Inside Mapicurious

Domestic US Airlines as iPhone Apps

2010-09-02T09:27:00.000-04:00

UPDATED 9/2/10

As a frequent traveler, I have determined that a nice compact iPhone application can make travel smoother by putting personalized flight data in the palm of your hand. So I went about loading all the airline's iPhone apps, and what-do-you-know? They largely don't exist.

AirTran - sorry no iPhone app, and no mobile site
Alaska - iPhone app
American - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site
Continental - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site
Delta - iPhone app or use their mobile site
Frontier - sorry no iPhone app, and no mobile site
Hawaiian - sorry no iPhone app, and no mobile site
JetBlue - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site
Midwest - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site
Southwest - iPhone app
United - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site or flight lookup mobile site
US Airways - sorry no iPhone app, use their mobile site
Virgin America - sorry no iPhone app, and no mobile site

One exception is the Oneworld Alliance iPhone app that supports American Airlines.

When you look at what the state of the travel economy has been, even with a brighter airline outlook; you wonder what airlines are doing to put paying passengers into more seats.

So here is a simple case of why every single airline above should have an iPhone app:

Rely on this number or anyone else's, but Apple has sold 50 million iPhones. Not all in the US...but AT&T activated 2.7 million in the last quarter ending March 2010.

You can do the math on how many early adopters traded up, how many people got tired of AT&T service issues, but any person that has eyes knows - there are a bunch of people carrying an iPhone nowadays.

On my last flight, I estimate there were 1.5 iPhones per row of the Delta B757. With 33 rows, that comes down to approximately 50 iPhones out of 162 seats - or roughly 1/3 of the aircraft. There was of course 1 Microsoft Kin, because he sat next to me, but that is statistically insignificant, right?

Let's compare that with the average domestic passenger enplanements for the 12 months between April 2009 and March 2010...51.6 million per month (Bureau of Transportation Statistics).

We need some more math here, based on my experience, most enplanements are double counts because most people fly roundtrips....so 25 million or so unique passengers a month, which is a number comparable to the number of domestic iPhones. So, I think, my estimate of how many iPhones on that plane was low.

In the gate area waiting on flights I see people mucking about with their iPhones, but they probably aren't turning to Twitter or Facebook or an airline blog for FLIFO.

Now that you may be convinced, here are some basics for any airline iPhone application:

1. Persistent identity storage. I don't want to spend 5 minutes signing in at least twice a week to access personalized data. There are too many examples to list here of persistent identity storage on the iPhone.

2. Contextual guidance within and around airports. Has anyone ever seen the iPhone app Geodelic? They have an Experience set up for the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. This is just a start: guide me to your ticket counters, events you sponsor in my current city, to sweetheart deals you have with airport service firms like Park-N-Fly.

3. Contextual guidance within the plane. Tell me what kind of plane I'm on, tell me about my seat. Show me a safety video...I've seen this one at least 100 times, and I would watch it again because it's funny.

4. Contextual guidance within the flight. Point out things on the ground during the flight: Here is an example from the 1940s that we put on Mapicurious: Eastern Air Lines Route Map. This describes in little tidbits about the cities you may fly over. Remember, you can save this info to the device similarly to the persistent identity storage. Another one...Let me buy food items and duty free (where appropriate)...you already let me surf the net.

5. Travel tips. Here's an inventory of what you know about me: My flight, the weather, how many bags I checked, how many bags others have checked, my boarding order, my frequent flier data, my aircraft, my origin and destination, and how much I paid. Use these to my advantage, and I will be a happy flier.

6. Caching of travel data. Sometimes you don't have wifi onboard. But I still would like the data.

Additionally, what we already know about iPhone apps is simple:

1. It can be a wrapper of your existing mobile site.
2. You will receive analytics that are probably better than your current ones.
3. You probably have a developer on staff that can program it.
4. It can be silently soft launched, or through you viral network and social media hounds.
5. It provides a better mobile experience than the mobile site.
6. 1/3 of the passengers on your next flight will be carrying an iPhone, not a KIN.

Bottom line is this: I throw away your constant credit card offers. I happen to already carry your card. I don't like it when the cheap, non-traveler guy gets first class upgrades due to his credit card spending habits versus me flying your airline constantly.

Spend that money using this implementation of consumer technology to better connect with the people that give you money for your core business...air travel.

Thanks,

Maps

A little disclosure: I don't work for any airline, but I do travel frequently - but not like George Clooney. I've flown all of the above airlines except: Virgin America, Hawaiian, and AirTran.

A 3 Step Guide to Enable Location for Your Business

2010-07-21T13:50:00.002-04:00

How do you take advantage of the Location craze?

Here are 3 steps:

1. http://mapicurious.blogspot.com/2008/10/step-1-prepare-your-locations-listing.html
2. http://mapicurious.blogspot.com/2008/10/step-2-add-your-lat-lng-to-your.html
3. http://mapicurious.blogspot.com/2008/10/step-3-make-your-business-show-in.html

Thanks,

Maps

Gigapan Panoramas of Bora Bora and Tahiti

2010-07-14T09:17:00.005-04:00

Traveling is what we do at Mapicurious, and we most recently traveled to the island of Bora Bora for a nice getaway. What is there to do in Bora Bora if you run a site about maps?.....well, mapping of course.

Here are a few links to Gigapans done during our stay in Bora Bora:

The US forces established a naval base on the island during WWII to protect a shipping lane between the US and Australia. One activity is to visit the 4 remaining naval gun emplacements on the island. Here is a view from one of those:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50888/

The largest town on the island is Vaitape. Here is a panorama of the town taken from a private dock.
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50537/

We drove around the island looking for excellent spots for good shots of the island. Here are a few:

Mt. Otemanu and Mt Pahia:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50291/

Another mountain shot:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50227/

Matera Beach. The only public beach on Bora Bora:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50439/

We travel in style at Mapicurious. Here is the view from our deck in the overwater bungalow in which we stayed. Thanks to the Hilton Bora Bora Nui, we appreciated this view during our stay. Disclosure: Hilton did not sponsor this stay.
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50505/

The resort is on an island on the other side of the main Bora Bora island, and is a treat to walk around and soak up the beauty. Here is a bunch of other shots we captured just walking around, exploring:

Black rocks and bungalows:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50421/

Overwater bungalows:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50398/

Flowers:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50354/

Between the bungalows on land:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50330/

From the water tower (secret spot):
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50301/

From the spa:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50216/

From the walk up to the spa:
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/50228/

Hope you enjoy. If you take panoramas, you have the ability to embed them into Mapicurious maps. Just let us know if you have questions.

