Google has changed their maps program (browser version) in a pretty substantial way.  For a while, they were running “classic maps” next to the new map function, so there was no reason to explore the new version.  Now, they’ve shut down the classic version and only support the new version.

I haven’t spent much time with the new version; it seems to be part of their path of building content from us so they can more effectively sell advertising (the UI experience seems to be more about adding personal content).  Visually it looks a lot more like something on a smartphone or tablet than something you would use on a computer.  But, they’ve removed features that I had relied on to build content.

Specifically, I had personal maps with saved locations of points of interest, and I would zoom and orient them in a way to see the map and the location pop-up.  Then, I would embed the HTML to display this in a small window on other web pages.  This functionality is now gone; you can share maps with others by posting them to Facebook or Email, but specific HTML is not there any more.  No one seems to know a workaround on their support forums outside exporting the raw KVM data and importing it into another mapping program.  As of now, my embedded maps are just somewhat zoomed out images without any of my placement they used to have.

There’s only so much complaining to do.  Google has a track record of pulling product they are not making money with, and I didn’t pay for the service, so no point in engaging them in a conversation about it.  I’m forced now to find another mapping service, which is time consuming.  I may just go to static map images if I can’t find a useful embedded service.