Lab 3: Neogeography

View Puerto Rico adventure in a larger map

Neogeography allows people to share mapping information and spatial experiences in an interactive setting. It exponentially increases the mapping of the Earth's surface, and it introduces mapping in new and innovative ways. Neogeography improves our ability to communicate spatial concepts to others, and it places the field of mapping in the hands of everyday people. These advances have paved the way for anyone with an Internet connection to create a map of their very own, no degree in cartography required.

However, neogeography also introduces new risks to the field of mapping. Since it is available to anyone with an Internet connection, there is a definite lack of accountability. There are no guarantees that these produced maps are accurate or reliable. Furthermore, these maps are now flooding the interweb. It can be highly difficult to determine the validity of maps found through search engines. Neogeography can also be more difficult than expected, since the user is confined by the boundaries of the program that he or she is using. For example, in Google Maps, there are only so many shapes that one can superimpose onto the map. This limits the user's ability to turn the map into something new and innovative.