Thanks,

Maps

Hey Foursquare: Just what does it take to be Mayor?

2010-04-29T10:00:00.001-04:00

Update: On the 59th check in....I'm now the Mayor!!!! Here is the simple secret: Your account must have a profile image. My account lacked that image on the 58th checkin, but had one on the 59th. Thanks to Tim Barsness for the tip off, and proving that he knows a lot about leveraging social media.

This morning I checked-in to Chick-Fil-A for the 45th time. Your first thought may be, "WTF!?" either because someone has been to The Chick that many times or that person isn't the Mayor on Foursquare. You may miss the saddest part, because there are two other guys that visit this Chick-Fil-A more times than me. At least according to Foursquare.

When I first started playing Foursquare, my goal was to be a Mayor before I quit playing and move on to the next great thing. I met people that rode by establishments on buses or walked down a street checking-in to every venue they passed. This is "cheating", but I know from my own LBS experience that GPS accuracy comes at a price that mobile game developers would rather avoid for playability sake.

Now I come to this 45th check-in milestone, and no mayorship. I'm not upset but I am unsatisfied - two others have been anointed Mayor in my time checking-in to The Chick. So the following must be a description of how I avoided being the Mayor.

What!? Me not the Mayor?

I couldn't believe that I could check-in 10 times and not be the Mayor of a place that had no Mayor. Epic Fail!

I thought if you visited the location more than others, you automatically received the mayorship for the location. I started to wonder if my AT&T 3G service was bonkers when playing Foursquare.

I also figured my GPS needed to warm up adequately - so I stood in the parking lot a few mornings to get an accurate reading (according to my own app).

I eventually noticed the location they had, while it's address was correct, the geocoding was slightly off.

Reaching out to Foursquare

My next move was to tweet some difficulty with Foursquare, and I figured this would open a communication path on the specific problem I'm having:

Kudos to their social media monitoring - because I received the fastest response ever. One of this blog's commenters will probably say this was an automated response...but I was impressed:

After that response I tried to submit a problem with the venue via their reporting email, however I received no response. Maybe they don't have my email address. I know this is a free game with unpaid support - I just had different expectations given my Twitter experience.

It would be helpful to let them know the location of the venue needs to be corrected. The location actually is plotted in the wrong area of the massive parking lot where Chick-Fil-A sits.

The Squeeze, The Squirt, and The Scam?

Trying to be the Mayor I discovered The FourSqueeze. My friends aware of my quest with access to this location kept telling me they were checking-in there, and that was why I didn't receive the coveted Mayor. I termed the pressure to check-in because your friends are trying to grab your potential mayorship as The Squeeze. Maybe Foursquare could add this competition awareness component to their game - it would help me distract my friends from my Mayorship.

After not getting success I encountered The FourSquirt. I mean I visited this location about 75 times, but only checked-in a portion because it just didn't seem to have an impact on the game. The times I go to a location where I've previously checked-in and not checked-in I termed as The Squirt. If Foursquare could remind me to check-in when I get near the location in question that would help me dominate my potential competitors. It might help with the cheating too.

And then finally - What kind of campaign do you have to run to be a Mayor? The FourScam. I use "scam" completely lightheartedly - and here are the emoticons to prove it ;) ;) ;) ;) I just want to know what more I need to do to accomplish my only goal with Foursquare, for now I'm the chump at this table. I've checked-in 45 times and not received a Mayorship!

Yo bro, you are STILL not the Mayor!

Guess how surprised I was to see Edgar L as the Mayor on my 34th check-in! It instantly gave me this brilliant idea to start showing the Mayor photo to the Chick-Fil-A staff. Only one said he might be a familiar face. I will say I explained Foursquare about 5 times to everyone - and thankfully I had a friendly reputation before showing my investigative skills.

And then the biggest surprise this morning - Edgar L totally dethroned! This guy Jason F shows up overnight to claim the title. Hey Jason F: Did you see me at The Chick today or the day before? I'm now looking for you dude! And my employee friends are on the lookout for you too. Your days are numbered as Mayor here...that is if 50 check-ins gets the job done. ;)

So here is my Foursquare offer

If either or both Mayors reach out to me, I'll be more than happy to buy them each a Chick-Fil-A lunch and learn their Foursquare secrets. We can term this as the Chick-Fil-A Summit.

If one of the Foursquare team members needs a lunch there too, I'm happy to oblige them as well.

And finally: I'll be at Wherecamp this April in Mountain View. I'll pitch a session about my experience with LBS games - and maybe a Foursquare-ite will be there to chat. By then I hope to be Mayor of Chick-Fil-A!

Here are a couple of disclosures

You may have encountered similar issues, so I'm disclosing some additional information if you want to correlate your experience.

1. Twitter or Facebook are not linked to my Foursquare account.
2. I don't have a photo on my Foursquare profile.
3. I only offered a tip for the location after I was passed over for Mayor the first time.
4. I don't think the venue has ever been closed on Foursquare, otherwise my check-ins would not be as high.
5. I think the app may have run into some problems, when you see the check-ins with a big blank page.

Pictures of my other checkins

So I didn't capture every picture of each checkin, but I was able to get most. I was in total shock this morning when there was a new mayor, but not me (picture at top of post).

A Small Guide to Mapicurious

2010-04-28T15:46:00.006-04:00

As we travel around at Mapicurious, we need efficient ways to create maps on the site - and quickly share points of interest.

Here is our guide to how we do it:

1. We have Twitter and Foursquare accounts. We can tweet and checkin from places around the city during our data collection. These geotagged apps simplify collection of known places like restaurants and bars.

