Blog Archive

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Ski and Snowboard Google Maps Mashups for the 06/07 Season

The 2006 - 2007 ski and snowboard season is now upon us here in the northern hemisphere. To help get you ready to hit the slopes here are two fantastic Google Maps mashups that are back for another year to help people from around the world find a hill to get out on..

RiderTech shows you world ski/board resorts - Matt Savarino's RiderTech.com has joined forces with NWSnow.com to relaunch as a cool action sport mapping community just in time for the 2006 ski and boarding season. It's a great way to locate ski resorts (and other action sports venues) from around the world. To get started check out the world map, then drill down by continent. Select the "snow" toggle-item from the right side of the map to plot resorts and be sure to register and add resorts if you know the locations of them! There's also some other cool areas of the site to enjoy: snow video podcasts, local videos, photo galleries, webcams and more..

Skibonk worldwide ski & boarding mashup with YouTube vids - In the 'bonk' family of ever-popular Google Maps mashups SkiBonk greets the 2006 ski and boarding season with YouTube videos for many resorts. David Schorr has also come out with a new snow depth overlay feature which graphically displays snow depth and new snow for the entire US and parts of Canada. Skibonk mashes up data from "SnoCountry, OnTheSnow, Weather Underground, the National Weather Service, and several other data feeds." Webcams, current conditions, heaps of weather info and tons of information for each resort is located on SkiBonk. Check things out en route with SkiBonk Mobile as well!

Google Maps historic world earthquake mashup


One of my favorite categories of mashups that I've been indexing here on Google Maps Mania are those devoted to Weather & Earth. Some of my top picks in this section include WeatherBonk, If Earth were a Sandwich and EarthTools. Many more in this list show us locations of everything from waterfalls to mountains. Take some time to look through this list. . there are some very interesting tools and mashups that can be very useful to you and especially helpful for teachers to use in lesson environments.

Adding to this list is a new mashup of out New Zealand that combines a historical database of approximately 7000 earthquakes from around the world. Created by Anthony Pengelly, Ants.net.nz features past earthquakes that can be plotted by geographic region dating back as far as the 1600's and by magnitude of earthquake. When selecting 8.8-10 magnitude earthquakes pre-1973 it appears that the northern part of South America seems to have been a hotbed of large earthquakes for three hundred or so years.. Anthony even caters to the Australian and New Zealander audience by creating two separate maps for those 2 countries. In each regional page Anthony cites the local earthquake database he is mashing up with to help you to understand where the data for each pin is coming from.

Be sure to check out more Weather & Earth mashups here..

Viewing panoramic images using Google Maps


In the past I've spotlighted tools and sites that utilize the Google Maps API to create a front-end viewing interface to a high resolution image. XRez Extreme Resolution Photography brings us this next example replacing Google Maps tiles with some stunning stitched together photos. Their gallery of gigantic photos include such places as Yosemite, the Mohave Desert in the US and the fjords of Norway. Click on any of these photos to bring up a full screen, high resolution view of some totally awesome digital photos. To use the viewer, double left click to zoom in and double right click to zoom out.. Very nice views and a slick use of the Google Maps API!

Other related stuff:
Want to do this yourself? Try MapLib..
Panoramic images of London on Google Maps - From CommunityWalk.com
View Panoramic views of Sydney on Google Maps - Click onto "dive straight in.."
See Toronto: Panoramic views of a beautiful Canadian city!
Neat panoramic view of a village in Germany
World of Warcraft card sheet viewer

New Google Maps (and API) features

Google Maps in context

Atlas: Google Map Authoring for Journalists
All Points Blog - Nov.28/06
Start-Ups Try to Plot A Complete Picture
Washington Post - Nov.27/06
VirtualCity delivers the real thing
Nov.24/06
What Happened to JobLoft?
Maple Leaf 2.0 - Nov.24/06
Mash-ups easily (s)mashed
Royal Pingdom - Nov.23/06
Travel: The emergence of Meta Search
Complete Blog - Nov.14/06
Gran's canyon is a net sensation
Sydney Morning Herald - Nov.13/06
GeoSpatial Training Services Announces Availability of Instructor Led Google Maps and Google Earth
GISUser.com - Nov.13/06
CEO Guide to Mashups
ProgrammableWeb - Nov.12/06
Marissa Mayer reduces the Google Maps page size by 30%
C|Net - Nov.9/06
Architects change their view of the lowly roof
LA Times - Nov.6/06
Ordnance Survey takes on Google Maps
C|Net - Nov.3/06

