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Premesh Chandran

Chief Executive Officer, Malaysiakini

TEDCRED 50+
TED Fellow

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We're coming up with easy tools to build exciting online maps, what stuff would you like to see on a map?

Live TED Conversation: Join TED Fellow Premesh Chandran

Co-founder and CEO of Malaysiakini.com, an independent Malaysian news website

This conversation will open at 11 am ET on October 24th.


Maps are now online but still pretty static. What if maps were fast changing? Easy for anyone to create an interesting map of things, events or places, and fill it with other data like demographics, photos, laws and anything else? What kind of maps would you use or create? Give me your ideas!

Related Talks:
Topics: Live Conversation geography mapping social media
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Closing Statement from Premesh Chandran

Thanks everyone for your wonderful ideas. We're building a easy to use mapping tool called Feedgeorge, and we'll do our best to incorporate your ideas. Its where all geo-data can come together, and anyone can share, or look for, to get to know a place better. You can keep an eye on the project at feedgeorge.com. Or drop me a line at facebook.com/premeshchandran or @premesh and let me know your thoughts! Stay in touch, and lets map together!

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  • Tobi Oremade

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    Oct 24 2011: Could there be a map with live updates of what's going on around you like concerts, football matches etc
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    Jo Duran

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    Oct 24 2011: Premesh, please let me know if I can be of any help. Much success on your mapping. Best & Happy Trails!

  • christine pechera

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    Oct 24 2011: For history and tourism. Imagine arriving at a historic landmark. You hold up your phone as if to take a photo, but instead a historic photo, or re-rendering of the event appears. For example, you visit a historic battlefield. Point your phone to the left, and it shows one encampment. Or visit a place where someone famous spoke. Point your camera towards the historic balcony and an old photos appears of him/her standing there. Visit San Francisco, and see what the street looked like in 1920. Basically, point anywhere and significant events appear on the phone/ipad OVERLAPPING the area you are pointing at.

  • Todd Jones

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    Oct 24 2011: My friend and I are working on a project that would allow users to map potential physical entities atop the digital canvas allowed by interactive maps. For example: you know of a vacant lot and would like to see a garden grown in that space. What if you could use the map to tag that piece of land and use existing networks on the web to mobilize your community to build out your imagined green space? Augmented reality becomes physical reality.
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    Gloria Felicia

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    TED Translator
    Oct 24 2011: I would like to see the latest updates on traffic jams, on the new traffic system and how many cars had recently passed by a road/lane. As most devices are now have GPS and at the same time also has contacts information, I also would like to see the sactuary places of my families, relatives and friends or even my offices and my colleagues.

    Well, I am grateful that technology is already there and very near to perfection of its own self that it can revolute into even better and better version than the present one.

    :-) I wish to create a map which can detect whether the baby universe, big bang and the other universe or multiverse really exist or not. If it is successful, I'd like to congratulate Stephen Hawking on his brilliant theory!

  • Ted Fannin

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    Oct 24 2011: add an in the news that would allow someone to click on a location and it would search news blogs and cast and display what is going on in that area

  • Richard Tiang Promsuwan

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    Oct 24 2011: Online maps showing real time weather conditions, tracking on love ones, pets or even vehicle

  • Roxanne Davis

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    Oct 24 2011: The Middle Eastern countries (Qatar in particular) are quite challenging - would be great to have a tool for countries with no street names (!!!).

  • Jessy Kim

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    Oct 24 2011: What about this?
    A map to see how seriously a specific area's polluted or clean.

  • christine pechera

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    Oct 24 2011: For large events, such as city-wide festivals, county fairs, arts walks etc, a map that gives up-to-the minute event happenings, including up-to-the-minute photos & tips.

    A feature where I could map out my "To-Do" list for the day. After making a list of errands, appointments etc, I could map out the route that would save the most time (or perhaps the feature would automatically do it for me?).

    A map that shows high-crime density areas. When one is visiting an unfamiliar city, one may take care to either be alert in those areas ares or to avoid them altogether.
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      Premesh Chandran 50+

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      TED Fellow
      Oct 24 2011: Yes, crime areas. Automated route for your to-do! haha. Your phone will really take control of your life!

