The days of paper maps are long gone.

No longer do we unfold a large

piece of paper and trace the way with our fingers to figure out where we are
supposed to go. Mapping technology has drastically changed over the years
making lives much simpler, but we have to wonder how the feat is
accomplished and what we may be giving up in order to have real-time
information transmitted to us. Along with privacy concerns, there are also
issues with the accuracy of todays maps and how one wrong turn can be
more than just a time setback.
As J.B. Harley mentions in his work The Iconography of Landscape,
Mapsceasetobeunderstoodprimarilyasinertrecordsofmorphologicallandscapesor

passivereflectionsoftheworldofobjects,butareregardedasrefractedimages
contributingtodialogueinasociallyconstructedworld(p.278).Todayssocially
constructedworldhasbecomelargelytechnologybasedandoursystemsofmapping
havehadtoadjustaccordingly.PennStatesGeographyDepartmentdocumentedthe
EvolutionofWebMappingTechnologyontheirwebsite.Here,theyciteBrigham
YoungUniversityResearcherBrandonPewonhistheoriesofthevariousgenerations
ofonlinemapping.EarlyversionsofonlinemappingincludedtheXeroxPARCfrom
1993andtheTIGERMapServerin1997.


Theseearlyversionsseemedquitecomplexatthetime.Userswereabletozoom
andmanipulatetheirmapviewandchoosethelabelingandlayersthattheywereableto
see.Thesemapsweregenerallyusedfordatapurposesandweretoolsforvarious
governmentagenciessuchastheCensusBureauandtheUSArmy.Around1996,online
mappingtookamorepublicturnandfinallytheseimportantgeographictoolswerebeing
aimedtowardsconsumers.MapQuestsetthestagebyprovidingturnbyturndirections
thatwereaccessiblebythecomputerowningpublic.Allofthesemapswereconsidered
1stand2ndGenerationbygeographicalresearchesduetotheirlimitedfeaturesandbasic
webconstruction.
Ascomputertechnologyadvanced,onlinemappingbecamemorecomplex,
accurate,andaccessible.ThirdGenerationmapswerealsoknownasthemashup
generationduetothemixingofnewsoftwarebyhackerstodevelopvariouslayersto
includeontopofthepopularGooglemap.Now,differentwebsiteswereabletouse
Googlesmapstogivetheirusersalayoutoftheirservice.Forexample,realestate

websiteswouldplottheirhousesonthemapandallowuserstobrowsehousesincertain
areas,viewimagesoftheneighborhood,andclickonthehousetofindmoreinformation
aboutit.
Finally,the4thGenerationofmapsstrivesforamoreaestheticallypleasing
experience.Thisiswhere3dimensionalandimmersivefactorsarebroughtintoallow
forarealisticandexcitingonlinemapthatisleapsandboundsfromwherethe1 st
Generationbeganinthe1990s.Themajormappingpioneersthathaverecentlyharnessed
thesefeaturesincludeGoogleEarth,MicrosoftsVirtualEarth,andNASAsWorldWind.

So how does it all work? Erin Mahaney, writer for the Geography
section of AboutEducation.com, explains that we have been harnessing the
information for online mapping since the 1960s. Around this time, the
Harvard Laboratory for Computer Graphics and Spatial Analysis was
established and created the systems and databases necessary to begin
online mapping. Through the 1970s, information was being collected about

Earth at constant intervals through the use of Skylab, a NASA space station,
which allowed for the regular updating and imaging that we have grown
accustomed to with online mapping technologies. At these early stages,
mapping was used primarily for military and governmental purposes so the
general public was uninvolved and thus, did not worry about how the
information was being collected.
As time went on, online mapping pioneers saw the demand for a
public, user-friendly, and interactive map. MapQuest, Google Maps, and
Apple Maps were formed and mimicked a traditional map with certain colors
for water and roadways and labeled cities and states but that still became
outdated. Customers wanted to see more; they wanted to know how the
places actually looked. How could these companies evolve to show
everything there was to see about a town? Google began implementing
Streetview- an aptly named application of their map that lets you virtually
walk down a street you are interested in. Finally, people were able to actually
experience the place, not just see a birds eye view picture. They could see
popular buildings and landmarks as if they were there and see the
environment of a faraway land just by logging on to their computer.
Unfortunately, these great new features come with some serious
privacy concerns. Harley foreshadowed this issue when referencing Anthony
Giddens, author of The Contemporary Critique of Historical Materialism:
Power, Property and the State, who saw the flaws of giving maps too much
power. Harvey quotes Gidden in his argument against maps, As a means of

