5 FANTASTIC Google Maps Features You Want To Know About

[@kevinshea4353]

I take google vacations and use street view to travel in different countries. :-) I was in Venice Italy and I stumbled upon the fact that while in street view you can actually get on the gondolas. How cool is that?!?!

[@dottotech]

Love that! Thanks for sharing.

[@Bruce-1956]

Why do Americans always have to add the country?

[@claudiarivera1379]

That’s fantastic! I hope it entices you go to the city soon. 🙂

[@Oilfieldscout]

@@Bruce-1956 because we are smarter than the rest of the world? Jez, how shallow.

[@mikkins85710]

@@Bruce-1956 because in the USA there are many towns and cities with the same name as other places in the world.

[@johnlewisb]

When planning a trip, I find Street View so useful to be able to see what some road junction looks like as you approach and to be able to identify buildings or landmarks. When you make the journey, you’ve already rehearsed it! Brilliant feature.

[@uknowme1811]

Same here! When I was a trucker I used "Street View" all the time to see how to get a big truck in to a new location.

[@georgepretnick4460]

In preparation for a trip, I drove the entire way from Miami Airport to Islamorada on Google Maps.

[@Spangletiger]

If I'm travelling to an unfamiliar part of London, I do this and am even able to look for the number of the bus stop as well! Love that Google Maps can also be used to set up a reminder to set off in time. That will definitely prove useful!

[@pigybak]

Especially when towing a 5th wheel.

[@georgebredon66]

I agree. I use it often to read the parking signs at the locations I need to visit to make sure that parking will (may?) be available.

[@totallypluggedin]

The historical street view feature is really useful when considering buying real estate. It gives you an opportunity to gauge if the neighborhood appears to be getting better or getting worse as time progresses.

[@qwerty_1942]

I mean the 2007 street view had bad quality

[@TheJimprez]

Everything around me is about 400 years old. It just keeps on looking better. I live INSIDE a UNESCO site. And it's actually the SAME price as the rest of the modern city around us. Pretty amazing... Probably the cheapest rent and some of the least expensive housing market for any mid-sized city in North America. I live right smack in the middle of the walled part of Quebec city (800,000 with the suburbs) and I was REALLY surprised to see the prices. I'm looking for a house around here now. Being bilingual in Canada means you can enjoy the WHOLE place. Quebec is NOT like what people think. It's the mellow, easy-living, artsy part of the country. High wages, lower costs of living, EVERYTHING geared towards families and women's rights. We DO pay more taxes, but it MORE than balances out with all of the services and freebies. And it's a wilderness freak like me's paradise on earth. Even winter is fun here. Plus its a WALKING city. No wall to wall highways to cut you off from the other side of town. Less strip malls, more HUGE shopping centers. Its the cold winters and all, everything needs to be close to you and accessible.

[@winstonsmith935]

Google Maps started life as a Military tool.

[@youtubemusic5210]

My Google earth doesn't have all of these tools 😢

[@ericstefko4852]

My father passed away about 4 years ago I used the street view history and was able to see him at the apartment getting stuff out of car. I was an emotional experience.

[@dottotech]

Oh my, what a poignant surprise.

[@maker_jds7672]

I have YEARS of experience in Google maps as a hobby. I was a prolific contributor in the now defunct maps app Google Mapmaker. It was a crowd-source app that allowed you to Edit the maps and everything in it. There was a robust oversight mechanism that assured only quality edits were accepted. Even with this experience, your video taught me something! I am grateful for that, Thank you. You can still edit details, to some degree, by right click on a feature or by exploring the fine print links at the bottom of the map window. I still correct incorrect details on the maps from time to time.

[@la009895]

Offline maps is great too. We download to our phones map data for places we intend to travel to where we know we don’t have cell service. We can still get directions and not get lost without having any service. It’s great.

[@ScalexCzech]

Another thing I use Streetview for is nostalgia. I often reminisce about the places where I lived, where I went to school or to different clubs, or I look back years later at places where I spent holidays with my family. I "walk" the streets and squares again and often remember not only the mood of the time, but even the tastes and smells.

[@dottotech]

I can lose so much time when I head down that rabbit hole!

[@evertonporter7887]

I grew up in Birmingham and there are areas I never visited. But thanks to streetwise on Google Maps, I can now visit those areas, especially in the suburbs, and I'm always surprised. I also use that feature to plan walking routes, or just find it a nice way to relax.

[@PilgrimFL]

I have done that too. So much fun!

[@noahjuanjuneau9598]

I enjoy this as well… however, every place I’ve ever lived except one has been torn down and disappeared from existence - every place except one. All gone.

[@ronjenkins4257]

My mum passed away three years ago but I can still see her in Streetview History, getting ready to cut the grass in 2009.

[@pitrades]

I like the location sharing and maps/calendar integration the best.

[@decocatani]

Great video! Thanks fo all the information!

[@muzvid]

A favorite use of Google maps has been virtual touring. Their engineers made miniature versions of the 360 degree photo equipment they use for street view. They can be carried around like a backpack. They've taken these to quite a few tourist destinations, including down into the Grand Canyon. Many years ago, I spent the night at Phantom Ranch, at the bottom. I was able to relive my hikes down and back. Each step of the way I was able to look in all directions. It was like reconnecting with friends I hadn't seen in a long time. I suppose it wouldn't have the same impact for someone who's never been there, but for me it was a very emotional experience!

[@WigganNuG]

You should try Google Earth VR with a Quest 2 / Vive / its pretty amazing!

