Create & Embed Your Own Google Map

Location Maps

Location Maps allows anyone to easily create and display a Google Map of a single location on their own website or blog. There is even an option to include a Street View with the embedded map. Location Maps are free to create and embed for either commercial or non-commercial use.

Location Maps are very easy to create but also have a large number of customisation options. Users can define the height and width of their embedded map, the type of map marker that is shown on the map and the initial map view (road, satellite, hybrid or terrain).

Once you have designed your map all you have to do to include it on your own website is cut & paste a small piece of code.

What's Happening in Your City

StreetMavens

StreetMaven wants to help you connect with 'the real-time pulse of your city'. Using StreetMaven you can view photos, events and the real-time conversations in your area.

Once you have signed in and shared your location with StreetMaven you are presented with a Google Map of your location. Using the map you can view 'StreetTalk', Businesses, Events, Photos and other StreetMavens in your area. 

StreetMaven is currently in Beta. It looks like there will be a lot of social networking features, a gaming element where you can earn badges and a feature to send messages to other users. With so much going on the site could definitely be enhanced by a FAQ page.

Map Channels - Location Maps

Location Maps are simple controls to display a map of a single location. Street View can optionally be shown with the map.

Location Maps use the Google Maps v3 API and are provided free for commercial or non-commercial use.

No adverts are included in Location Maps. An 'embed' control links from the map to this page.

Control size, maptype, map controls, markers and more with the new Location Maps which utilizes the fast v3 of Google Maps API.

Technical Notes:

You may copy the embeddable Location Map HTML Page to your own website (change the url used within the embeddable HTML code).

• Location Maps use the new Google Maps v3 API. This is more compact so loads faster. 
• No API Key is needed for the Google Maps v3 API.
• The Street View is displayed without using Flash so no browser plugins are required.
• The 'fullscreen view' option included with the v2 API is not available. To see a larger street view click on the Google logo to see the street view at maps.google.com.

Full API reference can be found herehttp://www.mapchannels.com/LocationMaps.aspx#api

See http://www.mapchannels.com/LocationMaps.aspx for more details

Source: http://www.mapchannels.com/

Labels: Embed, Google Maps API, Location Maps, Map Channels,Maps, StreetView, v3

Google Map of Virginia's ARRA Spending

ARRA.Virginia.Gov

The State of Virginia has created an official website using Google Maps to help show where and how it is spending federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds.

The site initially uses a static image of a Google Map overlaid with an image map. The image map contains links that allow you to click on a locality to view the State Government Award details for that region.

When you click on a locality on the map you are taken to a dedicated page for that locality. The dedicated page includes a Google Map and the details of how and where federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds are being spent.

Also See

• USDA ARRA Projects Map - American Recovery Act Google Map
• Canada's Economic Action Plan Map
• NSW Government Stimulus Snapshots Map - How the NSW local government (AUS) is spending stimulus funds

Grindr - A Gay Location Based Service

Grindr

Grindr is a location based service for gay men. It is available for the iPhone and the Blackberry.

The application uses your current location to instantly connect you with other gay men in your area. When you launch Grindr you will be shown local guys (the closest appear first) and you can choose to view pictures, stats and their location on Google Maps.

Men who appear with a green dot are currently online and ready to chat. Those shown with a yellow star is a favorite and will always appear in your Grindr application.

Also See

• GayBarMaps
• ClubFly - Gay bar and club finder for the US
• GayScout - the international gay travel guide
• Seattle Gay Bars and Clubs - Google Maps Guide to gay Seattle

The Golf Courses layer returns to Google Earth

Back in March of this year, Google made some substantial changes to the "Places of Interest" layer. While it certainly had some nice new features, the majority of you weren't very happy with the changes.

A few days later, Google responded to your criticism and a few days after that they replaced most of the original layers.

However, one layer remained missing: Golf Courses. We wrote a blog entry back in June thatshowcased some alternatives, but none are as easy to use as the built-in layer. As announcedin the Google Earth Help Forum earlier this week, the layer has finally returned!

You can access the layer by going to the "Layers" tab on the left side of your Google Earth screen, then choosing [More] --> [Parks/Recreation Areas] --> [Golf Courses].

I'm not sure why it took so long to restore this layer, but it should certainly make golfers happy. Any other major layers still missing, or have they covered all of the layers that you care about?

Travel Warnings on Google Maps

UDBloggen

Sweden's Foreign Ministry has started a website of blogs by ministry employees. By hosting a number of personal blogs written by people working in the ministry the department hopes it will reach out to individuals and the media and keep them better informed about Swedish foreign policy. The hope is that the ministry's bloggers will lead to a more informal and faster communication of daily foreign policy work.

The new website includes a prominent Google Map of current content that is linked to a geographic area. The map shows the location of the ministry's bloggers who have recently posted,the location of embassies and any current advice about travelling to specific countries.

The content shown on the map can be refined by clicking on one of the tabs above the map. You can select to view the bloggers' posts, current travel advice or embassies. If you click on a map marker you are shown the title of the blog post, the date posted and a link to read the entry in full