'Find a way' for a digital map of Vietnam

Without meeting, there are many individuals, groups, companies developing digital map utility in many different forms. Houses are making digital maps, will it be soon for people to use this smart, handy tool?

Compass digitized

Search the route on the Internet via www.diadiem.com

When I went to a cafe for PDA players to install some applications for PocketPC, I installed a digital map of Hanoi area called HandMap. If I want to install Vietnam map and many other countries named SmartMap, I have to spend a few dollars.

But for HandMap alone, it is enough to see the convenience when the streets of Hanoi are in the palm, even though the tool to help me locate this position only has the function of replacing the wide-spread map with paper still familiar. .

Mr. Tuan, the leader of Vietkey Group, talked about the digital map application in Korea that made me love it. When getting into the car of a friend on a street in Seoul, it is necessary to have a digital map system on the vehicle.

Specialized equipment is like a PDA installed on a car. It has the ability to display coordinates, arcs, distances, red lights, and even warn the rider has gone the wrong way .!

Mr. Tuan said that such a system is very popular in many countries, there are places where digital maps with 3D images, vivid interface, close to reality, and rich data to avoid the digital map scene is also helpless before finding a way.

Mr. Tuan said that the price of installing such a system on cars is about 700 to 1,000 USD, which is equivalent to the price of a PDA, including satellite navigation system (GPS), software, data .

Currently, in Vietnam, websites with applications of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are increasing. Although it is not really sophisticated but has been able to meet the diverse needs of users, from the determination of routes, destinations of pen and bus routes, hotel addresses of restaurants and tourist attractions to find shortest path .

Three new bunched trees should be high mountains!

Some websites have integrated digital maps

- Bank online map (http://basao.com.vn) with 61 provinces map, services on real estate, information search for cultural - social - economic, transport facilities, hotel - restaurant, tourist .

- Website of Hanoi Transport Corporation (TRANCERCO, http://www.hanoitranserco.com.vn) instructs the route of bus routes.

- Place Page (http://www.diadiem.com) with map search by company name, phone number .

- Website of TP. Ho Chi Minh City (http://www.hochiminhcity.gov.vn) has a map of all cities and districts. Compared to the actual demand, the existing digital maps in Vietnam are only at the beginning. Training courses on digital maps, GIS, GPS . are still being opened. When the application of technology becomes popular and urgent, the users of Internet, telephone, and handheld devices in Vietnam increase rapidly, the digital map is not afraid of lack of martial arts land.

Commercialization is what has been seen, so some places are targeting this market. At the 2005 Vietnam Intellectuals Awards Ceremony, the diadiem.com of Vina Shelter has also entered the final round.

After widely announcing the product, on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, the members of the group started to build a website with information and instructions on the digital map, supporting the people of Ho Chi Minh City in the spring of Binh Tuat 2006.

MDV Company, also in Ho Chi Minh City, owned by "8x director" Nguyen Thanh Trung has also planned a project to display maps for the entire Vietnamese territory on the Internet.

Trung described, with just a mobile phone or computer, when accessing the Internet, it was possible to find any location updated by the system throughout Vietnam. For example, to get to the location is a cafe in Ho Chi Minh City, just have a phone .

Vietkey team leader also looks to a similar product. This system, according to him, has done about 40%, the end result is that it will not only look up, locate, but also lead to the desired address. This system will first target the driver and use on PDA device.

Mr. Tuan said, many people, many places to start implementing digital maps are inevitable because at this time, technology, the need to use it is ready. Some new cars imported to Vietnam have been installed with GPS cassava . "If I do not do, there will be other units to do, this is not strange .", Mr. Tuan shared. This system has been cherished by him for a long time but for many different reasons, it has not been completed immediately .

In Vietnam, PDA / Internet, GPS - two background elements for digital maps are available. But digital maps alone are in the early stages of development. The problem is that when these three elements are "packed up", the utility of this tool to every citizen is still an unanswered question. Many people are making digital maps, but where is the product approaching life, not inferior to outside goods? .

Bui Dung