Ever since its launch, the Google Maps API has allowed non-Google developers to harness the power of Google Maps on their own websites. Over time, the Maps API has expanded to cover a vast range of functionality, from geocoding to Street View, and the Sydney engineering team has been a big driver in the growth and development of the Maps API.
For years, people have been requesting a Flash version of Google's popular Maps API. Our recent launch of Google Maps API for Flash delivers an official, supported path for all those Flash developers wanting to integrate Google Maps into their web applications. And for the Maps API developers who haven't tried Flash yet, this new API offers dramatic performance improvements, Flash-y animations and effortless cross-browser portability. For an entertaining peek at the new power that Flash lends to Google Maps developers, check out the spinning map demo below.
A big part of my 3-month internship project at Google Sydney has been helping the Flash Maps API team get ready for launch. For any Uni students out there who were planning to spend their summers laying around at the beach, a student internship is a fantastic way to improve your coding skills, get industry experience and improve your table tennis game (although I'm reliably informed that foosball is the relaxation tool of choice at the Mountain View office). To go from no industry experience to the launch of a major product in three months has been an amazing experience, and I'd like to thank the Google Maps team for their friendliness and support.
