Google Maps has changed a lot since its quick rise to ubiquity. An intrepid blogger digs into the nitty gritty of how the mapping platform has changed, and the consequences of Google's cartography for how the public perceives the world.

Justin O'Beirne examines the effects of several years of changes to the cartography of Google Maps—perhaps the most popular of the online mapping programs.
Browsing Google Maps over the past year or so, I've often thought that there are fewer labels than there used to be. Google's cartography was revamped three years ago – but surely this didn't include a reduction in labels? Rather, the sparser maps appear to be a recent development.
After digging into side-by-side comparisons of screengrabs taken from Google Maps in 2010 and 2016, O'Beirne notices obvious, and consequential, changes. For instance, Google Maps now has fewer city labels but more roads. In effect, explains O'Beirne, Google Maps has become a network map. "The cities are the nodes. And the roads are the paths between the nodes." [Emphasis in the original.]
O'Beirne concludes that both the 2010 and the 2016 versions of Google Maps suffer from a lack of balance between cities and roads. He does, however, offer an example of a map that achieves this balance more effectively, and even imagines what a Google map of Chicago would look like if it were balanced correctly.
FULL STORY: WHAT HAPPENED TO GOOGLE MAPS?

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?
The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie