Thursday, May 31, 2007

Google Mapplets lets you create a "mashup of mashups"

location based services

This week Google has announced "Mapplets" which is a brand new way for developers to make their Google Maps mashups more accessible and viewable to more people on the web. Google Mapplets combine the Google Gadgets API with the Google Maps API to allow embedding of "mini mapping applications".. right within the Google Maps site! At this stage Mapplets aren't yet available on the main Google Maps site but are available at this special preview URL found at:

http://maps.google.com/preview

Check out this YoutTube demo clip where Google Maps product manager Thai Tran explains how Mapplets can be used:

This example Thai outlines in the clip shows how Mapplets will enable a user to aggregate many mashups (in this case crime, transit, and school information about their city) into one view on the map. Google Maps Local Search adds yet another data component by adding in business and points of interest you're used to searching for on Google Maps today. In essence, this Mapplets are a "mashup of mashups" making for a totally customized map user experience. Be sure to also check out Thai Tran's Google LatLong Blog post announcing Mapplets to learn more.

This concept needs developer participation! That means anyone that has ever been blogged about here on Google Maps Mania needs to take a look at how their mashup can be ported to its own Google Mapplet. By doing this you will be reaching millions of additional users that are on the Google Maps site and will be able to utilize your Google Maps mashup while they are there. Check out the Mapplets developer documentation to get started with porting your Google Maps mashup to a Google Mapplet.

Stay tuned to Google Maps Mania to find the coolest new Mapplets and start getting even more out of Google Maps!

Labels: Google Maps, Mapplets

posted by Mike P

Last Updated: Thursday, 31 May 2007, 13:32 GMT 14:32 UK

E-mail this to a friend

Online and offline worlds merge

Online maps from Google could be available offline

Google has launched a tool designed to make it easier for computer users to use online applications offline.

One of the key limitations of web services such as e-mail, word processing and calendars, is that they require a net connection to function.

Gears allows access to online data and applications inside the web browser when offline.

The tool was launched at Google's global developer day, with 5,000 coders attending seminars worldwide.

Google Gears is an open source plug-in for browsers, which the firm hopes will lead to the creation of new web standards.

The firm wants many of the people attending its developers conference to use the Gears tools, which are free to use, to adapt their own applications for offline usage.

Using Gears, online data that is usually held on web servers can be stored offline on an individual's computer, and then synchronised when the user logs back on to the web.

'Fills gap'

Chris Prince, the engineer leading the Gears project, told the conference in London: "We want a seamless experience between offline and online."

"This fills a gap for us," said Jeff Huber, a vice president of engineering at Google. "The internet is great, but you can't always be plugged in to it."

Initially, Google's RSS feed reader application - for reading news and blogs - will work offline, but the company plans to add other programmes, Mr Huber said.

A word processor with less functionality than WordPad isn't going to upset anyone's business model, online or off

Michael Gartenberg, Jupiter Research

He said Google's e-mail, calendar, word processing and spreadsheet programmes were logical candidates for offline access.

Gears works in most of the leading web browsers, such as Firefox and Internet Explorer, and will soon work with Safari and Opera.

"With Google Gears we're tackling a key limitation of the browser in order to make it a stronger platform for deploying all types of applications and enabling a better user experience in the cloud," Google chairman Eric Schmidt said in a statement.

He added: "We believe strongly in the power of the community to stretch this new technology to the limits of what's possible and ultimately emerge with an open standard that benefits everyone."

Brendan Eich, chief technology officer at Mozilla corporation, the organisation behind the Firefox browser, said: "This announcement is a significant step forward for web applications."

Cautious note

Some commentators have seen the move as a strike at Microsoft's dominance in the area of productivity applications.

But Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg struck a more cautious note about the new technology.

Writing in his blog, he said: "Folks are missing the point.

"Yes, offline functionality is required but it isn't in itself a game changer. A word processor with less functionality than WordPad isn't going to upset anyone's business model, online or off."

Google also used the conference to announce Google Mapplets, a tool giving developers the power to customise Google maps with mini-applications.

News stories, weather, housing prices, and crime figures could be combined with maps to provide a more geographical representation of data.

Speaking at the London-based conference, Ed Parsons, Google's geospatial technologist, said the firm wanted developers to help build a "geo-web".

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Survey Says Consumers Interested in GPS

location based services

By SmartPhoneToday StaffMay 30, 2007
Carriers will be happy to know that a recent survey conducted by PocketPC Wire found consumers are getting the location-based services (LBS) picture. With LBS, users can receive directions or find out where nearest Starbucks is, among many other applications. It can also personalize traffic information without direct intervention by the user.
39 percent of respondents said their next mobile device would ‘most definitely’ include global positing system (GPS) technology, wile an additional 21 percent answered ‘probably,’ but it depends on the cost. Of the remaining respondents, 14 percent weren’t sure yet, 12 percent said probably not and 14 percent answered no.
A key enabler for the explosion of LBS offerings is the growing number of smartphones and cell phones that integrate global positioning system (GPS) radios: Hence, the importance of the awareness of the technology on the part of consumers.
These receivers gather pulsed signals from as many of the two dozen or so GPS satellites orbiting the earth as it can lock in. Using triangulation, the radio calculates its position within twenty yards or so.
That way LBS applications offered by carriers for supported smartphones and cell phones can get you from point A to B accurately, while helping you avoid traffic jams and the like, for instance.

