Pakistan tops Google's maps experiment

[LahoreEstate]

(Naveed adds: The Google Map Maker may be found at http://www.google.com/mapmaker)

By: Afzal Bajwa | Published: May 23, 2009
SILICON VALLEY (California) - Pakistani web users posted localised information and data on Google’s ‘map maker’ more than any of 160 countries’ simultaneously availing global search leader’s experiment that started in June last year.
“The quality and quantity of mapping information provided by the Pakistani users in last 11 months has enabled us to post Pakistan on the Google maps early this week,” said Lalit Katragadda, the founder of Map Maker software told TheNation in an exclusive interview.
Aaron Stein of Google Global Communications and Public Affairs at their main office (that they call campus) here at Mountain View City enabled teleconference with Lalit who is based in Bangalore, India.
According to Lalit, a Pakistani based in London has posted most frequent edits to the Google’s Map Maker, which is a user-operated software. “It updates information instantly after a user sitting anywhere in the world within 160 countries posts an edit to the live Map Maker,” he added. “Since we are bound to keep the user’s confidentiality, therefore, we’ll have to seek permission before disclosing this Pakistani who provided information more than all users of Map Maker around the world during the last 11 months,” he said.
While Lalit was talking from Bangalore, Aaron showed this scribe the Map Maker on computer screen to locate TheNation offices back in Lahore, Islamabad, and Karachi while sitting in Silicon Valley, California. “You can edit or add location, directions and street names right now of your hometown back in Pakistan,” Lalit said. It offers as many languages to post an edit as many countries it is available in.
Asked about resolution conflicting information provided by two users, Lalit said, “We can always verify from authentic as well as independent sources within an hour’s time.” According to the father of ‘Map Maker’, Google Geo project was stepping forward to actively involve state organisations, non-governmental organisations and community leaders in further this three dimensional activity involving maps, satellite view and street view. Aiming at an ultimate ‘encyclopaedic map’ of the world, Lalit said, Google is quite sensitive to local laws of each country, state and area.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-n...experiment