Beginning Google Maps Applications with PHP and Ajax

Have you been interested in creating your own Google Maps mashup but have just put it off? Beginning Google Maps Applications with PHP and Ajax (Apress, August 2006) is a new book to help you take advantage of the Google Maps API in your own maps mashing endeavors - whether you're an enthusiast playing for fun or a professional building for profit.

Going well beyond the basics, the authors cover methods to enhance the user interface, ways to optimize and scale for large data sets (over 120,000 points!), how to create advanced custom controls and even some of the high-school math needed when playing with polylines and areas on a sphere.

If you're looking for a book review, Slashdot gave it a 8/10 on Monday . If you want to get your hands on a copy, you can purchase it here or the authors are holding a random-draw contest to give away three copies of the book at their official companion website (which ends September 7th, 2006).

Just for the record, I wrote the foreword for this book, thus my name appears on the cover. However, I don't get any sort of royalty and at most, I get a small commission from Amazon Affiliates if you buy using my link. :)