

[caridgway]

Is there a way to save custom icons in the KMZ file so someone I share the file with sees the same thing I do?

[Appletom]

It is fairly easy - create your icon and save it as a png or gif file. (jpegs, tiffs and bitmaps will also work, but they don't have transparency)

When you make a new placemark, click on the icon to the right of where you name the file.

Now you will see all of the icons that GEarth has available for you. In the lower right corner you will see 'none' and 'custom' as options. Choose custom, then navigate to where you saved your file.

I grabbed a screenshot of an icon on my desktop and made a custom GEarth icon. Since the icon was a letter, the attached kmz file points to a post office.

Has anybody created some really cool icons that they would share here at GEH?

[caridgway]

I have the custom icons and if I save the KMZ file it uses them the next time I open it.

But if I send you the KMZ file and you open it on your machine you will see colored squares with a white X through them everywhere where I have used a custom icon. Google Earth is looking for my custom icons in the directory I put them in on my hard drive but you don't have that directory or its icons on your machine.

So my question is after I have the custom icons created and on my map how do I embed them in the KMZ file so I can email the file so someone else and they will see the icons rather than the missing icon symbol.

[maxxxheimer]

but you do a right mouse-button click on the file and then save as. maybe that's the problem. have you activated the control box next to the file? maybe that could be another problem. :confused: :whoa:

[Appletom]

But if I send you the KMZ file and you open it on your machine you will see colored squares with a white X through them everywhere where I have used a custom icon.Send me a few files, I PM'd you with my email address. Let me look at them and I will see what is up.

[Appletom]

I think we have solved caridgway's problem. Any time you create placemarks inside of a folder, weird things happen. If you create your placemarks, THEN create a folder, then drag your placemarks inside the new folder, things save nicely.

The almost exact same problem, but with images in pop-up boxes, was discussed here - http://www.googleearthhacks.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3602