Mapping Software and the Registry of Deeds

Back in 1999 we sketched out a plan that would link registry of deeds records, other land related data, and digital maps to create “one stop shopping for land related information.” Well back then, the mapping technology really wasn’t ready for widespread use, so we continued to plod along, adding more of our own records to our website. Since then, mapping technology has made great strides. For example, we’ve previously written about the wonders of the Google Earth program. Today’s New York Times has a great story (“A Journey to a Thousand Maps Begins With an Open Code”) that describes how Google has made its map creation code freely available to anyone that wants to use it. People all over the world are creating customized maps that show everything from ethnic restaurants to USO sightings. As this article says, this is another step in Google’s quest to become the “ubiquitous organizer of the world’s information.” Tomorrow morning we’re going to start experimenting with this functionality. Already we’ve conceived of several ways of utilizing it that will be of great service to a wide variety of registry users.