2. We use our Around Mapicurious app for iPhone (available on Android as well). This lets us know what we have already mapped. No reason to add duplicate points.

3. What's in our bag today? iPhone 3GS and Garmin Colorado 400t. We take advantage of the lower resolution camera on the iPhone, versus carrying the N95 8GB. For quick mapping, these tools are the best.

4. We use the Foursquare and Twitter mapping methods to get a map, and use our other tools (Garmin and iPhone) to enhance the location data. It can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes to create a complete map.

5. Once in Mapicurious, we can easily expose our map data to:

a. The Mapicurious.com site.
b. Google Earth for detailed analysis.
c. Our Garmin nuvi for road trips.
d. GeoRSS to add into a few random GPSes we have laying around the place. (Sometimes we get bored too.)
e. Layar AR browsing app on the iPhone.
f. OpenStreetMap because we see value participating in the larger geo community.

And now you know.

Maps

Mapicurious now on Layar

2010-04-28T15:42:00.002-04:00

Need to find Mapicurious points of interest in an augmented reality world?

Mapicurious just published a layer on the Layar platform. Add it to your phone by searching for Mapicuriosities, and have fun.

Thanks,

Maps

How we address location privacy in our Around service

2010-03-18T19:35:00.004-04:00

Concerned about your privacy using our location aware browser application for Apple iPhone 3GS and Android phones?

Don't be. We place a big green notice about your location privacy clearly on our application's main user interaction page.

We think other services should do this as clear as we do.

What do you think?

Thanks,

Maps

Announcing GeoJSON Support for all maps

2010-01-26T11:56:00.006-05:00

From a technical perspective, Mapicurious offers the ability to enter location data, present the locations on a branded map - and retrieve those locations with web services reading KML, GPX, and GeoRSS.

And now you can pull information in a GeoJSON from Mapicurious.

You can access the GeoJSON feed for each map by styling a request like:

http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/844/locations.json

Enjoy,

Maps

Mapicurious view on APIs

2009-12-30T16:38:00.005-05:00

Over the years, we have spent a lot of development time integrating selected APIs into Mapicurious. Because APIs tend to change over time, we spend even more time updating our code. Sometimes writing code specifically to integrate with others' APIs is just a waste of time.

Do you feel the same?

We believe integration of Mapicurious into your software projects should be easier, therefore we offer the following as "our API":

- Each map has a GPX file - Access an example map: http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/483/locations.gpx

- Each map has a KML file - Access an example map: http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/483/locations.kml

- Each map has a GeoRSS file - Access an example map: http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/483/locations.rss

Our API philosophy is simple:

If you already have a geo based application you can probably read one or all of those formats, and read the useful data.

One more thing - We ask that you respect the attribution of data from Mapicurious by recognizing the author's name and Mapicurious.com with a link provided back to the author's map.

Thanks,

Maps

Be a Fan of us on Facebook

2009-12-10T18:25:00.001-05:00

We may be late to the party on this one, but we encourage you to become a fan of Mapicurious on Facebook.

Step 3: Make your business show in Google Earth

2009-10-29T21:02:00.001-04:00

Have you seen Google Earth?

Google Earth lets a user cruise in the air over the entire world seeing details such as terrain and 3D buildings. Many businesses have listings inside of Google Earth to help customers spot their locations.

And some others take extreme measures:

A few months ago I noticed a large bullseye on top of a building. If you guessed this was a Target retail store, then you get the prize. It probably cost them a substantial sum to paint that bullseye, but everyone will definitely know it houses a Target store.

You probably are not that lucky:

1. Your rooftop may be shared with other businesses.
2. Your rooftop may not be very big.
3. You may not be legally allowed to paint on top of the roof.
4. Your logo is not a bullseye.

So what could give you the same benefits with no cost?

Storing a file on your web server that essentially does the same. We've included the code to copy, change, and save on your on server. You may even place a link to it to help people spot you in Google Earth.

Below is KML or GML - the language of Google Earth:

Copy and paste the contents into a file labeled - YourBusinessName.kml

Look for the [square brackets]. Replace with your information. Remember to get rid of those square brackets when you are done.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<kml xmlns="http://earth.google.com/kml/2.2">
<Document>
<name>[The Name of Your Business]</name>
<Style id="sn_shopping">
<IconStyle>
<scale>1.2</scale>
<Icon>
<href>http://maps.google.com/mapfiles/kml/shapes/shopping.png</href>
</Icon>
<hotSpot x="0.5" y="0" xunits="fraction" yunits="fraction"/>
</IconStyle>
<ListStyle>
</ListStyle>
</Style>
<Style id="sh_shopping">
<IconStyle>
<scale>1.4</scale>
<Icon>
<href>http://maps.google.com/mapfiles/kml/shapes/shopping.png</href>
</Icon>
<hotSpot x="0.5" y="0" xunits="fraction" yunits="fraction"/>
</IconStyle>
<ListStyle>
</ListStyle>
</Style>
<StyleMap id="msn_shopping">
<Pair>
<key>normal</key>
<styleUrl>#sn_shopping</styleUrl>
</Pair>
<Pair>
<key>highlight</key>
<styleUrl>#sh_shopping</styleUrl>
</Pair>
</StyleMap>
<Placemark>
<name>[The Name of Your Business]</name>
<LookAt>
<longitude>[Enter your longitude value here. Probably negative if you are in the US.]</longitude>
<latitude>[Enter your latitude value here.]</latitude>
<altitude>0</altitude>
<range>156086.0671498432</range>
<tilt>0</tilt>
<heading>-1.107010360583494</heading>
</LookAt>
<styleUrl>#msn_shopping</styleUrl>
<Point>
<coordinates>[Enter your longitude value here. Probably negative if you are in the US.],[Enter your latitude value here.],0</coordinates>
</Point>
</Placemark>
</Document>
</kml>

Where could you take this?

Think about expanding your location with a polygon to outline your property or space. Enhance by building a 3d storefront using Google SketchUp.

