Microsoft did it with Internet Explorer, took the number one browser and broke it with an “Upgrade”, and now Google Chrome is the number one.
Now not wanting to be out done on stupidity Google have decided to do the same with Google Maps. They have broken it’s main killer feature, and made it unusable! What are they thinking? These big companies get so wrapped up in let’s bring out something new or updated they loose sight of what people actually use the software for.
Google maps is a perfect example of “old Google” vs “new Google”. Old Google developed Google Maps and Street View to help people. It was intuitive, useful and excellent at what it did. New Google does not care one jot for it’s users and just wants to make maximum money as quickly as possible. So the New Google maps is NOT intuitive, NOT useful and has critical features left out. Then when everyone did not go WOW (because it was rubbish) but instead opted to use the old version, did they re-look at what they had done? No. they have switched off classic Google Maps to try and make us use the new maps.
What they failed to realise is the new maps does not work the way we want. The most useful feature of Google Maps was the ability to use it to travel to your destination virtually.
You put in you destination then drop the little man down half a mile of so from your destination, then travel there using Street View. Your route was shown in the little map so you knew if you had to turn right at the next roundabout. You could drive there, checking local landmarks and even local parking. You also knew what the building looked like. It was brilliant for business or holidays, any-time you were going somewhere new. It was a bit weird when you actually did the journey and recognised places you had never been to before.
Unfortunately in the new version your route does not appear on the little map which makes the whole thing unworkable. When you drop down the little man you have no idea where you should go.
Broken, unusable, and unfortunately unlike Internet Explorer there is no alternative at the moment.
I have found a link that still uses the old Google Maps (it does start you in the US but it is simple to go to the UK)
Classic Google Maps (www.google.com/lochp) Not sure how long it will remain available.
There is also an online petition asking Google to bring back Classic Google Maps
I think the saddest thing is that there were a lot of people out there who had not realised this feature was available and how good it was. Now Google have pulled the plug before they knew how good what they had developed was. If you have never used Google Maps in the way I explained above use the link to go back to Classic Google Maps (quickly while you still can) and discover how cool and what fun a virtual drive to a destination is.