Much Ado About Google
Nathan Mattox
Geospatial Extension Specialist
University of Missouri - Columbia
GoogleTM has changed public
expectations of web-based GIS
data
• Ease of navigation
• Speed of delivery
• A wealth of information that is spatially
based.
Is this positive or negative
• Positives
– GIS has become less of a black box to the general
public
– Greater support of GIS based initiatives
• Negatives, or potential negatives
– Public opinion that Google Earth is all that GIS really
is.
– A higher expectation of public deliverable products.
– Questions like:
“Why can’t your stuff be like Google
Maps?”
“Why isn’t it as fast as Google
Maps?”
“Your site isn’t as user friendly as
Google Maps, why?”
Question of Scale
• Google is a massive company with nearly
limitless resources.
• Large banks of pre-rendered images
• User experience experts
• How can we as smaller shops compete?
We Don’t…We Use
• Purposes of local and state level GIS goes
far beyond the scope of Google maps.
• However, Google does provide an
interesting tool for public use data.
The Google Mash-up
• Basically, a layering of your data within the
Google interface
- Takes advantage of Google’s Base
Map layers as an underlayment for
other data.
- Many mash-up tools available on
the web
Some tools for getting started
• Example Mash-up: Map Builder
• Getting the Google Maps API (Application
Programming Interface
– http://www.google.com/apis/maps/signup.html
– Generates a key that you add to the mapping
application window script for the Google maps
functionality.
• Adding locations in the script is just like
editing a text file, with a few extra options.
Google Earth and KML
• Google Earth is much like Google maps in
that the usage of the tool is fairly easy.
• Requires a sizeable download (13MB) and
broadband connection (or great patience)
for users to access data.
• Requires Windows 2000 or XP. Does not
work on Windows 98.
Adding locations in Google Earth
• Point and click tools on the interface to
add one by one.
• Mass import takes a bit more planning.
• Demo
KML
• KML is an Extensible Mark-up Language
(XML).
• Editable as a text file
• Looks very similar to HTML for webdevelopers in the crowd.
So where does Google’s data come
from??
• Good question and not easily answered
– Some satellite data
– Most comes from data generated at the local
level that is filtered through a vendor
• Vector Data – Tele-Atlas (in North America)
• Imagery – Digital Globe
• Some exceptions
– Arkansas
Wrap-up
• Google Maps / Google Earth are excellent
tools for public use data
• They do not diminish the need to have GIS
programs
• Can coexist and should be used where
appropriate
Questions and Comments
• Nathan Mattox
Geospatial Extension Specialist
University of Missouri
email: mattoxn@missouri.edu
Phone: (573)884-0790