Enjoy,

Maps

New Printable Maps at Mapicurious

2009-10-26T01:03:00.002-04:00

Ever needed to print one of our maps, and take it with you on your travels?

We definitely wished we could print a neat map to help us find some of our historical points of interest among other locations.

So we built a printable map.

Find the "Print This Map" link on any map to get the printable view.

Check out a couple of examples:

Social Circle, GA
Battle of Antietam - USA Battle Markers Volume 1

Thanks,

Maps

New Twitter Integration at Mapicurious

2009-10-26T00:55:00.003-04:00

We have two new ways to use Mapicurious together with Twitter:

1. Map makers can broadcast a link to their maps by using the Share on Twitter link. Mapicurious generates a standard update to Twitter that you can edit before updating your followers. Here's a sample:

Check out my map on Mapicurious: A Random Walk Around Rochester New York http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/23

2. Any map user can click the Share on Twitter link for each location. Mapicurious generates a standard update to Twitter that you can edit before updating your followers. Here's another sample:

Found @Mapicurious - Nick Tahou Hots II on map http://www.mapicurious.com/maps/23

So tweet away! And if you are not already following @mapicurious - here is your invitation.

Thanks,

Maps

Welcome to Mapicurious 1.5

2009-10-23T22:17:00.003-04:00

We've updated our site to a version 1.5. We are slowly passing out updated credentials to our existing map makers.

Thanks,

Maps

Great Christmas Lights Map - Start the Season off right!

2008-12-09T10:14:00.002-05:00

We are excited to see the 2008 Bay Area CA Christmas Lights map on Mapicurious.com. Great details and shots for each one of these electric tributes. Thanks to user Regenegade for creating this map.

You have to check it out:

2008 Bay Area CA Christmas Lights

This information will be searchable on the mobile and Dash Mapicuriosities applications later today.

If you have a map idea, it is easy to register and create Christmas lights maps or any other map - and download them to your GPS.

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious becomes social with Google Friend Connect

2008-12-06T16:32:00.002-05:00

We make maps for people at Mapicurious.com.

These people can view the map on Mapicurious, can download the points to their own GPS, view the points on their Dash GPS, access the points on your mobile phone, view the map in Google Earth, explore zoomable panoramas from Gigapan....and now interact with other Mapicurious users with Google Friend Connect.

Hope you enjoy the experience.

Thanks,

Maps

Want to get a GPS for the Holidays? Mapicurious Recommends...

2008-11-17T11:53:00.002-05:00

We are starting to answer some questions about what GPS to purchase this Holiday season. Our disclosure here is that we have received zero devices for free, zero money from any manufacturer, and we have personally used every device type listed.

1. Garmin - These are the best devices for US drivers all around. Easy to use, very intuitive, and a breeze for senior drivers. Updates are free. Traffic is available but will not be as good as Dash below.

2. Dash - Recently the Dash company announced that they no longer will produce the hardware, but license the software. Buy this for real time traffic flows and two way location based applications (Yes - some of these are Mapicurious produced!). You should be able to pick up the old hardware at Fry's and Amazon until sold out.

3. Magellan - Recently the quality of these have decreased, and customer service is impossible if you do run into problems. Some first time GPS users are satisfied with Magellans on US roads.

4. TomTom - If you are a US driver avoid these devices. Road announcements are poor, directions are poorly timed, and menus too confusing. We are willing to sell you a used top-end one if you must have one from this manufacturer.

How to use this list:

1. If it is not on this list, keep your money in your pocket.

2. If you are at a store (let's say Best Buy or RadioShack - sorry Circuit City - you closed all of your stores around us.) and looking at a $199 device from each of the above manufacturers, choose in the order of this list.

3. Please send us your feedback or issues with any of the manufacturers.

Thanks,

Maps

Step 2: Add your Lat Lng to Your Register Receipts

2008-10-29T23:52:00.003-04:00

The other day I found a receipt from a trip to Tokyo, Japan. If you have ever been to Tokyo before (especially if you do not speak the language) you know how confusing it can be to find locations.

Well this merchant placed their location's coordinates right on the receipt, where we would normally find the telephone number. What a great idea!

Here's why:

1. As a customer, I can program these coordinates into my mobile phone or GPS device and always have your exact location handy without the trouble of geocoding.

2. As a business traveler, I can reconstruct where I spent my expense account dollars. Which might reveal what I purchased when my memory is fuzzy.

3. As a tourist, I can easily map what I visited.

4. Even as a foreigner who cannot speak or read Japanese, I could tell you where I bought this really cool electronic gadget.

So on any available line on your receipt, program your cash register to output your latitude and longitude along with the important information from Step 1.

Thanks,

Maps

Step 1: Prepare your locations' listing data

2008-10-23T12:32:00.001-04:00

At the very least a listing should include common locative information. Here is your checklist:

1. The latitude and longitude of your store's front door location. Why the front door? Many times your address might be 1500 Main Street Suite 221, and the shopping center is a small city, the parking lot is huge, and your storefront is a needle-in-the-haystack.

It is one thing to be on the property, and another to be inside your location.

Locative technologies are supposed to save you time, and knowing how to get within 10 feet of your front door is key. Your next customer could be using his/her cell phone to pinpoint your location.

2. Local phone number - If you forget the address (assuming you already supplied the latitude and longitude) a phone number is all you need. Remember - most of your customers carry a cell phone.

3. Your street address - You can try this on any PND - type in your store address, and let the PND navigate you to your store. You might be surprised to find out the address alone could be off a significant distance.

An address can be converted to coordinates by "geocoding", however this is an estimate of your location only. Double check the address by plotting your address with Google Earth.

4. Your website URL - Hopefully you have some ways to engage your customers here, but since Personal Navigation Devices (PNDs) are more connected (think cell phones) this is critical information about your business that might not be able to list on the GPS.

Supply a mobile optimized site, not your multimedia heavy regular dotcom site.

