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Google streamlines Map Maker, wants you to start crafting your own (video)
Despite Google's best efforts to continually roll out new features and updates, it can't add everything. This is where last April's Map Maker comes in and it's been given a design refresh in line with the rest of Google's portfolio. The update also attempts to make the interface easier for first-timers, with a brief tutorial page explaining all the tools on offer. You can now draw in new roads, bike trails and other local features in over 180 countries and once approved -- there is a moderation system in place -- they'll appear integrated into this alternate universe Google map. Wannabe cartographers can check the video intro after the break or get involved at the source link below.
Google's Map Maker is a clone of Maps, except you can scribble local data all over it
Google may have stashed the locations of every WiFi access point and convenience store goodie the world over, but there are things that even 360-degree cameras, massive algorithms and self-driving cars can't do; things like map out the locations of all your favorite neighborhood haunts. That's why Google needs you. This week, the company unleashed Google Map Maker on the United States, which is basically a parallel version of Google Maps that anyone can add to -- fleshing out the existing grid with additional details like precise structures, secret passages, whatever you care to name. Google plans to review all crowdsourced edits, however, so it won't quite be a free-for-all -- prepare for a wee bit of skepticism when you divulge the locations of buried nuclear launch silos, alien artifacts, and your local Jedi dojo.