Where 2.0 and “Sense of Place”

location based services

I’m flying back to the UK to present at the Google Developer Day in London, so my comments on this years Where 2.0 are rather brief. What stood out for me was the recognition of the importance of “sense of place” information, geospatial data that is not traditional cartography, but which is really useful and meaningful to people because it is not as abstract as mapping.

In StreetView we are attempting to represent the world from the perspective of someone in it, i.e. from a perspective of a viewer 2m high not 1500m in the air. High resolution terrestrial imagery is actually very useful, as John demonstrated in today’s presentation, fro example being able to read street signs is a source of attribute information not available else where. This type of imagery especially when navigable in such a simple way, makes exploring the virtual environment easy and really does provide a sense of what in the case above San Francisco is like to visit.
The power of imagery to provide this “sense of place” was also a major part of Quakr some fellow Brits who are developing a site to put geotagged images in their correct perspective location on an interactive map, so that in effect you walk through the photos..

Combine imagery with the environmental sound-scenes developed by inside 30proof for Wild Sanctuary and you are beginning to see what I think used to be called ‘hypermedia” starting to have an impact in communicating geospatial information.

Written and submitted from the British Airways Lounge, at SFO airport using the free broadband network

Skyhook Updates Loki

location based services

By Monica AllevenWirelessWeek -

May 30, 2007
Skyhook Wireless is offering an update to its Loki product that uses Wi-Fi to determine location. The announcement was made at the O'Reilly Where 2.0 conference this week.
The product, Loki 2.0, is a free application that uses Skyhook's Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS). It supports Windows Mobile; support for Linux, Java and others will follow in the future.
Skyhook executives say the company spent the better part of the last year working with the geoweb community, including mobile location-based services (LBS) developers, to develop the new platform.
One of the key capabilities of Loki 2.0 is a Javascript API that allows any Web developer to location-enable their user experience by embedding a few lines of Javascript into their site. For example, local news or search content can change based on the location. "We're integrating the location and making it easy for content sites to use that location," says Skyhook CEO Ted Morgan. The API can be downloaded from the Loki Website, www.loki.com/developers.
Skyhook offers an alternative or complement to GPS, which requires communications with the satellites. The company tracked Wi-Fi access points across the country to develop its system. "We perform extremely well indoors and in urban settings," Morgan says. With coverage fairly extensive now in the United States and Canada, the company is looking to expand even more in Europe and Asia.
In March, Skyhook announced that it is powering the next-generation location-based plug-in for users of AOL's AIM service. The plug-in allows desktop AIM users to set and share their location with AIM buddies using Skyhook's system.
Last year, Loki was a category winner among navigation applications in the Navteq Global LBS Challenge.
Printer Friendly Version E-mail to a Colleague
" controltovalidate="ctl00_ContentArea_txtToEmail">Please enter a to e-mail address." controltovalidate="ctl00_ContentArea_txtToEmail" validationexpression="\w+([-+.']\w+)*@\w+([-.]\w+)*\.\w+([-.]\w+)*">Please enter a valid to e-mail address." controltovalidate="ctl00_ContentArea_txtFromEmail">Please enter a from e-mail address." controltovalidate="ctl00_ContentArea_txtFromEmail" validationexpression="\w+([-+.']\w+)*@\w+([-.]\w+)*\.\w+([-.]\w+)*">Please enter a valid from e-mail address.
From Name:
From E-Mail:
To Name:
To E-Mail:
Message:
Related ContentNews@2 - May 30, 2007

Review: Navigating by Cell Phone

location based services

By RYAN NAKASHIMA , AP Business Writer

A Sanyo Katana flip phone equipped with Global Positioning System navigation programs is photographed in Las Vegas, Sunday, May 27, 2007. The phone, on the Sprint network, retails online for $29.99 after rebates. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)(AP) -- Driving around a rapidly growing city on unfamiliar streets is not fun. A wrong turn can land you in a maze of construction detours and bumpy roads. Some residents in Las Vegas' newer communities say stop signs and street names seem to change by the month.
Sponsored Links (Ads by Google)
GPS Tracking Real Time - Communicate Telematics Devices GPRS Cost effective managed web based http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/iclk?sa=l&ai=B3WAKDANeRtXtK46qhQPsnOC0CL6r8xnmkp7IAcCNtwGgw3EQARgBIPa2hQIoBjgAUPC-4FBgpYiegKABqgEVMDU1OTM2OTk2NyszMjk0NTczMzcxsgEPd3d3LnBoeXNvcmcuY29tugEKMzAweDI1MF9qc8gBAdoBKGh0dHA6Ly93d3cucGh5c29yZy5jb20vbmV3czk5NzU4NTY3Lmh0bWyAAgGpAru919nffKs-qAMB6AOaBugDhgPoA4wC6AM0&num=1&adurl=http://www.3logix.com.au&client=ca-pub-0536483524803400
The New Nokia N95 Specs - A mobile with built-in GPS mapping & advanced multimedia capabilities. http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/iclk?sa=l&ai=BIglyDANeRtXtK46qhQPsnOC0CIjg6SrwlIaSA8CNtwHgxlsQAhgCIPa2hQIoBjgAUJ74kab7_____wFgpYiegKABqgEVMDU1OTM2OTk2NyszMjk0NTczMzcxsgEPd3d3LnBoeXNvcmcuY29tugEKMzAweDI1MF9qc8gBAdoBKGh0dHA6Ly93d3cucGh5c29yZy5jb20vbmV3czk5NzU4NTY3Lmh0bWypAru919nffKs-yAKEkoUBqAMB6AOaBugDhgPoA4wC6AM0&num=2&adurl=http://ad.au.doubleclick.net/clk%3B97610652%3B16747209%3Bp%3Fhttp://www.nseries.com/n95&client=ca-pub-0536483524803400
Vehicle Tracking - GPS Vehicle Tracking Australian Made and Owned http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/iclk?sa=l&ai=B7b61DANeRtXtK46qhQPsnOC0CIWfqRnj1I6WAcCNtwHgim8QAxgDIPa2hQIoBjgAUPmPxuMBYKWInoCgAaoBFTA1NTkzNjk5NjcrMzI5NDU3MzM3MbIBD3d3dy5waHlzb3JnLmNvbboBCjMwMHgyNTBfanPIAQHaAShodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBoeXNvcmcuY29tL25ld3M5OTc1ODU2Ny5odG1sqQK7vdfZ33yrPqgDAegDmgboA4YD6AOMAugDNA&num=3&adurl=http://www.mtdata.com.au&client=ca-pub-0536483524803400