5. Description - Break down your location into discreet bites of information:
- 1 sentence for what you do (sell new and used sports equipment cheap)
- 1 for particulars on your location (far left of Park Lane Shopping Center)
- best days and time to shop (open M-F 9a-5p, closed the entire month of December, etc)

This should be enough for a good listing. Did we forget anything?

Is your business under-represented?

2008-10-12T15:45:00.000-04:00

Do you own a personal navigation device or PND (Think Garmin, Magellan, Mio, TomTom, or your gps mobile phone)?

Conduct a point of interest search and notice Starbucks, Subways, and McDonalds are easy to find. How about your own business, where is it listed?

Where it ranks on the list may determine whether a PND guided user finds Subway over your location.

Typically GPS hardware/software manufacturers license these business based POIs from NAVTEQ, TeleAtlas, or the like. These providers are always looking for unique, local results - and it is much easier to collect POIs 1000 at a time. Some of you may have working SEO programs to help web searchers find you, but what about strategies to help people find you in the real world using PNDs?

If you have 1000+ locations I doubt you are reading this blog. Companies like NAVTEQ, TeleAtlas, and MapQuest have probably already reached out to you. So as a smaller operator how do you make your business stand out in the searchable list on a PND?

We at Mapicurious want to give you ideas for marketing your business via personal navigation device in a multi-part series.

For starters let us introduce a definition:

Personal Navigation Device (PND) - Software and hardware to receive a location and guide the user between two points in the physical world. You know these as Garmins, Magellans, Dashes, Mios, and Navigons. You should know that Nokias, iPhones, and Blackberrys fall into this category as well.

It is very possible that the customer in your store now has one of these.

Second, let's prepare a few answers to critical questions making your business stand out?

1. How many times have you felt your location is a disadvantage compared to your customers?

2. Do customers mention they had difficulty finding a location of yours?

3. How much is it worth if a customer finds your location on their PND with an attractive amount of information, and bypass your competitors to visit?

4. Ask your friends and customers, what brand of PND they have.

We'll use these answers in the next installment.

Thanks,

Maps

Atlanta Gas Crisis Line Spotter

2008-09-29T11:48:00.003-04:00

Exclusively on the Dash GPS - Drive around and submit places you see a line for gas. A line means that station has the valuable resource.

View the results on the map.

A Dash user simply adds the application via their account at my.dash.net, clicks the application button when near a gas station, adds the station name (you can even add price), and submits to Mapicurious.

Looking for other ideas to alleviate the panic of looking for gas. My sipper is OK for the moment.

Thanks,

Maps

Testing Vimeo HD video with Mapicurious

2008-09-28T23:52:00.001-04:00

Here is the first video to Vimeo. Next stop - a map on the site.

Inspiration Point from Mapicurious on Vimeo.

Can anyone recommend good Haunted Houses?

2008-09-28T20:39:00.002-04:00

I want to do a tour of Haunted Houses with Mapicurious? We are looking for locations to scout. Any readers with tips would be great.

Thanks,

Maps

Helping Pakistan Find the Terrorists/Taliban?

2008-09-22T18:54:00.003-04:00

A funny thing happened when I stepped away from the computer this evening:

Watching an interview by NBC's Anne Curry with Pakistan's President Ali Asif Zardari on the Nightly News, he proposed a simple solution to stymie the terrorists in Pakistan: “Give us the intelligence, and we will do the job."

As NBC showed nice Google Earth imagery over Pakistan, I thought about Tim O'Reilly's suggestion last week at the Web 2.0 Expo "...to ask yourself, are we working on the right things?"

So with all the crowd sourcing, the updated disaster imagery of hurricane and fire impact areas, and the mantra of "Do no evil" of Google - Why can't we crowd source the study of imagery of the Pakistan hills?

With enough eyeballs on decent satellite imagery, we could spot every frickin movement of cows, camels, clouds, and cohorts.

Then we could give Pakistan all the intelligence it supposedly needs to capture the bad guys.

Could we accomplish this without endangering the good guys?

Just thinking...

A little disclosure - I did recently see Morgan Spurlock's Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden?

How do you get your business on a GPS?

2008-09-09T18:07:00.002-04:00

Hopefully you have harder questions for us at Mapicurious, but we assist businesses getting their locations onto various GPS devices.

Contact us at maps at mapicurious dot com for more info. Use the subject "Get my business on a GPS".

Thanks,

Maps

My locations are not showing on my map!

2008-09-02T12:33:00.003-04:00

To improve performance of the site, many things are kept in memory to speed retrieval.

This presents a small issue for the Map Makers who are actively entering data on Mapicurious, but make it faster for users of the map.

If you are seeing this on your map, just be patient and refresh your browser.

Thanks,

Maps

Demo of Mapicurious on the Dash GPS

2008-07-02T06:53:00.000-04:00

Get Mapicurious LBS on your Dash GPS

2008-07-01T14:33:00.002-04:00

Mapicurious has released the Mapicuriosities search service on the Dash GPS.

Find a large selection of content entered on Mapicurious.com directly from your Dash GPS. Great for explorers who need to know what is around you.

If you have trouble finding or using the service, send us an email.

Thanks,

Maps

Real Housewives of Atlanta Map

2008-06-29T13:52:00.002-04:00

Just to answer fans of the show -

"Yes, we will have a map about the show."

Thanks,

Maps

Need a Map? We need only USD $100 and some information....

2008-06-29T13:29:00.002-04:00

Many people have great map ideas but no time to create them. Hopefully a Mapicurious staffer can lend a hand.

Give us as little as a theme....
- I want a map of ski slopes in Vermont
- I want to know where the soccer fields are in Seattle

And we will create your map. Your data will then be ready to viewed in Google Earth, your GPS, your cell phone, your Dash GPS.

How else to use your map:
1. Highlight your business
2. Map your favorite eateries
3. Map a movie or book you have read
4. Plot vacation plans
5. Create a record of your recent vacation to share with friends

Starting July 1, 2008 we offer map making on your behalf for a fee:

1. Give us an overall theme and title for your map.

2. Give us up to 25 locations with any amount of detail: Name, Street, City, State, Zip, Country, picture, movie, and/or your comments

3. Send us USD $100 via PayPal.

4. We will produce a map hosted on Mapicurious.com, our partner services, and you will have your information in portable form (KML).

