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Lost in the city,
found on your cell
Kajari
Bhattacharya
KOLKATA, Oct. 25: Even for Sherlock Holmes, finding
out an address lost in the maze of lanes and by-lanes of north
Kolkata would have been a daunting task. Not only are the houses
baffling with their darkened terraces and winding staircases, but
even the street numbers and meandering alleyways add to the
confusion. Ask for directions, and you will get such bewildering
answers like “take the first right at the cobbler’s street-side
outlet.” To end all that woes, a mobile phone can help you out of
the mess from now on.
You will soon be able to locate yourself
and your destination on your mobile phone using location-based maps
from solutions provider CE Info Systems.
The value-added service
will be accessible to users of GPRS-enabled mobile phones ~
irrespective of the network provider they subscribe to. One can
easily avail of the service from CE Info Systems’ portal,
MapmyIndia.com. The service will be launched by two national mobile
phone service providers before the end of this year all over the
country.
“Two national mobile phone service providers will have
this service on their main menu. So, even if users have not
activated GPRS on their phones, they will be able to use this
mapping service. The two service providers will soon announce the
launch of this mobile mapping service on an all-India basis,” said
Mr Rakesh Verma, managing director, CE Info Systems.
The
MapmyIndia.com portal uses Web 2 technology, a second generation
technology used by Internet portals like Yahoo Maps and Google Maps.
“Web 2 allows better user interface and users of these portals find
them simpler to use,” said Mr Verma.” Web 1 technology was not good
enough for complex portals that use graphics and mapping.”
There
are three ways of looking for an address somewhere in the city using
this service. You can find out from a map displayed on your mobile
phone where your destination is and where you are. You will also be
able to get last mile driving directions on how to reach a
particular destination. Also, if you want to know, for example,
where all the ATMs in a particular area are located, you will be
able to get the information on your mobile phone. On the map on your
phone, you can even zoom in on a house or a street in the city!
Weather updates and information regarding traffic jams in the
city would also be available on mobile phones, Mr Verma said.
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