The Social Lives of Maps

People’s use of maps to research and navigate has been radically altered by the development and adoption of digital maps. Maps are no longer static print images. Instead, they are now dynamic and collaborative, as they have evolved in lockstep with the evolution of the Internet, from Mapquest’s launch in 1996 to the Web 2.0 enhanced Google Maps to the user content filled maps of Yelp.

Understanding how maps can be utilized as tools, interfaces, and content is fast becoming part of the standard “tool kit” of interaction designers. A static image or a link out to a map service may or may not be good enough due to raising expectations of the designer’s clients, employers, and people their designs serve.  The new possibilities must also be balanced with the issues about privacy and security.

This presentation explores how people’s behaviors with digital mappings intersect with the current developments in location-based services, crowdsourcing, open government, and the mobile web. For the practitioner, basic off-the-shelf mapping tools, APIs, and services are discussed.

AGENDA
6:30 - 7:00 Welcome and networking
7:00 - 8:00 Presentation
8:00 - 8:30 Networking

WHEN
Thursday, June 7th 2012
6:30pm - 8:30pm

PRICE
Free

IMPORTANT!! Seats are limited, so you must have a ticket to attend. Please only RSVP if you know you can attend.
Cancellations: Please email us (nyc.ixda@gmail.com) as soon as you know you cannot use your ticket. We'll release your seat for one of your fellow practitioners and generate good IxD karma for all involved!

ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS
Thomas Turnbull is a geographer and web developer, and recently co-authored Mapping with Drupal published by O'Reilly Media. He serves on the board of Green Map where he was first introduced to open source mapping five years ago. He currently works for Google.

Ray Cha is a user experience designer and occasional programmer. He likes helping architects, urban designers, and urban planners on projects like the Museum of the Phantom City, TreeKit, and Grassroots
Mapping.

ABOUT IxDA
IxDA’s mission is to improve the human condition by advancing the discipline of Interaction Design. To do this, we foster a community of people that choose to come together to support this intention. IxDA relies on individual initiative, contribution, sharing and self-organization as the primary means for us to achieve our goals. IxDA comprises over 10,000 members, and many meet at events like this one in over 80 locations worldwide. If you or your friends are based in the suburbs or further from New York, you can find contact information for other local groups on the ixda.org site.

See you there,

IxDA New York local leaders