Maps and tours (initial development)

New mapping solution

One feature of GetOutsideNJ that (we hope) will add a lot of value will be the addition of quality maps to our listings. We are not talking about the quality of a Hagstrom road map or a NY/NJ trail conference map, but we will offer interactive maps leveraging the familiar Google Map API. With this you be able to:

• Get directions to and from listings
• Easily see all the waterfalls in a park
• Drive to any parking lot in Point Pleasant
• Find the nearest bathrooms to your campsite
• See the trails before you get there
• Find this and see that and.. well.. you get the point.

This is not a groundbreaking use of google maps, but we know it will raise the quality of the user experience.

To see a very simple (and mostly useless) demo of what we have implemented with the Google Mapping API so far, you can click the Start Demo link above the map. If you experience any issues (besides boredom), please comment below.

Tours?

After we add the ability to place markers and lines onto a map, as well as work through all the bugs within the system, we'll be able to create simple tours of a listing. Maybe a quick walk through of Allaire Village. Maybe a hike with directions through Wawayanda. Or maybe even a photo tour of Grounds For Sculpture. The sky is the limit, and I think many will enjoy this feature.

The concept of this site is great. But when will it go live?

Since this is a side project of a few people and not a project funded by a large company, the progress on this site is slow and steady. And since I just took a position within a new company writing in a new programming language, I am going to be extra busy over the next few months. But even with this distraction, we hope to have the bulk of the site up and running by mid-November. And with any luck the full functional site will be up by the first week of January.

Talk to you soon. Jeff C.