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Google Maps 7 Wonders of the 50 US States



Juan Taylor is back with a twist on his earlier 7 Wonders of the world Google Maps Mashup. This time he has created a Google Map for each of the 50 US states showing their 7 "wonders". Juan has also created a map which shows the 7 wonders for the USA (countrywide) as well. These 7 include the Golden Gate Bridge, Times Square, Statue of Liberty, Walt Disney World, Lincoln Memorial, Grand Canyon and the Gateway Arch. This list may be considered subjective since I'm not sure if Juan is taking these places from a definitive list (if one even exists?) Regardless this mashup will show you highlights for each state and perhaps even a list of places for you to visit if you're visiting! Use the handy links to Wikipedia entries that Juan has linked off to and click zoom below each entry to use the Google Maps satellite imagery to explore each of these places. This is fun to explore, and teachers might even consider using this for a geography or history lesson..

Summary of "7 Wonders" mashup links:

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

"Hot" new Google Maps mashup technologies

Google Heat Maps for your mashup - Here's some cool Google Maps mashup tech from FortiusOne that is a part of their newly launched GeoIQ beta product. GeoIQ is explained as: "..a dynamic geospatial analysis and heat mapping technology that delivers high resolution raster analysis through a web browser. Developers can use GeoIQ to add geographic data visualization and analysis tools to their web mapping applications. GeoIQ delivers colorful, easy to read maps that users can pan around and zoom into, that are refreshed immediately, refactored for the new geographic range and scale."

To see these heat maps in action, try these demos:
To get started with integrating this technology into your mashups, click on "Get your GeoIQ API Key" from this page, or try out the DIY Tool found here.. GeoIQ is also running a mashup contest where a PS3 is up for grabs!

GWT Simile Timeline in a Google Maps mashup - Alistair Rutherford's UK GTraffic.info mashup now integrates with the GWT Simile Timeline. Alistair explains it for us: "..This displays traffic events for a region in temporal relation to each other. Selecting a timeline will display an info bubble and clicking on the severity icon from the bubble will flip the display to the corresponding marker on the map. This allows you to browse the incidents for a region by time as well as by geographical location." To see it working, drill into a location and click the "timeline" tab.. You explore the timeline just like you do with Google Maps using an AJAX grab and pull interface. The Mapperz Blog calls it "a Google Maps first!" I'll have to agree.. (Check out my recent post about GTraffic here..)

Cool Google Maps key interface - StrataVarious has created a cool user interface to browse Google Maps mashups. Their HyperMapAtlas system applies layering technology to turn Google Maps into a deep, interactive and smooth usability experience with all-in-one-page access to large geographic data sets. To take a look at how it works, click the above link which takes you to Seattle or here to view a US Minerals Map that gives a nice demo. Click onto items in the key and also take a look at the bottom of the map to see additional ways of selecting different views. Pretty nice stuff!

Related: Washington Post Article (Nov.27/06):
Start-Ups Try to Plot A Complete Picture

For more Google Maps mashup tools and resources, take a look here..

Elmo TMX + Google Maps = ElmoSeeker


Christmas is that time of year when children make wish lists and write those letters to Santa Claus to request the most sought after toys. One of the most popular toys being requested this year is the T.M.X. Elmo doll which is being released 10 years after the original. To help Santa find Elmo this Christmas season he might want to use the Google Maps powered ElmoSeeker. The ElmoSeeker lets you enter your US zip code to map local retailers which stock the Elmo TMX dolls, as well as a list of locally-listed auctions for the doll. It also includes an Online Inventory Checker which shows present inventory levels on Amazon and eBay, refreshing itself every few minutes.

