Ever since the newspapers, telephone
directories and even dictionaries went
online, it was only a matter of time
before atlases and maps would find their
way into cyberspace. And it is no longer
news. Internet maps have been around
for close to a decade now. But the kinds
of internet maps that are available
online only seem to be getting better
and better!
Take Yahoo maps for instance. It
is one of the oldest Internet maps
online. And the capabilities and features
of these comprehensive internet maps
only continues to grow as time passes.
First, they could be zoomed in and
out to see the entire lay of the land.
Next, streets and roads were made
visible, when available. Next, the
internet maps were expanded in scope
to cover not just America, but several
other cities in the world. And finally,
the internet maps have been embedded
with smart technology to make them
relate everything from traffic reports
to weather conditions at any given
place at any given time.
As a result of all these innovations,
a whole new world of advertising possibilities
has opened up. Cyber space and more
specifically Internet maps have become
prime real estate as far as advertisers
are concerned. For websites merely
providing a link to yahoo maps to
show their location, internet maps
have been used (some would say exploited)
to become online advertising avenues
that peddle several products and services
to site visitors. And each time one
of those visitors actually uses a
producer service highlighted on your
bit of the Internet map, you get paid!
One of the finest Internet maps that
has emerged in recent times if Google
Earth. Of course, this is more of
a three dimensional globe than a map,
but it broadly serves the same purpose.
What makes Google Earth a really collaborative
Internet map is the fact that users
worldwide, come together to update
and present various landmarks, information
and even services from all over the
globe. For instance, a feature that
continues to make Google Earth a reliable
internet map is the fact that real
people, like you and me, have posted
their travel experiences, suggestions,
photographs and even web cams at various
landmarks on the 3D map to inform
and educate others. This collaboration
gives this internet map a truly global
appeal and makes it that much richer
since the vast majority of the content
is user defined. As opposed to the
staid and structured content found
on other internet maps, if at all.
As GIS tools become smaller and smaller
(the latest high end cell phones now
come with in-built GIS modules/readers)
and the Internet continues to invade
all spheres of our lives, all of us
will come to rely more and more on
internet maps for guidance and information.
Who knows, the more we use it, the
less time that we will lose from searching
for people, places and information.
Productivity will increase and things
will become dependable once again.
And that is not such a bad thing after
all!
