[Mapzen Search](https://mapzen.com/projects/search) is a modern, geographic search service based entirely on open-source tools and powered entirely by open data. To start integrating Mapzen Search to your apps, you need a [developer API key](api-keys-rate-limits.md). You might use this functionality in any app that has a geographic component, including ones that deliver goods, locate hotels or venues, or even provide local weather forecasts.
Through a process known as [geocoding](search.md), Mapzen Search allows you to use natural language to find a particular place by entering an address or the name of a landmark or business, and then translates the result in to the geographic coordinates for mapping. Mapzen Search is built on [Pelias](https://github.com/pelias), an open-source geocoding project.
In this walkthrough, you will learn how to make a map with a search box that allows you to enter addresses and place names and locate them on a map. To complete the tutorial, you should have some familiarity with HTML and JavaScript, although all the source code is provided. You will need an [API key](https://mapzen.com/developers) to use Mapzen Search, which requires a GitHub account for authorization. You can use any text editor and operating system, but must maintain an Internet connection while you are working. The tutorial should take about 30 minutes to complete.
The Leaflet JavaScript library, which provides tools for zooming, displaying attributions, and drawing symbols, is one way you can build web and mobile maps. Leaflet is extensible, and developers have built additional tools for Leaflet maps, including the Mapzen Search plug-in.
To set up your development environment for this walkthrough, you need to download the geocoder plug-in.
1. Create a new folder on your machine named `geocoding-tutorial`. You will use this folder as your working directory where you can store the downloaded files.
3. Download or clone the [leaflet-geocoder GitHub repository](https://github.com/pelias/leaflet-geocoder) to make a copy of it on your local machine. You can click [Download Zip](https://github.com/pelias/leaflet-geocoder/archive/master.zip) on the GitHub repository website.
## Create an index page
Now that you have downloaded the required dependent files, you are ready to start building your application. This example uses the simplest structure, a single index.html file.
1. At the root level of your working folder, create a file called index.html and open it in a text editor.
As you are working, it’s a good idea to save your edits and periodically reload the browser page. This helps you identify problems quicker and trace them back to your most recent changes.
Because you are working with several external cascading style sheet (CSS) and JavaScript files, you need to add references to them in your index.html file. These include style sheets and JavaScript files for Leaflet and the geocoder. You will need to add these into the <head> and <body> sections of the index.html.
1. In index.html, at the bottom of the `<head>` section, add references to the Leaflet CSS and JavaScript files. You are referencing these from a website, rather than from a file on your machine.
2. In the `<head>` section, immediately after the Leaflet lines, add references to the geocoder CSS and JavaScript files. These files are from the GitHub repository you copied to your machine.
To display a Leaflet map on a page, you need a `<div>` element with an ID value, as well as a size for the box containing the map. If you want to know more about initializing a Leaflet map, see the [Leaflet getting started documentation](http://leafletjs.com/examples/quick-start.html).
1. At the bottom of the `<head>` section, after the references you added in the previous steps, add a `<style>` tag and the following attributes to set the size of the map on your webpage.
3. Immediately after the `<div>`, add this JavaScript code within a `<script>` tag to initialize Leaflet. `L.xxxxx` is a convention used with the Leaflet API. The `setView([37.804146, -122.275045], 16)` sets the center of the map, in decimal degrees, and the zoom level. The map is centered at the Maptime Oakland meeting location, with a zoom level that allows you to see the streets and features of the city. Zoom levels are similar to map scales or resolutions, where a smaller value shows a larger area in less detail, and a larger zoom level value depicts smaller area in great detail.
4. Within the same `<script>` tag as `var map = `, add a line to set the data source for the map. This line adds the default OpenStreetMap tiles and an attribution.
5. Save your edits and refresh the browser. You should see a map with OpenStreetMap tiles, zoom controls, and a Leaflet attribution in the bottom corner.
So far, you have referenced the necessary files, initialized Leaflet with a map container on the page, and added data to the map. Now, you are ready to add the Search box from the Mapzen Search plug-in.
The search-VzKH_PI text is the Mapzen Search API key, which is provided for you at MaptimeOAK. Because the search service is provided for free, the key is a way to make sure that the performance is good for everyone. If you want to use Mapzen Search after this event, you need to obtained your own API key from https://mapzen.com/developers. Then, paste it here instead of this one.
Mapzen Search uses a [variety of open data sources](https://mapzen.com/documentation/search/data-sources/), including OpenStreetMap. In some cases, you may be unable to find the location you are expecting, which could be an indicator that the data has limitations. Part of the power of open data is that you are able to correct it. If you want to note a problem, you can add an issue to the [Pelias GitHub repository](https://github.com/pelias/pelias/issues).
