Before technology is so involved with people’s daily lives, I remember that when traveling on vacation, it was always advisable or advisable to acquire maps of the updated routes, which also included information on fuel suppliers of each site.
A little later, we used devices with the software of the manufacturer, where I was very surprised and never investigated how these devices were kept updated and, at the same time, what gave the hierarchy to some sites to appear there and others not.
With the massification of smartphones and the fact that even the most basic of each company incorporate a GPS device, maps and other devices have been falling into disuse.
I also remember that when planning some trips, since I knew I would not have an Internet connection during a large part of the trip, I simulated the routes on the PC and printed the most important crossings that I would have to take.
To this day, all these anecdotes may seem funny or quite old, but believe me they were less than 10 years ago.
Currently, I am not surprised that in conversations with family or friends, someone asks for an address, a place or a city, that people who participate in the conversation, verify their phone and, in a matter of seconds, can provide the information requested they even show photos and videos of the consulted sites.
But there was something that kept making noise inside me. Sometimes I was disconcerted when in my city or neighboring cities enabled new highways or new bridges and in the applications of my phone it seemed that where I was traveling there was no way. A common expression was: -“Google people do not have time to add new routes in villages so small or without tourist activity”-.
Until little by little I began to discover that also in the maps that they offered me, there were small shops, local businesses and other points that sometimes seemed irrelevant to me on the map. Then I decided to investigate. I was surprised when I saw that not only Google placed that information on the maps, but that everyone who was willing to participate was welcome to contribute to this work.
Something changed inside me at that moment, I felt a great responsibility for what I discovered, and although I shared it with family and friends, nobody seemed interested.
Even bigger was my surprise when I saw that in my hometown, the updated information was very scarce and that very few people made contributions about it. I decided to take my phone and start adding all those places that were not virtually in the city, and I could not stop there, then I started adding photos, but I think the best thing was when I discovered that my phone could make spherical captures. Although they are only photographs, they offer an immersive experience.
Follow the link to see the 360 photo on Google Maps
One of the contributions in 360° with the greatest number of views
I really think that they can transport you to another place
Just by seeing them, you feel that you are in the place from which you took them. It did not take me long to realize that this was one of the best ways to place photographs on Google Maps, I regreted all the opportunities I lost, I visited many places in my country and I could not make any contribution about it, but I proposed myself the goal of taking my city of origin to the 21st century, locating the most representative and characteristic places of it along with the modern bars and restaurants that were enabling and opening. Making Google maps more accurate day by day, whether by adding places to maps, answering simple questions, checking phone numbers or correcting available information, is something that really makes me very happy and also the fact that can be part of this Great global community of people who enjoy being able to make their contributions.
Thanks for reading and I hope we are in the edition 2019 of Connect Live