[@LarryBlowers]

Eyemmersive has several nice 360 cam trips thru areas of the Ukraine

[@philippe5518]

When I was recently confined to the lounge because of a fractured knee cap I spent some time (virtually) hiking on the rim of Mt Fuji in Japan.

[@Therealjohndooley]

The thing that I find most useful about maps is the timeline feature. I have to fill out a time sheet for work and list all the different jobs that I worked on for the week and sometimes I might go to two or three sites within a day and it helps me to not only remember exactly where I was but the exact times that I got there, my travel time, and everything. Some of the other guys struggle at this and for me, this just makes it really simple.

[@FranktheDachshund]

That is a great tip!

[@bobbywallace6009]

you sir have just made by job a heap easier.... 🙇‍♂️

[@wanjina618]

I use this too for my billing hours. Saves me having to remember to now down start and stop times.

[@dianebassett1930]

I don’t know about this feature, we need a video on this!

[@paultheprofit]

I’m in Australia and run a Home Maintenance Business and this is a great way to check you time for billing 👍👍👍

[@dottotech]

Table of Contents: 00:00 Introduction 02:00 Measurements - distance 04:32 Measurements - area 06:18 Street View - history 09:53 Integration with Google Apps 13:41 Location Services

[@chrisaraujo4634]

The remind me to leave early option doesn't appear on my phone

[@cheetoz64]

Nice! Didn’t see this till later. Pin table of contents to top of comments?

[@khc8800]

One little known feature I use is multiple address lookup. I’ve created a single map showing all 1100 of my jobs around my metropolitan area. I update it every month and the number of pins keep growing. Then, for each new job, I can see right away if I had done a job nearby, when, for who and for how much. There are streets and parts of town where I’ve done several jobs nearby but spread over decades I can’t remember. Pretty cool feature. Requires upload of spreadsheet.

[@dottotech]

That's a great idea!

[@jonmitchell6176]

How do you add details beyond the addresses? Is there an excel template?

[@khc8800]

@@jonmitchell6176 Top row headers in your spreadsheet tell Google Maps about the other details. You pick which is which upon upload of spreadsheet. Hardly custom enough for fancy template.

[@jonmitchell6176]

@@khc8800 got it thanks. Was using a paid map maker but I’d rather use the source (google)

[@tinainnca]

I’m keeping this tip to try out. As a realtor, I would like to go back and mark all of the places of a home where I helped either the buyer or the seller. I understand that you put it into a spreadsheet, but would you be kind enough to share where, and how you upload it? 🙏

[@noroy2]

No matter how experienced we are, you always learn something. Great vid. greetings from Mexico.

[@SteMegManzaroli]

My husband is a truck driver and we use location sharing so I can always see how far he is from home and when he's coming back, it's a nice feature! We are in Italy and it works fine. He also use his location timeline (you have to opt-in to for this feature of location tracking) so when he needs to go to a place where he's been before he checks the old road trip and doesn't get lost!

[@noyopacific]

I have a feature to share. When I am navigating a long drive with Google Maps I'll often need to find a place to get fuel, a meal or hotel along my route. I go to the bottom of the map on my phone, swipe upward and I get a list of options. One of the options is: "Search along route." After selecting that, Google Maps then offers me several fixed options: "Gas stations, Restaurants, Coffee shops, Grocery stores, Rest Stops and Hotels." Alternatively I can search for something specific by typing it in. Google then shows me the options that are ahead on my route. I can select from the results and enter my choice as a stop along the way. Once the stop is completed I can resume navigating to my destination. I use this feature frequently on long trips. Thanks for the video Steve. It's great to meet a fellow map freak.

[@3zequie1]

Hi Steve, great video! I have to tell you that 5 years ago, the street view history proved to be extremely useful for me here, in Argentina. My wife had a serious accident on a sidewalk that was poorly repaired by a utilities company (he broke her Humerus), but a few days after the accident the floor appeared repaired... so that we couldn't prove whose fault was, or even that it was broken... but as the hole in the floor had been there long enough, thankfully it had been registered by google street view... and here is when the magic happend: Luckily for us, some past images had registered the name of the contractor (and who they where working for) in the official signs that the crew installed as they were working digging the holes in the next block... and of course also were able to see how they left the sidewalk were she fell... when I showed all this to our layer, he was amazed, he said that this tool was to be a game changer for safety on the streets! without this tool we probably wouldn't have collected the insurance! Justice been done and thanks to Street view history! Congrats again from Argentina!

[@dottotech]

What a great story (other than your Wife's injury!) Thanks so much for sharing it!

[@TheSebiestor]

Breaking ones humerus is not as funny as it sounds :)

[@0secdox]

Excellent job 👏!

[@billwillett8204]

@@TheSebiestor had to think there for a second........ was worth it

[@chriswebster24]

That was a humerus story, but it wasn’t a humorous story.

[@zacgvids]

I have used the measuring feature to determine the area to spread fertilizer. really helpful. thanks for sharing

[@Zugmaschine]

Great Video, great Information. Thank you.

[@aking9999]

what a great site, I will explore further postings from Dottotech

[@ScalexCzech]

Streetview is an extremely useful tool. Every time I go somewhere I'm not familiar with, I can familiarize myself with the destination. What the place looks like. Where to park the car. Where there's a store or restaurant. What the building I'm going to looks like. Where the crosswalk is. Where the public transportation stop is. In short - when I have a meeting, an interview, a visit, or go to an office somewhere, I don't have to wander around on the spot. I have an exact idea of what the place looks like and when I arrive there, it saves me a lot of time and searching.

