Mapping and location platform services company Here Technologies has announced the availability of Here XYZ, a real-time, interoperable and open location data management service that is aimed at mobility app developers, data owners, cartographers and GIS analysts.
The XYZ service, currently available in Beta mode, fills a major gap for map makers and developers of location-aware applications by providing live access to uploaded data, complete flexibility in rendering tools, and cloud services to share location data with the world in an instant.
Here’s XYZ service is built for a broad range of developers and users, from students to small and medium businesses, large enterprises, data journalists and cartographers. Developers in large organizations can make rich, interactive maps and location-aware applications that benefit from the robust tools and capabilities of XYZ.
Data journalists and cartographers will find the publishing services of XYZ to be indispensable for making maps that require live updates. At the same time, casual users can quickly make simple maps without writing code.
XYZ frees data owners from having to build a service to use or share their data, by providing a real-time, interoperable and open location data management service. Here’s XYZ system is built around a powerful and versatile XYZ Hub API (application programming interface) that is delivered as a cloud service.
Developers can invoke the XYZ Hub API directly or explore it via the Here Command Line Interface (Here CLI). Casual mappers can use the XYZ Hub API, via a web-based graphical interface called XYZ Studio, to visualize data in Hub and for simple map creation. Visitors to the Here XYZ Beta version portal can experience:
• Location datasets, uploaded via the XYZ Hub API, made immediately available for management, editing and quick display via the CLI or by using XYZ Studio;
• Interoperability between Here XYZ and third-party map renderers, including Leaflet, Tangram and Three.js;
• Casual maps made with XYZ Studio without having to write any code.
“Location-awareness is the next big thing for products, applications and services. Successful location-awareness depends, however, on location data management. Our new XYZ service allows developers and map makers to maximize their creative energy by making it easy to manage location data,” said Achal Prabhakar, vice president of core map engineering at Here Technologies. “Making great maps, serving live location data and creating location-aware apps will soon have one thing in common – XYZ.”