Give it a try:

Find a TMX Elmo Nearby

ZIP Code:


Digg!

Related:
Other Google Maps online shopping tools:

Monday, November 27, 2006

5 new world Google Maps mashups and tools

Compare the relative size of places on Google Maps - Here's a cool Google Maps tool that will let you draw an outline of something on Google Maps, then line it up against another location in the world. Wondered what the size of Manhattan is versus, say London? Now you can check it out for yourself! Just draw the outline of the place in the upper window, then close the shape. Once complete, use the lower window to zoom to another world location to compare the size! [Via ProgrammableWeb]


FlickrPhotos + Google Maps = Fotoland: Yes, there are a lot of Flickr Google Maps mashups.. this one adds to the list with a great interface and awesome geo-exploration experience. [Via ProgrammableWeb]

FindMeSomeWifi - Looking for Wifi in a specific country? Give this wifi finder tool a try to locate it in your city or in a country you are traveling in! :) [Via ProgrammableWeb]

World National Anthems on Google Maps - Here's a simple mashup idea.. Luigi from Italy has built a mashup showing country markers for places where YouTube and Google Video national anthem video clips exist. Click the marker and watch and listen to the national anthem for that country. Videos range from World Cup presentations to those boring, aged anthem videos you watch as the network signs off for the night in the wee hours.. More anthems will hopefully be added to fill in the blanks..

The Google Maps - Google Zeitgeist - Google Trends Mashup
[Via ProgrammableWeb]

US Google Maps Mashup Roundup (21)

DC CityStat - Here is a great new mashup for Washington DC that plots crime and public works and department of transportation service requests for the district.

USPS Mailbox Locator - Each listing is Google mapped with the option to get Google Maps driving directions to that mailbox. [Via Lockergnome]

US Zip Code Map Update - Previous version of the site was Census ZCTA (Zip Code Tabulation Area) based, the new version depict actual USPS zip code areas. It claims to be the most accurate, USPS zip code area map on the Internet.

Denver Regional Transportation District Rail Map - A cool mashup for the city of Denver that shows amenities nearby to each station such as coffee shops, liquor stores etc.. [via]

Mega Restaurant Mashup - Features 390,514 restaurants and 78,162 reviews by mashing up Google Maps with Chefmoz.org.

Around Twin Cities - This is a great interface to build your own mashup of stores and locations that interest you. Give this one a try to just experience the ease in user interface!

The Worst Places to take a dump in New York - The name pretty much explains it!

Some of the above mashups were found on ProgrammableWeb.com

10 interesting maps created using ZeeMaps:
Latest news maps from Mibazaar.com:

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Google Maps Creation Tools and Resources - Part 10

(Parts 1-9 here..)

Create a Google Maps mashup easily with these new DIY mapping tools:

Loads more DIY Google Maps mashup sites and tools here..

New Google Maps Viewing Tools:
For the more advanced Google Maps geo-developer, here are some new tools and sites:

Google Maps API & Development Resources:
Recent posts from the Google Maps API Blog:
Other Google Maps Blogs/Wikis/groups:
________________________________
Google Maps Creation Tools and Resources Part 1 - 9 Here.. (plus more tools)
Google Maps Creation Tools
Google Maps Viewing Tools

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Custom Google Map Overlays

A while back I mentioned Maplib, the Google Maps API tool that lets you upload a large image, then use the Google Maps interface to view and annotate it (See my example photo here). Next in the same line of tools like this is a site titled: Custom Google Maps Overlays. In short, it lets you overlay other types of maps on top of the Google Maps interface with the ability to add an additional map button next to the Map - Satellite & Hybrid mapping views. The main page contains some examples and recent additions and a quick link to get started with lots of instructions and a good interface. This is a fantastic DIY Google Maps tool!