So I tried navigating around town using cell phones loaded with Global Positioning System software. The programs - VZ Navigator, TeleNav, Garmin Mobile and MapQuest Navigator - can be downloaded onto phones with GPS chips and cost $9.99 a month.

With up-to-date maps and a comforting, computerized female voice telling me exactly where to go, what could possibly go wrong? A few things. First, I expected that because I was using the systems over the air in real time, I would be getting the most up-to-date maps. I was mistaken. One day, I tried to locate a new bar that was opening at 1205 South Ft. Apache Road, on the west side of town. "Martinis" was giving away, well, free martinis, as long as I could find the place. While the invitation included a rough map, I could not find the address on any of the systems I tried. Oddly, MapQuest Navigator could not pinpoint the address, even though it came up on the MapQuest.com Web site. So what's the point of paying $9.99 a month for a navigation system that can't find addresses? It's a fair question, especially when you can pay $1.79 a call for 411 service at Sprint PCS for a real human being to give you turn-by-turn directions over the phone. But this is a new, growing city. I suppose these navigation devices are good for places that have been around for a while, right? Not so fast. Recently, I used TeleNav to browse by name for the Primm Valley Golf Club in Primm, Nev. (opened in 1997) and the Mountain Falls Golf Club in Pahrump, Nev. (opened in April 2005). Neither appeared, so I found them the old-fashioned way - by asking for directions. (Later, when trying out the Garmin Mobile program, I was able to locate both.) All of the companies said they used map data from Navteq Corp., which Verizon Wireless spokeswoman Jenny Weaver said updated its database quarterly. Among other hit-and-miss features were the cheap-gas finders (either the prices were different or the location was wrong), Wi-Fi hotspot locaters and TeleNav's traffic detection service. After raising concerns about missing or incorrect data, TeleNav spokeswoman Mary Beth Lowell said the company was looking at working with more data providers to keep its information updated. In one instance, I was disappointed by two things at once. I drove across town to find cheap gas - and was directed by TeleNav to drive north on the Las Vegas Strip in the evening. As a somewhat experienced local, I knew such a route was insanity - the Strip would be clogged with taxis, limo-length Hummers and motorists. Overriding the chosen path, when I got to the location, there was a dark, apparently abandoned building where a gas station was supposed to be.
Sponsored Links (Ads by Google)
GPS Vehicle Tracking Real time GPS Vehicle Tracking and Monitoring. Buy Online Now.www.mondialvehicletracking.com.au
Official BlackBerry Site Discover The BlackBerry Pearl Smartphone. Small, Smart & Stylishwww.BlackBerryPearl.com
GPS Car Navigation Car navigation systems tested and compared. Expert & unbiased advice.www.choice.com.au

TeleNav's traffic system also was a bit of a mystery. Once, when I was stuck in traffic, it took so long for the information to download to the phone, by the time I cleared the jam it was too late. I also was annoyed at the estimated time of arrival indicator, which simply inched forward as the minutes crawled by and I was at a standstill. For all the complaining, when an address was actually found, the systems mostly worked fine. VZ Navigator performed the best on a $149.99 enV phone on the Verizon Wireless network. The directions were clear and the sideways flip phone with full keyboard was the easiest to use with the exception of being unable to toggle between the map mode and the "nav" mode, which gives turn-by-turn directions. (I found out later this could be done using the "CLR" key. Go figure.) It also was easy to call locations that had listed numbers (say to make reservations), although it took some thumb work to get back into navigation mode. The next three services I tested out on a Sanyo Katana flip phone, on the Sprint network, which retails online for $29.99 after rebates. The TeleNav program was the best of these, as its 3-D view and toggle between turn-by-turn directions and the viewer was fairly easy. The grammar used by the computerized female was wonky, however. She insisted I "turn to" an avenue, rather than "turn on" it. A minor point but annoying nonetheless. As for Garmin and MapQuest, I could not recommend them as tested. The main problem was the power-saving mode that made the screen darker after about 10 seconds. Even with a phone cradle that suction-cupped to the windshield, turning my attention to touching the phone every few seconds was a recipe for disaster. Then there's the question of whether your phone will work with any of these programs. I found out my Motorola V3 RAZR on the AT&T network lacks the necessary GPS chip, which means I would have to buy a $100 Bluetooth-enabled GPS accessory that would connect to my phone. For that price, I'd rather just Google or MapQuest before leaving home. --- On the Net: VZ Navigator: http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/splash/turnbyturn.jsp TeleNav Inc.: http://www.telenav.com/ Garmin Mobile: http://www.garmin.com/garmin/cms/site/us/onthego/ MapQuest Navigator: http://www.mapquest.com/features/main.adp?pageslashmobile-navigator

BlackBerry 8830 World Phone Released

location based services

The Blackberry 8830 has just been released to Sprint and Verizon Wireless and I'm sure it's feeding the hungry and eager customers waiting to get their hands on this Blackberry. What makes this Blackberry so desirable is the fact that it's the first global CDMA/GSM Blackberry. Which means if you utilize a CDMA network in the states and travel overseas, you'll be able to use your phone through the GSM networks available wherever you travel.

