Maps Yahoo Photography Shack Guide
Maps Yahoo Driving To Your Destination
By Louis Myrandle
Mapping your way from point A to point B used to be
a chore. You would have to look up the street name on
the map, match up the number and letter quadrant and
then look up the next location in the same way. You
would try to trace a line with a pencil and find alternate
routes, hoping to God there wasn't too much traffic
or construction obstructions.
Today, you just type an address into the search engine
at maps Yahoo (www.maps.yahoo.com)
and step-by-step directions pop up to guide you to your
destination, while showing you weather conditions, traffic
flow information and construction at the same time.
You can even bypass toll routes or highways, search
several different stops on your route and email the
directions to your cell phone. Getting around has never
been easier, and it is only the beginning.
Find Local Information About Businesses
One benefit of Yahoo Maps is that you can find local
information about businesses, restaurants, gas stations,
hotels, museums and more by typing in general search
terms for your city. You can access this information
through the driving directions page or visit directly
at www.local.yahoo.com.
Yahoo's Local Search listings mimic the Yellowpages,
but combine mapping capabilities, user-generated content
and reviews, photos and videos. To search, you just
need to know generally what you are looking for and
where (for instance: "best pizza in new york city")
and the search engine does the rest. Yahoo automatically
shows you other favorite restaurants as rated by other
Yahoo members and invites you to add your own reviews.
Most People Choose Almost Of Their Business Services
Within A Five Mile Radius
The maps Yahoo creates are not just valuable for drivers,
but they are also extremely salient for local business
owners. Studies reveal that people choose almost all
of their business services within a five-mile radius
from their home or place of employment. Therefore, using
mapping sites has become an ever-prevalent way to find
local information.
With the addition of consumer-generated reviews and
five-star rating systems, capitalizing on this trend
is essential. To get started, make sure your business
is listed with accurate information in the Yahoo Local
database (see the "Local Listings Center").
Submitting your information is straightforward and free,
although you will need to wait 3-5 business days for
final approval.
A Local Enhanced Listing
You will have the option of signing up for a "Local
Enhanced Listing" or a "Local Featured Listing,"
which are offered at a flat fee but will give your business
more prominent real estate on the site. You can also
advertise using pay-per-click ads on the site, geo-targeted
to your region.
The phrase "Mapping 2.0" is being thrown
around to describe recent innovations in the world of
online maps. You will notice many of these functions
on the maps Yahoo features. For instance, you can now
manipulate maps by dragging, dropping and zooming with
your mouse or arrow keys.
Changing Map Types
You can also use a number of widgets to change the
map type from street maps to satellite maps to hybrid
maps. You can search local businesses based on user-generated
reviews, searching by rating if you so desire. You can
right-click to set a way-point and get a map to any
marker you set on the map.
Today, many users are creating "mashups"
through the Yahoo Maps Developer APIs (using Adobe Flash,
Ajax JavaScript or Simple XML format). Yahoo is also
incorporating data from Flickr users and www.upcoming.org
to add more value to their site.
About the Author:
Louis Myrandle has written a number of articles on digital
photography including Background
Photos, Upload
Your Picture, Freelance
Opportunities, Stock
Photography, Wedding
Photography Tips, Wedding
Photography Package, Wedding
Photojournalism, Canon
EOS Digital,
Photography School,
Photographer Wedding, 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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