Friday, November 24, 2006

The Google Maps pushpin meets real life



Aram Bartholl of Germany brings the default Google Maps pin marker to life in this cool little video clip he created. The project, titled "Map" zooms you down into a real location in Berlin as one of these map markers is constructed with plywood and fabric. Aram explains that "The size of the rebuilt red Marker in reality corresponds to the size of a marker in the web interface in max zoom factor of the map." It's quite a chuckle to watch the pin majestically Check out more information on the Map Project Page.. [Found on Google Blogoscoped]

A few more examples of the real life Google Maps pushpin:

Julian Gallo of Beunos Aires, Argentina did something similar to this back in July of 2005. It was one of my earlier posts here on Google Maps Mania (with a now expired image link due to my bad judgement of image hosting on Flickr) but with this latest video now being available on YouTube Julian has posted the image again on this post..

Here are some other images that I posted back in April 2005 (among the first posts I did) that show what these giant map pins might look like in real life:


..From Flickr user Kokogiak..

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Canada Google Maps Mashup Roundup Part 3

Some very exciting changes and updates to report from the Canadian Google Maps scene:

Toronto TTC Map shows streetcar and bus routes - If you're a Torontonian or someone that uses Toronto Transit system frequently you'll want to view this change made to the previously mentioned TTC Map over on crazedmonkey.com - A map layer has been added to show streetcar and bus routes, in addition to subway and commuter rail which was present before.

VirutalCity.ca Toronto.. Awesome! -->

I've seen the web-based street level city explorer concept be attempted before and good maps were always the missing ingredient. That was before the current rise of new web 2.0 mapping services such as Google Maps. Here's a great effort to create that street level navigation interface by VirtualCity.ca in one of North America's great cities: Toronto. It uses the power of Google Maps to bring together directions and business search in a fantastic way. Scoot down the streets by tapping the arrows on either end of the street view filmstrips. Enlarge the image to get a better view. The only suggestion I'd have would be to enable satellite viewing for the user. Yes, this detracts from the street images but I do think it would add a nice third layer of viewing to help the user see tops of buildings as well as the sides. Great job! [Via Emily Chang's eHub]

Canadian businesses discovering Google Maps for their websites:
  • Canadian Tire - Largest Canadian retailer includes Google Maps in its newly revamped website. To see it in action, click the Store Locator link.
  • The Keg Steakhouse and Bar - Major steakhouse franchise Google Maps locations for customers.
  • Pizza Pizza - Ontario pizza giant helps you find your neighbourhood location on Google Maps.
Canadian Google Real Estate Mapping News:
More new Canadian Google Maps:
Don't miss: Web Directions North Conference - Catch Google Maps mashup pioneer Adrian Holovaty (and others) at Web Directions North in Vancouver. Steffen Meschkat and Kaitlin "Ducky" Sherwood, from Google Maps, will be doing a whole 2 hour session on the business and technology of mashups. Event taking place Feb.6-7/07 in Vancouver, Canada.

Previous Roundups for Canada: Part 1 | Part 2

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Google Maps Mania is digging Dubai

For the past week I've been at a trade show with my work here in Dubai, UAE (hence the thin posting) This is my second time here. The first was last year at this time for the same event. Things have definitely changed in one year with even more high rise towers and double the number of construction cranes dotting the horizon. There's a boom in development here and it doesn't look like it's stopping anytime soon. Take a look down below for my trip photos and videos..


Coincidentally, just as I was touching down here I was contacted by Hesham Amiri who informed me of the first known Dubai Google Maps mashup called Map.Ocit.AE. Hesham describes it as "..a site based on the Google Maps API targeted for residents and visitors of the Emirate of Dubai where users can add interesting markers, comments and bookmarks." And for even more Google Maps based information about Dubai be sure to check out the ever-essential travel resource: Wikimapia (Dubai zoom-in).