Another plus for this phone is that it's somewhat of a big brother to the 8100 which was only offered on GSM networks. Until the 8830, Sprint and Verizon were plagued with the old blackberries that didn't utilize the trackball function which has made the pearl so popular. The blackberry 8830 does lack a camera but compensates for that by adding an expandable microSD memory card slot and Mp3 compatibility. This is a great phone for all users of sprint and Verizon simply because its a great blackberry device and all current blackberry users should really consider upgrading to this remarkable phone. Accessories for the Blackberry 8830 are available at AccessoryGeeks.com at everyday low prices so don't forget to check them out.

Features:

GSM/GPRS (900/1800 MHz) for continued voice and email while traveling internationally
EV-DO/GPRS network connection for high-speed data transfer in more than 60 countries
Advanced sound technology that cancels out background noise and echo, to help ensure users can always hear and be heard
Polyphonic and mp3 ringtones that let you personalize the smartphone
Dedicated volume and mute keys so users can quickly make adjustments without having to fumble for the right button
Manage up to 10 (supported) email accounts and choose the account to reply or compose from
Built-in Global Positioning System (GPS) gives users access to a wide range of other Location-Based Services (LBS), like employee and resource tracking, social networking and more
Equipped with a media player to plug in a stereo headset

Cheers,

John

Posted by T

WHERE™ Enhances Mobile GPS Widget Platform with GeoRSS and KML Support

location based services

May 29th, 2007

uLocate’s WHERE Expands Depth of Content with Local Content in KML and GeoRSS Formats

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–uLocate Communications, Inc., an award-winning publisher of wireless location-based services (LBS), today announced support for GeoRSS and KML to bring worldwide content to the WHERE mobile application. WHERE now provides easy tools to add KML and GeoRSS from Mapufacture to the phone. Mobile phone users will be able to view thousands of location feeds including local news wire stories, user-generated travel guides, local blogs, restaurant reviews, and virtual location notes.

GeoRSS and KML content is available from thousands of websites and content providers. By creating interoperability with these existing formats, WHERE continues to lower the complexity and time associated with launching GPS-based mobile applications. Developers interested in building applications with GeoRSS or KML support can easily create them using the developer tools, documentation and samples available through the WHERE Developer Program at www.where.com/create.

Mapufacture’s GeoRSS: Location Feeds from Across the Internet

GeoRSS is a format for geographic information that helps convert local information on Internet websites into useful local content on the phone. For example, a breaking news story in a local town can be displayed on a map according to the location where the event occurred, allowing people to keep a finger on the pulse of what’s happening in their neighborhood from their phone. The Mapufacture GeoRSS widget allows WHERE users to access the location information from thousands of websites across the Internet in real-time.

KML: Managing Your Location Content

Keyhole Markup Language (KML) is a geographic format for location content that is widely used by geographic tools such as Google Earth and Google MyMaps. WHERE KML widgets allow mobile phone users to easily view the location content from the large and growing KML community, as well as build their own customized maps for viewing on the phone. For example, WHERE KML widget users can access the physical locations for major league and minor league baseball fields, allowing baseball enthusiasts to easily identify and map the nearest ballpark when traveling.

“We continue to improve the WHERE platform in anticipation of market trends and needs. Our developer community asked for GeoRSS and KML support to make it easier to bring GPS widgets to market,” said Walt Doyle, CEO and President of uLocate. “GeoRSS and KML enhance thousands of location-based services on the Web. The integration of those standards in the mobile environment on WHERE provides developers with increased platform flexibility to build compelling content and applications.”

WHERE users and developers interested in GeoRSS and KML can find more information at http://www.where.com/create.

About WHERE

WHERE leverages the same GPS-based technology underpinning MapQuest Find Me, Helio Buddy Beacon and other popular mobile applications. The platform uses simple, yet powerful WHERE mark-up language and scripting to allow developers to write in their preferred development language and assemble applications on mobile handsets. As a result, consumers have a wealth of content to choose from, effectively personalizing their mobile GPS experience to find the people, places and things that matter to them. More information can be found at www.where.com.

About uLocate

uLocate Communications, Inc. (www.ulocate.com) is a privately held, venture-backed leader in location-based services headquartered in Framingham, Mass.

About Mapufacture

More information about Mapufacture is available at http://www.mapufacture.com.

Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

Sphere: Related Content

Pondering GPS

location based services

DaveT
May 28, 2007 at 3:45 AM
2 comments

OK, I know very little about GPS (other then the excellent entries I’ve read in this group.)

I read somewhere that a survey found that GPS is more anticipated by potential users of mobile phones then mobile TV.
This doesn’t surprise me as finding ones way around the countryside strikes me as a damn useful thing to have in a phone.

