Abstract: The invention enables rapid omnidirectional navigation of hierarchical networks that contain compressed image information. A user agent advantageously joins units of map information using expanded higher-level map information, responsively to or in anticipation of user navigational actions such as downward level-jumping, lateral navigation, and scaling. The user agent positions lower-level units of map information using reference points which are expanded relative to corresponding higher-level points, reflecting an expansion of available area between levels.