[@dottotech]

Great feedback, It reduces the stress of the unknown, I hade running into parking issues so I do the same thing t scoping out parking in the area.

[@ronvarty-GadgetsAdventures]

@@dottotech YES !!! I am currently learning my new home town in the Philippines!! I am going to arrive and seem like a local!!

[@DuncanJimmy]

That Street View History tip is amazing. The House my family and I spent a decade in was bought by a developer, torn down and replaced. So it was with wonderment and awe that I was able to find an earlier photo of it from 2012 because of this feature. Love that you can measure area and distance too.

[@tech-dad]

I’m a Maps contributor so I have been using Google Maps for a long time. Initially I started watching this video with the assumption that I probably won’t learn anything I didn’t already know but I never thought about using the measure feature to calculate my house’s roof and backyard. What an excellent, informative video! Thank you! I’ll share a feature that I learned about after buying my new car: On some of the newer high-tech always-connected cars that also have a phone app (I’m primarily talking about Tesla here), I can share the location directly with my car (Tesla) by sharing it with the Tesla app. So let’s say that I am heading out to some new place. I pull up the address on my phone then share it with my car’s app. As I get into my car, its navigation system is already set to get me to that location. I don’t need to punch in the address. :) I use it daily, often multiple times a day.

[@dottotech]

Very cool, thanks for sharing!

[@reshephyisraaldawnoftheawa7990]

Dotto's info was a little misleading on this issue. A a roofing contractor, I know. What he measured was the sq. footage of the floor plan, not the roof area. Pitch is involved. Each roofing section needs to be measured, not just the outer perimeter. Then there is the roof pitch calculations and a mathematical equation to transfer the outer dimensions to area. Roofing area is always substantially increased over floor plan depending on the roof and pitch. The number of valleys also increases the material used so this info also needs to be used to calculate a realistic bid price. There are programs that contractor's use, but they cost money. So, if your serious about this knowledge google roof measurements. There you will find many you tube videos on how to make these calculations and/or purchase the apps to assist you.

[@nmklpkjlftmch]

Some interesting things I've just learnt from you. Thanks. There's one quirky thing when I use Google Maps for walking directions while keeping the phone in the pocket and using voice directions. If I'm in an unfamiliar place and don't know where I'm going, I used to trust it for turn information but at roundabouts I have to pull the phone out to look. It might be a little bug limited to places that drive to the left on roads, but when approaching roundabout (on the footpath), if it wants me to turn left it tells me to take the first exit. If it wants me to go right it tells me to... take the first exit. A few times as first, I assumed first exit meant left and ended up going in the wrong direction. I need to pull out the phone to look which first exit it means. When driving, it never does this, it gets it correct. To add to the confusion, if I am walking and looking at the screen, the direction arrow is usually somewhere between 90 and 135° out until I've done the move the phone around all three axes thing several times. I can walk a whole block with the arrow telling me I'm not going in that direction. While driving or riding the motorbike with the phone sitting in a mount that seems to always be right. Walking mode seems to be the issue. They also keep moving the battery saving features with each upgrade and resetting it so that the GPS turns off a few seconds after turning the screen off and I hear the "GPS signal lost" message. I have to learn where they've hidden this time and allow it to use GPS always. Edit: I'd be interested to hear if others have the same walking direction issues in countries that do drive on the right.

[@kenhurley4441]

When measuring your roof, you need to compensate for the "pitch" of the roof. You can google the "pitch" and then use it as a multiplyer which will give you the amout of "squares" to buy or see what the roofing contractor is telling you. A 12/12 pitch requires more squares than a 5/12 pitch.

[@theheartoftexas]

What do you mean by google the pitch? How would you figure that out for your own roof?

[@grizzlygrizzle]

You could get a pretty good idea of the pitch from street view, or at least an experienced roofer could. A 12 pitch is a 45-degree angle from the horizontal (it rises 12" vertically for every 12" of horizontal run). Most "manufactured" (i.e. mobile) homes with pitched roofs are 3 pitch (3"rise for 12" horizontal run). Most small ranch houses built in tracts are 4 pitch. Young, fit, and agile people can walk fairly comfortably on 6 pitch roofs or maybe 7, but 8 and above is a little trickier. I knew a guy who regularly walked on 10s; he said that "you just have to will your feet to stick." -- 24-pitch roofs are for ostentatious houses that try to ape French palaces, and they're an idiotic waste of lumber, but they're out there. -- Most houses have whole-number pitches for the most part, because it's easier, but occasionally, custom houses can have, say, a 5-1/2 pitch, or you can find fractional pitches in small sections of a complicated roof where special measures need to be taken to ensure proper drainage.

[@steffybael1245]

@@theheartoftexas he is ass u mi ng that you know what pitch your roof is such as a 4/12 which is 4 inches rise in 12 inches distance., a 12/12 roof is a 45 degree angle.

[@FranktheDachshund]

@Jim Bartz you are too

[@deanronson6331]

@@FranktheDachshund No, he's not. He's an envious jrk, who likes to ridicule those that are much smarter than he is, but the joke is on him.

[@mreventos]

One feature that I've found useful is offline maps. You can download a huge map of your area and if you don't have a Wi-Fi or cell signal you'll still have access to that map and if your GPS is still turned on it will still track you either by satellite or triangulation with Wi-Fi or cell towers

[@simonodell2103]

@Jesus is coming. Read the Gospel. Grow up

[@danzesociety]

@Jesus is coming. Read the Gospel. 🤦‍♂️ you need help

[@headlinesgenerator5426]

No traffic update when offline

[@MedicMain9]

@Gillie Monger LMAO

[@johnmanning4577]

Don't forget to NOT feed the trolls....