I’m noting down a few thoughts, after using the GPS in the N95 a few times in the last couple of weeks…

GPS seems to work better if I’m driving. The positioning seems to be more accurate if I’m standing in the middle of the road. Maybe trees confuse the satellite signals? That said, I had some real problems getting a fix on the satellites recently, until I slid the phone up onto the dash. Once I had a fix, my passenger wouldn’t let go of the phone as she found it fascinating to watch our progress on the screen as we drove through the countryside.
It would be nice if the camera app in the N95 auto logged onto the GPS and geotagged photos and videos. In fact, it would be interesting if everything were geotagged such as SMS and email.
Maps should allow an option to override the screensaver without running the backlight continuously.
It would be nice to see the two GPS apps (the info app and Maps) combined.
This device should be the ideal hiking phone, but the lack of protection for the screen, the strength of the plastic case, and the battery life reduce its effectiveness. What if the phone could plot a path following my movements through the bush? This data could be picked up by the Lifeblog app and mashed up with geotagged photos (including recorded sounds and video,) and finally the whole lot uploaded to Google Maps.
There is a GPS device on sale over here that allows the user to take a photo of a place, and this becomes part of the info for tagging a location. The user can browse for the photo of where they want to go, select, and the path finder does the rest. The N95 is the idea platform for this sort of functionality.

I thought it was interesting to read in the manual that the N95 has three different ariels.
Is this why the phone is clothed in plastic fantastic?
Is it not possible to ‘time slice’ access by the phone/Wifi/GPS to a single areal?

I was bush walking on the weekend and a couple of people whipped out their GPS units.
We got to talking about something called ‘assisted GPS’ where the Cell towers are used to glean extra position data.
Since there are three ariels in the N95, Any ideas on whether the N95 can use this technique?

Nokia N95 Users Group

Whose got deep pockets?

location based services

Viewranger Review - on the N95

location based services

May 21, 2007 at 11:07 PM
Post a comment
Favorites (1)

A Geocahce on a Public Footpath

What is it?
Viewranger is an S60 application that plots your position on an British OS Map and provides a variety of related services and tools. It supports the internal GPS of the Nokia N95 or external bluetooth receivers.

I had first seen this some time ago for sale at an online GPS shop, I was put off by what appeared to be a high price tag, £150 for Maps to cover the whole of Great Britain or £25 for coverage of the national parks. The first price was too high for my casual use and the second OK but didn't cover an area of interest to me. Yet in fact, you can select your own maps from around GB and pay just for those, you can get a sizeable chunk of maps (10,000 square km) for £20 and that includes the application itself! You also get a map of the whole of Britain but at a miniscale rather than 1:25000 or 1:50000 of the paid for maps. Its not obvious at first glance you can get this, look here.

Nokia 6110 Navigator

location based services

Nokia 6110 Navigator has built-in Navigator, so you can:

* Just start navigating! The Nokia 6110 Navigator is a ready-to-use navigation solution complete with built-in voice-guided 3D GPS navigation, the Nokia Navigator application, and local maps pre-installed on the included memory card
* Find your way with voice-guided navigation and turn arrows showing you the way on the map display
* Use the Nokia Navigator application to view digital maps with POIs (points of interest) stored on the included microSD card
* Search the provided maps for interesting places – then call, browse, or message locations straight from the Nokia Navigator application
* Get faster, more accurate position data with AGPS (assisted GPS). Supports OMA SUPL and 3GPP assistance standards
* Access location information, maps, and routes quickly with the Navigator key
* Understand clearly where you’re going with the integrated stereo speakers optimized for voice navigation guidance
* Use Nokia Map Manager (included with Nokia PC Suite) to manage and transfer maps to and from your PC
* Enhance your navigation experience with an extensive range of optional location-based services and content available for purchase, such as: traffic, weather, travel guides, and map updates at the city, regional, and country level
* Transfer more maps from the sales pack DVD. Just purchase a usage license key online using your phone and you can access even more maps and location-based information on your Nokia 6110 Navigator

Key Features are:

* Find your way by car or on foot: your Nokia 6110 Navigator has a built-in voice-guided 3D GPS navigation system and local maps pre-installed on the memory card
* Use turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation directly from your Nokia 6110 Navigator
* Access maps and location information quickly and easily with the dedicated Navigator key
* Download maps quickly and surf the web via high-speed 3.5G
* View maps, navigation guidance, and location information clearly on the 2.2" QVGA TFT color screen
* Take snapshots of places you've been using the 2-megapixel camera with panoramic mode
* Keep your images crystal clear with the sliding lens protector
* Listen to your text messages and email read aloud to you by your phone with Message Reader, with quick access from the My Own key

--FULL SPECS --

Operating Frequency:
* WCDMA 2100 HSDPA and dual transfer mode (DTM) GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
* High speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) up to 3.6Mbps (3.5G)
* GPRS/EGPRS class B, multi-slot class 32
* Speech codec support for NB-AMR, AMR, FR, and EFR

Size:
* Volume: 89 cc
* Weight: 125 g with battery
* Dimensions: 101 x 49 x 20 mm

Display:
* Large, bright 2.2" QVGA (320 x 240 pixels) color display with an active area of 33.48 x 44.64 mm and support for up to 16 million colors
* Light sensor for optimizing display and keypad brightness and power consumption

User Interface:
* S60 software on Symbian OS
* Dedicated keys for quick and easy access to your favorite features: Navigator key, camera key, and Symbian application launcher key
* Customizable My Own key gives you quick access to your favorite device feature. At purchase, the My Own key is configured to access Message Reader

Imaging:
* 2-megapixel camera (image resolution 1600 x 1200) with 4x digital zoom, integrated camera flash, horizontal camera mode, panoramic mode, and lens-protecting sliding cover
* Secondary CIF+ (common intermediate format) camera for video calls
* Image and video editor
* Adobe Photoshop Album 3.0 for more advanced photo editing

