Several months back I went to a Def Leppard concert in Charlotte, NC. (think you know how old I am? I’m older than that!) I’m not a big concert-goer anymore, but there was a woman I really wanted to go out with, and that’s where she wanted to go. Before heading out, I looked up the address online through one of the map services, I don’t remember which one now. After printing the map and directions, we headed to Charlotte with plenty of time to spare. Once we got to Charlotte, we followed the map as it led us deeper into the heart of the one-way massacre that is downtown Charlotte.
An hour of downtown Charlotte later, I gave up looking for the parking lot (I had paid for a premium spot… trying to impress this beautiful young lady) and just paid for parking in a garage I thought was at least somewhere close to the ampitheatre. On the streets, lots of people were heading toward what we thought was the Def Leppard show. We followed the crowd, only to find that we had been led right to the bowels of some street-filled chaos which had absolutely nothing to do with rock and roll. So I did what anyone might do, I found the closest police officer and asked him how to get where we going.
I Mean Heads Way South!
He looked at the map. He looked at the directions. He showed it to his partner. He looked at us, and laughed. Evidently we were several miles from the correct ampitheatre. He gave us directions and we thanked him and left. As it turns out, his directions led us all the way down I-77 and into South Carolina. We finally found the correct place, which was nowhere near where we thought it was, at about 9:30. We missed Styx, and Foreigner, but did arrive just as Def Leppard was taking the stage. They were great, as usual. But I haven’t been able to get a date with the beautiful young lady since….(as an aside, you really ought to click that Foreigner link if you like their music. You will like it…)
If you’ve ever used the internet to find a map, you may have run into a similar situation. It’s understandable. There’s alot of area to cover to create a map, and mistakes are unavoidable. The map says turn right but you need to turn left. The map says the address (1026 Somestreet) is here, but the addresses seem to stop at the 900 block. The list of mistakes is endless.
Google To The Rescue!
Well, the guys over at Google must have had that happen one too many times. They have started a program with GoogleMaps which allows you to go in and correct the things you know are wrong. It works like this: Go on over there and type in your address. A map appears showing the location you just entered, with a bubble that has the information they have associated with this address. One of the options listed within the bubble is “Edit”. Click on edit. (If you’re not signed into Google, you will be prompted to sign in, or create an account.)
Once you click “Edit”, another bubble will appear. Click on “Move Marker”, and drag the green arrow to the correct location. Then click “Save”, inside the little bubble. That’s all there is to it!
Go now, and fix the map!
I am Jon, and now you can find me..
Ok, but I always get lost – even with Maps … somehow I don’t think Google wants me updating their maps. A person could start out for San Francisco and end up in Elko Nev.
Catherine
Google Maps has always been the most dependable for me. The others can lead you on a wild goose chase! I worry that allowing others to change their maps might make them worse now, though. That sounds just ripe for some jokesters.
PS: Did you know Def Leppard is your sister’s all-time-favorite-in-the-world band? Yeah, uh huh, whatever.
–> from jon: I am Jon, and I don’t date my sister!