Did You See The Ohio State Football Recruiting Interactive Map?
Interactive maps don’t have to always be of the campus. Really, they can and should highlight everything that’s different or outstanding about your school. Here is a fun example that might get your ideas tickling: Ohio State put together an interactive map of their latest recruits, including position played, weight/height, ranking, and origin. Though simple, it quite likely has been a much-visited map because of how essential the information is to the identity of the Buckeye state, and to Ohio State’s many fans.
Read More
Does it seem like whenever you buy a new software tool designed to “save you time and money” it actually does neither? There’s always just one more feature upgrade, a few more hours of a costly technician’s time, or this and that feature not included in the initial package. Why aren’t companies harnessing the same power companies like Wikipedia and Facebook have utilized to follow through on the promises of saving time and money?
Think those interactive campus maps are not so useful? Step with us for a moment into the life of a typical first year college student. The first days of school are never easy, especially when you’re a newbie or freshman. More seasoned students can give tips on how to survive those first days, adjust and blend in. Tips like get involved, join a student society, know the campus and how to dress to not stand out. Yet a natural glitch to blending in and looking like any other student is that freshman probably are not familiar with the campus and where everything like their classes, the cafeteria, lecture halls, student dorms and more are located. We’ve all been there: there is nothing quite as embarrassing or frustrating as getting lost and having to ask someone for directions or stop and take out a map when you’re new at school!
There are many reasons why creating an interactive campus map is crucial to competing with existing universities and colleges. The basic driving force for developing your school’s own interactive map is staying competitive with what other schools are doing to improve student recruitment and retention.
Keeping your college’s image fresh, up-to-date and visually pleasing is key to attracting students, parents, faculty and donors alike. And in today’s digital age, there is no better way to do that than through offering a great image through your institute’s website!
It wasn’t that long ago, and still is considered the norm on some websites, that if you wanted to see a map of a college campus you would download a .pdf copy. Shortly after, people began saving the maps as image files, either .jpg or ,png. Don’t get me wrong .pdf’s still have a place because of their great ability to print a clean document. However now through software like flash and javascript people want more from a map. They want a full interactive experience. With these technologies people can actually feel as though they are exploring the buildings and pathways inside a campus.
The interactive campus map has rapidly become an integral part of the college recruitment process. It allows students to access information first hand about a general layout of a campus whenever they are in the world. Although it is still important to visit campuses in person, this is not always possible. The interactive campus map gives students an opportunity to experience the college in a way that they would not be able to otherwise.
With the continued growth of technology, many of the things we take for granted have been greatly enhanced by that of computer and mobile software. Take the standard map, for instance. For those of us who don’t know the difference between North and South or 1/3 of a mile, technology has made getting around to various restaurants, hotels, cities, and states all the more easier and convenient.
An 
