Author: chanduthota

Render your own Heatmaps with HeatMapRenderer

Heatmaps (aka Density Maps) are a neat way to visualize geo data – and these days there are everyhwere – from Starbucks WiFi heatmaps to The Dealmap Local Deals maps! While they are so popular, I was surprised to learn that there are not many (FREE) tools available to generate your own Google Maps ready Heatmap. So I have developed a simple utility,  called HeatMapRenderer, that can be used to generate Google Maps Ready heatmap tiles from any geo dataset that has latitude and longitude values.
This utility is built for Windows based machines (with .NET 3.5) and is written in C#. If there is a need and if there is a community that is willing to build on top of what I have I don’t mind posting it as an open source, but for now its closed source with extensibility model built into it. Think of HeatmapRenderer as a simple rendering engine you can plug-and-play different data sources to render from. Each data source will have its own adaptor – an adaptor is responsible for reading the latitude/longitude data by implementing a simple interface. HeatMapRender natively supports CSV adaptor, so if you can dump your geodata into a CSV file you can use the Heatmaprender instantly. I will write a follow-up on how to extend and write your own adaptors in my next post.
So for now, let’s assume you have your latitude/longitude data in a CSV file. And that the column index for latitude and logitude are 0 and 1. Now you need to add a config section like below in the HeatmapRenderer.exe.config file (from the download):

<add name="us-starbucks"
   sourcetype =”HeatMapRenderer.Sources.SimpleCSVSource, HeatMapRenderer.Sources”
   sourceconnectionstring=”sampledata\starbucks.csv”
   sourcearguments=”0,1″
   palettefilepath=”palette\palette.bmp”
   pointradius=”5″
   minmaplevel=”1″
   maxmaplevel=”10″
   outpath=”map-tiles\us-starbucks”>

Once you add a config section as shown above, all you need to do to generate the heatmap tiles, is to type in a command like below:

HeatmapRenderer.exe us-starbucks

As you can see its very straight forward, here is a bit more about the config values:

name = unique name so that you can identify and run the tile generation job.
sourcetype = This is the source adaptor. If you have a CSV file, then you can use the built in CSV source adaptor, and of course you can build your own adaptor too (more on that later)
sourceconnectionstring = points to the CSV file (or if you have a MySql data source this should be the connection string etc);
sourcearguments = if you have a CSV you identify lat/long column index values – you can use this field to send any data that is required for your own adaptor.
palettefilepath = default heatmap palette – you can generate your own palette if needed (the download has a palette file included)
pointradius = default 5pixels. you can reduce or increase the point radius based on your scenarios.
minmaplevel = usually 1. levels map to google maps zoom levels. so 1 is very very high-level map (at world map level)
maxmaplevel = usually determined by your app. but in this case 10. around 15 if you want some-what street level heatmaps
outpath = where to store the heatmap tiles generated – local disk path

Once the tiles are generated, you can easily integrate the tiles into a Google maps mashup using the following steps:
1. First upload your tiles to a web server where they can be accessed w/o any authentication.
2. Then use the code below to integrate

var map = new GMap2(document.getElementById(“map_canvas”));
map.setMapType(G_NORMAL_MAP);
map.setCenter(new GLatLng(38.86252601314520,-76.96975322980910), 2);
var myCopyright = new GCopyrightCollection(“© Chandu Thota”);
myCopyright.addCopyright(new GCopyright(‘Chandu Thota’, new GLatLngBounds(new GLatLng(-90,-180), new GLatLng(90,180)), 0,’2010 chanduthota.com’));
var gtl = new GTileLayer(myCopyright);
gtl.getTileUrl = function(tile,zoom) {
var t = “http:///&#8221; + zoom + tile.x + tile.y + “.png”;
return t;
};
gtl.isPng = function() { return true;};
gtl.getOpacity = function() { return 0.5; }
var tilelayer = new GTileLayerOverlay(gtl);
map.addOverlay(tilelayer);

That’s it!
You can download the full package with exe, sample adaptor code, palette and sample data files (Starbucks locations and DC crime locations).
Let me know if you find this tool useful.

function _trackdownload(){ try { var _pt = _gat._getTracker(“UA-168784-1”); _pt._trackPageview(‘/downloads/heatmaprenderer’); } catch(err) {} }

Get the local deals in a fancy Carousel!

