Narrative
Narrative is a free and open-source alternative to ArcGIS StoryMaps. It allows users to create visually compelling narratives by combining text, maps, images, videos, and other multimedia. Narrative is web-based and optimized for mobile devices.
storytelling
maps
education
multimedia
Narrative: Free Open-Source Mapping Platform
A free and open-source alternative to ArcGIS StoryMaps, offering a user-friendly platform to create visually compelling narratives with multimedia elements.
What is Narrative?
Narrative is an open-source web application developed by Azavea that enables users to create visually rich narratives and present stories on the web by combining text, multimedia, timelines, and interactive maps. It serves as an alternative to proprietary solutions like Esri Story Maps.
Some key features of Narrative include:
- Intuitive drag-and-drop interface to combine text, images, videos, maps, and other multimedia.
- Variety of customizable themes and layouts for creating visually engaging stories.
- Support for interactive maps powered by open-source mapping libraries like Leaflet.
- Options for adding timelines and sequencing content.
- Responsive design that adapts stories for optimal viewing on mobile devices.
- Integration with content management platforms.
- Availability as packaged software as well as a hosted SaaS option.
- Supporting an active open-source community for contributions.
By leveraging open web standards and technologies, Narrative provides a free alternative for crafting compelling narratives without vendor lock-in. Its focus on customization and extensibility makes it well-suited for data journalists, researchers, non-profits, and other organizations looking to communicate stories backed by interactive maps and rich media content.
Narrative Features
Features
- Web-based - works on any device with a modern web browser
- Intuitive drag and drop interface to build narratives
- Support for text, images, videos, maps, charts, etc
- Customizable themes and layouts
- Collaboration tools to work on narratives together
- Embed narratives on websites or share via link
- Open source and free to use
Pricing
- Free
- Open Source
Pros
Free and open source
Easy to use
Very customizable
Active community support
Cons
Limited analytics and usage tracking
Less functionality than paid options like ArcGIS StoryMaps
Requires some technical skill to install and configure
Official Links
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