[@LandNfan]

One of my favorite ways to use Google Maps is to “experience” locations that I encounter in reading. I have never been to New York City, but Maps let’s me see and explore the neighborhood where Nero Wolf’s famous brownstone would have been and all the other places I have read about. Since I do most of my reading in the Kindle app on my iPad, Maps is just a touch away.

[@DavidNelsonATX]

Nice video. Two additional thoughts. 1. You almost mentioned it - with mass transit, a feature I noticed while using the trains in Europe (Belgium specifically) was information about connections track and time. This was hugely beneficial. 2. Caveat on your roofing example. Remember geometry when calculating square footage or meters. A roof’s pitch can have a massive impact on the estimate.

[@riverraisin1]

Yes on 2. My summer home is 1200 sq ft, but the roof is over 1500 sq ft. (don't remember the exact roof square footage)

[@rogerw-interested]

#2 true, but its a great starting point, gives a rough idea

[@td149ers]

Great stuff. Thanks for all the good info

[@Dirk80241]

When I was younger and we all used map books to plan a route, I thought it would be great to enhance these map books with with photos of complex intersections, so you could see in advance where to turn. Then google maps came along and they executed the idea 100 times better with a mobile app and street view. I love the suggestion you gave for street view history. Great feature!

[@gregwikle1415]

You should add the ability to create a custom map to your list of tips. If you have an alternate route to get from point A to point B beside the route Google maps suggests, you can draw it on maps (similar to your first tip in the video)) and then save it as a custom map and send it someone if you want. Last week, my daughter was coming to visit from 5 hours away. She wanted to know if I knew a shortcut as she did not want to take the interstate as Google Maps suggested. I knew of a short cut, so I drew it up on Maps and saved it as a custom map. This is a very useful function, I think.

[@riverraisin1]

My issue with this feature is that if I change the google suggested route and then send it to my smartphone, google changes it back to their suggested route. Then when I'm on a long trip I suddenly find I'm not on the alternate route I wanted to take. To remedy this flaw I add stops along the alternate route (even if I'm not going to stop). This forces google to send me on the route I have chosen.

[@ednovak435]

@@riverraisin1 I tried to do this but for some reason Google Maps stopped navigating at my first stop. Any idea why? And how do I make it keep navigating?

[@riverraisin1]

@@ednovak435 When you got to the first stop and google said you have reached your destination, it asks you if you want to 'end trip?' or 'continue? (or something like that)'. Is it possible you hit 'end trip' instead of 'continue'? I did that one time and it caused panic, since I completely lost my route navigation. To remedy the situation I found that I can re-access my route (that I texted to my phone), then I have to eliminate all completed stops from the list (including the place of beginning), then add a stop called "Your Location", and move it to the top of the list. Now I have a new route starting at my current location and heading towards my next stop. Clear as mud?

[@ednovak435]

@@riverraisin1 Thank You for the help. That's exactly what I did. Unfortunately my eyes are not as good as they were when I was young, so when the prompt came up on my iPhone screen I couldn't see it very well and ignored it. However, I did a test run on non-busy street in my neighborhood and figured it out. Now I'll have to work on making routes "Seamless" so I don't have to keep pressing things on my phone while driving :) Again, Thanks for your help.

[@riverraisin1]

@@ednovak435 You are very welcome. I've been in the same stressful situation more than once and know the feeling.

[@cpajsb]

Excellent Steve. My favorite Google Maps option is Your Timeline, specifically how the photos are recorded with exact location and time. Excellent to remember where you were when you were traveling. I was surprised that you didn't covered it in this video. Maybe on the next one.

[@dottotech]

That's a great idea!

[@StevenSeiller]

Ditto, Dotto. Also great for completing time and mileage billing.

[@StevenSeiller]

Also good for answering the age-old question: where the f- was I on that day?!?

[@donwyates]

As a nomad, this is one of my favorite features. I'm hoping to compile a photo journal for my daughter & granddaughter, and will likely be consulting this data.

[@shortliner68]

That measurement feature is extremely useful for a model railroader like myself. Previously I just used the scale bar at the bottom right to create my own scale along the edge of an index card to measure the size of a building. After viewing your video last night I went back and re-checked my figures of a certain building I wanted to model using the measurement tool. I was close on some but off on others. This feature is terrific! Thank you for pointing it out.

[@dottotech]

What a cool use of the tech, thanks for sharing!

[@thinebiggest]

My wife stumbled across this video. I loved it! Your delivery and personality are awesome. You now have 2 new subscribers!

[@jackpatriquin6636]

Over 2 million views. Great video and only after watching this one did I know you were in Canada. I think I subscribed years ago and unsubscribed when I had too many subscriptions. So I got back to my home Google account before I commented. Thanks for the work it takes to make all the videos.

[@davidwelch1981]

A couple of things others might find useful: A couple of years ago, I went to Paris and was going to be arriving tired after an all night flight, and taking transit from the airport. Ahead of the trip, I used street view to walk the trip from the metro station to the apartment I would stay at - preview the walk ahead of time to make it easier for my jet-lagged brain when I arrived. Another one: I do some bicycle touring. When I am going to an unfamiliar place and planning a route, I use street view to look at the width of roads, presence of bike lanes, etc., to decide which route is better for cycling. Quite handy.

