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April 26, 2010

So, last night I finished our new web-based tool to visualize state statistics.  I ran into some problems when I tried to move the tool from my PC to the online server.  Apparently, newer versions of PHP prevent you from using a variable name as a string and then reusing it later as an array.  Anyway, the new tool is pretty sweet.  Here is a screen shot of the map used to visualize March 2010 unemployment rates by state (click on the map to see the interactive version):

FlashUSAmap.com Solution

That took minutes to make.    You simply enter in the state data and the tool does all the work.  You can choose any color you want as your base color.  It is fully compatible with the regular flash map that we sell.   You can make your own density map now!

I’m hoping this tool makes the flash map I sell more valuable to my customers.  If you don’t need a fully interactive map, you can just use the tool and take screenshots of your maps for free!  I’m totally ok with that.  But, please consider linking back to me or telling other people about this resource.  Screenshots of my map are much better than the alternative:

Google's Solution

This is the Google intensity map.  Entering data for each state was such a pain that I gave up by the time I made it to the Eastern states.  To be fair, you can also make Google’s intensity map somewhat interactive if you use this javascript hack from Pete Warden.  (BTW Pete’s blog is one of my favorite’s at the moment and a great resource).  Nonetheless, the user experience isn’t comparable.

Please try out the map and let me know what you think!  I’m sure there are some bugs that need to be ironed out and I’d appreciate your feedback.  If you have a blog and would like a review copy of our map, please let me know.  You can email me by using this form.