Just wanted to point out our new Carousel Deal Widget. 🙂 It’s part of our Dealmap Widget family but just fancier to display top deals on your site with better experience. Of course we do have the standard ABI sizes if you want them too.

http://widgets.thedealmap.com/carousel/?lat=37.3165&lon=-121.874&d=8&width=420

Again, it only takes one line of code to integrate it into your site:

http://widgets.thedealmap.com/carousel/?lat=37.3165&lon=-121.874&d=8&width=420

You can check out full widgets here: http://www.thedealmap.com/widgets

The Dealmap gets Scobleized!

Robert Scoble on his blog this morning:

“why did I say these are more important than Foursquare or Gowalla or the other companies in this space? Well, normal people are still resisting using these location services. But these [The Dealmap & Goby] offer REAL utility and REAL value…”
You can also see my full interview in the video below:
Thanks Robert! I love the fact that you and Maryam love The Dealmap!

Starbucks Free WIFI Heatmap

It was all over the news yesterday about how Starbucks Free WIFI is going to change the way we connect to Internet, so I got curious and generated a “Starbucks Free WIFI Heatmap” based on all Starbucks stores in the United States. The resulting map is seriously stunning, take a look at the image below:

There is a live version running on my machine (will try to upload to my site later for you to play) and I can see how this is gonna make some cities go “WiMax” without actually having “WiMax” 🙂

Get deals near you via RSS Feeds & Widgets

We have been busy at The Dealmap HQ working on more ways to get you the local deals in ways that’s convenient for you. As part of this push we are launching local deal feeds for top cities and The Dealmap widgets .

Local Deal RSS Feeds

To get a feed for your city, simply go to our local deals directory and pick your city. Then select the type of feed you need (Restaurants vs. Daily Deals) – then simply add “/rss” at the end and add that url in your favorite feed reader!

For example to get all daily deals in San Jose, you would subscribe to: http://www.thedealmap.com/cities/san-jose-ca/daily-deals/rss

Similarly, to get all restaurant deals in Seattle, you would subscribe to: http://www.thedealmap.com/cities/seattle-wa/restaurant-deals/rss

 

Local Deal Widgets

You can also get local deals in widgets for your site with a single line of simple HTML code. Simply visit The Dealmap Widget maker page and pick a theme/design/size that suites your blog! We have pre-selected some standard IAB sizes so that its easier for you to integrate into your blog/site. Below is a sample widget and the code required to install it:

http://widgets.thedealmap.com/?l=Seattle%2c+WA&h=250&w=300&t=black&lcid=1033 http://widgets.thedealmap.com/?l=Seattle%2c+WA&h=250&w=300&t=black&lcid=1033

It’s that simple!

We are working on more ways to get your favorite deals – so stay tuned. And of course, these widgets are built on top of our own Dealmap APIs – so you can build a custom widget yourself if you are a tinkerer!

Introducing The Dealmap

The Dealmap is now live.

This is the brand new local deal search and discovery engine that we have built at Center’d. The goal is very simple – we want you to find the best deals in your neighborhood and start saving money.

The origins of The Dealmap are deeply rooted into to the flavors work that we did with Center’d last year. When we originally designed various flavors for any city we thought “Cheap” flavor is a good candidate – so we rolled out a series of “deal” pages for different cities like this one: San Francisco Cheap Things To Do. As we started getting feedback on flavors it was pretty clear that people loved local deals – and the use case was so strong that we had to go with its own domain – that’s how The Dealmap was born!

While we are using Center’d data platform heavily in The Dealmap’s making, there are a ton of cool stuff that we have built ground-up for fast changing (deals are time sensitive) local data. I will be discussing various technology pieces here on my blog in coming weeks.

We also have a full-blown API – as a matter of fact – we built the API first and then built The Dealmap on top of that (hey, we eat our own dog-food! :). So if you are itching to play with this unique local deal dataset, feel free to join the conversation or just get started with the API docs.

It’s exciting to see The Dealmap live, but our job here is just getting started to get you the freshest deals daily!

So what do you think? Send me the feedback!

