Online mapping systems are one of the webs most useful applications (if we remove the browser and email from contention.) Maps have continued to evolve providing directions first and then satellite imagery.

Now maps are getting mashed up to provide more than just directions and locations. More and more online sites are essentially overlaying the functionality of a mind map with a real geographical map or satellite image. These mashups of maps is excellent for a variety of uses whether or not a person is hiking off through the woods and needs some milestones identified along the way or even if they are going out of town to a convention and want to identify the convention center, hotels, meeting rooms, restaraunts and other attractions.
Putting the information relating to pinpointed items on a map is an excellent way to provide a lot of information in a rapid manner.

I’m working on just such a map myself for my local community. My mashup will feature a pinpoint for each home in our subdivision with a listing of the vehicles that reside there with make, model and license plate. We’ve experienced a bit of a crime spree recently in the Atlanta area and the local police are advising citizens to phone in and report cars that aren’t from the neighborhood.

These days however fewer people know their neighbors let alone all the cars in the neighborhood. But arming a neighborhood watch with a map listing the cars identified with a home can readily help people identify the residents from the miscreants that might be up to no good.

You can try it yourself - Make a Map Mashups and see some great examples of what can be done and the new tools available moving beyond Google Maps.

Technorati Tags: map mash ups, online map tools, online map software, neighborhood watch

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This entry was posted on Friday, September 15th, 2006 at 11:04 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.