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June 09, 2005
More on Google Maps
I just found on CNN.com an article about non-Google programmers 'tinkering' with Google Maps, allowing them to create fancy overlays of outside data onto the maps Google draws. Apparently the Google Maps API is quite open, and this has resulted in significantly more valuable visualizations of multiple data sources. For example, i was recently searching for hotels in Chicago. But each time i found one, i had to go to Google Maps, type in the address, and see where it was (because the hotel sites' map program was so awful). Imagine if the two could be combined -- that hotel locations would be automatically overlaid on Google Maps? That's exactly what this article talks about -- one guy even combined Google Maps and CraigsList! :)
Example site: Housing Maps.
CNN article citation: http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/internet/06/09/google.map.hacks.ap/index.html
Posted by MaTT at June 9, 2005 01:12 PM
Comments
That's cool! I saw the Craigslist one when I was looking for a place to live.
Posted by: Cari at June 9, 2005 03:55 PM
I've got an idea-- overlay construction problems onto Google maps... then as I drive towards God-forsaken cities where all the exits off the freeway are closed, Google will have already alerted me to this problem and I will have chosen a different route.... ;) I realize this would need to be updated constantly and I'm not sure how that would be done, but I'm not a problem-solver here, just a brain-stormer...
Posted by: Rachel at June 20, 2005 11:19 PM