  • Amrapali Zaveri

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    TED Translator
    Oct 24 2011: Online maps showing the nearest hospitals combined with information about which doctors are there, their specialities, their available timings - all in one-click would be really useful for a patient in times of an emergency. With just a keyword search with the name of the disease and the current location, the map could show the relevant information by the click of a button - wouldn't that save a few more lives?!
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    Birgitte Mechlenborg

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    Oct 24 2011: I would like to have a map that show month to month how the world are changing. Now i can see how much rainforrest is missing from last month and i can sign my name with a lawnmoer, see the oilspills etc.
    And a map that shows where people r in need of help and how to help them. Mabye links to NGO's.
    And a map with housenumbers.
    Thank you
    B
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    Corvida Raven 100+

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    TED StaffHostTED AttendeeAssociate
    Oct 24 2011: I'd love to see a map listing sites of lesbian of color hotspots. It's a huge problem I've had in many cities that I visit. I'd also like a map that lists all the events that are going on in my own backyard. Isn't it odd that maps don't list events of any kind?
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      Premesh Chandran 50+

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      TED Fellow
      Oct 24 2011: Haha, we'll create the tools for crowd sourcing this information! Keep an eye on feedgeorge.com!

  • Aurelia Holliman

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    Oct 24 2011: Safe places to park and sleep
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    Loraine Baird

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    Oct 24 2011: What about maps that indicate employment, interests, demographics or even opinions? For ex. Graphic Designers world over, by OS, people who use Google+ or Open Source software, political persuasion, etc. It could be an interesting research tool!

  • Kim Serrahn

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    Oct 24 2011: geography to see how small countries are becoming. And relate that to the social media. With the land always moving we can see people being left behind in some areas

  • Matt Picone

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    Oct 24 2011: Thinking of the blue dot on my iPhone, I'd like to be able to share it with others, and have them share their dots with me.

  • Dominic Beland

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    Oct 24 2011: We are building point to point tour guides for tourisme in 40 cities around the world and we are using Google Maps to share our Treks and Reviews! We have plenty of ideas from what is missing on Google Maps... but not really ready to share them on a public chat!

    But we think that maps should offer live RSS feeds for cinemas, theater and festival events!

    Visit our website and maybe we could share some more in private!

    http://www.youtourguide.com/
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      Premesh Chandran 50+

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      TED Fellow
      Oct 24 2011: Yep, we're building lots of tools for crowd sourcing. feedgeorge.com, Message me on facebook.com/premeshchandran

  • Jui Mhatre

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    Oct 24 2011: I would like to see a distance measuring tool. If I can plot a route on the map and the measuring tool tells me how much is that distance in miles/kms in terms of walking and biking. For example: to determine how many miles is a walk or jog in a particular park.
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      Premesh Chandran 50+

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      TED Fellow
      Oct 24 2011: Actually, Google earth does a great job of this. Download and try. But we could incorporate it as well.

      • Jui Mhatre

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        Oct 24 2011: Thanks. But it does not seem to be there on regular Google maps website.

  • Jessy Kim

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    Oct 24 2011: I'd like to have a map to seach a place appeared in the famous movie, drama and etc when I trip to other coutries.
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      Premesh Chandran 50+

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      TED Fellow
      Oct 24 2011: Haha, yes, that would be fun. There are always places that look familiar and we think we saw it in a movie!

  • christine pechera

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    Oct 24 2011: Living in a large city with confusing parking signs, it would be nice to call up a map feature that would give specific simplified parking information "at the curb". For example, depending on the hour, it would tell you whether or not you could park in a particular spot and for how long. If you're wondering where to park, the feature would light up curbs in the area that allow parking for the particular time you plan to visit. Also, it could give options on parking garages and tell you what the going rate is at each garage.

  • Jonathan Rawlings

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    Oct 24 2011: I think that having a small scale map inside of google maps, that uses the same layout (i.e. streetcam, satelite imaging), would be useful for: Theme Parks, Nature Reserves, College Campuses, More???

  • katherine wernier

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    Oct 24 2011: For non profits and business, I would like to see mapping of various social media connections as a testing/assessment tool on both a primary level and secondary (shared, retweet, networked). Who are we reaching and where to enable us to measure the effectiveness or outreach need or whatever.
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    Joel Nicholson

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    Oct 24 2011: Premesh,

    Keenly interested in this, as a developer/designer I am looking to map the birthplaces of those with Autism Spectrum Disorders as the emerge

    Joel

  • CHETAN AMBI

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    Oct 24 2011: I would like to see "audio maps", which would give audio instructions. If you are riding a motorbike at 60kmph and heading towards a destination then you would not want to stop your bike and look at the maps to find out where to take the next turn. If these audio maps are linked to the GPS, then it would be easy for drivers to catch the right direction on the fly.

  • Matt Picone

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    Oct 24 2011: I like maps as stories. I am thinking of a map which shows the places a person has been as a line/sequence. When the stories of two or more individuals are intersected, open circles indicate places they've shared at different times and solid circles indicate places they've been together.

  • Matthew McDonald

    • +1
    Oct 24 2011: I've been working on animating maps... for instance not only showing a journey you've taken but replaying the route along a map. Or mapping the change in an area over time, for instance deforestation in the Amazon or polar ice coverage.

    You can play around with creating your own animated maps here - www.animaps.com
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