The Google Maps of the Week

Ascii Street View converts Google Maps Street View imagery into Ascii characters in real-time. Using the app you can search for any location that has Street View and see it in Ascii text. So, if you want, you can look up your house on Street View and see it in text art.

Ascii Street View uses WebGL to convert the Street View image in real-time. Therefore to use the application you will need Chrome, Firefox 8+ or another browser that supports CORS WebGL textures.


Ourense en Verde is using the Google Maps API to map the natural beauty of the Ourense region in Galicia, Spain.

The map uses a nice polygon masking effect to highlight the Ourense region on the map. If you want to use the effect in your own Google Maps then you can use the Masked Polygons library from Swiss Trains. I also really like the mouse-over effect on this map's markers. When you mouse-over the green markers on the map they expand to show the name of the region marked.

Radio buttons positioned below the map allow the user to filter the results shown on the map by category, including Protected Areas for Birds, Natural Monuments and Nature Parks.