Category Archives: maps

My commute as a metaphor for user-generated content

Posted on March 1, 2007 by Rakesh Agrawal

I was stuck on the Dulles Toll Road this morning because a car caught on fire a mile or so ahead of me. (Yes, that’s two back-to-back hellish commutes.) As I watched the helicopter hover above the car, I thought … Continue reading →

Posted in gps, maps, mobile, mobile search, satellite navigation, web 2, web 2.0, wireless, wireless data | 9 Comments

How much will my commute suck today? Ask Google

Posted on March 1, 2007 by Rakesh Agrawal

I was checking out Google Maps yesterday and noticed the addition of traffic to the map. It showed that traffic for the ride home was much worse than I’ve ever seen on a Wednesday night. Figuring it was a first-day … Continue reading →

Posted in aol, google, local search, maps, yahoo | 4 Comments

World Explorer: A new way to look at the world

Posted on January 19, 2007 by Rakesh Agrawal

The folks at Yahoo! Research have used flickr’s APIs to create a new way to look at the world. The TagMaps take tags from flickr and plot them on Yahoo! maps. The current implementation is slow and the display of … Continue reading →

Posted in city guides, flickr, geotagging, gps, local search, maps, travel | 3 Comments

Rooftops and Google Maps

Posted on November 29, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

I was flying into Atlanta yesterday and as the plane descended to the runway, I noticed that one of the buildings on the ground with a giant bullseye on it – Target. Next to it, there was a building with … Continue reading →

Posted in aol, google, local search, maps, yellow pages | 1 Comment

Abuse risks with Google click-to-call

Posted on November 20, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

R. Franklin pointed me to a blog entry by Lauren Weinstein about the potential risks of a service like Google’s click-to-call Because Google doesn’t verify that the number you enter belongs to you, it is easy to use the service … Continue reading →

Posted in google, local search, maps, yellow pages | Comments Off

Google Maps adds click-to-call

Posted on November 19, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

Google Maps now offers a free click-to-call service. When you see a phone number, you can click a “call” link, enter your phone number and Google will call you and the business. The feature worked flawlessly; my phone rang almost … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, google, local search, maps, yellow pages | 2 Comments

MapQuest brings back aerial views

Posted on October 8, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

After a long hiatus, MapQuest now has aerial views on its beta site. Long time online map users will remember that MapQuest had aerial views long before Google Maps existed. Unfortunately, they aren’t as good as what Google has now: … Continue reading →

Posted in aol, google, maps | 6 Comments

Public transit and online maps

Posted on October 2, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

Google Labs has expanded its transit planner service to include Eugene, Ore., Honolulu, Hi., Pittsburgh, Pa., Seattle, Wash. and Tampa, Fla. The service started last year in Portland, Ore. This slick service integrates with Google Maps and lets you plan … Continue reading →

Posted in google, local search, maps, microsoft, transit, web 2, web 2.0 | 3 Comments

MapQuest introduces draggable maps

Posted on September 29, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

MapQuest introduced their take on draggable maps. The maps themselves are nicer than Microsoft’s and Yahoo’s, but not at the same level as Google’s, both in terms of appearance and performance. One big disappointment: If you do a search using … Continue reading →

Posted in aol, maps, microsoft, web 2, web 2.0, yahoo | Comments Off

Geotagging the world with Flickr, part II

Posted on August 31, 2006 by Rakesh Agrawal

With the release of Flickr’s geotagging, I wanted to revisit the topic of personal maps. Now that people can geotag pictures, I want the ability to use that data on my maps. If I’m on Google Maps and pull up … Continue reading →

Posted in flickr, geotagging, google, maps | Comments Off