Giving Directions the High Tech Way

Usually at Urban Monarch we don’t cover emerging technologies, but this new google feature is so cool, and useful for the urban monarch, that we’re going to geek out a little.  Google maps has introduced my maps, a way to save and customize maps.  O’Reilly Radar sums it up nicely.

Users are able to create their own maps and mark them public or private. The annotation tools that are provided are very simple and easy to use. Users are able to add lines, polygons and placemarks. They can edit those placemarks with HTML, images, and video. Once a map is created it is very easy to share it and syndicate it via KML. Items found during a local search can be added to a map with a click. Places found via GeoRSS or KML files can also be added to a map. These are good first steps in the annotation space but, both Live’s and Ask’s recent releases show that there is a lot more that can be done with this feature.

O’Reilly Radar

Basically instead of sending someone custom directions, you can hand draw the route they walk from the light rail to your house, where the new club opening is, or how to get to the cocktail party Friday night.

Check out google maps and accompanying tutorial for more information.