Google Maps for Android Gets Indoor Walking Directions, Deals

The indoor directions are quite limited; they are available in select airports, malls, and other businesses in the U.S. and Japan. These are the complexes Google announced maps for last November.

As for the deals, they include both "now" and "later" deals - but only in the U.S..

Now, while you're viewing a map, you can pull up a list of offers nearby or see them plotted directly on your map. What's nice is that the integration includes both instant-use offers (digital coupons, basically) and advanced purchase offers (similar to Groupons).

One final addition? Those photo of businesses that Google's been collecting as part of its Google Business Photos program are not available via the app.

- C|net

- Google Lat Long Blog

Mapping Rwanda’s Tourism Sites and other Crowdsourcing GIS News

Rwanda Development Board (RDB) in partnership with Google, yesterday, commenced the mapping exercise where all tourism attractions in the country will feature on the web.

The two-day event dubbed, Rwanda Tourism MapUp, started with the team's road trip from Kigali where key touristic features were mapped and continued to Musanze and Rubavu districts whose attractions were also added to the Google map list.

About 40 people including GIS professionals helped with the mapping which will be redone annually to insure locations are correct.

- All Africa

The Initiative for Solidarity with Arrested Students released the "Map of Unnamed Students". With this project, the initiative wants to create awareness for judicial and administrative rights violations encountered by students and to make these violations visible. The map also aims at keeping track of the situations of the arrested students.

The idea is to add other incidents to the map and get more information on the known ones.The effort focuses on Turkey and uses CrowdMap.

- Bianet.org

UBC Okanagan and the Central Okanagan Food Policy Council have put together a set of food discussion maps for the Central Okanagan area of British Columbia, Canada. Discussions are "pinned" to their locations and live on four different maps.

Pretty Imagery in Google Earth and other Google Maps/Earth News

Google Earth 6.2 had a "prettier" version of its imagery. No, it's not new data just a new smoothing algorithm.

Today, we’re introducing a new way of rendering imagery that smooths out this quilt of images. The end result is a beautiful new Earth-viewing experience that preserves the unique textures of the world’s most defining geographic landscapes—without the quilt effect. This change is being made on both mobile and desktop versions of Google Earth. While this change will appear on all versions of Google Earth, the 6.2 release provides the best viewing experience for this new data.

- i Programmer

- Google Blog

The update of Google Maps on the Web now offers better bike route information via detailed rendering.

Since no bike path is the same, many users have requested an easier way to differentiate the different types of bike routes that are available. Starting today, a new legend feature can help you understand what the different colors on the bike maps symbolize.

- Google Lat Long Blog

The Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Research Centre of Feng Chia University in Taiwan, has successfully completed Taiwan’s first municipal works cloud-based map platform, which will allow city government officials and policy makers to have a clear picture of the city’s major construction projects.

It's built on Google Earth Enterprise and is expected to be made public (no date yet).

- FutureGov Asia

Google Blocks First Person Shooter Maps Promotion and other Google Geo News

Google has moved to block "Google Shoot View," one of the creepiest Google Map modifications yet. It's a website that let you look at Google's popular, first-person Street View images down the barrel of a virtual, shootable M4A1 rifle.

There's no real "game" with blood or points, but Google revoked access to the API to the Dutch ad firm that created it cited a breach of Terms of Service.

- MSNBC

It turns out Amazon, despite using Android to power its Kindle Fire, does not want developers building on the platform using any Google services, including Google Maps.

So, to make its maps work on the Kindle Fire’s version of Android, Zillow’s app offers a mobile version of its regular online maps—which are already supplied in almost all cases by Bing. GPS-enabled services are turned off on the Kindle Fire app, but users can still search for an address or location to find homes they’re interested in scoping out.

It's not a huge will for Microsoft/Bing/Bing Maps but it's one platform where Bing might rule.

- Xconomy

Google Map Maker got an update:

With today’s update, the service has been improved, with a particular focus on first-time users. There’s now a new pop-up box that appears on the screen when you first visit the website, walking you through the tool’s use. In five screens, Google explains the icons used, how you add and edit places, add roads, and review edits by others. And it’s all so darned pretty. (Google is getting pretty – this still seems weird.)

Will the change encourage more edits and additions? Should OSM have a look to see how it might make its update process more accessible?

- TechCrunch

- Google Lat Long Blog

Google Geo News - 10/27/11

Map Maker is now open for Canada. The comments are more interesting than the article.

- Globe and Mail

The Atlantic shares Twitter info on where Qaddafi was alleged to be captured. Perhaps this will be enough for those who want a spot to mourn him as his place of burial is, at least so far, a mystery.

- The Atlantic

Googel StreetView now includes building interiors for some areas. Hacker News broke the story.

- Venture Beat

Fees for heavy use of the Google Maps API got into effect this  month, but Google does not plan to enforce them until next year. The deal per Programmable Web:

Sites will receive 25,000 free map views per day, which translates to 750,000 pageviews per month. Developers using more than the free limit will begin paying $4 per 1,000 pageviews.

- Google Geo Dev Blog

- Programmable Web