When we switched to the new design last month, a few of our loyal users were sad to see the old interface disappear. We were a little sad as well, so when we received a few messages complaining we thought, uh-oh, what do we do now? We were committed to the new design, so in true entrepreneurial fashion, we gave them what they asked for. Well sort of...we did the best we could do.
Mapa Agrandado
So, as promised, we've been able to resurrect the old interface, and today we are officially launching the new (old) interface. The old interface has been brought back to life as Mapa Agrandado and is available from the home page under the "Herramientas" section.
For those of you not familiar with the old interface, it featured a super-sized map, and a geographical directory. So not only could you browse our Visual Directory® by category, but you could browse the map by region (North, South, East, West, and Central) and then by municipality. So if you're looking to browse a specific city in Puerto Rico, the Mapa Agrandado is probably the way you want to go. It puts all of the locations for a city right at your finger tips.
New and Improved, With Better Taste
But you know Jose, he couldn't just launch what we had before. He had to play with his new toy, the Google Earth API. I know you're like, seriously, you geeks are just too much. What with the acronyms and freaky names for things, it's no wonder no one understands what you're talking about. Stay with me here, I can see your eyes glazing over, I'm almost to the pay-off.
So not only have we brought back the old map interface, but we've improved the map in order to give you another way to explore Puerto Rico, beyond the cities, beyond the shore, well any where the satellites in the sky can penetrate. Now you can choose between the standard map, hybrid satellite, and earth (which is the new Google Earth) versions.
Yes, now for the first time, the insanely popular Google Earth is available through the Web, and DóndeEs.com is the first company in Puerto Rico to use the new Google Earth API, which was just announced to the world last May 28th.
First Puerto Rico Map Using Google Earth Plug-in
One little notice though, in order to use the new Google Earth API, you'll have to install the Google Earth Plug-in, but it is simple to install and takes place all through the browser. For those of you who've never been able to install Google Earth and were annoyed by your friends when they gushed on about how cool it was, well now you too can waste hours zooming around Puerto Rico.
To cut to the chase, what we are talking about is a three dimensional map of Puerto Rico. And since the map is now available in 3D, the map now has an additional control. Now as well as controlling the location and the zoom level, you can also control the tilt of the camera position (your perspective).
We've been able to seamlessly integrate the new Google Earth API, so switching between the old maps and the new 3D map is only a click away. Once you navigate to a municipality, click on the Earth button and you'll be ready to start zooming.
Just tilt the map a little bit and click on the zoom control, and away you go. And you thought the gasoline crisis was going to keep you from exploring Puerto Rico this summer. Now thanks to Jose and DóndeEs.com, the farthest reaches of Puerto Rico are just a few clicks away; just don't let your supervisor catch you zooming, we wouldn't want them to block you from all the sweet taste of DóndeEs.com.
First, I'd like to thank LandAirSea Systems for sponsoring this review. Second, you know we love to play with maps here at DóndeEs.com, right? Well then, I have a question for all of you outdoor enthusiasts, "Have you ever wanted an easy way to track and share your adventures?" Well if you've been thinking about purchasing one of those hand held GPS (global positioning systems) devices, maybe you'd prefer a device that's a lot simpler to use. With the LandAirSea Systems GPS Tracking Key you simply put 2 AAA batteries in it, throw it into the bottom of your backpack and forget about it until you return home! This system is ready to go right out of the box, and better yet, there is no on/off switch to worry about. Once the batteries are in the unit, it’s ready to track.