Often, when exploring your data, you may feel somewhat lost. Without the context of the known world, a layer can seem like a blob of information floating in space. By adding an atlas-style map, air photos, or another BaseMap, you can begin to see how your data fits in the on-the-ground reality. However, adding such layers often takes considerable preprocessing work; sometimes, you just don't want to go through this until you know you need it. What's the solution? Use a premade layer, preferably fast-loading tiles, from a web service.
The QuickMapServices plugin works best when you have another dataset that you want to provide extra context for. Start by first loading such a layer and then zooming in to its extent.
You will need the following:
A layer of interest to overlay (you can use
Davis_DBO_Centerline-wgs84.shp)An active Internet connection (this may not work behind corporate proxies)
You will need to install and activate the...