minfeaturesize auto

[Gregor Mosheh]

Hey, guys, I hate to be a pest about this, but my employer would like 
for me to confirm whether this is a known bug (I can't find it in Trac), 
user error on my part (not impossible, though "minfeaturesize auto" 
seems straightforward), or an unknown bug, so we can plan appropriately.


Issue:
"minfeaturesize auto" is documented as causing labels to appear only 
when their containing polygon is larger than the label. In my tests, it 
causes labels to never be displayed.

Demonstrations:

Default label handling:
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example/
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example/mapfile.txt
     LABEL
       COLOR 0 0 0
       TYPE truetype
       FONT "Arial"
       SIZE 9
       POSITION cc
     END


Minfeaturesize 36:
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example3/
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example3/mapfile.txt
     LABEL
       COLOR 0 0 0
       TYPE truetype
       FONT "Arial"
       SIZE 9
       POSITION cc
       MINFEATURESIZE 36
     END
In this case, there are still several polygons (note the northeast quad 
of the map) which lack labels though they're above the minimum size and 
labels would not collide. That's probably beyond the scope of this 
submission, but is still interesting and my employer considers it "bug like"


Minfeaturesize auto:
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example2/
http://maps.hostgis.com/gregor/mww_example2/mapfile.txt
     LABEL
       COLOR 0 0 0
       TYPE truetype
       FONT "Arial"
       SIZE 9
       POSITION cc
       MINFEATURESIZE auto
     END
Note that labels are never displayed. This is also the case even if 
"FORCE true" is set.


I'm glad to file a bug report on this, and even to dive into the source 
code and see what I can do. (My C is weak but willing.) I just need to 
know whether others can replicate this, to rule out the possibility of 
user error.

-- 
Gregor Mosheh / Greg Allensworth
System Administrator, HostGIS cartographic development & hosting services
http://www.HostGIS.com/

"Remember that no one cares if you can back up,
  only if you can restore." - AMANDA