Mapping the Noosphere

Everything in the world manifests itself on the surface of the earth. And even though others have mapped the world — Yahoo, Mapquest etc etc — it appears to me that the Google machine is the front-runner. Google Maps Mania is a blog devoted to hacks which increase the scope and utility of Google Maps. (I would mention Google Earth but I am Mac-based and the service is not available for Macs, though I have heard rumors that it is coming soon.) In any case, with Google Maps (let alone Google Earth) I wonder what is happening to the academic study of geography. I suspect that the field is likely to be dramatically energized.

Serendipitously, I found this lovely link.

(click to enlarge.)

Comments

[Joseph LeBlanc]

If you're looking for driving directions, be sure to check out the new Yahoo Maps beta too: http://maps.yahoo.com/beta. It's Flash-based, so it's a little slower, but I find the directions are are much more forgiving with the addresses than Google's. Google seems to screw up on a lot of Arlington addresses.

Of course, for extensions and clever hacks like the one you've pointed out, I think Google will be tops for some time :)

[Dustin]

For a great local hack, check out http://www.busmonster.com/. It has bus stops, bus routes, live bus location data, alarms, traffic cameras and some other transportation goodies. In addition, I've seen some of the stuff that the developer is building for the next version and it is only going to get better!