Maps Photography Shack Guide
Maps Online Features
By Louis Myrandle
It is hard to keep up with Web 2.0 even if you are
reading computer blogs daily. Satellite aerial photography
has revolutionized maps by allowing close-up views of
mountaintops, city blocks and highways.
You will be able to look online to see if your friend’s
car is in the driveway before you go over, check highway
traffic before making your commute to work or scan city
streets to find parking in real-time. Some sites are
quicker to catch onto road map technology faster than
others, though. Here is a quick side-by-side view of
the four big players in mapping: Yahoo, Ask, Google
and MapQuest.
Avoiding Highways And Tolls
First let’s look at simple directions. That is why
most of us find driving directions online after all,
is it not? If you are worried about road hazards, construction
zones and thick traffic, then Yahoo Maps (www.maps.yahoo.com)
is good for that function. MapQuest (www.mapquest.com)
lets you check boxes to avoid highways and tolls, choose
the shortest distance or take the route with the shortest
time.
The user-friendly, simple nature of this site is also
a good perk for someone who wants their directions right
away. They also have recently added the drag-and-drop
function that Yahoo has had, which helps you navigate
around traffic obstructions. If you are walking or jogging,
then Ask (www.maps.ask.com)
is the only site that lets you plot your pedestrian
course.
Zoom In For Close Topographical Views
Google Maps (www.maps.google.com)
can zoom in for close topographical views of any continent.
To sum up, Yahoo is the best site when traffic or construction
sites are a concern, while MapQuest provides quick point-A-to-point-B
directions.
As far as personalization goes, you can sign in to
access special features at all the sites. Ask is innovative
in that you can find scenic walking or biking routes,
as well as driving. Signing up lets you save anything
from the web in folders, blog or email saved items and
access your saved items from any computer.
Email Directions And View Traffic Reports
With Yahoo Maps, you can email directions, rate businesses
and get access to your saved favorite places. Google
lets you create customized maps of your favorite places
to share with friends and family, adding your own photos,
videos and descriptive text as well. You are also able
to access links to maps within Gmail, which can recognize
and flag locations in an email. For these reasons, Google
is leading the pack in Web 2.0 customization options.
Another site not detailed here, but worth looking at,
is the newer Microsoft Windows Live Local (www.maps.live.com).
You can stick a pushpin on favorite locations, record
notes and upload pictures to your sites to save or share
with friends, which is sort of like the Google map creator
function.
You can also view traffic reports and get the clearest
route, explore collections of sightseeing landmarks
and tour 3-D cities. This new player seems to perceptibly
take the best of the other sites and do it better. As
you browse, you will notice that all the sites have
similar interfaces (except for that rebel, MapQuest)
but the subtle differences are what make people so adamant
about their favorite mapping engines.
About the Author:
Louis Myrandle has written a number of articles on digital
photography including Background
Photos, Upload
Your Picture, Freelance
Opportunities, Digital
Camera Photo, Stock
Photography, Wedding
Photography Tips, Wedding
Photography Package, Wedding
Photojournalism,
Photography School,
Professional
Wedding Photography, Digital
Wedding Photography.
Keep a lookout as more articles from this author on
this website in the near future.
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