We have a lot of talented Mapicurious staffers to make impressive maps - take advantage while you can.

Businesses - Have a list of addresses to be coded and plotted on a map? Check with us on details, and we will convert to usable map data for a nominal fee.

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious mentioned in Moultrie, Georgia

2008-06-21T05:24:00.002-04:00

Read about UGA's Archway Project, and see how they use Mapicurious to document and highlight points of interest in the Moultrie area.

Link to Article

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicuriosities on your cell phone!

2008-06-03T11:13:00.002-04:00

A little news from the ranch:

http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080603005802&newsLang=en

Mapicurious has a goal to deliver your geographic data to you in the real world. Why just post it on a web site?

Mapicuriosities is our cell phone application that runs on the free WHERE platform. Visit WHERE.com and download their application onto your GPS enabled cell phone. Works on Motorola, LG, Samsung, BlackBerry, Nokia, and other handsets.

The application lets you see what Mapicurious.com has on the site based on your current location. You can even add points from this application directly to any one of your maps!

Send us feedback. Our Map Makers/Managers know that we are very helpful getting you started with mapping.

Thanks,

Maps

GeoRel - Could we make this a new standard?

2008-05-21T13:12:00.001-04:00

Has anyone ever thought to re-purpose the rel attribute in HTML and RSS to contain Geo data?

On face value, rel = relationship and placing lat lng inside the rel attribute relates the content spatially.

Now browsers and RSS readers can simply show links based on their distance order from the reader. Using this with a location service (FireEagle, etc), the browser/reader could assess relevance and relationship geographically.

The main advantages are easy and lightweight representation of geospatial relationships in the semantic web. Should be both machine and human readable.

It could support existing formats - Simple GeoRSS, Latitude and Longitude, KML (provide link to KML file)

Here are some link examples below based on Mapicurious data. Look at properties for each link to see the "rel" tag in use.

1. Basic Lat Lng (lat lng separated by space and pairs by comma for paths and polygons)

California Football Players 2006
Chick-Fil-A in Southern California
Hof's Hut - Southern California Tradition

2. L:

California Football Players 2006
Hof's Hut - Southern California Tradition

3. Geohash

California Football Players 2006
Chick-Fil-A in Southern California
Hof's Hut - Southern California Tradition

4. Georeference:

California Football Players 2006
Chick-Fil-A in Southern California
Hof's Hut - Southern California Tradition

Simple Use Cases:

Mapping web site - Overlay links directly on a map based on GeoRel data. Show geographically relevant links to map content to user, based on user's location (including distance calculations).

News site - Arrange links based on geospatial relevance.

RSS Reader - Filter links to content based on location from reader.

Mapicurious on Your Blackberry?

2008-04-16T18:40:00.004-04:00

That's correct! Through our friends at Where.com, you can access Mapicurious to search for points around you and add points directly to your map.

Follow the steps outline on our Blackberry page.

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious on Qik

2008-04-13T22:11:00.001-04:00

Qik.com allows you to stream video live to the web from the cell phone. Look for field reports on the Mapicurious Qik channel.

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious on Dash Navigation

2008-04-02T09:30:00.004-04:00

Finally a GPS company allows information maintained on the Internet to be exchanged with their GPS device in real time. This inexpensive automobile GPS has Internet search features, traffic routing, and Mapicurious content streaming live from the Mapicurious.com site.

For more information, and to get yours: http://www.dash.net

Thanks,

Maps

Follow Mapicurious on Twitter

2008-04-02T09:25:00.002-04:00

If you have not heard of Twitter and you own a cell phone, here is your chance.

Twitter is a web and short message service that allows registered users to broadcast a single text message to a large group of individuals. Users "follow" each other to be kept up-to-date on the news about that person.

CNN and the Presidential candidates all use this service to quickly alert their constituents.

Register at http://www.twitter.com and follow Mapicurious - http://www.twitter.com/mapicurious

Thanks,

Maps

Looking For Corporate Museums

2008-03-21T13:48:00.001-04:00

Where are the corporate museums and factory tours. Sometimes you get some free stuff. Use the Add A Point to let Mapicurious.com know!

Thanks,

Maps

What for 2010?

2008-03-21T13:05:00.002-04:00

I recently combed through a notepad (physical not Windows) where I collected important information in the early 1990s. I developed a habit of writing companies or topics of interest in the margin, and a quick note of why it was interesting. Eventually I might get around to "discovering" additional information, but otherwise it remained invisible until my recent discovery, unless I happened to run across the company's location in the physical world.

Along with the 1990s notepad, I found another from 2000 or 2001 with websites scribbled on the side. I checked those out back then, added them to my bookmarks, and am surprised to see ones I still use today. Back then if you didn't have a web presence, you didn't exist to a large group of people.

As technology has deepened our lives to such a point, there are numerous opportunities to cross over the web space in to the physical space.

Since I've been working with geospatial, I'm curious on what will happen for 2010?

For Mapicurious I think it safe to say - if you don't exist properly in either my auto's GPS, my handheld GPS, or my cellphone GPS - I probably will not find you.

That means this is the time to get your business georeferenced.

- Maps

Live Oscar Mapping

2008-02-24T17:27:00.002-05:00

Mapicurious.com will be mapping the Oscars as they happen. Check the Newest & Popular Maps for all of the Oscar maps.

Thanks,

Maps

Looking for Covered Bridges in Georgia

2008-02-20T22:28:00.002-05:00

Do you know of a location of a covered bridge?

Submit the location via the following link:
http://www.mapicurious.com/addapoint

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious Gear at CafePress.com

2008-01-22T21:46:00.000-05:00

We've heard what you have been asking for...so we've created some Mapicurious logo wear for Map Makers to spread the word.

And for those of you that send me an email, I'll create special items just about your map so you can advertise your own work.

