Wednesday, June 08, 2011

Location Data Passes Through from Blogger to Google Buzz

A while back I tested the blog location feature on Blogger to see if the info would pass through to Google Buzz. It didn't. When the Blogger app for Android came out, the info wouldn't post either.

Today, I put up a post with no location and then went back to add it. By the time I checked Google Buzz, location info was showing, which is good. I even made some more edits to fix formatting problems on Google Buzz. It was surprising how quickly the edits updated the Google Buzz post.

Maps and Blogger for Android allow you to select specific locations to Buzz about; the Blogger editor only allows you to choose the city.

This probably doesn't matter to most people. I like location data to pass through because it allows me to attach blog posts to locations using the Android App, or at the very least a city using the web editor. This is very useful for local event announcements. People who browse Google Maps with the Buzz layer turned on can see what's coming up in town.

Buzzes with physical location are great for public events. For one, it allows people to see exactly where the event is taking place. Secondly, it adds hype for those who decided not to attend.

Can you imagine if news stories attached location data to news articles? You could walk around town and view the history of the areas that surround you, with a link back to the publication that wrote it.  Your blog can also have a quasi-physical component by attaching posts to a location, almost like a point of distribution.

There are so many potential uses for Buzzes with location if people get on board and start building the content.

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