Friday, July 13

Embed Google Maps in eBird Checklist Comments!

View Checklist:  S10505942
How often haven't you bawled over a listserv post when you couldn't describe the location of the bird you saw? Finally you decided to just send everybody a set of latitude-longitude coordinates. Even then, to make sense of those numbers, your readers had to go plug them into Google Maps.

But technology is better than that. Just embed that Google Map into your eBird comment! Why not? It's easy, fast, and beautiful!

I've built an automated code generator below which spits out an image code you can copy into your eBird comments. You can now have a Google Map embedded in your checklists comments in less than 1 minute. It will look just like the checklist on the right.

Google Maps Embed Code Generator
Use the code generator below to create a Google Map you can embed in your checklist comment:

Embed Google Maps
in eBird Checklists
the Easy Way!
Marker A:  
Marker B:  
Marker C: More >
Zoom: Normal
Map Type:
Colors:Use Multiple Marker Colors 
Labels:Show Labels? 
Visit the eBirdGM Homepage

Tips on getting Latitude-Longitude Coordinates:
  1. Go to Google Maps
  2. Zoom in on your precise location (or search for it)
  3. Right-click exactly at that spot, and select "What's Here?"
  4. Copy the Latitude-Longitude coordinates that appear in the search box
Great Examples of Embedded Google Maps
Here's a few of my own checklists in which I've embedded Google Maps using the code generator.
If you want to explore the world of Google Maps further on your own, you can read the Google Static Maps API V2 Developer's Guide.

Feedback is welcome! How do you like the Code Generator? What would you still like to see?

10 comments:

  1. AndrewJuly 15, 2012 at 12:29 AM

    Hey, that's a cool idea... and simple to use, too. Thanks! Any possibility of using terrain for the map type?

    Here's my checklist with a map embedded:
    http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S11007365

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sissypantsJuly 15, 2012 at 12:31 AM

      Andrew,

      Very nice! Yes, I will add a terrain feature to the code generator as well. Sorry for leaving this out initially.

      Zachary

      Delete
    2. sissypantsJuly 15, 2012 at 12:38 AM

      It's on--enjoy!!

      Delete
    3. AndrewJuly 23, 2012 at 3:38 PM

      Thanks - that was quick!

      Delete
  2. UnknownJuly 15, 2012 at 8:26 PM

    Zachary, I love the creative uses you are coming up with for eBird data. Keep up the great work and inventions!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tim SchreckengostDecember 8, 2012 at 8:26 PM

    Zachary, this is awesome! I can post the maps to eBird and to my blog! Thanks!

    http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S12248049

    http://www.thermalbirding.com/2012/12/possible-snow-x-rosss-goose-hybrid-near-bombay-hook-nwr/

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dan TallmanDecember 10, 2012 at 11:14 AM

    When you have picked your location, you can click “get directions” and only the lat and long of your location will appear. It is easy to copy and paste these data onto your code generator.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sissypantsDecember 10, 2012 at 12:10 PM

      Dan, thanks for pointing this out, there certainly are multiple ways of getting the Latitude-Longitude coordinates!

      Delete
  5. xboyDecember 10, 2012 at 12:08 PM

    I use Map My Dog Walk [whether the dog is with me or not] to keep track of where I have been --- it gives me KLM files for Google Earth.

    Is there any chance these KLM files can be incorporated into the maps?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sissypantsDecember 10, 2012 at 12:10 PM

      KLM is another art of it's own. Honestly, I know very little about KLM, but it probably would be possible that Google Earth has developed a free service via API which requests images of KLM files. You should check into this, and let me know if you find anything!

      Delete

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