Basics - Google Maps Official User Guide

Basics Search Directions Views Print Share Saved Locations My Maps

Google Maps is a map service that you view in your web browser. Depending on your location, you can view basic or custom maps and local business information, including business locations, contact information, and driving directions. Click and drag maps to view adjacent sections immediately. View satellite images of your desired location that you can zoom and pan.

This guide describes how anyone with an Internet connection and a supported web browser can use this free service on a desktop or laptop computer. View additional help.

You can view Google Maps one of several ways:

• Visit maps.google.com
• View a web page with an embedded Google Map (example)
• View Google Maps on a mobile device
• View a private map created by Google Earth Enterprise products

To begin understanding how to use Google Maps, it is best to start at maps.google.com if possible.

Getting to Know Google Maps

This diagram describes some of the features available in Google Maps. Not all features may be available in your location:

1. Get directions - Click this to get directions.
2. My Maps - Use this to view and create custom maps.
3. Search - Use this to search for places and businesses. Click the grey button to the right of the seach box to use, view or edit your saved locations.
4. Left panel - Click this to hide or show the left panel.
5. Views - Click these to display different views, including aerial images and street level imagery.
6. My Profile - Click this to create and edit a profile that is visible to other Google Maps users.
7. Print/Send - Click these to print or send maps .
8. Link to this page - Click this to create a map web address (URL) in your browser that you can share with others. Learn more.
9. Search results - This panel shows search results. Click any result to view more information.
10. Navigation controls - Use this to navigate.
11. Map - This area displays the map, search results, My Maps and much more.
12. Street View - Click this to view and navigate street-level imagery.
13. Info window - This window displays additional information when you click a marker or search result.

  One of the great things about Google maps is it has its roots in XML.

To translate for the non-web developers out there, it basically means Google maps are user hackable.

This how-to will show you how to make your own annotated Google map from your own GPS data.

Plus, you'll be able to tie in images and video to create an interactive multimedia map.

We'll walk you through the steps we took to generate an annotated map of a walk we took recently through our hometown, now that it's actually starting to get warm enough to want to walk about!

There are a lot of cool tools, how-tos and examples on the web and in the blogosphere for creating your Google Maps mashups, even without any programming skills.

Here is my roundup of these examples that I've found and tryed over the last months.

• MapBuilder

• CommunityWalk

• Mapki

• Platial

• ZeeMaps

• Map Maker DonkeyMagic

• Wikimapia

• Placeopedia

• Tagzania

• Mapygon

• WayFaring

• Frappr

• Blipstar

• Mapicurious

• Ning

• YourGMap

• JoeMap

• MapSprout

• GPS Visualizer

• QuikMaps

• Pin In the Map

• Use a Map

• GMapMe

• StickyMap

• GMapTrack

• MyGMaps

• Panoramio Photo Mapper

• Pixagogo Photo-Mapper

• SmugMug Photo Mapper

• GMapEZ

• Blogabond - Get your own Travel Blog

• WikiWalki - Community Trail Guide

• Tripdiary - free travel blog

• MapSack

• Aardvark Map

• Wedding Mapper

• MultiPlottr

• MapTrot

• OurGlobes

• Click2Map

• Magellantics

• PropertyApex

• GeoTours

• TravelBlogger

• World-Discovery