shinyPlasticBag

So, congratulate me: I finally made my first Google Maps mash-up! After watching other geeks have all the fun, I couldn’t resist any longer. I saw an opportunity and decided that it would actually be pretty neat. Introducing Google Stalk. Enter a phone number (Canada only) and it’ll pinpoint the owner’s house on a map. Pretty neat, eh? There are a few caveats: the accuracy is limited by the information on Canada 411, so not all numbers can be looked up. Unlisted numbers, non-personal numbers, and cell phones are not available, and some telephone companies (such as Eastlink) don’t provide accurate information. Also, the addresses are looked up with GeoCoder, so their accuracy is a factor as well. That being said, for most numbers, it can at least show you the city. Give it a spin and let me know what you think of it. Just don’t be a weirdo.

Anyway, Hurricane Rita is entering its final march towards the shores of Texas & Lousiana. Over the past two days, it has weakened significantly. It doesn’t look like Rita will nearly as bad as Hurricane Katrina, despite CNN’s best efforts to induce terror in the populace. The best example of this is the wonderful quote they were running along the bottom of the screen: “If you haven’t evacuated, it’s probably too late now.” Lovely. As bad as this hurricane season has been, I’m getting tired of the major news networks making it seem like the world is ending. Urging preparedness and providing information are important endeavours. Having Wolf Blitzer stand in front of a half-dozen video screens? Not so much.