9 Notable Maps
Monday, August 20, 2007
I've found that I blog a lot about maps, as evidenced by the tag cloud in the right rail, and I had to ask myself why. Because maps are a great way for journalists and designers to display information in a compact and visual way. The following Google maps are unique and well-presented and well...useful.
1. TaxiWiz estimates the cost of cab fare between two points and plots the route on a Google Map. The site covers nine cities including New York City, Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Toronto, San Diego and Vancouver and can be accessed on mobile devices.
2. Walk Score determines the "walkability" of a neighborhood by factoring nearby grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Walking, as the site says, is good for your health.
3. Boston University Maps More clever and user-friendly than the maps of my alma mater, BU's maps uses the net to map buildings, parking spaces, computer labs and a lot more.
More after the jump
4. In the wake of the Minneapolis bridge collapse, journalists everywhere scrambled to locate structurally deficient bridges in their area. US Bridge Map effectively categorizes where these bridges are, including those that are "functionally obsolete."
5. Oakland Crimespotting is engaging not only because of its volumes of data, but also the way that data is presented. 13 categories of crime are mapped and are scalable by time frame.
6. Incident1 is a similar crime map, but includes police, fire and 911 emergency call for the entire country. Its like having thousands of police scanners in one room at one time.
7. Wikisky has brought the planetarium to the internet with its interactive map of stars and constellations. Personally, I can only identify Orion, but I believe WikiSky could reveal the astronomer within me.
8. Bible Map breaks down the Bible by book and chapter and then plots the cities, regions and geographical features mentioned in the text. Very helpful for locating Gethsemane (Mark 14:32).
9. Tour the Town is an interactive, graphic-based map of Colonial Williamsburg that offers compelling details of the city's many homes and businesses.
1. TaxiWiz estimates the cost of cab fare between two points and plots the route on a Google Map. The site covers nine cities including New York City, Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Toronto, San Diego and Vancouver and can be accessed on mobile devices.
2. Walk Score determines the "walkability" of a neighborhood by factoring nearby grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Walking, as the site says, is good for your health.
3. Boston University Maps More clever and user-friendly than the maps of my alma mater, BU's maps uses the net to map buildings, parking spaces, computer labs and a lot more.
More after the jump
4. In the wake of the Minneapolis bridge collapse, journalists everywhere scrambled to locate structurally deficient bridges in their area. US Bridge Map effectively categorizes where these bridges are, including those that are "functionally obsolete."
5. Oakland Crimespotting is engaging not only because of its volumes of data, but also the way that data is presented. 13 categories of crime are mapped and are scalable by time frame.
6. Incident1 is a similar crime map, but includes police, fire and 911 emergency call for the entire country. Its like having thousands of police scanners in one room at one time.
7. Wikisky has brought the planetarium to the internet with its interactive map of stars and constellations. Personally, I can only identify Orion, but I believe WikiSky could reveal the astronomer within me.
8. Bible Map breaks down the Bible by book and chapter and then plots the cities, regions and geographical features mentioned in the text. Very helpful for locating Gethsemane (Mark 14:32).
9. Tour the Town is an interactive, graphic-based map of Colonial Williamsburg that offers compelling details of the city's many homes and businesses.
Labels: maps
3 Comments:
Thanks for the mention! I should note that Oakland Crimespotting is not a Google Map. The map tiles are from Microsoft Virtual Earth, and the display code is Modest Maps.
commented by 
Michal Migurski, 9:32 PM
Michal Migurski, 9:32 PM
Link doesn't work on WalkScore because of a typo. Nice list!
You might find boston.com's Boston Homicides 2007 Map interesting.