Go to the Mapicurious store

Thanks,

Maps

Fulton County Historical Markers

2008-01-18T22:53:00.001-05:00

Henry County Historical Markers

2008-01-18T22:31:00.000-05:00

Butts County Historical Markers

2008-01-18T22:21:00.001-05:00

Congratulations! This county is in compliance with 100% of markers found.

Visit the Map

Georgia Historical Marker Cataloging

2008-01-18T21:16:00.000-05:00

In 1973, the book Georgia Historical Markers by Bay Tree Grove was published as the definitive guide for finding markers in the State of Georgia. The State has obviously undergone some changes in 35 years, and through various improvements (widening the roads, etc) some markers have gone missing.

I'm not sure if there is a complete catalog, but we'll keep updating the Mapicurious site with our progress at mapping them all.

If you know of one, use the Fun Map to let us know the approximate location - or email us.

We'll post county per county...

Thanks,

Maps

Map Management for TV Show Producers

2008-01-16T19:39:00.000-05:00

Do you have a television show that is set in the real world? Maybe a travel show or a reality show, or just a local community show?

Think about this:

Your sophisticated viewers might have a GPS available to them in their car. You highlight destinations within your show, however, you leave it up to the individual to do research and find the locations.

Why not have a map created with the locations, to enable viewers to easily download into their GPSes? Therefore a viewer can have an immersive experience relating to your TV Show.

Mapicurious can show you how a map of TV Show locations can boost viewership and stickiness metrics.

Like I said, something to think about.

Maps

Valentine's Day Maps

2008-01-15T19:18:00.000-05:00

Hey community:

Where are you taking your special someone for Valentines Day?

Maybe you have an activity other than a restaurant - a special park bench, a balloon ride, or a romantic hotel in the mountains.

We would like to see that on a map. Or just tell us via the Mapicurious Fun Map.

Thanks,

Maps

Wide Maps at Mapicurious Announcement

2008-01-15T11:24:00.000-05:00

When you build a map at Mapicurious, you now have the option to use the original Mapicurious look that fits an 800x600 screen or a larger, wider map for larger resolutions.

Thanks,

Maps

Notice the Wider maps?

2007-12-16T15:20:00.000-05:00

You'll notice some maps have a new, wider format. This format will be available to other Map Managers in the coming weeks.

Send us feedback, and we'll update your map with a wider format.

Thanks,

Maps

Mapicurious Car GPS Review

2007-12-16T14:09:00.000-05:00

I've seen a few GPS's this year for use in automobiles. If you will be purchasing one, or planning to receive one - some quick reviews based on the usability:

My Manufacturer Ranking:
1. Garmin - Garmin devices have the least cluttered map area. These devices are great for older users.
2. TomTom - TomTom devices have a similar uncluttered map, but it does have more options on the map. Probably best for younger users.
3. Magellan - Very slow calculating routes, and somewhat cluttered map. Could create confusion while driving.
4. Mio - Not recommended. Map is too cluttered with information. Would be great for small fingered navigators - not the driver.

A little disclosure:
Mapicurious.com is not paid to endorse or review these devices. Each of these devices were purchased at retail locations, and used to route around various US cities.

Happy Holidays,

Maps

Mapicurious GPS Holiday Gift Guide

2007-11-19T11:56:00.000-05:00

Here is the official Mapicurious, "I need a GPS this Holiday Season", gift guide.

Hopefully these will help you create maps.

I've already got a digital camera, and I want to remember where I took the picture.

SONY GPS-CS1KA GPS Logger

Works with most newer digital cameras, not just Sony products. You turn on this device, wait for the unit to pick up GPS signals, and then start shooting pictures. This $149 device uses USB to download the GPS tracklog to your computer, and synchronizes your camera's pictures based on time the picture was taken with the GPS information from the device.

The device comes with software from Sony that merges the GPS data, but after that you can use your favorite photo editing software to manage pictures. When you upload these pictures to Flickr or Picasa, the GPS data is read and used to plot the photos on a map.

Happy Holidays,

Maps

Frequently Asked Questions - FAQs

2007-11-09T22:02:00.000-05:00

A friend told me about her map. How do I find it?
If you don’t have a link to the map from your friend, you can use the “Search for Maps” function in the Mapicurious Navigation box. You can search their name or e-mail as a “Map Manager” or search for another term if you know some specifics about the map like the “Anchor City”, “Title” or “Description”.

Are you an owner of a listed business?
Congratulations on getting noticed! We offer some interesting options to get even more exposure such as the ability to place “rich media balloons” so a personalized message goes to visitors that happen upon your Mapicurious listing. Please contact us if you are interested in enhancing your brand.

How do I add a data point?
Adding data points is easy. If you have already registered as a Map Manager and entered the basic description for your map, you will see a “Data Point Editor”. Click on the “Create New Location” link and it will take you to a form. You will need to get the Latitude and Longitude for a particular address (geocode.com is a good place to go) and enter the rest of the information. If you don’t provide the coordinates, our scrubbers will fill it in, but it may take some time. After entering a data point, zoom in using the satellite or hybrid views to verify it’s mapped right.

How many data points can I add to a single map?
You can have up to 25 data points on a single map. Why 25? It’s a nice sounding number, plus you don’t want to make your map too cramped. If you have more data points, create another map, since it’s free!

How many maps can I manage?
As many as you want! Don’t worry, we’ve got plenty of storage space so create as many maps as your imagination desires.

What does being a Map Manager mean?
A Map Manager means you’re willing to share your geocentric experiences with the rest of the world.

Content Ideas for Fall

2007-10-23T10:14:00.000-04:00

OK mapping community - Here are some Fall mapping ideas:

First of all, check out the waterfall maps (start with Waterfalls of GA, SC, & NC Vol 1). With the leaves changing - wouldn't these waterfalls be the place to visit this Fall?

Second of all, what other things could you map that are Fall related?

- Corn and pumpkin mazes
- Haunted Houses
- Bed & Breakfasts
- Great places to see Fall's color across the country
- Football maps - tailgating, travel blogs, etc
- Octoberfest celebrations

Hopefully these spark you....