Messaging:
* SMS text messaging
* MMS OMA (Open Mobile Alliance) 1.2 for creating, receiving, editing, and sending multimedia messages
* Instant messaging
* Push email with attachment viewing capability allows you to read and send email on-the-go
* Audio messaging (AMS) for sending voice or sound clips via MMS

Multimedia:
* Stereo speakers with 3D sound
* FM stereo with Visual Radio
* MP3 player with progressive download, allowing you to play music while it's still being downloaded to your phone (supports MP3, MP4, AAC, eAAC+ and WMA formats)
* Video calling, video sharing, and video streaming
* MP3 and AAC ringing tones with 64-channel polyphonic tones, and 3D stereo and video ringing tones
* Media player with support for MPEG-4 files
* Adobe Flash Lite 2.0
* Nokia Video Manager, a PC application which allows you to transfer videos easily from your PC to your device or memory card

Memory Function:
* Up to 40 MB of user memory
* Hotswappable microSD memory card support up to 2 GB of extra storage

Applications:
* S60 software enables you to choose from a wide variety on add-on applications, enhancements, content and services to personalized your device
* Attachment viewer supports viewing of Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files
* Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader
* Nokia Navigator application for turn-by-turn navigation with maps and voice guidance
* Nokia Wireless Presenter: software that allows you to access your Windows desktop applications via Bluetooth wireless technology (included on the sales package CD-ROM)
* Nokia Mobile Search: a free, downloadable application that provides a simple, convenient, and fast way to find and connect to local services, websites, images, and mobile content from your device
* Bluetooth keyboard application
* Device tutorial

Connectivity:
* Bluetooth wireless technology 2.0 with enhanced data rate (EDR) specification
* 2.5 mm audio/visual connector
* Mini USB interface
* 2.0 mm charger connector

Browsing:
* High-speed 3.5G browsing and download capability
* Full open-source software (OSS) web browser
* XHTML browsing over TCP/IP

Data Transfer:
* Local and remote SyncML data synchronization

PIM:
* Calendar, enhanced contacts with presence, and active notes

Voice Features:
* Enhanced voice dialing
* Message Reader, an integrated function that lets your device read SMS and email messages aloud for you
* Push to talk
* Integrated handsfree speaker

Digital Services:
* Full Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) provisioning and over-the-air (OTA) software updates
* Use Download! to personalize your Nokia 6110 Navigator via high-speed 3.5G

Other Features:
* Built-in voice-guided 3D GPS navigation
* Offline mode lets you use your device’s secondary features and applications (i.e. Music player or Calendar) when you are unable to transmit or receive calls (for example, in hospitals or airplanes, or when you do not have a SIM card)
* Active standby
* Themes
* Opening the protective camera lens slide activates the camera

Sales Packages:
* Nokia 6110 Navigator
* Nokia Battery BP-5M
* Nokia Travel Charger AC-4
* Nokia Headset HS-42
* Nokia 256 MB microSD Card MU-27 or Nokia 512 MB microSD Card MU-28
* Nokia Connectivity Cable DKE-2
* CD-ROM including: Nokia PC Suite 6.83; Nokia Map Manager for transferring map files between your phone and the PC; Nokia Video Manager for transferring video files to the PC, phone memory, or onto the memory card of your mobile device; Adobe Photoshop Album Starter Edition 3.0 for easy-to-use photo management on your PC; Ulead Video Toolbox 2.5 Basic edition for simple video and audio editing on your PC; and Nokia Wireless Presenter software for accessing your Windows desktop applications via Bluetooth wireless technology
* DVD with additional maps
* User guide and quick guide

Languages Support:
Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese (traditional and simplified), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Farsi, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Norwegian, Pilipino, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese

Power Management:
* Battery - BP-5M
* Talk time - GSM up to 3.5 hrs
- WCDMA up to 2.5 hrs
* Stanby time - GSM up to 11 days
- WCDMA up to 11 days
* Capacity - 900 mAh

Posted by Chong at 2:40 AM

Labels: Special

Hey Grauniad , where's the Google map mashup to go with this story ?

Top 10 local hangouts in Barcelona

location based services

Damien Simonis, author of Lonely Planet's new Barcelona city guide, shares an insider's tips on the best places to take off your tourist hat and enjoy the city with the locals

Guardian Unlimited
Wednesday May 30 2007

Palau de la Música Catalana ... a fantastic night out for music-lovers that's as Catalan as it gets. Photograph: Richard T. Nowitz/Corbis

Església de Santa Maria del Mar

If there's one sight in central Barcelona where you might run into locals, this is it. Not only is the Church of Our Lady of the Sea the city's grandest - and strikingly sober - Gothic construction, it is the symbolic favourite with Barcelonins (Barcelona's residents). Grand Catalan family weddings take place here, along with occasional baroque or classical music recitals that see stampedes of well-dressed Barcelona bourgeois pour into a barrio they otherwise tend to leave to the guiris (foreigners).

+34 93 319 05 16
Plaça de Santa Maria del Mar, Jaume I

Mercat de la Boqueria

Mums from the barrio armed with shopping trolleys jostle past the likes of Ferran Adrià and other high-flying chefs in search of the freshest looking cuttlefish, gambes de Palamòs (much-prized Costa Brava shrimp), Cabrales cheese or even dried insects (it takes all kinds). The banter in Catalan and Spanish flies as quick-witted vendors compete for customers' attentions. But get here early to see one of Europe's grandest produce markets at its genuine best, because the secret is well and truly out and by midday you'll be struggling past hordes of justifiably curious, camera-toting visitors from around the planet.

