Google Mashing Up the Mashups

Hoping to make it even easier to turn its online maps into collages of local information, Google is introducing tools that will stitch together applications from a hodgepodge of Web sites. Google is hoping to unite the information mishmash by encouraging mashup developers to package the creations into mini-applications called “mapplets” that will be posted under the “My Maps” section of Google’s Web site. Multiple mapplets can be laid over Google’s map simultaneously, meaning a user theoretically could get a glimpse at where homes are being sold in a specific neighborhood while also analyzing the area’s recent crime patterns. While it looks promising, I attempted using the new feature using Firefox but was unsuccessful it getting it to actually work. It may be a browser compatibility issue with the “mapplets” I was adding, so I’ll try testing it again and report back later.