How to integrate external data in HTML format with Collect Earth Desktop?

We already have a feature on Collect Earth to handle that functionality.

Basically you can connect to URLs using a goal-replacing strategy.

In a URL you can use three special "goals" that Collect Earth will use to replace bits of the URL.

Example 1 : you have a website where you are linking plots to some visualization using the plot ID (as you describe). You can then use the PLOT_ID goal like this https://example/plots/PLOT_ID.html

Example 2 : you have a website or map that you want to show based on the central-location of the CE plot. Then you can use the LATITUDE and LONGITUDE goals. Then you would use a URL like this (using Open Street Map as an example where you pass the zoom level, latitude and longitude) : : https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=10/LATITUDE/LONGITUDE

On a first step you can try the connection with your webpage, then you can modify the survey so that you create a Collect Earth Project (CEP) that already has this connection set up so that you can distribute it to the interpreters that you work with.

1. Test the connection:

You can open the Properties dialog then go to Integrated Services and write the URL with the goals described previously on the URL for Extra Map field. After you set up the URL click on Save & Apply and then navigate to a plot in Google Earth (make sure to click on a plot you had not clicked previously). Now a new window with this URL should open.

2. Modify the survey:

Open Collect Survey Designer. Go to your survey in the Survey Designer section, then in the first tab of the survey editor Info go to Extra map URL in the bottom of that page and put the URL that you have been testing. Save the project, then export to CEP and now anyone that uou send it to will see this new integration.