+34 93 318 25 84
La Rambla de Sant Josep 91, Liceu

Parc del Fòrum

Away from the tourist-filled beaches closer to La Barceloneta, the Parc del Forum makes for an intriguing summer Sunday family outing. Dominated by a giant solar panel and cutting-edge conference buildings, this undulating park comprises gardens, a protected seawater swimming area, great Rollerblade territory, swings and other kids' distractions and, at the height of the season, a good old-fashioned funfair with dodgem cars, shooting galleries, candyfloss and cheap and cheerful food stands.

+34 93 356 10 50
www.bcn.es/parcdelforum
Rambla de Prim 2-4, El Maresme Fòrum

Read the full content……

Cafè de l'Acadèmia

The Barri Gòtic heaves to the flow of tourists streaming through to admire its medieval splendours. Come lunchtime, however, the streets fill with Barcelonins who operate the machinery of municipal power at the Ajuntament (Town Hall). Many head around the corner for lunch at their old haunt, the Cafè de l'Acadèmia. Grab a table outside in the sunny little square and see how good Catalan food (with the occasional, lightly inventive touch) keeps public servants in good humour!

+34 93 319 82 53
Carrer de Lledò 1, Jaume I

Vaso de Oro

Open the doors of the Glass of Gold and a torrent of talk immediately assaults you. With only a couple of feet of squeezing room between the doors and the long, food-laden bar, your main problem will be finding enough standing room to hold a glass of beer and balance a plateful of pork, calamari or octopus. If you're after a genuine tapas experience just a short walk from La Barceloneta beach, you've found it.

+34 93 319 30 98
Carrer de Balboa 6, Barceloneta

Inopia

You need to get away from the bright lights to enjoy the gourmet tapas whipped up by Albert Adrià (yes, Ferran's brother) and his team at this stylish corner eatery that attracts fashionable folk from all over town. You can probably forget about getting a seat or bar stool inside - hang at the streetside bar hatch instead. The food ranges from feather-light vegetable tempura to bite-size skewers of tender chicken. Ask for the croquetes de pernil ibèric (great ham croquettes).

+34 93 424 52 31
Carrer de Tamarit 104, Sant Antoni

Palau de la Música Catalana

A wonder of Modernista architecture and symbol of local national identity, the Palace of Catalan Music can also be a fantastic night out for music-lovers. Concerts sweep broadly from classical to Portuguese fado and never fail to draw an appreciative audience into the richly decorated auditorium. It is a romantic setting and about as Catalan as it gets.

+34 902 442882
palaumusica.org
Carrer de Sant Francesc de Paula 2, Urquinaona

Harlem Jazz Club

Fashionable bars come and go in Barcelona's old town centre, but the fervid beat never seems to die at this classic, smoke-filled jazz and blues den. Some superb voices have been exposed to the Spanish penchant for tobacco here - but gratification comes from the crowds that fill the place to bursting for the double bills that take place most evenings.

+34 93 310 07 55
Carrer de la Comtessa de Sobradiel 8, Jaume I

Crawling Carrer d'Aribau

Join the restless, nocturnal souls on Thursday to Saturday nights for some bar-crawling along the upper end of this street, where it crosses Avinguda del Diagonal. From white-jacket waiter cocktail bars to singalong dens with Argentine guitarists, from Colombian dance spots to a Milan-style aperitivo joint, the choices are eclectic. Later, a phalanx of late-night bars, snack joints, clubs and ill-disguised girlie bars bump and grind until dawn.

La Paloma

The 100-year-old La Paloma is a unique local institution and an essential night out. The evening (or late afternoon) starts early with bands playing cha-chas and tangos for an appreciative crowd of mostly retired couples gliding around this classic dancehall. As they exhaust themselves, the galleries and stage undergo a metamorphosis, turning The Dove into one of the most sought-after clubs in town. It attracts a mixed, inner-city crowd attracted by an eclectic musical programme and the unique location.

+34 93 301 68 97
lapaloma-bcn.com
Carrer del Tigre 27, Universitat

· Damien Simonis has lived in Barcelona on and off since 1992 and is the author of Barcelona Encounter, part of Lonely Planet's new series of guides written by residents.

Related information

Gadgetry in motion

location based services

By Jennifer Dudley

May 30, 2007 12:00am

Article from:

OWNING a talking car that navigates for you used to be the subject of futuristic TV shows like Knight Rider and The Jetsons.

Welcome, then, to the future. Australians are taking to satellite-navigation units like never before, letting their vehicles rather than their passengers tell them where to go.

And it's little wonder the gadgets are becoming more common. Entry-level global-positioning system (GPS) navigation units have more than halved in price from over $1000 to less than $500.

They are also coming in different forms – from big-screen units in cars' dashboards to portable units you can take for a drive or a stroll or as added features in mobile phones.

Pioneer mobile electronics group general manager Peter Hutchison says almost 600,000 Australians currently rely on GPS gadgets to navigate for them, and he predicts that number will double in the next two years. "Looking forward to 2009, we would see that hit the 1.2 million unit area and that will give us about 29 per cent of market penetration in vehicles in Australia," Hutchison says.

"In more mature markets, some 17 years old, they've experienced some 50 per cent of market penetration, so Australia still has a long way to go."

But Chris Smith, location and navigation group manager for Sensis, which supplies Australian maps for GPS systems, says the Australian market is growing quickly and has "a lot of potential".

