Look at Here maps. It is a much better designed map, from a cartography perspective.
What Happened to Google Maps?
31–40 of 201 posts
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#32Google know more than the author about how Google Maps is used by end users. The author is grading Google Maps based on the number of cities and roads displayed, not how the users use it. Google provide an alternative mapping product, Google Earth, for satisfying curiosity about the planet. Google maps is primarily a navigation tool. They have very distinct use cases.
Google Earth is pretty much abandoned at this point. They now give away the "Pro" version and the software hasn't been updated in about a year.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#33Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sure Google knows more than the author about their own maps, but please give the author his due: he wrote a successful blog called 41Latitude that did a lot of in-depth analysis of Google Maps's display of information, and later led the Apple Maps team. If he has something to say about information density on maps, I'm inclined to listen.
>and later led the Apple Maps team I'm not sure that puts him in a position to be trusted to criticize google maps. Apple maps has been considered inferior to google maps since its launch. Just because he has ideas about how to pack an overwhelming amount of information onto a map doesn't mean it's a good idea for normal users.
Apple Maps has actually significantly improved since its launch, and I wish people would give it its due. I, for one, often prefer Apple Maps to Google Maps nowadays.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#34Look at Here maps. It is a much better designed map, from a cartography perspective.
I would also recommend Here Maps.
Offline usage is best for travelling.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#35I'm confused by the replies saying that more dense labels would somehow harm usability for driving or navigation. When you're driving, you know where you're going, the map knows where you're going, and it's easy to see the route you need to take. When you're not on a route, denser labels help you to orient yourself with the map and to know when to zoom into a particular location.
That said, I also think the focus on paper maps is misplaced. Old-style road maps had to answer the question, "how do I get there from here?" New-style digital maps don't need to answer that question any more! Questions new-style maps need to answer include:
* I know the name of a place or street; where should I zoom in to see more things around that place or street?
* I need to go to a (gas station / rest stop / hospital); where's the closest one?
* How would I get home from where I am?
* I'm in an unfamiliar place and would like to go "downtown" (where there are restaurants and things to do); where is "downtown"?
* Where is my car right now?
Roads help you to orient yourself with the map, but they aren't as fundamentally important to digital maps as they were to old-style road maps. The visual space of the map might be better spent helping answer questions like these.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#36With open-source tools and services for OSM data from Mapzen and Mapbox, you can make your own map styles: light or heavy in detail, highlighting cities, highways or footpaths.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sure Google knows more than the author about their own maps, but please give the author his due: he wrote a successful blog called 41Latitude that did a lot of in-depth analysis of Google Maps's display of information, and later led the Apple Maps team. If he has something to say about information density on maps, I'm inclined to listen.
>and later led the Apple Maps team I'm not sure that puts him in a position to be trusted to criticize google maps. Apple maps has been considered inferior to google maps since its launch. Just because he has ideas about how to pack an overwhelming amount of information onto a map doesn't mean it's a good idea for normal users.
Don't mix up data and map design. Google maps is great because the data is unique, but I personally prefer other designs and think that Google Maps has very bad UX.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#38The comparison to a paper map is stupid. A paper map is severely limited in that you can't zoom in on it so it has to be packed with enough information to hopefully be useful. An interactive map only needs to give you enough context to know what to zoom in on. If I'm using a touch interface that overloads me with information in one screen, it's a bad interface.
It's like claiming that the new york times should display the entire full front page of the newspaper on a mobile device so you can read several articles without scrolling or loading more content because that's what you used to be able to do with the real paper.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#39"The primary route across Long Island — Interstate 495"
Off-topic, but as a native NYCer, we would never call it that. It's the LIE. I once had a woman ask me in the parking lot of a Walgreens how to get on the 278. I was puzzled for a second, then I realized she was talking about the BQE. Living out in California now, I miss the days of calling highways by name.
Re: What Happened to Google Maps?
#40Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sure Google knows more than the author about their own maps, but please give the author his due: he wrote a successful blog called 41Latitude that did a lot of in-depth analysis of Google Maps's display of information, and later led the Apple Maps team. If he has something to say about information density on maps, I'm inclined to listen.
>and later led the Apple Maps team I'm not sure that puts him in a position to be trusted to criticize google maps. Apple maps has been considered inferior to google maps since its launch. Just because he has ideas about how to pack an overwhelming amount of information onto a map doesn't mean it's a good idea for normal users.
Apple Maps was considered inferior at launch, not since its launch. There's a difference. Apple Maps caught up pretty fast. There's obviously areas where Google Maps is still better, but there are areas where Apple Maps is better, and it's simply not true to say that it's an inferior product today.