I've been trying to get as much sightseeing in as possible in the evenings and I've had a fantastic time. I even made the trip to the Mall of the Emirates last evening to take some runs in the indoor ski hill called Ski Dubai.. and it wasn't too bad! :) I've busy with my digital camera capturing everything I can and I have the following personal photos and clips if you're interested (check back in 2 or 3 days when I'll add more to this pool. Until then expect some time before my next post as I journey back to Canada. Explore some of the mashup and tools links along the right side of the blog.. Here are the pics and videos:

Flickr Photo Set: Dubai 06 - Here is one great shot from Flickr user Trimpop that looks down Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai. It shows the already present residential and business towers with the Burj Dubai being constructed off in the distance. This will be the tallest building in the world once complete. (Here are my photos from last year)

YouTube videos: Two clips showing the in-seat video channels that show live camera views out the front and belly of the Emirates flight I was on - Taking off from Heathrow and a landing in Dubai. And finally, here are some short video clips of the Ski Dubai facility: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Google Maps introduces 2 new features

Update Nov.20: Click to call includes Canada and new link that explains Search History feature..

Google Maps Click-to-call:

Looking for a business on Google Maps in the US or Canada? If you'd like to talk to them on the telephone, simply click the "call" link and enter your phone number to be connected. Local and long distance charges are also covered. Here is an example search for hardware stores in Detroit. [Read news and blogosphere analysis on this feature]

Google Personalized Search now includes Google Maps - From the Google Blog posting: means you'll no longer have to remember searches you do for addresses, businesses, or directions on Maps. Instead, you'll be able to browse, search for, and bookmark them directly from your search history, just as you already can with your web, images, news, Froogle, and video history. Google has this page to provide you more information on the feature.

Go to..

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Find the Nintendo Wii with the Google Maps WiiSeeker

The launch day for the Nintendo Wii has arrived! I'm back with an earlier post about a Google Maps based tool that will help you track one down..

+=

On Friday I posted about the Google Maps mashup that helps you find stores (and anticipated inventory levels) for the upcoming November 17th launch of the PlayStation 3. The same site that created that tool has just created a new resource for gaming fans getting ready for the Nintendo Wii called - The Google Maps WIIseeker. The tool helps you to anticipate what the inventory levels will be for the Nintendo Wii at stores (Target, Best Buy etc..) on the launch date, which is set at November 19th. It's a zip code based search that plots the store, address and directions, as well as the inventory level for that location.
[via]

Related: Google Maps PlayStation 3 Finder

Neat new Google Maps mashups

Run Dean Karnazes.. Run! - Remember Dean Karnazes that set out to run 50 marathons in each of the 50 United States in 50 consecutive days? Well he did this... Now he's running home --> New York City to San Francisco!!! That's 3,000 miles across the US! The cool part is that he's using Google Maps to help people track where he is, basically in real time using his cell phone. Check it out, and track his progress here.. [Thanks to Brian Schwan for this tip!]

Worldwide Marathon Directory - Includes the top world marathons as well as many other marathons plotted on a Google Map. It's also available in French and Italian languages. [Thanks Renalid!]

Pray In Time - A Google Map for interactive location-based Islamic Namaz time calculations.

Worldwide CO2 pollution levels - each country in the world is mapped.

These are the churches in my neighborhood - John Murden photographs churches in his "hood" showing the "socioeconomic strata of a given block or 2"

Cool: Flickr Slideshow in Google Maps interface

Tibet cycling: Travel log of Keith and Meredith Azevedo. They're currently riding their bikes across Tibet.

Friday, November 17, 2006

Send a Google Maps GeoGreeting to your friends!



Here's a fun new website for you geo-geeks out there that combines the online greeting concept with Google Maps satellite imagery. GeoGreeting lets you send a greeting from real buildings found on Google Maps that are in the shape of letters! The "A" I typed for my Google Maps Mania title above brings me to a building in Hamburg, Germany while "E" is represented by a building in Chicago. The tool is pretty easy to use.. Simply type your message, then send the link out to your friends. They see a cool animated zoom in on each of the letters of your greeting as it gets spelled out for them.. Good times! :)

[Thanks to Frank Taylor of the Google Earth Blog for the tip!]