surveillance they involve both the collation of information relevant to state

control of the conduct of its subject population and the direct supervision of
that conduct (p. 280). This has shown itself true through the use of the cars
and helicopters to capture 360 images of landscapes across the world. The
companies ran into privacy issues once they realized peoples faces, license
plates, and homes could now be viewed by millions. It is hard to escape one
of the famous Google Cars with their 15 cameras canvasing over 5 million
miles of roadways across the world (Mashable). While Google tries to blur the
important information, they do miss things and sometimes do not effectively
cover all of the image because of their automatic blurring technology. People
are able to request additional blurring, but the uncomfortable feeling of
being watched is still prevalent. Some institutions do take advantage of the
blurring; namely, the government. According to the popular website
Mashable, the government is able to petition satellite owners to blur certain
sensitive geographical areas. Some may wonder what areas could be so
sensitive and why we are not able to see them. The Huffington Post collected
a list of images that are mysteriously blurred or colored by Google Maps.
Here is one from the Pacific Northwest:

Why so secretive Google Maps? Perhaps

Harley was right about the surveillance and

Heres one that gives us chills. What

exactly are we not seeing here? The site is

control, but did he ever imagine that maps would

close to the Washington-Oregon border

hide things from us? Maps are accessible by the

and is rumored to have something to do

millions now, but are still being controlled by the

few. They are also being updated using big data

with FEMA, HAARP or, really, anything at

all. Prison Planet readers inspected the site
in person and could find no identifying

factors, leaving out the possibility of human

details other than an ominous fence and

interference and error, but often computer and

unmarked entrance.

data error is far more common. Computers do not

-Huffington Post

know to double check, they take the numbers and data and spew it back in a
readable form. Numerous errors have been found in the display and accuracy
of digital maps. Christina Ortiz wrote an argument entitled Why Digital Maps
Arent Ready to Replace Paper for ReadWrite. Here, she documents one of
the largest failures of the digital mapping world. A U.S. Navy ship ran directly

into the Tubbataha Reef in the Philippine Sea, severely damaging the
beautiful reef and causing the $277 million Navy ship to be cut into pieces to
avoid any more destruction to the underwater environment. Why did this
happen? It was discovered that the reefs location on the digital map was off
by over nine miles.
Less damaging issues are reported on various blogs and websites.
Stories of being told to drive into a body of water or up a flight of stairs and
into a building are common. In a slightly overdramatic post by Chris Boyer
for Medpage Today entitled Fix Google Maps before patients start dying,
the struggle of misinformation is chronicled. He explains his medical practice
has three incorrect listings on Google and cites an article from Search Engine
Land that claims, up to 43% of business location information online is
inaccurate. He then poses the question, why do the extensive algorithms
Google uses allow these things to happen? His solution comes from Ed
Bennetts article which states, The fundamental issue here is Googles
business model: Automate everything, There is no customer service. There is
no one to call. They automate everything. While patient death cannot be
blamed on Google, it is clear that the automation and algorithms do leave
room for plenty of error and proof that a big data system is not always userfriendly.
Mapping technology has come a long way and the changes are
amazing, but we need to be wary of the accuracy as well as the lack of
privacy that comes along with the new features. Harley can be quoted, Like

thehistorian,themapmakerhasalwaysplayedarhetoricalroleindefiningthe
configurationsofpowerinsocietyaswellasrecordingtheirmanifestationsinthevisible
landscape(p.303)Theseconfigurationsofpowerarestillevidentdecadeslater.The
governmentandpowerfulcorporationsstillhaveahandinthecensoringofourmaps,
evenifwecanseemuchmorenowthanbefore.Iswhatwearegivingupworththenew
features?

Works Cited
"11 Fascinating Facts About Google Maps." Mashable. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr.
2015.
"24 Places Google Maps Doesn't Want You To See." The Huffington Post UK.
N.p., 19 May
2014. Web. 15 Apr. 2015.
Boyer, Chris. "Fix Google Maps before Patients Start Dying." KevinMD.com.
Medpage Today, 15 Aug. 2013. Web. 13 Apr. 2015.

Harley, J. B. "Maps, Knowledge, and Power." Iconography of Landscapes:

Essays on the
Symbolic Representation, Design, and Use of past
Environments (1988): 277-312.
Web. 13 April 2015.

Mahaney, Erin. "The Future of Paper Maps?" Geography.about. About.com,

n.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2015.
Ortiz, Christina. "Why Digital Maps Aren't Ready to Replace Paper."
ReadWrite. N.p., 4 Feb. 2013. Web. 17 Apr. 2015.
Plewe, Brandon. "Evolution of Web Mapping Technology." Evolution of Web
Mapping
Technology. Penn State University, n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.