Google Maps is fantastic tool. It allows you to embed maps on your site at potentially no cost which is amazing when you explore the licensing cost of UK mapping data. There are some restrictions on free use of their map service and they have a commercial (at cost) license for when free use does not apply.

Within the mapping service you can embed the maps within your own page design. You can create custom tools for using the map. You can add points to the map to represent anything that has a geographic location. You can also add regions to the map such as national park boundaries, sales areas, authority boundaries. It is even possible to create your own data layers and integrate them with the standard Google back drop maps.

There are loads of examples of Google Maps in use on the web and to the left is an example of this service in use on our site. For more information please feel free to contact us or visit http://code.google.com.

Our example includes a demonstration of using a boundary (the City of Edinburgh Council boundary) and also a custom point marker for the location of our office. We have attached information to our location marker which you can access by clicking the See IT logo.

To move around the map you can use the controls to the left or click and drag with your mouse to move the map. You can also use the cursor keys and +/- to zoom in for more detail. You can optionally change the backdrop maps using the buttons to the top right.

Would you like to see more?

adds a layer showing the location of photos from panoramio.com. You can click the map icons to see the image. The red boundary is removed to declutter the map.