Map Notes

Abstract

A computing device includes a display, a logic machine, and a storage machine storing instructions, the instructions being executable to display a map via the display and to associate a note with location data defining a geographic location. The note is associated with an annotation that can be displayed on the map. The annotation is associated with a location parameter that defines a map location on the map at which the annotation is displayed, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note. The annotation is associated with a zoom parameter that defines one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map. The annotation is associated with a context parameter that defines one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map. A notification corresponding to the note is presented based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the Chinese patent application with application date of March 22, 2017, application number 201780020878.3, and invention name “Map Notes”. Background Art

[0002] Many computing devices can be used to access digital maps, which generally provide a navigable representation of a real-world environment. Such maps can be used to plan routes, find specific locations, follow turn-by-turn navigation directions, visualize the current location of the computing device, and for other map-related functions. Digital maps can additionally provide information specific to specific locations, buildings, areas, etc. visible on the map. Summary of the invention

[0003] This summary is provided to introduce in simplified form a selection of design concepts that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or important features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, the claimed subject matter is not limited to embodiments that address any or all of the shortcomings noted in any part of this disclosure.

[0004] A computing device includes a display, a logic machine, and a storage machine storing instructions, the instructions being executable to display a map via the display and to associate a note with location data defining a geographic location. The note is associated with a label that can be displayed on the map. The label is associated with a location parameter that defines a map location at which the label is displayed on the map, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note. The label is associated with a zoom parameter that defines one or more map zoom levels at which the label is displayed on the map. The label is associated with a context parameter that defines one or more computing device contexts in which the label is displayed on the map. A notification corresponding to the note is presented based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] Figure 1A , Figure 1B and Figure 1C An exemplary map for viewing and manipulating map annotations is schematically illustrated.

[0006] Figure 2 An exemplary map including exemplary map annotations organized by category is shown.

[0007] Figure 3 User input prompting viewing of notes at an example map is schematically illustrated.

[0008] Figure 4 Repositioning input at a displayed annotation is schematically shown.

[0009] Figure 5A and Figure 5B An exemplary map including exemplary map annotations shown individually and grouped as a collection is schematically illustrated.

[0010] Fig. 6A and Figure 6B Two orientations of an exemplary map showing annotations are schematically shown.

[0011] Figure 7 An example computing device presenting an example notification is schematically illustrated.

[0012] Figure 8 The sharing of map data and notes between computing devices is schematically depicted.

[0013] Fig. 9 An exemplary computing system is schematically illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0014] A user may use a computing device to create and edit computer files, enter text, draw digital free-form ink lines, and / or otherwise create notes for future review. In some cases, it may be desirable to organize and visualize these notes based on location information associated with the notes. Thus, notes recorded by a user of a computing device may be associated with a geographic location, and annotations representing the notes may be displayed on a digital map. Organizing location-related notes in this manner may allow a user of a computing device to easily and conveniently access location-related information whenever needed.

[0015] Notes may include any suitable information and take any suitable form. For example, notes may include text, images, audio, video, other computer files, ink data, and / or other suitable forms of information. During note creation / editing, a user may manually associate a note with a location. Additionally or alternatively, a note may be automatically associated with a geographic location by a computing device at creation / editing time in response to evaluating location-related metadata, interpreting note content, etc. To this end, a note may be associated with location data that defines a geographic location associated with the note.

[0016] The note may additionally be associated with an annotation, which may be used as a visual representation of the note on the map. The computing device may include a display, and presents a map via a map application. Such a map may include one or more annotations, each annotation representing a note associated with a geographic location. The annotation may be presented at a map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note. Thus, the annotation may be used as a visual indicator of the associated location of the note, as well as a shortcut to access / view the associated note.

[0017] Figure 1A , Figure 1B and Figure 1C A computing device 100 is shown that includes a display 102. Via the display 102, the computing device 100 is displaying a map 104. The computing device 100 can be nearly any computing device suitable for performing the note creation and annotation display functions described herein. For example, the computing device 100 can be a smartphone, a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant, a netbook, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a set-top box, a head-mounted display device, or nearly any other type of computing device. In some embodiments, the display 102 can be a touch-sensitive display capable of receiving touch input from various input objects, including a passive stylus, an active stylus, a human finger, and the like. Additionally or alternatively, the computing device 100 can accept input from other input sources, including a computer mouse, a keyboard, a touchpad, a motion tracking camera (e.g., detecting finger writing in the air), and the like.