Center’d on iPhone

Center'd iPhone App

Center’d app is now live on Apple App Store! Using our iPhone application you can now find the right place for your needs – our unique semantic analysis on online reviews and ratings from our content partners make it so easy to understand specific features associated sentiments for any given place. Give it a whirl and let us know what you think: http://www.centerd.com/content/iphoneapp.aspx

Here is the full press release below and you can also read nice summary of our product on TechCrunch: http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/18/centerd-brings-its-local-discovery-engine-to-the-iphone/

 

 

Center’d App for iPhone and iPod Touch Enables Flavored Local Discovery

Search and City Guides Help Users Find Places Based on Interest Categories Including Kid-Friendly, Romantic, and More — Consumer Sentiment Charts and Interest Category Drill-Downs Offer Unique Summary of Places

Our unique approach to local search and discovery is well-suited for location-aware devices and is a natural fit for the iPhone

Menlo Park, CA (PRWEB) August 18, 2009 — Center’d, the web site that helps people plan life’s activities, today announced its Center’d App is available on the App Store. TheCenter’d App classifies more than 1 million places so iPhone and iPod touch users can search any U.S. city and then filter results based on their interest, distance or popularity, or they can browse city guides to see the best things to do in top cities by picking an interest style or activity in categories that include kid-friendly, romantic, cheap, outdoor and more.

 

Center’d iPhone App

“Our unique approach to local search and discovery is well-suited for location-aware devices and is a natural fit for the iPhone,” said Jennifer Dulski, co-founder and chief executive officer of Center’d. “We’re excited to extend our technology to mobile applications and help people more quickly find nearby things to do that meet their needs.”

Flavored Local Technology Enables Unique iPhone Features:
By analyzing millions of conversations on the web using natural language processing (NLP) based technologies, Center’d is able to surface detailed insights about local businesses. This data gives people a quick way to determine the tone of Web conversations about a place, and when coupled with other key features helps people quickly find the right place for their needs.

Features of the Center’d App include:

– Search and Browse: People can search for places in any U.S. city and filter results by popularity, distance, or interest styles, and browse things to do with more than 20 city guides, choosing from 7 different interest styles and 5 activity categories.

– Aggregated and Summarized Place Data: Place profile pages feature content that gives users a quick snapshot of a place without having to read dozens of reviews on a mobile device. Sentiment charts capture whether people make positive, neutral, or negative comments about a place across ambiance, service and price categories, and include “snippets” of the most frequently mentioned comments within a category. Place profiles also include interest icons that allow people to drill-down on each style category to see snippets from relevant web conversations and understand why places qualify within a given interest, such as romantic.

– Detailed Maps: The app allows users to view multiple places from search and browse results on detailed interactive maps. They can pan and zoom maps to help find the right place, and view individual places on a map to pinpoint where they are located without leaving the app.

– Easy Content Submission: Users can quickly submit content and information about places, including photos through an embedded tool, short keywords that describe a place, and interest information about a place to help classify it.

– Planning and Sharing Tools: Users can also make plans for themselves or with others by saving places and combining them on a list which they can then easily share with friends.

The Center’d iPhone application is available for free from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.

Local Content Available for Publishers:
In conjunction with the launch of its app, Center’d has developed a new program that enables publishers to add local content and monetization tools to their site for free. By using the Center’d widget, publishers can provide their audiences with unique intent-based local content, and by participating in its paid partnership program, make money by using the widget. Publishers can customize the design and content they would like to display in the widget to suit their site. More information can be found athttp://www.centerd.com/t/widgets.

About Center’d
Center’d (http://www.centerd.com) helps people plan life’s activities. The company has developed personal planning features and group collaboration tools that help people plan any type of activity, from finding and discovering things to do, to organizing and coordinating complex events. By analyzing millions of conversations about places on the web, Center’d has created a unique index of more than 1 million places that are classified by interest styles, including kid-friendly, romantic, cheap, and more. This novel approach enables Center’d to deliver a more relevant and personalized local experience.

Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, Center’d is led by former Microsoft and Yahoo! executives, and is funded by Norwest Venture Partners and KeyNote Ventures.

What’s new in iPhone 3.1 SDK?

Just got a note from Apple that iPhone 3.1 SDK (beta) is up on dev center. So what’s new in this SDK?

What’s New
• Organizer: the iPhone Development grouping now collects crash logs, install
bundles, and provisioning profiles in a single location
• iPhone OS 3.1 Simulator uses frameworks more closely matching the device
• Toolbar uses a single popup to choose platform, target, and debug/release

We are just getting started on 3.0 and not sure if a minor version upgrade is justified for these updates 🙂

You can read the full readme on dev center.