Thanks,

Maps

Map Management for Real Estate Agents

2007-10-23T10:10:00.000-04:00

A few Real Estate agents asked me about how they could highlight their businesses using a map on Mapicurious. So here are 5 simple ways to use a map in the Real Estate business.

1. Showcase clusters of homes you are selling and significant points in the neighborhood beyond the school systems and police stations. This establishes credibility that you really know this neighborhood. A great example of this kind of map is Catherine Nelke's Housing Map.

2. Create a driving tour of houses for a client to be downloaded into their car's GPS. You probably thought this service would cost a fortune to implement, but it is easy to do with Mapicurious. You will see either Garmin or GPX on each map's Locations sidebar.

3. Add your homes listings and business cards to Google Earth. When you create locations on Mapicurious, they are surfaced in Google Earth. Now you can do 3D fly-overs of the areas you are selling homes.

4. You already have a website, how about adding maps without paying a programmer. Each Mapicurious map can be embedded into your site to look as part of your own existing site.

5. Custom brand your maps, by adding picture packs, color schemes, and You Tube videos. If you read about vCards used on Mapicurious, you can see that people can download your electronic business card. Check out Green Key's map.

If you have any questions about how Mapicurious can differentiate your Real Estate business - send me an email.

Thanks,

Maps

Add a Point and the Fun Map

2007-10-04T19:39:00.000-04:00

Sometimes you don't want to add a whole map, but just tell the world about a single location. Now you can add a point just by completing the form at http://www.mapicurious.com/addapoint.

These points will automatically be displayed on the Mapicurious Fun Map.

If you already manage map at Mapicurious, you still need to login and create a location for that map as you did previously. This feature is for the users that just want to broadcast one point.

Thanks,

Maps

Bermuda Disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle!

2007-09-15T07:19:00.000-04:00

Hello to my friends at Google Maps - What happen to Bermuda?

I recently checked on the island myself, and did find it did actually still exist. No hurricane or other natural disaster has removed it from Earth - even Google Earth.

So for Mapicurious users that are exploring the Bermuda maps, for now, you want to open the points of interests within Google Earth. You will be viewing the KML version of Mapicurious maps. And the best news is this feature works with all maps on the site.

Thanks,

Maps

Send a location to your phone

2007-09-09T10:14:00.001-04:00

Did you know that when you see a location on a map (typically one with an address), you can send that location's data to your cell phone?

This feature has been in place for years - mainly because I felt if there is a location highlighted on the map, it would be great if you could send it to yourself or others as a reminder to visit.

It sends a small file called a vCard - which is an electronic business card - that most mail systems know how to process and add to the address book. This feature easily works for email clients like Outlook and Lotus Notes.

If you've never heard of a vCard - pull up your address book in your favorite email client now. Create your own entry, and save it as a vCard. The next time you run out of those little paper business cards, send someone your vCard.

Then remember that Mapicurious can send locations via vCard.

Thanks,

Maps

What is Map Slice?

2007-09-09T10:11:00.002-04:00

What if I wanted to see all of the waterfalls on Mapicurious?

Well, you would go to the Waterfalls Slice - by Mapicurious map. This map contains a snapshot of the waterfalls listed on various maps at Mapicurious.

When we have enough content to create an entire map of all of the interesting locations within a similar category, we create "Slice maps". These maps are created a few times a year, and hopefully you find them useful. If you have a suggestion for a Slice map drop us a line.

And that is what we've done with waterfalls.

Thanks,
Maps

You Too can embed YouTube on a Map

2007-08-28T12:13:00.000-04:00

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

2007-08-24T19:07:00.000-04:00

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?

2007-08-15T13:17:00.000-04:00

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?

2007-08-13T16:43:00.000-04:00

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

2007-08-04T21:41:00.000-04:00

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

Australian Anchor Cities Added

2007-07-24T16:33:00.000-04:00

For my friends Down Under, I've recently added most major or significant cities in Australia. While this list is not complete, it will help Map Managers add locations around these cities.

If you know of any Anchor Cities to add to Mapicurious, send me an email.

Thanks,

Maps

Find a Map with Our Tag Cloud

2007-07-18T21:04:00.000-04:00

There are so many ways to finds maps of interest on Mapicurious: you can search for maps, you can visit related maps to the map you are currently viewing, you can pick from a list of the most popular and newest maps, and you can search by map tags using the tag cloud at the bottom of the page.

To use the tag cloud, just click on a term. The term will take you to a list of maps with that specific tag.

The tags with the biggest lettering are what Mapicurious has the most of.

The color can indicate a new term on the tag cloud or a popular search done by other users.

I update these about once a month. Give it a try!

Thanks,

Maps

Go to Garmin

2007-07-17T22:06:00.000-04:00

One problem with the web is it typically doesn't do you much good in the car. This is definitely a problem for me, because I like to travel to places referenced on Mapicurious. (If you have found a way to use the Internet while driving, please let us know at Mapicurious.com - We will avoid you when we are on the road.)

I think I've found a compromise: I recently acquired a Garmin nuvi 650 (most any Garmin GPS that connects via USB to your computer will work), and I can now download points directly from Mapicurious to the Garmin.

This saves so much time!

Now I can appreciate the content of Mapicurious as Points of Interests while in the car.

Thanks,
Maps

No Locations Yet!

2007-07-17T21:58:00.000-04:00

I've seen a handful of great idea maps, but no locations are visible. Don't let this happen to you!

If you have any trouble adding locations - let us know. We are more than happy to help. You never know, but you might have found a trouble spot on Mapicurious.

Thanks,
Maps

Content Ideas

2007-06-06T17:29:00.000-04:00

A lot of historical markers and Southeastern United States information dot the maps at Mapicurious. Looking for a better diversity of points of interest.

Here are some things I want to know (and see a map on Mapicurious):
1. Where is root beer produced in the United States?
2. Toy train museums.
3. Bird watching spots.

And I would love to see some of these on the site:
1. Historical markers from New Mexico, Utah, Montana, and Minnesota.
2. Places to view Fall colors in the Northeast.
3. Indoor Go-cart tracks.

Thanks,

Maps