Related to Charles' article about google maps and satellite images…
The emerging MemoryMap pool on Flickr, where people annotate maps and photos (frequently taken from google maps) with their memories linked to specific places, takes the Google map service to a new fun level. So why not bring this into the planning process? Maps, like this example here, could be used to create asset maps of communities or to create exercises in a public engagement process. Imagine providing a collection of aerial images that community residents (past and present) could annotate with personal stories and real values - the 'heart and soul' stuff about the community.
The lack of ability to spatially reference images is a shortfall, but there might be something on the horizon that provides this spatial component.
Tim Lauer describes in his weblog education/technology how Mappr! extends the functionality of Flickr...
Mappr! is an interactive environment for exploring place, based on the photos people take and tag on Flickr. Right now the data used by Mappr is based on the tags that people add to the images they post on Flickr. ... Flickr already takes advantage of the EXIF meta data associated with each picture. It isn't too hard to imagine a time in the near future where the digital camera you use will also capture GPS data and stores that along with the other meta data. I'm hoping that Mappr becomes a bit more transparent and allows individual users to map their own images.
While tools like ESRI's ePlanning application give internet visitors the ability to annotate maps that are spatially referenced, it's the cheap (can you say free?) and easy-to-use quality of these tools that makes them particularly attractive. Just think about the Mappr technology on a smaller scale, let's say a neighborhood map, where pictures show up that you collected in a school kids exercise as a kick-start for a citizens summit. Participants could experience it on the web and planners could integrate it into their GIS Analysis.
Urban Planning might get fun…