[0018] As described herein, computing device 100 may be used to create and / or otherwise manage any number of notes. Various suitable techniques may be used to associate a note with location data that defines a particular geographic location. These techniques may include manual location association performed by a user, and / or automatic location association performed by computing device 100.

[0019] Manual location association can occur when a note is created / edited. Alternatively, a user can associate an existing note with a geographic location and / or change the geographic location associated with an existing note. For example, a user can create a note by writing on a map 104 to create digital ink data, which can then be saved by a computing device and represented on the map 104 by annotation. Similarly, a user can select a map location on the map 104 and present it using a text entry box and / or a file selection window, allowing the user to create a note including text, a computer file, and / or any other suitable information, which can then be represented by annotation at the selected location. When creating a note in a different interface / application, the user can manually enter location data, thereby associating the created note with a geographic location. Additionally or alternatively, the user can modify an existing note so as to associate the note with location data. This can allow the user to associate a note with a geographic location that is not represented by the current map view. Additionally or alternatively, the user can identify a note shown in a different interface / application, and "drag and drop" the selected note at a location on the map, so that the map displays annotations representing the placed note. Similarly, a note already associated with a location may be associated with a different / additional location via manual editing of the location data, "drag and drop" of a label representing the note, etc., as will be described below with respect to Figure 4 As described.

[0020] In many cases, notes can be automatically associated with a geographic location. For example, when a new note is created, the computing device can automatically associate the note with a geographic location. The associated location can be, for example, the current location of the computing device. For example, if the computing device is used to capture a photo at a specific geographic location, the photo can be considered a note and associated with the geographic location. Additionally or alternatively, the computing device can evaluate the content of the created note and automatically associate it with any referenced geographic location. For example, a photo showing a specific landmark can be associated with the geographic location of the illustrated landmark. Similarly, if a document references a specific geographic location (e.g., a business, street address, landmark, coordinate set), the document can be associated with the referenced location. When editing / accessing / modifying a specific note, a location can be additionally / alternatively assigned. For example, if a user edits a document at a geographic location, the entire document and / or the edited portion can be associated with a geographic location. In addition, the computing device can scan / otherwise evaluate text notes / computer files / ink data sets / other suitable information and automatically assign any notes including location data (e.g., metadata associated with the note) to the corresponding geographic location. Similarly, the computing device can add location data to an existing note based on the content, attributes, etc. of the note.

[0021] As described above, a note may be associated with location data defining a geographic location. The location data may define a geographic location with any suitable degree of accuracy. For example, the location data may include two-dimensional coordinates of a location associated with a note, such as expressed as longitude and latitude. Therefore, it can be said that the location data has two degrees of freedom (2DOF). Additionally, the location data may include a third coordinate, expressed as the altitude / height of the note, or the zoom level of the map when the note was created (e.g., in the case of user-entered text or free-form ink lines). In this way, the location data may be described as having three degrees of freedom (3DOF) accuracy. In some embodiments, the location data may include an additional three degrees of freedom (e.g., pitch, roll, and yaw), for a total of six degrees of freedom (6DOF). For example, a note may take the form of a photograph taken at a particular geographic location. The location data of a note may describe the three-dimensional location where the note is recorded, as well as the viewpoint or "pose" of the camera lens, thereby constituting 6DOF location data. In the case of ink data, the location data may specify different discrete locations for each pixel of the ink data (i.e., the location data may specify a range of locations). Alternatively, a note including ink data may be associated with a single location, and the ink data included in the note may be displayed by the map as an annotation at or near the associated location.

[0022] Location data may also / alternatively include references to names of known locations. For example, a note may be associated with a particular building (e.g., the user's home or workplace), a business, a landmark, a street address, a city / state / region, etc.

[0023] Map 104 shows an exemplary map view of a hypothetical geographic location. Map 104 can be manipulated to change the presented map view—zoom in / out, change the orientation of the map, pan to a different geographic location, etc. For example, map 104 is shown at a particular zoom level 105A, but the zoom level of map 104 can be changed to zoom in or out. Map 104 also shows a plurality of example annotations 106. As described above, each annotation 106 can be associated with a geographic location and / or otherwise represent a note associated with a geographic location. Specifically, map 104 displays annotation 106A (which is associated with a "coupon" computer file), annotation 106B (which represents text entered by a user), and annotation 106C (which represents a series of free-form ink lines drawn on map 104).