[@fuzzylon]

I do this too. Not all the roads around here have a pavement (US: sidewalk) so if I'm going somewhere new on foot I can do the journey be streetview first and see whether it will be OK to walk or which route seems safest.

[@SeanLamb-I-Am]

My wife and I have been using location sharing for a while now. Another cool thing about it is that it shows how much battery power is left on the phone being tracked as well.

[@manp1039]

does it track the time and day and still share that if the phone goes off line?

[@SeanLamb-I-Am]

@@manp1039 I haven't noticed, but it does say how long ago when the position was last updated.

[@jamc666]

One feature i use all the time, is that whenever i meet with someone some place, i share my travel position so they know exactly when i'm about to arrive (sharing route progress, available once you've setup your trip using Google maps). Also very useful is one's own timeline, in case you want to review the places you've been on some holiday trip for example.

[@dottotech]

Great tip!

[@MalikAlJabri]

Time Line excellent feature

[@judithvanhorne8860]

Love the info on maps location sharing. I travel a lot and family worry a lot

[@rioriggs3568]

Nonna an Nonno's house! Love it. I feel bad for folks who never had Italian grandparents! Thanks for the tips!!

[@johnlord7188]

For me one of the great features is the ability to download maps and use them offline. It means I don’t run up roaming charges when abroad and it also means I have maps if I go out of cellphone coverage.

[@manp1039]

I do that to alot when i travel. It has helped save me many times.

[@grantperkins368]

Yeah, i wonder why he didn't mention that,

[@summerbreeze5459]

That is a great feature. Use it a lot when travelling in Canada & specifically the US to save on data use

[@kkfoto]

You don't even have to download the maps. I've used Google Maps a lot without phone coverage. When I plan to walk around a city or take certain routes when I'm traveling abroad, I just open the maps before leaving, or I use WiFi where it is available, and the phone keeps everything in memory. Then I turn the GPS on, which doesn't need data coverage, and the map is there.

[@grantperkins368]

@@kkfoto great idea!

[@SteveW60ish]

"Straight up Cool Tech" - no kidding! Thanks for this Steve! Every one of these features is valuable to me and will be used . . . a lot . . . now. IMHO nobody is better at explaining app functionality to "the common man (non tech wizards & seniors)" than you! I have been a long standing "Patron" of your channel - and - this is why I feel that I always will be. Thanks

[@dottotech]

Thanks Steve, that means a lot to me!

[@Miles4music]

Quick additional tip, one I use almost daily with work, is to enable 3d google map. Then you can hold the control button down and use your mouse to zoom in and then rotate your view. Then you can see the side of buildings from space and rotate around buildings. It’s not available in small towns yet, but it is in major cities.

[@ajsbrushworksllc8348]

Nice!

[@robertmartello9882]

You're bringing me back in time, my father also built our house. He hammered every nail himself so that is a very special thank you for the story

[@dimag6036]

I love sharing my route with people I'm going to visit, so they know where I am and when I'll be getting there. FANTASTIC feature!

[@MrJamesMoore]

Fantastic tips thanks! I use Google Maps when going on holiday. Zoom in to the hotel where I'm staying and see how close amenities are. Or look around the local town and see what attractions there are.

[@dottotech]

Great tip!

[@imonoke7903]

You dont go to holiday

[@lucastherexcat]

Unintended Google Map Perk: Pointing directional antennas can be greatly assisted by the Google measuring distance feature. From receiving antenna to broadcasting antenna can be measured, then one can point their receiving antenna more accurately at the broadcasting antenna. One may not see the broadcast antenna, but you can see things closer that are on line of sight to broadcast antenna. Pointing your directional antenna over those items is the same as pointing at the antenna. The directional line overlays every item in the landscape, all the way to the antenna. Any item in that overlay gives you a direct line to the antenna.

[@billwillett8204]

nice. I'm impressed

[@unlvqasl]

The problem w Waze as a navigation device is that it only works if you can connect to the WEB. If you are in isolated areas, it does not work although I understand that you can download Google Maps in advance. There are other mapping maps that work very well off line. I have downloaded the maps for the 4 or 5 states that are need me and if I am off road or even on a trail, I can track where I am.

[@kewljewl3006]

Great tips to explore! I have a bad habit of dropping a pin in a foreign country and using street view to explore... I love seeing storks nesting by a rural road in Spain, or exploring a mountain road in Japan... talk about losing track of time!

[@ramirosabatini]

Nonno and nonna, loved that. My family is from Italy, called my grandparents just that way. 😊

[@henrik3141]

Recently discovered this channel. Love the style of it. Simple and informative. Without any forced stupid jokes or over-the-top editing & music. Also, I was not aware of the nice back-in-time feature of street view and just knew its corresponding part in Google Earth. Thanks!

[@MaggieValera]

For some reason when people look up my address online they tend to wind up a half a block away from my home. So I've actually taken a couple of screenshots in Google maps, and put notations on them, so that when I have to give directions I can just send that to them in a text or an email. The most amazing thing to me with Google maps is when my car broke down and I suddenly had to take the bus, it told me what bus to take and what times I could catch it. Dealing with public transportation when you're not regularly using it can be a bit daunting, but Google has it seamlessly integrated.

