Tag: mapping

Infrastructure and Flow

Maps of infrastructure visualize what it’s possible for people to do. Maps of flow show what they actually do. The 2 may diverge sharply. The distinction between maps of infrastructure and maps of flow matters to me because I think it can help explain certain misconceptions and misunderstandings about our connected world. My contention is that we tend to assume more connections than actually exist. We see a map of infrastructure that shows it’s possible to fly from Antananarivo to Albania and assume, on an unconscious level, that the connection is routine, frequent, common.

2015-08-27: Interactive globe with trade as little dots of light.

Map update strategy

A device like the Tom-Tom navigation devices can gather incredibly accurate GPS paths that when combined with the user feedback of Tom-Tom and Google Maps users and matched against satellite imagery can allow TeleAtlas to make more maps changes in less time, less expensively than sending out cars and drivers. This capability will grow, going forward, with the introduction of navigation devices that offer a 2 way connection back to TeleAtlas and TomTom. The volume of data, the nature of the data and the timeliness of the data could mean that Map errors in Google could be updated in a 1 to 4 month time frame going forward, rather than the traditional 6-9 months they have taken in the past.

The recent TeleAtlas update includes 50k map edits from community data to the Maps.

Hand Drawn Map Association

The Hand Drawn Map Association is a website and physical archive founded to collect directional maps people draw for one another. Over time, it has grown to include a wide variety of maps, diagrams, and other drawings documenting our experiences of places both real and imagined. To date, the association has collected over 400 digital assets and more than 350 works on paper.

Solipsistic Tourism

The map looks beautiful, the idea is cool, and, within 2 or 3 trips, the GPS device does indeed save money; however, I can’t help but wonder what this might foretell for local economies, all over the world, based on guided tourism. For instance, a small group of American tourists comes through your village, eating PowerBars and looking at handheld GPS devices. They don’t go to any restaurants; they don’t ask any questions of anyone; perhaps they don’t even rent a hotel room. do handheld technologies mean that we’ll soon be digitally replacing the native populations of the Third World, never needing them again for guidance, travel advice, or even insights into medicinal plant life?

All streets

No other features (such as outlines or geographic features) have been added to this image, however they emerge as roads avoid mountains, and sparse areas convey low population. The pace of progress is seen in the midwest where suburban areas are punctuated by square blocks of area that are still farm land.