[0024] As shown, map 104 includes annotation 106A, which is a representation of a note associated with a location in the form of a computer file. In the illustrated example, the computer file is a coupon, which can be a written document, a picture, an email message, etc. However, the annotations described herein can alternatively be associated with a note associated with a location in the form of any other type of computer file / computer-readable information. For example, the computer file can be a written document, an image (e.g., a computer-generated image, a photograph, a scanned image), an audio (e.g., a user-recorded audio, a downloaded audio, a link to a streaming audio track), a digital communication (e.g., an email message, a text message, an instant message), an Internet shortcut / link, and / or any other suitable computer file / form of computer-readable information. In general, location-associated notes including any type of computer information can be created by a user and / or automatically by a computing system, and annotations such as annotation 106A can link the information to a specific map location and provide direct access to the information. Figure 1A The specific appearance of annotation 106 shown in FIG. 1 is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure, and the annotation may take any suitable form while still representing a location-associated note.

[0025] Annotation 106B is another example of an annotation associated with a note. Annotation 106B is a representation of a note in the form of text entered by a user. Annotation 106B can represent a note created when a user types text directly into a text entry interface of map 104 via, for example, an included text editor. Alternatively, the note can be created in a different application (e.g., a note-taking application, a word processing application) and represented in map 104 only by annotation 106B, as will be described in more detail below. The user can enter text via any suitable input system, including a keyboard, a speech-to-text module, handwriting recognition software, a motion tracking camera (e.g., detecting a finger writing in the air), etc.

[0026] Annotation 106C is another example of an annotation associated with a note. Specifically, for example, annotation 106C represents a collection of free-form ink lines that can be drawn by a user on map 104. The free-form ink lines described herein can represent real-world paths, handwritten letters, drawn shapes, etc.

[0027] Figure 1AAn input object 108 in the form of a stylus is shown. In general, any suitable input object may be used to perform free-form ink input, thereby allowing the creation of handwritten notes that may be represented on the map 104 via annotations (e.g., a passive stylus, an active stylus, a person's finger). Versions of the map 104 that are not presented via a touch-sensitive display device may still accept handwritten notes, such as the note represented by annotation 106C. For example, a user may use a mouse or trackpad to draw free-form ink lines, use a motion tracking camera that detects finger writing in the air, and / or write on a suitable analog medium (e.g., paper) and use a digital scanner / camera to scan / capture the writing.

[0028] In some embodiments, an annotation may be shown by a map at a location associated with the represented note (i.e., a location defined by the note's associated location data). However, in some examples, the location at which the annotation is displayed on the map may be different from the location associated with the note. Thus, an annotation may be associated with location parameters, defining a map location at which the annotation is displayed on the map. For example, a photograph may be associated with location data defining the location at which the photograph was taken, and such a location may be near a famous landmark. The photograph may then be represented on a map by an annotation that is displayed at the location of the landmark, rather than the exact location at which the photograph was taken. In other words, the photograph may be displayed on a map at a map location defined by the location parameters associated with the annotation, and the map location may correspond to a geographic location associated with the note. Thus, Figure 1A Each annotation 106 shown in FIG. 1 is present at a different map location on map 104. For example, annotation 106A is shown at map location 110A, while annotation 106B is shown at map location 110B. Each map location 110 may correspond to a geographic location associated with the note represented by annotation 106.

[0029] Like the location data associated with the note, the location parameters associated with the annotation can define the map location with any suitable accuracy. Thus, the map location can be defined with 2DOF (e.g., latitude and longitude), 3DOF (e.g., latitude, longitude and altitude), 6DOF (e.g., 3-dimensional coordinates and pitch, roll and yaw), etc. In addition, the annotation can "float" at a specific three-dimensional location, and / or the annotation can automatically "snap" to the landscape / building / surface / etc. below. For example, the ink data of the note represented by the annotation 106C can specify a three-dimensional location above ground level—that is, the annotation is shown as floating above the ground depicted in the map 104. For example, the altitude / height of the floating ink data can be based on the current zoom level of the map 104. Alternatively, when created, the ink data note can be associated with a location corresponding to any landscape / building / surface visible below / behind the ink data. Thus, the annotation 106C can be shown by the map 104 as if it were written directly on the ground shown in the map 104. In some implementations, whether a annotation is shown as "floating" or "snapshot" may be defined by a position parameter.

