Google Maps

Google Maps (http://maps.google.com) is a virtual world map. You can travel to almost any spot on earth, zoom in, and see what it's like there (without all the extra expenses like flight tickets). Google combines such things as location names, satellite or terrain info, panorama photos from street level with data such as user reviews for restaurants, directions, and—for the United States—real-time traffic information. The search box on top is flexible enough so that you can search for both specific cities or countries as well as names of businesses, restaurants, and more.

Special layers—so-called KML (Keyhole Markup Language) files—can be displayed on top of Google Maps to add third-party information.

With a feature called My Maps, you can add your own markers, directions, or areas to Google Maps, and edit your own text for the marker's info box. Google also allows you to grab Google Maps as a programmable widget for your own blog or home page—this is the Google Maps API in action, which has spawned a great many "maps mashups" online.

NOTE

Google Maps is also available for mobile phones. This includes directions, and, for some cities in the United States, the display of real-time traffic data to help you avoid traffic jams. To download Google Maps for your phone or PDA, visit http://google.com/gmm from your phone's web browser. If your phone is supported, you'll be able to install it over the air.