Did you know that Google Maps has a number of experimental new features you can elect to “turn on”? Almost every Google product has a little section called “Labs” where they test new (and most requested) features to improve their already fantastic free services.
Recently, Google Maps added a few super handy features. One in particular caught our eye with regards to real estate:
Distance Measurement Tool: By simply pointing and clicking on a Google Map, you can measure the distance of any path you can draw. Want to find the distance of the most walker-friendly route from a particular listing to the local school? Easy— just point and click your way through parks and neighborhoods to measure the distance.
We’ve also found it’s very handy for measuring the perimeter of irregular lots (which can also be handy when determining the size of an odd shaped lot). The tool will tell you the distance in over 57 different varieties of measurement!
To turn on the Distance Measurement Tool, click on the little green Labs icon at the top right of http://maps.google.com. In the window that opens, choose to “Enable” the Distance Measurement Tool. Google will ask you to confirm your changes, then will reload the page.
To use the Distance Measurement Tool, click on the tiny ruler icon in the bottom left hand corner of the map display. Once it is turned on, you can choose your measurement metric from the pull down menu on the left side of the screen. From there, simply click the point on the map you’d like to start from, then click your way to your destination. It automatically adds up the distance!
Other Google Maps Labs tools include:
Short URL: Shorten the Maps “Link” to be a more compact URL.
Show Me Here!: Adds an option to the context menu that lets you zoom directly to the maximum zoom level at the point under the cursor.
Drag ‘n’ Zoom: Zooming in on a specific part of the map is now fast and easy. Simply click the Drag ‘n’ Zoom button, draw a box on the map, and zoom! You’re there!
Aerial Imagery: Add Aerial imagery to the map! Aerial imagery gives you rotatable, high-resolution overhead imagery presented in a new perspective. Currently imagery is only available in certain areas, but we’re adding more all the time.
What’s Around Here?: Adds a button that displays the most popular places in the current map view. A great way to browse the map.
Posted via email from Random Musings by Jeremiah Wean | Comment »
