It’s no secret that offline maps are one of the best features of Google Maps. That doesn’t mean it’s the best overall, though. OsmAnd Maps is an excellent open-source alternative with a lot more to offer when it comes to offline navigation.
Nearly every country represented in the United Nations General Assembly recently voted in favor of promoting world maps that more accurately show the size of various continents. But the UN resolution is unlikely to change how millions of people regularly see versions of 16th-century Mercator maps depicting skewed continent sizes in navigation apps.
On September 4, the African-led resolution attracted 164 votes in favor, with six countries abstaining from voting. Only the United States voted to oppose the resolution after describing it as a “radical ideological project,” according to UN News.
The non-binding UN resolution does not impose map changes on anyone. Instead, it “encourages governments, schools, international organizations, and technology companies to use the Equal Earth projection and other so-called equal-area maps when relative size matters,” UN News reported. The resolution also encourages teaching about the trade-offs that arise from depicting a spherical planet on a flat map.
© UN Photo/Loey Felipe
Android Auto's launcher can get crowded fast, and a cluttered screen is the last thing you want staring back at you while driving. Trimming it down to the essentials makes the whole experience faster, safer, and far less distracting.
For a long time, the navigation app debate has fallen into two main camps: Waze and Google Maps. Recent events have brought MapQuest back to public attention, so I decided to see if it could genuinely replace Google Maps.
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve opened Google Maps, typed in my destination, and blindly followed the blue arrow as if it knows my life inside out. Whether I’m rushing to pick my daughter up from her drawing class or trying to find a new restaurant, I usually let Maps take over. But recently, I realized I’ve been using Google Maps the same way I did when I first installed it. It turns out I was leaving several underused features untouched. If you want more from Google Maps, go through the settings below. They might make you realize how much more Maps can do beyond basic navigation.
When Sound Transit opened the light rail 2 Line across Lake Washington in March, software engineer Michael Benedict built a custom gift to mark the milestone for his transit-fanatic wife: a circuit board map of Seattle with tiny lights depicting moving trains.
Today, that personal birthday project has evolved into Seattle Transit Live, an interactive LED map that tracks Puget Sound-area light rail, trains, ferries, and the water taxi in real time using public transit data.
The extra time to indulge in such a detailed build came after Benedict was laid off from Amazon — where he worked as an engineer for a little over three years. Rather than rushing into another full-time corporate role, he picked up some freelancing and gave himself room to dive into CAD design, custom hardware and the prototyping process.
“I put way more time than is ever going to be economic into this,” Benedict told GeekWire. “I really kind of luxuriated in it because I didn’t have a job and I could just go deep.”
Designed on a custom fiberglass circuit board with etched copper detailing Seattle-area waterways, the $219 device plugs into Wi-Fi to display live positions of vehicles like Sound Transit trains, Washington State Ferries, the Sounder, and Monorail.
After Benedict posted an early prototype on Reddit and saw an enthusiastic response from local transit geeks asking to buy one, he refined the design and turned the side project into a full production run.
To power the display, the board uses an ambient light sensor to adjust to room brightness and features three distinct software modes. Alongside the real-time data mode, users can switch to a schedule replay mode or a fast-forward option that cycles through a full 24-hour transit schedule at 400x speed — letting users watch a day’s worth of regional traffic zip across the board in minutes.
The 8.6-by-11.8-inch boards are pretty jammed with assorted routes, but we had to ask if there would ever be room for Sound Transit’s eternally delayed Ballard neighborhood line.
“If I’m still making transit maps by the time they put Ballard in,” Benedict laughed, “I’m going to consider that a huge win all around.”
While circuit board maps and LED transit art have been built for transit networks in major cities like New York and Tokyo, Benedict sees Seattle’s unique geography and growing light rail as a compelling canvas for the concept. The board isn’t intended to replace trip-planning apps like OneBusAway, but rather to serve as a piece of functional art that captures the living movement of the region in a physical medium. And it’s all open-source.
The printed circuit boards are manufactured in Shenzhen, China — a standard approach for small-batch electronics — but Benedict wanted to keep a key part of the production local. He partnered with Oxbow Fabrication in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood to CNC-machine custom wooden stands, ensuring each board ships with a locally made mount.
The initial run of 50 pre-orders sold out quickly, prompting Benedict to order another 150 units to carry him through the end of the year. And going all-in on an independent hardware project has come with its own brand of founder anxiety.
“Putting 75,000 LEDs on your personal credit card is enough to make you think, ‘Maybe I should send some emails,'” he laughed.
Benedict recently showcased the project at the Seattle Design Festival, and he’s considering potential retail establishments in the city where offering such a niche piece might make sense — such as the gift shop at the Seattle Art Museum.
Beyond Amazon, Benedict’s tech career has included data science roles at 98point6 and Modernist Cuisine. Originally from Queens, N.Y., his embrace of the Pacific Northwest has been accentuated by his hardware project. Living next to the new Judkins Park station for the 2 Line, with a front-row seat to the region’s evolving transit landscape, has helped, too.
“Transit is just a really cool subject matter for it,” Benedict said. “It’s on a schedule, the data’s there, and it feels very Seattle — how the boats and trains move around.”
Third-party apps get most of the scrutiny when it comes to permission creep, but Google's own apps are often the bigger offenders. Here's a look at three permissions Google's ecosystem quietly holds onto well past the point they're needed.
Most people know texting while driving is dangerous, but they do it anyway. There is so much peer pressure to be considerate of those waiting for you, but the law is pretty clear. Distracted driving is one of those crimes that makes a lot of sense when you see the numbers, but you want to be considerate. Luckily, Google has already thought this through.
Google Maps now shows Lake Ontario as “Lake America” for US users after a Trump executive order, while Canada retains the original name.
The post Google Maps Renames Lake Ontario ‘Lake America’ After Trump Order appeared first on TechRepublic.
Google Maps now shows Lake Ontario as “Lake America” for US users after a Trump executive order, while Canada retains the original name.
The post Google Maps Renames Lake Ontario ‘Lake America’ After Trump Order appeared first on TechRepublic.
Trade talks between the US and Canada broke down last week, leading to a wave of tariffs and retaliatory tariffs. US President Donald Trump also fell back on an old favorite to needle his opponents, signing an executive order on Thursday to rename Lake Ontario to "Lake America."
The body of water, which straddles the US-Canada border, gave its name to the Canadian province rather than the other way around. Regardless, the US government now refers to this great lake as Lake America—or it will soon. Official US government maps have yet to be updated, but Google wasted no time adopting the new, Trumpian name.
Google began rolling out this change for US users on Saturday. The company posted a brief update on its Google Maps blog, noting that it follows the US Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) for its maps, so the company implies it had no choice but to rename Lake Ontario in Google Maps, which is the most popular mapping platform in the US by a wide margin.
Apple Maps ads are rolling out in the U.S. and Canada. See where sponsored listings appear, how Apple handles privacy, and whether users can disable them.
The post Apple Maps Ads Are Here: What iPhone Users Need to Know appeared first on TechRepublic.
Apple Maps ads are rolling out in the U.S. and Canada. See where sponsored listings appear, how Apple handles privacy, and whether users can disable them.
The post Apple Maps Ads Are Here: What iPhone Users Need to Know appeared first on TechRepublic.
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