12 new Google Maps mashups for the US

Great new LA Real Estate Mashup - LALife sets up a great new real estate mashup for Los Angeles. Color coded squares indicate price ranges with lots of search and filtering options. [Via Curbed LA]

America's most Wired Cities - Forbes article + Google Maps

NY Broadway Show uses Google Maps - The "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" broadway has set up a Grinch Sightings Map on its website. [Via NewYorkology]

Michigan Wolverines at Ohio State - This Google Map sets up the Nov. 18th showdown. Set up by Virender Ajmani.

Google Map of NJ Housing Boom - NJ.com maps the boom. Click "See what homes are selling for on your street" to see how Google Maps is used.

LA real food Finder - Find restaurants, cafes and delis with organic menus or markets, grocery stores and farms with sustainable produce, meat, and specialty products.

MenuMap gets an update - 3 more cities add. Now with 16,108 restaurants, in New York, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Washington DC.

Salt Lake Cycling
Florida Vacation Rentals
Orlando Time Share Guide
This Week In Football
MotorMap USA


(..Some of the above mashups were found on ProgrammableWeb.com)

Google Maps Live Race Tracker: Baja 1000


Live Race Tracker: Baja 1000 race - Here is a great new Google Maps mashup of the current race status of the Baja 1000 taking place right now in Mexico. Here are details of the race:

Date: November 14 - 19, 2006

Place: Ensenada to La Paz, Baja, Mexico

Event:
20 Wide Open Baja challenge cars at SCORE Baja 1000.
300 crew members and support staff.
5 support planes, 8 support helicopters.
Exclusive Pre-Race and Post-Race welcome parties at Horsepower Ranch.
Celebrity drivers: Patrick Dempsey, Mike Metzger, etc; major national media coverage: NBC.

The Google Map updates every 15 minutes and it also includes Google Earth viewing. More info can be found here..

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Google Maps PlayStation 3 Finder

It's November 17th.. do you know where your PlayStation 3 is?? With today being the launch of the Sony PlayStation 3, from a previous post, here again is the Google Maps PlayStation 3 Finder:


+




If you're one of the thousands of anxious gamers anticipating the November 17th US launch of the Sony PlayStation 3 console unit you'll want to take a look at this next Google Maps mashup. PS3Seeker.com has set up some Google Maps based tools that will help you get your hands on one of these units on the day it launches. PS3Seeker is mashing up midnight launch locations or you can do a local area search for retailers which will be selling it on the 17th. Results are then plotted on a Google Map for you with all the info for that location selling the PlayStation 3 such as anticipated inventory levels and driving directions.
[Thanks Eugene!]

Be sure to also check out the Google Maps Nintendo WiiSeeker!

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

World News Google Maps Mashup



HeadlineMap is a great new Google Maps news mashup that combines current stories from many world news sources with a mapping interface. Depending on the region you are viewing news is being pulled from the largest regional news organizations and plotted for you by the story location. Other technical ingredients and content of this mashup include the Google Maps API, Topix.net and Flickr content. To zoom into a particular area double click on a continent, then choose a specific area from there if a sub-zoom level exists for that particular location. HeadlineMap is a great way to browse world news!

Check here for more News Maps mashups..

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Google mapping the best experiences on Earth

GeoJoey.com:

GeoJoey is a new community driven Google Maps mashups of "the best experiences on Earth". Users post experiences to a Google Map (complete with pictures and video) and the community votes for the best experiences. You can view the most popular experiences in one map view or sort experiences like newest or most discussed.

One very cool feature is the ability to draw freehand on the map when adding an experience. This could be helpful for circling something, outlining boundaries (such as a lake) or showing a trail. Speaking of trails you can import a GPS track with support for over 90 different formats. Another neat feature is the landmark feature that lets you search from a database which contains over 8 million landmarks worldwide. It auto centers on locations as you type. Thank goodness for AJAX!

To get started just complete the very efficient registration process and follow the "Add an Experience" link. If you want to just explore and vote for experiences, you can do this through a nifty tag cloud or text search feature. This updates as you zoom in on various world locations. Like many web concepts this site will only have value as more people add experiences to it and vote for existing experiences, so get started!!

