2008 in Maps

Map of the Year
Ushahidi
Ushahidi means “testimony” in Swahili and this African organisation have built a Web 2 platform that crowdsources crisis information. The platform allows anyone to submit crisis information through text messaging using a mobile phone, email or web form.



In March Ushahidi produced a map of human rights abuses in Kenya. The mash-up allowed anyone in Kenya to report on human rights violations that they had seen, and then tagged the information on a Google Map.

In November they created a similar map for the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Best Map Game of 2008
Mini Flight Sim

The amazing James Stafford created this flight sim for the new Google Earth Browser plug-in. Put your seat belt on and jet around the world.

Development of 2008
Street View Rome

The Google Maps team unveiled a number of new developments this year but for me the introduction of street view to a number of countries outside of the US was the highlight. In particular the street view imagery of Rome is stunning.

Here are some of the outstanding sights:

Rome
The Colosseum, The Vatican, The Trevi Fountain, Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, Pyramid of Cestius, Trajan's Forum

Strangest Map of 2008
Nioibu

The strangest map of the year must have been this Japanese map of smells. Nioibu allows members to map odours that they have encountered.


For a more detailed breakdown of the new developments in Google Maps introduced in 2008 read:

• The Year in Google Maps

To view the best Google Maps Mash-ups of 2008 read:

• The Best Google Maps of 2008 - Part One
• The Best Google Maps of 2008 - Part Two