[@davivify]

My favorite GoogleMaps feature is their API. Being a programmer, I've written a web app to be able to enhance maps. Like adding an icon for every place I want to track. Say, I'm doing a tour and I want to set a 'sticker' on every place we might visit. I can set those, say, 20 stickers, and then have the app zoom out just enough where the're all visible. So I can see them clearly in relation to each other. I can also save them via AJAX to my host. And be able to have multiple maps with pre-stored stickers🙂

[@dianebassett1930]

So how do we get your cool app?

[@SuperNeilB]

Google Maps once saved me a journey. I found the business I wanted to go to and when I asked for directions it told me the business would be closed when I got there (what business is shut on a Monday!) - Nice save Google..... I also find the location sharing useful. My friend drives for 5 hours to get to my house for our dive trips to Orkney. Using Location Sharing I know when she is about an hour away and I can pack my car and then put the kettle on. That just leaves me the next 10 hours of driving.

[@dafreakingusername]

google can parse your flight booking emails and add calendar events and reminders to arrive to airport early

[@danlashea]

Very nice video. I’m a level 8 local guide and a Street View Trusted photographer. Google Maps are a great hobby and Street View photography provides a bit of hobby side money. Your video was very informative and I look forward to viewing more. Nice work!

[@lefturn99]

What an excellent video! I'm a photographer and spend hours on maps location searching. You've given me some wonderful tips. Thank you

[@dottotech]

Great to hear!

[@roaduser6438]

'location timeline' is one of my most used features. Now I don't have to keep a diary of business miles in order to claim expenses, I can simply review my timeline at the end of the month. And if I see an interesting restaurant /shop on route somewhere I can track it down by hunting along my routes.

[@PeterKaitlyn]

I went into the history feature of street view and found all the homes that I grew up in... sadly some of the places are no longer there. I also went to the places I'd lived in to see the changes since I lived there... Kind of a walk down memory lane... It was eye opening...

[@brocket99]

I remember watching your shorts on tv years ago. I’m very happy to see you’re still being awesome!

[@johnblackledge4009]

Fantastic real-world tips. Thanks, Steve.

[@petereynolds8754]

My favorite Google Maps feature, being a Lyft Driver, is when Maps tracks other Google users with location services turned on and notifies and reroutes based on stoppages.

[@larrywelch9738]

I measure roofs frequently. I have found that the Google measurements can be wrong by about 10% almost every time. If i start with a couple of known measurements I can calculate the error, multiply by the pitch factor and get a pretty good answer.

[@CraftAero]

Yeah, "pitch factor" is critical. What Dotto measured was floor area. Big surprise in store if you use that to order shingles, paper, etc.

[@mikeca98]

I like using RoofScope. It was recommended by my roofing contractor.

[@allensandven0]

I thought to myself if your a roofer bidding roofs like that you will go broke fast if your not smart enough to calculate roof pitch overhang and all of the variables that need to be factored

[@stevebabiak6997]

It might be OK to use for flat roofs, but he demonstrated on a shingled roof and for that the measurement will definitely be too low.

[@rcpmac]

@@allensandven0 while he ignored the pitch the measurement did include the overhang.

[@joemed6222]

Holy geeze I remember you from years ago on tv (not trying to say your old lol). I loved watching your segments. I just happened to find you in this world of KZbin today. I used to watch with my daughter. Great job!! New subscriber! Glad to see your still at it!! Cheers, all the best Steve! 🤙🏻

[@dottotech]

Makes my day when an old viewer discovers us! (Not calling you old either, but....let's be real...:-) Glad to see you back!

[@hornswith]

FANTASTIC is right! Love learning more about calendar integration, and especially measuring distances! (just about to have a bunch of landscaping done)...but my favorite is sharing locations. Now I don't have to rely on external apps when I need to know where my 14 year-old is! Awesome!

[@catkeys6911]

I love to occasionally go back to my old childhood neighborhood and look around on Street View to see what's changed (and what has not), as well as go to places I had visited with my folks when I was a kid.

[@WillieStubbs]

I used Google maps when I was property hunting. A lot of Zillow listings had homes that weren't where the address was. Also I was able to go to 3D view and look at the terrain to decide if how buildable the land was and if it looked like it could flood easy.

[@trailjockeytj6160]

The rooftop measurement was truly just the house footprint. It doesn’t take into account the pitch of the roof. If it was a flat roof that’s your square footage but the steeper the roof gets the more footage you’re going to have.

[@bilcarter]

Three friends and I hiked the Camino de Santiago across Spain a few years ago. I insisted that we all use location sharing. During a portion of the trip, we got separated for 3 days because one guy needed to visit a doctor in another city and another guy went with him, while the other two of us kept hiking. We all agreed to meet in another town that none of us had ever been before when the medical situation was over. We used location sharing and walking directions and we navigated right to the bar where the two guys were having a beer.

[@dottotech]

What a great story! Thanks for sharing, and it sounds like a great trip as well.

[@Crazytownmetal6]

Thank you, very informative.

[@stevennagy3435]

My 16 year old niece crashed her car in a ditch this winter in an unfamiliar rural area. She cleverly sent me a txt with her coordinates from the Google Maps app. With that info my Google Maps app gave me the quickest directions to her. It was -15c that day and I was able to get to her in 15mins, without this technology it may have taken me more than an hour to find her. It’s truly amazingly life altering technology and should taught in schools. Great video.

[@dottotech]

Thanks for sharing!

[@jimaanders7527]

Google Maps is very useful and a lot of fun 🙂 When I'm going to a new store or office, I use Street View to see what the landmarks are. What does the store sign look like? I'm amazed how complete the Street View is, even in small towns.

