You Too can embed YouTube on a Map

If you haven't seen the few maps with YouTube videos embedded, then here are a few links:

Real Housewives of Orange County
Thomas Jefferson's Monticello
Eastern Air Lines Sites
Kwik-E-Mart Locations

Now this feature is available to every Map Manager at Mapicurious.com. You need to find a video (It doesn't need to be your own, but it is always wise to ask permission), and copy the entry for URL from the YouTube site.

You'll get something like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYALZWFfPO0

Take the video id (the combination of letters and numbers after ?v=) and paste it into the new YouTube Video ID field when you are editing your map.

You should see the video come up when the map reloads.

Enjoy this feature, and let me see some cool maps that integrate video!

Thanks,
Maps

Don't Leave Your Points on the Internet

Look at all of these maps on Mapicurious! While it is wonderful to have all of these points of interests plotted on maps sitting on Mapicurious.com, it would be pointless if they just stayed on the web.

Now anyone with a GPS that supports the file exchange format called GPX (or the previously supported Garmin GPS's) can download the points to your own GPS. Then you can follow in the footsteps of the Map Manager, and actually visit these points. Click the links for Go to Garmin or GPX to get the files for each map.

If you have trouble with either the Garmin feature or GPX formats, please let me know.

Thanks,
Maps

What is an Anchor City?

When you create a map on Mapicurious, you are asked to choose an Anchor City. What is the significance of an Anchor City?

An Anchor City is a major destination or a well-known central point that most travellers can relate to. Larger cities like Los Angeles, London, New York might have many smaller Anchor Cities to choose from. Selecting the Anchor City that is closest is best for other users to find your map.

By default a map will center on a random location, so the Anchor City might not be the center of your map. If you desire that focus on your Anchor City, try zooming out on the map.

If you would like to add a city as an Anchor City, contact me.

Thanks,

Maps

How easy can maps be to make?

That is a question I've tried to answer for years, and I'm not sure the map making process can be made any easier.

A Map Manager has to formulate an idea, gather the data, and present the data in the context of the map. Accuracy is most important, as I've "not been on a digitized route" many times on inaccurate maps.

The first step is to develop your content idea. Look to your hobbies, interests, and your travels for inspiration. If this is your first map create one about the area you live.

Otherwise pick a location, event, or theme to center your map around. Having a clearly focused map helps you organize and prioritize data. And now you need to collect your information.

Write a short description of the map topic. On Mapicurious you will want to use this as the Map Description. You might also think of keywords for your map, based on your description. This "tagging" helps other Mapicurious users find your map via search or via navigation links.

Happy mapping,

Maps

Embed a Map in Your Blog

Why not share your map on a blog? Sometimes just a link to the map is appropriate, but you may want to display your map as an embedded map. If you are logged in and on your map, just copy and paste the code in the box labeled Add it as iFrame:

You might need to adjust the height and width attributes of the iframe to get the look you desire.

If you need additional help, just contact me.

Thanks,

Maps