Some sample GeoJoey Experiences:

GeoJoey CEO in Seattle - For an example of the map drawing feature (and GPS import) check out this experience: I attached a GPS to my dog and let him run around Marymoor dog park in Seattle. I then imported the track and posted the experience.
Walk the Old City Wall in Dubrovnik
Climbing Sydney Harbour Bridge

US Crime Google Maps: Sacramento, Houston, Richmond

Sacramento Crime Tracker - This next mashup is a great example of how media can use Google Maps to display information for those in the community. Television station KCRA has put up a Google Maps Crime Tracker which mashes up Sacramento's public crime data and makes it easy for people in the community to find out what's happening in their immediate area. Two features that stand out in this mashup include a neat radius search that lets you plot crimes within a certain radius of a given point and also the ability to embed crime maps in your own website. As this example shows media are influencing user mapping applications from the point of view of data viewing accessibility and not data analysis. This theme is discussed in the blog post of the company that created this crime tracker - Faneuil Media. Faneuil have created several Google Maps mashups for high profile media outlets such as the New York Times and the Boston Globe. Take a look on their front page to view their other mashups.

Houston Crime Maps - Here is a new Google Maps crime-data mashup for the city of Houston, Texas. GIS data has been used to correlate crimes with political districts (city council and state house districts at the moment). In addition this mashup gives you tons of options to view crimes by including neighborhood, district, beat and type of offense (plus more). It definitely has a ChicagoCrime.org feel to it.

East End/Church Hill, Richmond Crime Map - Yet another example of how media can use Google Maps to display community info.

More Google Maps Crime Maps are here..

Monday, November 13, 2006

UK Google Maps Traffic mashup gets updated

GTraffic, one of the most useful Google Maps mashups in the UK, has recently undergone a major update using the Google Web Toolkit. GTraffic is Google Maps application that mashes up traffic related data from various sources including the BBC. The BBC has facilitates this and other web mashups by providing raw 'mashable' data via their Backstage Project. You can view traffic cams, roadworks updates and motorway status updates from this mashup.

GTraffic creator Alistair Rutherford dropped me a line to fill me in on some of the highlights of his update which include:
  • New look and feel
  • Zebra list with sortable columns.
  • Event categories are now listed.
  • Busy popup.
  • Permalink feature
  • Selection menu highlights dataset chosen.
  • Map now has proper 'Overview' button to take the user back to original zoom level.
Related coverage: Mapperz Blog

Other UK Google Maps Mashups: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Netherlands Google Maps Mashup Roundup Part 2

Remco Kouwenhoven our Dutch correspondent from the Nederkaart Blog is back with the latest Dutch Google Maps mashups..

Casabobo: Dutch celebrities on Google Maps - Always wanted to know where your favorite Dutch actor, TV-personality or athlete lived? Casabobo gives you the answers, on Google Maps. Originally the site also listed the homes of Dutch politicians. But, after considerable downtime the addresses of the Dutch politicians have been removed. Probably Dutch authorities intervened.

More Dutch Mashups here:

  • Postbank shows all Postbank (a Dutch bank) ATM's
  • TomBok shows fashion job openings in Google Maps.
  • IENS is a Dutch restaurant review site. Each reviewed restaurant is shown on a google maps mashup.
  • Dinnersite is another Dutch restaurant guide, showing its content on google maps.
  • TexelTV is not your average tourism website. TexelTV shows the Dutch island Texel using a series of small films. The content is also searchable on Google Earth.
  • Radius2Dakar is a site of a Dutch school-team participating in Amsterdam-Dakar (a low-budget alternative for Paris-Dakar). The team can be followed live on bliin (a google maps mashup).
  • Always wanted to go to a Dutch nude beach? Then strandje.nl is for you. Using a kml-link it shows lots of Dutch nude beaches.

  • Be sure to also check out the first Netherlands Google Maps mashup roundup..

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