[@RVwithTito]

Great tips. Thanks for a very informative video. We (and many of our nomadic friends) travel extensively around the US in RVs. We share our location with each other so we can always see who's nearby in case we want to hang out or need help. For many solo travelers in this community it gives them peace of mind. Of course, it's also great for our family to know where we are...especially when we're in a remote area. One thing to not about mobile vs browser versions is that the mobile version will always try and route you to the fastest route. Let's say you map a specific (preferred) route on the desktop Google Maps. When you share it to mobile, it will remap it using the fastest route (at that time). So you then have to add stops along the way to force it to use your preferred route.

[@pipbaxter5286]

I just tap on the alternate route and it becomes blue.

[@OIII-IOOO]

@@pipbaxter5286 i think tito’s point, because it’s my pet peeve too, is that while you’re en route, driving down the freeway at 70mph, google suddenly wants to change your route and you have to interact with your device which is annoying, dangerous, and illegal.

[@chucknSC]

I agree. I have to set midpoints along the route or break up the trip into several destinations. I got burned though when I set a rest area as destination. Maps kept trying to send me back to the rest area after we chose not to stop. Very disruptive since my copilot was unaware of what was happening. Btw- love your KZbin.

[@RVwithTito]

@@OIII-IOOO Agreed. It's always trying to re-route even when you tell it not to.

[@RVwithTito]

@@chucknSC Thanks Chuck. I get it. Once you and your map get out of sync it's pretty difficult to fix things and get back on track while driving. It's a fantastic tool, but it can bite you if you're not paying attention.

[@rastareptilerescue]

been watching 14 years great content!

[@AnneluvsKatz]

Thanks!

[@soundman601]

I've never been one to use Google Maps or Google Calendar, but now I've seen your video, I'm using both with enthusiasm. Thank you.

[@kps204020]

I knew how to measure distances but didn't know that you could also measure areas. That's really cool and useful. Also the tracking feature is good to know. Thanks a lot for sharing 😊

[@jimmyjohn8008]

Use to be able to it, measure distances in the android app.

[@dottotech]

Glad it was helpful!

[@nicolasblume1046]

The one feature I want the most: Having all the places (restaurants etc.) in their own layer that you can deactivate if you want! But Google will probably not do this, because they always want you to see these

[@manp1039]

i found a work around for this. I can either log out of my google acct from within the browser or to open an incognito tab, then most or all of the locations disappear from within the google map

[@steves7896]

I desire the same for the semi-transparent line that is placed over every road. For offroading purposes, some of the satellite images are sharp enough to determine the condition of the road, that is if that ghost line wasn't laying right on top of it. No way to turn that off that I'm aware of.

[@coolthoughts]

I love the "show bicycle routes" feature. This allows location of routes both locally and around any planned trips.

[@AlDunbar]

A suggestion I would like to see is the option to declare the steepest grades you are willing to cycle up and down, and then have the app find the shortest route that doesn't exceed the limits you have set. That would be way cool.

[@rumi9005]

@Paul Balliet - Thanks for revealing Biking (cycling) routes. I didn't know it was in Google Maps. It also shows how poorly bicycle routes are handled in many municipalities. Showing the bike routes in my area starkly reveals how plain nonsensical the local government's efforts are. Tiny, squiggly green lines all over the place. But many only a 100 yards long. What's the point? When you find them you think 'Oh, great. A safer ride'. And then it peters out less that a minute later. And it seems so arbitrary. Why on this tiny section of a quiet suburban street rather than the whole street?

[@maureencrawford2275]

So happy to have found this excellent teacher! I’m finally learning about google maps. Joining your other millions of fans as I hit “subscribe.”

[@coolwater55]

I’ve used Street View often to check out places for potential future places to live or visit. Eye opening!

[@NevaehBeatez]

Often times local trails aren't available in Google maps. Especially in rural areas. I use satellite view to find paths to lakes and rivers. Also if you're hiking, the elevation feature is very useful. You can also switch to a contour map to see elevation across the whole area.

[@manp1039]

i use satelite and 3d view to often find shortcuts when walking or on bike.

[@robertunderwood1011]

Would you be able to switch to a topic on a smart phone? How?

[@NevaehBeatez]

@@robertunderwood1011 yes Google maps on mobile has the terrain view. You have to tap the layers button. But I would recommend using dedicated hiking apps or topological mapping apps for mobile users. Much more user friendly.

[@marksullivan5885]

On your desk top you can change the date of the pictures like he was showing in street view. For example, you want explore the mountains, but the satellite view was taken in summer. So all you can see is the trees in full bloom. You can check back to any available views previously taken and see the mountains in the fall. Now you can see the landscape because the branches are bare. Very helpful looking for old homesteads, foundations, wells and such.

[@JohnChvatalGSTV]

I didn’t realize you could measure distances in Google Maps. I use Google Earth on my iPad to measure distances. I use this for measuring distances between 2 airports and for measuring runways among other things.

[@SauloAvelar]

Steve, I loved your communication style and how clear your message is. You've got yourself a subscriber Sir. I was particularly interested into the history feature, since we've been researching a couple of neighbourhoods for a family move. Here's a question: When creating a route with multiple stops, can you still send to the phone and activate the reminder? Cheers!

[@johntorre9034]

Steve...Can't figure out why my phone maps doesn't ask me if I want to add a reminder on when to leave for an appointment? Any suggestions? Love your video!!!...Thanks, John

[@alwalker6340]

Can you help please: On my PC google maps - I have marked locations of albergues (hostels) -How do i get these on my phone google maps.

