His maps won’t get you from A to B, but Denis Wood’s diagrams definitely tell something unique about a given area. The illustration above shows a neighborhood’s phone, cable and power line setup. "We did a lot of walking and looking to make this map."

It’s surprisingly cool, in a weird first of the month kind of way.

Garmin is about to turn your phone into a great GPS. They are coming out with a new set of microSD cards preloaded with its navigation software and standard maps of the US or Europe. Called the Garmin Mobile XT, it will act like a "real" GPS with turn-by-turn directions, route planning, and voice prompts. At a price of $99, and no additional fees, it seems an attractive alternative.

Not only has Google updated its time estimate to include travel time with traffic (which can be comical in Los Angeles, with a 20 mile trip turning into a 90 minute commute), but it’s added the ability to alter routes as well. This is great for me, because I’ve learned enough about LA traffic to know that many of Google’s routes are quite possibly the worst to take at certain times of the day. Very impressive.

Virgin America is getting Google Maps integrated into its Linux-based Red seatback system. You’ll enjoy eight levels of zoom, as well as being able to pan off the aircraft to explore what you have just flown over. It’s nice to have something else to do – or to keep those little kids busy so they won’t be saying “bye bye airplane.”

Use others’ map mashups to create your own custom map by using MyMaps and Mapplets. Click on MyMaps in Google Maps, then click on "Add Content" to start adding layers. Look through Google’s library of user-created mashups, plot them on a custom map, and layer different sets on data on top of one another to create new combinations. Save your creations. Repeat as necessary.