CeBIT video pickings: iPhone GPS

“At CeBIT Gomite was on the NavNGo stand showing GPS connected to the iPhone running iGO8 navigation software and Google maps” By http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/

Locative Mobile Phone Game “Parallel Kingdom”

This is a Locative Mobile Phone Game (LMPG). A game for iPhone and Android, which uses either GPS or the My Location feature of Google Maps on the iPhone:

“According to its description, Parallel Kingdom places the virtual world on top of the real world using the GPS inside your phone. You can attack, dance, hug or team up with anyone around you. Set up trade routes, craft items or even create your own kingdom.
You can mine resources, build buildings, craft items, trade goods, meet people, start kingdoms, lead wars, and explore the world. Wherever you are, you can open your phone and play, whether you’re on the bus, walking down the street, or at home. Anywhere in the world, any time of the day. Parallel Kingdom never stops, you play it when you want and where you are.”

Source: iPhone World

Pocketgamer.co.uk published an interview with the CEO of Parallel Kingdom, Justin Beck:

Pocketgamer: How do the GPS aspects work? How are you tackling the problem that people might not be within range of anyone else who owns the game?

Justin Beck: We want to find some balance between leveraging the location game play of Parallel Kingdom without forcing players to move to do every little thing, which could get annoying quickly.

The GPS controls what part of a neighbourhood you are in and from that location you can then move your character within a couple block radius of your actual location. Giving you the freedom to explore while still being completely location based.”

From: Google Android and iPhone get their first MMORPG

Videos by Parallel Kingdom:

GPS Phones – SonyEricsson

SonyEricsson recently announced two handsets with GPS built-in, which shall be rolled out from Q2 2008 on:

• C702 CyberShot with locaction-based imaging services (geotagging) and Google Maps
• W760 Walkman with Google Maps, Wayfinder Navigator and “a GPS-supported fitness application called Tracker that can tell you how fast, for how long and how far you ran (or walked!)”

Photos: SonyEricsson

Places to smoke at Germany and France

smoke-spots.de is a google maps mashup showing German locations for smokers and was launched a few days ago. It is part of a marketing campaign by Reemtsma, a company of the Imperial Tobacco Group – reacting to the new legal restrictions for smoking in the public.
Reemtsma press release (German)

Same thing for French: “Places to smoke at France” (Google Maps Mania) can be found at oufumer.fr. The credits do not give any hint whether the tobacco industry sponsors the projects.

locr@Nokia

Germany-based company locr states that their software for Symbian S60 phones is available at Nokia’s EMEA download site – in a press release for instance via inar.de. locr offers a community and a software for geotagging photos.

www.locr.de | http://www.locr.com/index.php?lang=en

“Ourstories” – children’s location-based experiences

Ourstories.org by Unicef, one laptop per child (OLPC) and Google is an oral history project, in which location is not only a set of longitude and latitude, but a social place in our world. The project is…

“a joint initiative to preserve and share the histories and identities of cultures around the world by making personal stories available online in many languages. Using laptops, mobile phones and other recording devices, children will record, in their native languages, the stories of elders, family members and friends. These stories will be shared globally through the Our Stories website, where they can be found on a Google Map.

By making these stories accessible around the world, the Our Stories project hopes to contribute to a better understanding of our shared humanity across countries and cultures, across religious traditions, across languages, and across generations.”

http://www.ourstories.org/ourpress/20071207_launch.html

Two examples on malaria, street kids and – music…

Press Release via Directions magazine.

Fotoland.us – Flickr-Google-Mashup

Another mashup by Taher Baderkhan. Fotoland.us is a community concept that “brings you pictures from all over the world by combining technologies from Flickr and Google Maps using the power of tags. It is the best and fastest way to explore pictures of other cities, locations and cultures. Fotoland is a user collaborative effort that grows with your participation.” It is the same approach as loc.alize.us

Screenshot: Locative Media

kitzbuehel.com with geotargeting

The tourism board Kitzbühel, Austria, has integrated a “geotargeting feature” into their website www.kitzbuehel.com, reports Tirol.com. The “geographical search engine” is using Google maps to enhance the search experience of users and to foster online bookings especially for smaller hotels, B&B with lower marketing budget.

The Service was provided by elements.at, Salzburg, Austria.

Screenshot: Locative Media

Virtual NYC Tour

Taher Baderkhan’s Mashup is cool – and his “Moving Maps” are equipped with “handmade” photos.

His blog: http://websitesandmore.blogspot.com

Screenshot: Locative Media