[@jamescarswell4773]

You ought to cover Google maps as an essential for tourists. In France, it will give you Metro and walking directions in Paris, tell you station and train schedules to travel from city to city, and massively simplifies getting about without needing a translator (for which there is Google translate!).

[@edwardmeade]

Here's one hint for tourists. We use the trains frequently when in Europe. I will use street view (not talking Germany) to preview the route from the train station to the hotel. I'll find landmarks like a store, a church, or a public building to use as waypoints.

[@alikigeorgiou8499]

This was sooooo useful - I didn't know about these great features - my favourite one is the going back in time to see what the street looked like - I always wanted to time travel and you helped me do that! Thanks Steve 🥰

[@dottotech]

So glad!

[@gaspar8888]

Dotto; you do a wonderfull job too Sr. Thanks!

[@dottotech]

Many thanks!

[@SunshineMix101]

'Great vid'. 'Really interesting. Thanks for sharing. :)

[@onlymyopiniontech]

Nice tips. The feature I use the most is live traffic. I drive about 3400 miles per week. I don’t need it to find my locations but, if I navigate to my location it will alert me to traffic conditions and suggest alternate routes to save time and how much time it will save.

[@dottotech]

Woah, a lot of driving!

[@robertsimons3311]

Great new feature is the bushfire front info in google maps , Or as you call it Wildfire overlay. A great feature for us in Australia. Appreciate your info always .

[@dottotech]

Thanks for sharing

[@donwyates]

I've not tried that overlay. Though, I use an app called Windy a LOT, to provide me wind forecasts for an area. Even the free version is pretty handy. It gives you temp, wind avg & gust speed, direction, and precip.

[@TheSuzberry]

Currently in the UK and completely reliant on G maps for phone for directions, bus and train schedules.

[@ffeff8353]

Even though I knew three of the five tips, I still found your vid clear, useful, and on point. Liked and subscribed!

[@nothere7198]

Oh wow ! I clicked on the vid because I'm a bit (ok, a lot lol) into playing around in Google Maps like you. And about half-way through your tips it hit me... Steve Dotto ! Of Dotto's Data Cafe ! That brought back a lot of great memories 😀 Awesome to see you still doing this, and as engaging and informative as always. I couldn't hit the subscribe button fast enough after watching ! Thanks for ALL the tips and info, in your original TV show and in your KZbins now, have a great day !

[@reggriffiths5769]

Measuring the area of a roof as done here will certainly give the square footage of a plan view length x breadth..... i.e. two-dimensional; but roofs are actually three-dimensional, so the figures given were incorrect as they missed the height element. On that basis, if you ordered the slates/tiles on the figures given, you would find yourself well short of what you needed!!!

[@imnewtothistuff]

You just measure every triangle then add the totals.

[@reggriffiths5769]

@@imnewtothistuff Clearly you haven't grasped the fundamentals between 2D and 3D - the height dimension is missing! The squared area as shown in the video INCLUDES the triangulated areas, but without height you cannot calculate the total area. Perhaps you should go back to school and get someone to explain it to you, for what you suggest is pure nonsense!!

[@imnewtothistuff]

@@reggriffiths5769 Your channel has no content, troll.

[@vinimarshall7301]

Correct you need the hight 👍

[@imnewtothistuff]

@@vinimarshall7301 that's right, and you can figure the roof pitch from street view, there's your hight, not that I would ever bid a job like that.

[@aerofly2]

The distance measuring facility is also available on the mobile version on both iPad and iPhone. Simply place a point on the map, select measure distance from the menu on the left, move the point with the cursor to where you want it and select ‘add point’ at the bottom of the map. Then use the cursor to add the next point and continue as necessary.

[@gigglybeast]

Awesome. I’ve always wanted this feature and didn’t know I had it. I’m going crazy measuring the distance of places from my house.

[@kevintaylor9912]

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't he talking about Google Maps? If so wouldn't those things work on a iPhone,I'm asking because I've never used an iPhone and I know that some apps work differently between Android and iOS

[@rjsmith6698]

Location sharing sounds like a good way to keep track of your young kids when you buy them their first phone.😁. I made use of Street View back in 2006 to basically travel the entire route of our one week drive through southern California, and west to the Grand Canyon. So when we went, I felt like I had driven the route before and knew pretty much exactly where I was and what was around us for most of the trip.

[@6meema6]

Great idea!!

[@SueFerreira75]

My daughter has used Google Maps since its inception, calling it her "Peter Pan". She is a now a writer but as a teenager she loved to "fly to visit" authors she admired, visiting their homes and the environs mentioned in their books. I remember in her Kafka phase, her telling me she had a wonderful evening flying over Prague, visiting the streets and neighbourhoods of Kafka's world!

[@MyFavoriteLine]

I like the ability to save address to lists so I can route my deliveries. Great tips btw Thanks.

[@ThomasDuffyRE]

My favorite feature is "Favorites". I save restaurants here mostly but points of interest, hikes, bars, museums etc. So when I'm in an area and the proverbial what do you want to eat comes up I can look for what I have saved in that area I'm in. Also great while traveling as I have places saved in New York, Hawaii, Las Vegas and all around the world. So when I make it to those locations I have places I want to see or eat at already saved. You can add categories and add notes like get the BBQ Pulled pork on the Hawaiian bun etc with the saved item which is really cool. You should see all the saved pins on my phone, I just wish there was a way to toggle them on and off. Would love to do a collab on this or be your source for a video as I think its a very under utilized feature.