[0030] In some embodiments, various interface elements of a map application can be annotated. In addition to defining a map location, the location parameters associated with the annotation can also define any interface elements associated with the annotation. For example, a user can use a map application to view multi-step navigation directions from a starting point to a destination. The user can select and annotate individual steps in a set of directions, as well as annotate the map views associated with each step in the set. Such annotations can be associated with location parameters that define the direction steps / map views associated with the annotations. Generally, a user can edit / annotate any aspect of a map application, and such edits / annotations can be saved as notes associated with existing notes, and / or recorded in other ways.

[0031] Figure 1BA computing device 100 is shown that presents a map 104 and a multi-step set of navigation directions 112. Navigation directions 112 can provide step-by-step instructions for reaching a destination (e.g., work) from a starting point (e.g., home) to a user of computing device 100. As shown, a specific step 114 from the set of navigation directions 112 has been selected, which describes the turn that the user will make at an intersection. Map 104 represents the geographic area where the turn described by step 114 will be completed, and the turn is shown with navigation instructions 116. Map 104 also includes annotations 106D representing ink data. Annotations 106D can be associated with a map location that defines where annotations 106D are displayed and the location parameters that uniquely bind annotations 106D to the selected step 114. In this way, annotations 106D can be displayed at the defined map location only when step 114 is selected. Selecting other steps from navigation directions 112 can make map 104 display the same or different geographic areas, and annotations can be uniquely associated with these other map views, as defined by the location parameters associated with each annotation.

[0032] In some examples, the annotation may be associated with a zoom parameter that defines one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map. Figure 1A 105A. However, in response to a change in the zoom level of map 104, different annotations may be shown. Figure 1C It is shown in Figure 1C In, relative to Figure 1A , map 104 has been zoomed out to show a larger area. Specifically, map 104 is now shown at zoom level 105B. As shown, zooming out has caused map 104 to display a different subset of annotations. Specifically, annotations 106A and 106C are no longer displayed, while annotation 106B is unaffected. For example, annotations 106A and 106C may be associated with a zoom level different from zoom level 105B (e.g., as defined by a zoom parameter associated with each annotation), and are therefore no longer displayed. In addition, map 104 now displays annotations 106E and 106F, which may include, for example, zoom parameters that define map zoom level 105B instead of 105A.

[0033] Computing device 100 may collect / access various information related to the current context of the computing device and any user of the computing device. For example, computing device 100 may be configured to determine its own current location, as well as track previous locations and movement patterns. Computing device 100 may additionally access the user's notes, computer files, device usage history, communications (e.g., via phone calls, emails, text messages), Internet search history, personal preferences, etc.

[0034] The computing device 100 may use any / all of the collected user context information to selectively display annotations to the user. Each annotation may be associated with a context parameter that defines one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map. The computing device context may include the current location of the computing device, the current time of day, the identity of any user logged into the computing device, the state of any running applications, the state of any data stored by the computing device, and the like. For example, the map 104 may display different subsets of annotations based on the current location of the computing device (e.g., at home, at work, on the way, on vacation). If the user has recently conducted an online search for restaurants, the map 104 may display annotations representing notes associated with known restaurant locations, and / or annotations corresponding to notes marked / classified as food-related, as defined by the context parameters. If the user has an upcoming appointment, the map 104 may selectively display annotations related to the appointment—e.g., annotations representing notes related to the appointment attendees, the appointment venue, transportation routes to / from the appointment, and the like.

[0035] The context parameters associated with the annotation may additionally include one or more user-defined annotation categories. Thus, annotations may be organized and / or selectively displayed based on the annotation categories associated with the notes / annotations. User-defined annotation categories may include, for example, notes related to food, food types, restaurants, notes related to similar topics (places the user wishes to visit, notes including written text), places / regions, routes, notes created by the user while at home / on vacation, notes related to specific people (e.g., friends, family, colleagues), notes received / shared from others, notes organized into specific collections, or notes viewed via different interface tabs, etc. Annotations may be assigned to such user-defined annotation categories by the user at note creation / editing time and / or automatically by the computing device.

