102. Resident Exclusives- Google Maps

James Peck walks you through the basics of using Google Maps. Whether you're new to smartphones or just haven’t explored the app before, James covers everything from how to download it on your device to searching for local businesses, getting driving or walking directions, and using Street View for a 3D look at your destination.

He also shares helpful tips on customizing your map view, checking alternate routes, and understanding the app’s live navigation features. If you’ve ever felt unsure about using Google Maps, this quick and practical guide will help you get started with confidence. For extra help, you can always reach out to your local Tech@Home technician.

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Transcript

 Hi everyone. Welcome back to Our Tech at Home podcast series. My name is James Peck and I'm a Tech@Home technician based out of Wisconsin. Today I'd like to go over Google Maps and give you a short rundown of what the app is, what you can do with it, and how to use the most basic functions. So what can Google Maps do? Google Maps can be used to find local businesses near you or in any particular area. You can find business hours, addresses. You can get live directions both for walking and driving, and you can tour locations in 3D using what's called Street View. If you're following along on your phone, you can open up the Google Maps app. If you have trouble finding this on your phone, you can go to the app store for iPhone users and search for Google Maps and install it. Or you can go to the Play store if you have an Android phone and do the same. After you've installed the app, this is what it will look like on your phone. Over on the right side, you'll see a search bar along the top, and this is where a majority of people will start with the app. What you can do is use the search bar to find a location. This can be a name of a business, a place, a park, or a restaurant. Once you type in that location and hit search, Google Maps will attempt to find the business that you're looking for on the interface. Once you have a location set, you can change the map topology. So when you click on that stacked diamond square, on the right side, you'll see a screen that looks like this. This will give you three different types of maps that you can use. You have the default map, which you're probably looking at, which highlights roads with flat two dimensional colors. You have the satellite map, which shows satellite photography, and you also have the terrain map, which is a topographical map. For the purposes of this demonstration, you can select satellite. On the interface. You'll have a search bar along the top. You can tap the search bar and begin typing in a destination. The search bar is smart, so you can find a location by typing in any of the following formats. You can use an exact street address or a partial street address. You can search for the business name and a city. So for example, if you wanna find a local subway, there are subways everywhere. So you might have to narrow down that search by adding the city or a particular part of town. You can also search for the type of destination and which city that it's in to get a wide search of results. So we'll dig into what that means. So for example. You could search for tires plus Oshkosh, and this will find you any tires plus locations within the city digging in deeper. You can also use Google Maps to curate lists for you. So if you wanted to find fast food in Oshkosh, you'll be provided with a list and little bullet points that drop on the map that show you every single fast food location that's nearby. You can also use this to search for sit down restaurants, parks, bike trails, and more. The third way to search is using street addresses, and like I said about Google Maps, being smart, you don't have to know the entire address in order to find the place that you're looking for. So for example, you can type in an entire address, a partial street address. Or you can sometimes even misspell or type in an address in a secondary way. Once you have an idea of where you wanna go and the location is marked on the bottom, you can tap directions to view navigation options. Once you have a location set, you can tap the directions button on the bottom to view navigation options. Once you tap that button, you'll see a screen similar to this at the top where the arrow's pointing. You can choose the transportation type, so this is if you're driving by car walking or biking, or. Google will automatically set your last used navigation method or one that it thinks is most appropriate for you. Over here on the right you'll see a blue dot, and this blue.is an active representation of your live location. And then you'll see that there are some dotted lines pointing to a public road, and then navigation begins in blue dots, so all of Google's navigation will appear in blue. Once you start getting directions, you'll wanna check the route that it's sending you on for this particular destination. This is within walking distance of me, so it's recommending that I walk and then it gives a location for this particular destination. Google thinks that I'm going to walk there because I'm very close, and what it will do is navigate me based on these dots and it will tell me the street to follow. It's important to note that Google Maps only suggest routes on public streets and sidewalks, so for particular areas you might find that if you're allowed to be on a private property, there will be other navigation. Once directions are issued, you'll wanna check the route that you're on and make sure it's the most efficient route. Or if there's alternative routes, choose the one that you prefer. Some examples of when this is important is if you're taking a longer driving trip and Google provides you multiple options for routes. Some will be on a main interstate, whereas others might be more scenic or back road type options. So after you've reviewed the route over here on the right side, just check that where you are and where the location that you want to go is accurate. If you believe that all of this is correct, you can hit the start button down here on the bottom. It's also worth noting that Google Maps will only suggest routes on public streets and sidewalks once you hit start. This will engage you in the live navigation view, and you'll receive verbal and visual instructions on your phone. On the right here. The blue triangle in the center is you, and it tries its best to represent the direction that you're facing. Along the bottom is the navigation panel, and you'll see an estimated time of arrival. And this little icon next to the three minute mark represents what type of travel you're taking. You'll also get step-by-step instructions along the top, so the next turn or the next step will always be shown in green at the very top. And then just under that, the future turn will be shown in the next step. Once you're in live navigation, your next turn is shown in green on the very top. So in this instance, it's telling us to head straight towards Northwest Field Street, and then your future turn after this step will be shown here. So this is especially helpful if you're driving in a multi-lane road and you need to be in a particular lane in order to make a future left or right turn. So in live navigation, your phone screen will rotate as you progress down your route, and you can watch in this example here as the screen and the estimated time of arrival goes down, it will kind of rotate and pan along this route. On the screen, as you'll see, the screen is turning, we're getting closer, and it will measure out the exact distance away that you are. As you get closer to your destination and once you're close to your destination and you arrive, you'll see this screen at the end that tells you you're arriving at, and then the exact address from here, your route is done and you can click on the done button at the bottom. In addition to live navigation, you can also view locations in 3D through street view. This is used to find entrances to buildings. Take virtual tours of scenic areas, or view locations from a ground perspective. So an overview of how to use street view. You're gonna drop a pin on a street, tap the street view button, and swipe the screen to turn your virtual head in 3D space. So let's get into how to do that. So first, if you're gonna enter street view, I recommend that you switch your map type back to default. Remember you do that by touching the perspective button, which is those little diamonds on the top right. When you set your map type to default, it'll make finding streets a lot easier. Now that we're in default view, you can see different colors that highlight streets and buildings very easily. Now you're gonna drop a pin on a valid street. So take your finger and you can pinch and zoom into a street that you would like to view. When you find a street that you want to view, tap and hold your finger on the screen, and you'll see a red appear. A red, you'll see a red pin appear on the road. Lastly, if you've done it correctly after the red pin appears. You'll see the street view button, which is that little square on the bottom left, and you might see an image of a street appear. Click on that button. Now you're in street view. You can take your finger and you can lightly swipe left or right on the screen to turn your virtual head, and this will give you a first person perspective of your location. When you're finished, click the back arrow on the top left and using Street View, you can explore other destinations like vacation spots, places that you've been, or more houses that you've been at, and more. If you have questions. You can reach out to your Tech@Home technician to help you get started with Google Maps.