|
|
PocketMap
Product: PocketMap Version 1.02 Review
Prepared by: Brett P. Cooper
Contact Information: Bcooper3@nc.rr.com
Date: December 3, 2001
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Working Title: PocketPC Maps provide more than regular maps
Working Subtitle: PocketMap Product Review
Product Version Number: 1.02
Price: From $9.95 (single map) to $39.95 (full)
Product Manufacturer: Space Machine, Inc. (http://pocketmap.spacemachine.net/)
Supported Platforms:
Today, PocketPCs have come of age as indispensable tools for real people, not just glorified calendars or contact keepers. Everyone from doctors to executives are finding out how PocketPCs can be solutions to their information and technology needs. One solution that is quickly making its way onto the PocketPC is that of geographical mapping. We aren't talking about a several hundred dollar GPS system that attaches to your PocketPC, requiring a bulky GPS transponder and an external power source, but good old maps right on your PocketPC.
Remember maps? Those hard to fold up pieces of paper that get torn and misplaced somewhere in your car or house. Well, with PocketMap maps are back in a truly useful and organized way on your PocketPC. With PocketMap you can:
- Use interactive maps to locate a business or street Location
- Find points of interest to a street address, including:
- Airports, ATMs, Drug stores, Grocery Stores, Gyms/Fitness Centers, Hotels/Lodging, Shopping Malls, Stadiums, Restaurants, and Tourist Attractions
- Comprehensive database of locations and streets
- United States Nationwide coverage
- No advertisements
The best part about the PocketMap product is the price for the features, at $16.95 (US $ MSRP) a user has access not only to the PocketMap software but to about 50 metro areas covering more than 1,000 cities in the U.S. at the Space Machine website for a one calendar year period. The team at Space Machine told me that the $16.95 price is a introductory (promotional) price that may not be in effect past the end of 2001. PocketMap includes maps for the following locations in the United States of America:
AZ - PHOENIX-MESA
CA - LOS ANGELES-LONG BEACH
CA - OAKLAND
CA - ORANGE COUNTY
CA - RIVERSIDE-SAN BERNARDINO
CA - SACRAMENTO
CA - SAN DIEGO
CA - SAN FRANCISCO
CA - SAN JOSE
CO - DENVER
CT - HARTFORD
DC - WASHINGTON (MD-VA-WV)
FL - JACKSONVILLE
FL - MIAMI
FL - ORLANDO
FL - TAMPA-ST. PETERSBURG-CLEARWATER
FL - WEST PALM BEACH-BOCA RATON
GA - ATLANTA
IN - INDIANAPOLIS
IL - CHICAGO
KY - LOUISVILLE (IN)
LA - NEW ORLEANS
MA - BOSTON (NH)
MD - BALTIMORE
MI - DETROIT
MI - GRAND RAPIDS-MUSKEGON-HOLLAND
MN - MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL (WI)
MO - KANSAS CITY (KS)
MO - ST. LOUIS (IL)
NC - CHARLOTTE-GASTONIA-ROCK HILL (SC)
NC - GREENSBORO--WINSTON-SALEM--HIGH POINT
NC - RALEIGH-DURHAM-CHAPEL HILL
NV - LAS VEGAS (AZ)
NY - BUFFALO-NIAGARA FALLS
NY - NEW YORK
NY - ROCHESTER
OH - CINCINNATI (KY-IN)
OH - CLEVELAND-LORAIN-ELYRIA
OH - COLUMBUS
OK - OKLAHOMA CITY
OR - PORTLAND-VANCOUVER (WA)
PA - PHILADELPHIA (NJ)
PA - PITTSBURGH
RI - PROVIDENCE-FALL RIVER-WARWICK (MA)
TN - MEMPHIS (AR-MS)
TN - NASHVILLE
TX - AUSTIN-SAN MARCOS
TX - DALLAS
TX - FORT WORTH-ARLINGTON
TX - HOUSTON
TX - SAN ANTONIO
UT - SALT LAKE CITY-OGDEN
VA - NORFOLK-VIRGINIA BEACH-NEWPORT NEWS
VA - RICHMOND-PETERSBURG
WA - SEATTLE-BELLEVUE-EVERETT
WI - MILWAUKEE-WAUKESHAThe maps are updated one to two times per year and the company is adding new maps regularly. Many will compare PocketMap to a Global Positioning System (GPS), but this comparison is like comparing apples and oranges since both solutions are designed with different users requirements in mind. GPS solutions are targeted at a specific audience of mobile professionals that need to know exactly where they are and how to traverse a path from point A to point B. Most users will never need a GPS solution in their day-to-day lives since they do not regularly travel outside of their normal area. GPS solutions are available from several different providers for the PocketPC and a complete review is available at http://www.pocketpcmag.com/Jan02/gps.asp
PocketMap 1.02 is supported on several PocketPC platforms including:
- Casio Cassiopeia (MIPS processor)
- Compaq iPAQ (StrongARM processor)
- HP Jornada (SH3 processor)