[0036] For example, a map can be organized in a way that allows the user to separate annotations into different groups / categories that can be independently viewable. For example, a map can use a tabbed interface where each tab represents the same geographic area from the same perspective, but includes different annotations. This can be used, for example, to plan a trip, as well as to keep track of notes created at different times, separate notes into different categories, etc. Figure 2 An exemplary map 200 using such a tabbed interface is shown. Map 200 includes text annotations 202A and free-form ink line annotations 202B. Map 200 additionally includes a series of tabs 204, each of which may include one or more annotations representing notes associated with a geographic location. Figure 2, tab 204A (i.e., "Route 1") is selected. Thus, annotations 202A and 202B may be associated with the "Route 1" user-defined annotation category, which may be defined by contextual parameters associated with the annotations. Thus, annotations associated with a note may be assigned to a particular tab 204 or other user-defined annotation category and selectively displayed based on which user-defined annotation category the annotation is associated with and the current context of the computing device. Selecting a different tab of map 200 (i.e., "Route 2" or "Route 3") may cause annotations 202A and 202B to disappear and cause map 200 to display different annotations associated with the newly selected tab.

[0037] The above examples are not intended to be limiting.In general, when displaying annotations, a computing device can use any / all information related to the computing device and / or any user of the computing device.

[0038] In some embodiments, annotations may be user-selectable and / or otherwise interactive. For example, selection of a particular annotation representing a computer file may cause a computing device to open the associated computer file. The computer file may be opened as a preview, which may not require the user to open a new application. Alternatively, selection of an annotation may cause the computing device to launch an external application to view / edit the computer file. Similarly, selection of an annotation corresponding to user-entered text or free-form ink lines may allow editing of the note text or ink data. In addition, selection of an annotation may allow a user to associate the represented note with different locations, as will be described in more detail below. The map application and the collaborative viewing / editing application may use an application programming interface (API) to transfer data between the map application and the collaborative viewing / editing application.

[0039] Figure 3 The selection of displayed annotations is shown in FIG. Figure 3 Map 300 is shown displaying annotation 302. Annotation 302 has been selected via annotation selection input performed by input object 304. Input object 304 is presented as an example, and other suitable touch-related and non-touch-related input modalities may be used to select annotations as described herein.

[0040] Based on the selection of the annotation 302, the computing device presenting the map 300 has opened a viewer application 306, which presents the note 308 associated with the annotation 302. In some embodiments, the viewer application 306 can be a component of the application that renders the map 300. Alternatively, in response to the selection of the annotation, the associated note can be opened in an application external to the map. The application 306 additionally includes additional information about the note 308, including an indication of a geographic location 310 associated with the note.

[0041] After selecting an annotation, the associated note may be opened / viewed in any suitable manner via any suitable application. In addition, the open note may be viewed, and / or the properties / content of the note may be edited. Although the note 308 is a computer file, annotations associated with user-entered text or ink lines may similarly be selected and opened for viewing / editing.

[0042] In some implementations, the geographic location associated with the note and / or the map location associated with the annotation can be changed based on receiving a relocation input. Figure 4 It is shown in Figure 4 An exemplary map 400 is shown. Map 400 presents annotation 402 that is in the process of being relocated from an original map location 404A to a new map location 404B. The relocation is performed based on input object 406 that performs a relocation input 408 at map 404. Figure 3 As with the annotation selection shown in , annotation repositioning can be performed using any suitable input object and / or via any suitable input modality. Repositioning input 408 can be accomplished in a variety of suitable ways. For example, repositioning input can be performed by "dragging and dropping" the annotation displayed on map 400.

[0043] In some embodiments, annotations displayed by a map may be grouped into sets. Sets may allow a user to edit / share / manipulate notes as a group, rather than as individual notes. Annotations may be grouped into sets automatically by the map annotation interface and / or manually by a user. For example, sets may be automatically generated based on the proximity of assigned note locations—i.e., annotations corresponding to all notes assigned to locations within a threshold distance of each other are grouped into sets. Additionally or alternatively, annotations may be grouped into sets based on contextual parameters associated with the annotations (e.g., annotations associated with the same user-defined annotation category may be automatically grouped into sets). In some embodiments, annotations may be grouped into sets manually by a user. For example, a user may group sets of annotations into sets by selecting all annotations and executing some function for grouping them. For example, a user may circle sets of annotations in order to group them into sets.

[0044] exist Figure 5A and Figure 5B The grouping of annotations into sets is shown in . Figure 5A An exemplary map 500 is shown, including several annotations 502. Map 500 may be rendered by a computing device similar to computing device 100 described above. As shown, annotations 502 represent notes in the form of ink data. Figure 5A and Figure 5B The annotations shown in are labeled to represent four separate notes. For example, Figure 5AEach discrete ink line / mark shown in can be a separate annotation, representing a different distinguishing note. For the purpose of describing the annotation set, we will assume Figure 5A The annotations shown in represent at least two different notes.