Smith says a recent Sensis poll found 26 per cent of Australians have used a GPS device in their car, 35 per cent are interested in buying one in the next year and 44 per cent are keen to try a satellite-navigation system and its services.

In fact, consumer technology analyst Peter Blasina predicts the GPS unit will "be the hottest item this Christmas – it will dump the iPod".

He says the technology will increasingly become part of portable gadgets and will eventually be teamed with traffic reports to provide the ultimate, hassle-free driving experience.

Pioneer Australia made its forecasts while revealing the company's first GPS units for the Australian market – a move made 17 years after it introduced the world's first in-car GPS unit in Japan.

The leading in-car entertainment provider introduced two products to the market – an integrated GPS unit with a hard drive and a host of multimedia features called the AVIC HD3, and a portable GPS unit called the AVIC S2.

Pioneer's AVIC brand stands for audio, visual, information and communication, and is designed to take some of the stress out of driving, car electronics group product manager Paul Baddeley says.

He says issues like not knowing where you are going, where you can find a petrol station or an ATM, when you will arrive at your destination or having a mobile phone ring can create "chaos" in the car that can be solved by an integrated GPS unit.

The AVIC HD3 is an all-in-one in-car unit with a 17.7cm (7in) touch-sensitive screen. It is a double-DIN sized unit – the size of two standard dashboard panels – and must be professionally installed.

Baddeley says the AVIC HD3 is designed to take over from a host of in-car extras.

It features a 30Gb hard drive with 10Gb dedicated to storing music (it can rip songs from CDs as you insert them) and also comes loaded with the Gracenote CDDB library so it can add song, album and artist information to files automatically.

The HD3 also has a radio and can play MP3 CDs, and can be fitted with an optional iPod adapter so you can control your iPod's tunes while it hides and recharges in your glovebox.

The unit can also play DVDs for the benefit of backseat passengers, and can be linked with optional screens in the back seat for this purpose. The HD3 can also be fitted with an optional rear-vision camera, with the footage shown on its screen.

Bluetooth is also featured in this gadget, allowing it to hook up with Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones to make and take calls. It also has voice-recognition so you can place a call by announcing the name of your contact or simply reading out a phone number.

This gadget's voice-recognition feature also lets you search for destinations or perform other operations by announcing the appropriate command.

The AVIC HD3's hard drive comes preloaded with Sensis maps of Australia and an extensive points of interest database including supermarkets, ATMs, petrol stations and restaurants. Users can choose to show these points on screen as icons as they approach, even choosing to display only specific store brands like McDonald's, for example.

The HD3's navigation system also calculates six different routes for each destination, allowing you to choose your favourite, and, with Smart Routing software, learns your preferences over time, whether you prefer to avoid toll roads or right-hand turns.

It also determines your estimated driving time, and provides close-ups of turns with its voice directions.

The device also features a 3D Gyro Sensor that measures your car's height, speed and direction to more accurately estimate where you are on the map, even if the GPS link disappears or you enter a tunnel.

This addition, with other technology, also allows the AVIC HD3 to determine and display information about your car's acceleration, G-force, angular velocity and battery voltage.

At $3799, plus installation costs, the HD3 will not be suitable for every Australian driver, but Baddeley says Pioneer have had feedback "that you could pay up to $5000" to have a similar system installed in your car.

Pioneer's portable GPS unit, the AVIC S2, is more economically priced at $799 and features Sensis maps, an MP3 player, SD card slot and Bluetooth connectivity.

But Blasina, who has been testing the AVIC HD3 unit, says there are advantages to having one device that lets you control your car's many extras.

"The integrated system definitely works a lot better than having a whole pile of different components in the car," he says. "It's much better than having a radio, a Bluetooth device and a portable GPS unit.

"That's not to take away from the ease and affordability of GPS units from TomTom, Navman and Garmin, though, and I suspect a lot of people still won't want to have their car retro-fitted or to pay that much for an integrated system."

Blasina says Pioneer's integrated unit is cheaper than dedicated GPS systems from car makers including BMW and Lexus, however, and elements including its connection with mobile phones, points-of-interest database and its revamped, user-friendly menu make the driving experience more enjoyable.

According to Pioneer's estimates, only 1.8 per cent of GPS units used in Australia are integrated into cars, but the company predicts this will grow to 8.6 per cent by 2009.

Blasina says that figure may grow even more once GPS maps can be updated to include up-to-the-minute traffic information, allowing you to avoid gridlock.

"That's the killer application," he says. "I've seen it work in Europe and California and it's just tremendous. It could tell you that the M1 is blocked, for example, and recalculate the route for you."

Integrated GPS units will get competition from portable gadgets in the future, including mobile phones.

Nokia this year introduced a fully featured GPS navigator into its N95 mobile phone and GPS also features in the new BlackBerry 8800 mobile phone.

Nokia Asia Pacific multimedia sales director David Watkins says mobile phones have become multimedia computers that will eventually marginalise some single-use gadgets, including MP3 players, digital compact cameras and even GPS devices.

"My mobile phone is a now a personal navigation device with turn-by-turn instructions," he says. "In my N95 I have access to GPS maps from 100 countries and thousands of points of interest. I've used it to navigate around Singapore, Malaysia and Finland."

Watkins says phone users can also install similar GPS software on other Nokia mobile phones and Windows Mobile smartphones, and use a Bluetooth dongle to transform a mobile phone into a GPS unit.

He says GPS features will also trickle down into more Nokia mobile phones in future, ensuring more Australians will be taking direction from their gadgets in future.