* Some neat Google Map mash-ups
Google’s forays into universal domination have yielded more than just a jump in its advertising revenue and some cute toys. While Google desktop and the Google browser search bar are impressive what has really fascinated me is the Google Maps API.
This interface into the Google mapping system is richly featured and cleverly designed to the extent that third parties are starting to create novel interfaces for the system. This kind of activity, third parties creating new uses by blending technologies together, is now becoming known as a “mash-up” (we used to call this kind of thing a “hack” … ho-hum).
By way of example, I just discovered a neat Google Maps API mash-up, by Alan Taylor.
This tool displays either a small panel with satellite photo or a map in the center of a larger panel that shows the opposite format of the central image. Drag the image in the either panel and the content pans accordingly. But when you stop dragging the other panel will move to match the same center. You can adjust the transparency of the central panel from zero to 100%.
As a tool for exploring geography this is amazing and a very clever use of multiple interpretations of the same data.
Another mash-up is the Google News Map by Douwe Osinga an employee of Google who wrote the very good book “Google Hacks” (O’Reilly).
Google News Map overlays a map of the world with text boxes each displaying one of the top news items from Google News Headlines. Each box is approximately centered on the geographic location given in each story. The source code for this tool is available here.
There are now scores of mash-ups based on Google Maps and many of them could add real value to your next Web application. If you come across any Web service mash-ups based on APIs from Google or anyone else that you think are good, please drop me a note.