- Other devices supporting WinCE 3.0Installing PocketMap is extremely simple; first, use the supplied username and password to download the application and location maps that you would like from Space Machine's website, second, install the PocketMap software and select the maps (with or without Points of Interest) that you want to carry on your PocketPC and you are ready to go. The PocketMap application is 1.8MB and the map files are relatively small about 2-5MB per map (depending on the roads, etc. for the location that you are loading). You can load and unload maps as you need to using the Add/Remove Programs in your PocketPC's settings menu. Since I travel frequently I load the maps for the locations that I am going to and unload my local map to free up some memory. The install process and uploading of the maps takes a matter of minutes.
PocketMap Application and Selected Maps
!The map information comes in two files; a larger file that contains the road and descriptive information for the location, and a second file that contains points of interest, such as the locations of ATM, airports, drugstores, grocery stores, gyms/fitness centers, hotels/lodging, nightclubs/bars, restaurants, shopping malls, stadiums/arenas, and tourist attractions.
The interface is intuitive for the new user and focuses on icons and pen-point navigational tools. After using the map to find a few locations and access information on several points of interest I was comfortable with the product.
PocketMap City Map Location Selection Page
You can select your location of choice from the list of available locations that you have installed.
PocketMap Maps Page
The Map shows your selected location and street names as well as icons for locations of interest.
PocketMap Location Information Page
Selecting a location of interest will display the pertinent information about that location. In some cases the information includes telephone number.
PocketMap Street Selections Page
You can select a street or street and cross street and the map automatically centers that location for your viewing.
PocketMap Category Selection Page
You can select from the categories of locations of interest to turn on or off their display on the maps.
PocketMap Interface:
The PocketMap Interface is fairly intuitive with large icons and selection points for all of the features in the application, including:
Going to a New City
Click on the first letter of the street's name, or on [#] if the street name is a number. If the list of streets beginning with that letter is more than 50, the list will be divided up into smaller groups. Select the appropriate range in which the street name falls alphabetically. If the list is divided further within that range, each group is indicated by [Page 1], [Page 2], etc. Once you select the street, you will be asked to Select an Address Range.
Selecting an Intersection
This is a list of all streets that intersect with the street you selected previously. They are listed alphabetically. Choose one street from the list, and your selected intersection will be centered on the map.
Finding an Address
Select a range of numbers in which your street address falls. For example, if you are looking for 525, choose 501 - 549. The map will then be centered on the center point of that range on the street you selected.
Selecting Categories
Check the box next to any category of points that you would like displayed on your map. You may select any number of categories, or none at all if you choose to view the map only. When you are finished making your selections, scroll to the bottom of the page and select "Update Categories" (you may exit this page, without making any category selection changes, by using the "back to main menu" or "back to map" options.) You will see that the category of each point displayed on your map is indicated by the icon that appears next to each category on this list. Points indicated by a multiple point icon signify more than one point at this location. To return to this category page, you may choose "Select Categories" from the Menu, or use the quick link at the bottom of your screen.
Returning to a Previous Location
Click on the first letter of the street's name, or on [#] if the street name is a number. If the list of streets beginning with that letter is more than 50, the list will be divided up into smaller groups. Select the appropriate range in which the street name falls alphabetically. If the list is divided further within that range, each group is indicated by [Page 1], [Page 2], etc. Once you select the street, you will be asked to Select an Intersecting Street.
