Tag Archive for 'GIS'

The public has a great interest in being able to access information by typing in an address, entering a zip code, selecting a location on a map, or automatically receiving content via GPS detection in their mobile devices. Google Maps mashups are almost expected on every site.

Who represents me in the Utah Capitol?

http://www.scottriding.com/utahlegislators/
This extremely useful mashup by Scott Riding shows what is possible in combining Google Maps with geographic data from the Automated Geographic Reference Center and legislative directory information from Legislative Research and General Counsel. Just type in your address or select your community from a list to see who is representing you (thank you Phil Windley for the alert).

Mappify

http://lib.byu.edu/cdmmaps
Mappify is another truly wonderful mashup that Scott Eldredge at the BYU Harold B. Lee created and demonstrated to the UALC Digitization Committee on January 12. It uses the user-friendly geo-spatial browsing tool, Mappified to pull some test Savage collection photographs from their CONTENTdm repository. BYU intends on adding the Overlands Trail Collection in the future. Here are some things to try out:

1. Drill down by Collection browse, by Geography browse, and by Chronology (date) browse. Then try the search feature for the word “canyon”.
2. Then click “View Timeline” to view images in a Timeline.
3. “Map Overlay” is one of the coolest features. Click “Go to Map Overlays”, then zoom in and click “High Res”. Use the Opacity slider to compare 1930s maps of the border between Denmark and Germany with the current map in Google satellite view. I can imagine that this application will be of tremendous interest to genealogists interested in comparing old maps with the modern landscape.

Continue reading ‘Using Maps to Access Library Resources’