List of Nearby Points
This list consists of all points in your selected categories that are located in the general area of the map's center. The icon next to each point listing indicates its category. Select any of these point listings to see its address. From this description page, you may center the map on this point, return to the point list, or close the window and return to the map where you left it.
Points at this Location
This list consists of all points that exist at the location of the multiple point icon on the map that you selected. (Since more than one business exists at this location, a special icon is placed there to indicate so.) In this list, the icon next to each point listing indicates its category. Select any of these point listings to see its address. From this description page, you may center the map on this point, return to the point list, or close the window and return to the map where you left it.
Setting PocketMap Options
PocketMap Options Page
- Show Pan Arrows: Check the box next to this option if you want the pan arrows to be placed on the map (this box is checked by default). These arrows are used for "one-click" panning; clicking on a directional arrow will shift the map slightly in that direction. The other method of panning is the "click and drag" method, which can be used whether or not the pan arrows are displayed.
- Show Center Crosshair: Check the box next to this option if you want the center crosshair displayed on the map (this box is checked by default). This crosshair is used to mark the exact center of your map screen, and is helpful when you want to keep a certain location centered while zooming in and out.
-Show Pushpin on Selected Point: Check the box next to this option if you want your selected point on the map to be marked with a pushpin graphic (this box is checked by default). This option helps you keep track of the last point you selected. The pushpin will disappear when you pan the map or select a new point.
- Show Home Icon: Check the box next to this option if you want the last city, address or intersection you selected to be indicated on the map with a star (this box is checked by default). This option allows you to jump back to this location at any time in one step. To do this, click on the Home quick link on the bottom bar, or select the "Return to..." option in the Menu.On the downside, the application is a bit slow when updating the maps, leaving black space where the map is being redrawn, not painfully slow in terms of minutes like reloading maps, but slow like in terms of 10-20 seconds. I believe there are two reasons for the time lag, one because the application is working with the PocketPC's available memory to access the large data files that makeup the raw map information, and two the processor speed of the IPAQ. The Space Machine team told me that in their testing they returned times of 2-5 seconds for the map updates. I do not know why there is a difference other than possible memory or system differences. The good news is that there is an update status bar on the top right hand side of the application that provides updates on the maps updating so you know what the wait will be like.
Another issue that prevents the product from being used as a traditional map is that some street names do not show up no matter what zoom level of magnification is selected. I would have expected to be able to select a street and have the street name show up on along with its cross streets.
Also, since the screen size of most PocketPCs is limited PocketMap suffers from not being able to view a large area on a single screen. Users of paper maps are accustomed to seeing maps on a larger scale and being able to track the path from point to point, such as from Richmond, Virginia to New York City. The user being able to zoom in and out on a location to get a larger overall view remedies this issue to a small degree.
Another enhancement that could make the product easier to utilize in the well-connected world would be the integration of PocketMap with MapQuest or other mapping solution on the Internet. This way you can log onto MapQuest get your directions and then download them into PocketMap. You can download MapQuest directions directly to your PocketPC today, butt he added integration with PocketMap would allow you to scroll and find points of interest as you wanted to in real-time.
Lastly on the requests for enhancements is the ability to set a start and end point and have PocketMap chart your course a la MapQuest online. This is one of the most important things that a map provides a user with and is indispensable. The enhancement request would also include the addition of being able to add way points using the already useful pushpin metaphor found in PocketMap a user could detail their course and then follow it to their destination. Many GPS product offer this today, but do so at an exorbitant price point.
At the time of this review the Space Machine's team was working fast and furiously to release a new version of PocketMap by the close of 2001 with some additional features as well as a new version of PocketMap that is compatible with many leading GPS offerings for the PocketPC. The new version of PocketMap for GPS, called PocketMap GPS providing a user with the ability to set destination points and to define and save their own address points.
I would rate the PocketMap application four (4) out of a possible five (5) stars.
If you have any questions or wish to share your views on PocketMap or the PocketPC please send me e-mail at Bcooper3@nc.rr.com.
Info
Want
to know more about us?
Or get in touch with us?
Click here!