[0045] Figure 5B Map 500 is shown after annotations 502 have been grouped into collection 504. Collection 504 is represented at a specific location for map 500, however, the collection of annotations may be displayed at any suitable map location. In some embodiments, a user may be able to select / interact with collection 504 to change the location at which it is represented, and this may or may not affect the location data of the notes represented by the annotations included in the collection, as well as the location parameters associated with the annotations. In addition, selection of / interaction with collection 504 may cause annotations 502 to be displayed / hidden. Figure 5B The specific appearance of collection 504 in is not intended to limit the present disclosure. In general, map 500 can indicate the presence of an annotation collection in any suitable manner.

[0046] Maps, such as those described herein, can be manipulated to change the viewing angle / perspective of the map. For example, a user can manipulate the map to view different locations, zoom in / out, rotate the map, view the map in a "street view" mode, etc. In response to changes in the map's perspective / orientation, annotations shown on the map can be displayed differently. For example, rotation of the map can cause a corresponding rotation of the displayed annotations.

[0047] However, there are some situations where annotation rotation may be undesirable, or where some annotations will be better suited to certain types of reorientation than others. Fig. 6A An exemplary map 600 is shown that may be displayed by a computing device via a display. Map 600 includes annotations 602 representing free-form ink notes associated with various geographic locations. Annotations 602 may represent free-form ink notes created in response to a computing device presenting map 600 receiving free-form ink input indicated at map 600. Specifically, map 600 includes annotations 602A representing handwritten letters and annotations 602B representing real-world paths. For purposes of describing annotation rotation, Fig. 6A The direction of the annotation 602 shown in will be referred to as the “first” direction, and the direction of the map 600 will be referred to as the first map direction—that is, the vertical axis of the map 600 is aligned north / south, as shown by the compass 603.

[0048] In response to the change of the direction of map 600, annotation 602 can show various annotation rotation behaviors, including orientation-agnostic behavior and direction-dependent behavior. For example, as the direction of map 600 changes, the direction of each annotation 602 can change, thereby retaining the relationship between each annotation and nearby map features. During such a rotation, even if the direction of the map changes, the position of annotation 602B relative to the road on which it is drawn may not change. Therefore, the annotation rotated in this way can be described as direction-agnostic. This can allow a user to easily interpret the route represented by annotation 602B, regardless of the direction of map 600. However, this may also cause the handwritten letters shown as part of annotation 602A to be presented in a direction that makes the writing difficult to read. Alternatively, annotation 602 can show direction-dependent behavior relative to the map. In other words, as the direction of the map changes, the relationship between the annotation and the underlying map features can change in a manner consistent with the change in the direction of the map. This may ensure that handwritten letters shown as part of annotation 602A always have a readable (eg, right side up) orientation, but may also remove the association between annotation 602B and the map feature on which it is drawn.

[0049] Thus, as described herein, annotations can be associated with orientation parameters that define one of a plurality of annotation rotation behaviors, including orientation-dependent behaviors and orientation-agnostic behaviors. As a result, the rotation behavior of each particular annotation can be individually specified so that each annotation adopts an appropriate orientation in response to a change in map orientation.

[0050] The rotation behavior of annotations can be defined manually by a user, and / or automatically by a computing device. For example, a map annotation interface can be configured to evaluate a note to distinguish handwritten letters / symbols, text, and / or images (e.g., annotation 602A) from routes / arrows / real-world paths (e.g., annotation 602B). The annotation can then be automatically associated with the appropriate directional parameters—e.g., the directional parameters associated with annotation 602A can specify direction-dependent behavior, while the directional parameters associated with annotation 602B can specify direction-agnostic behavior. In addition, a user can specify during note creation how the annotations of a note should behave in response to changes in the map orientation. For example, a user can specify and / or supplement note creation by drawing points / symbols and / or performing one or more gestures to specify the directional behavior of the annotations associated with the created note.

[0051] Additionally, the directional parameters defining the directional dependent behavior may associate the directional dependent behavior with a label pivot point about which the label rotates as the map orientation changes. For example, FIG6 illustrates pivot point 604 associated with label 602A. In some implementations, a user may specify a pivot point about which the label should rotate when the map rotates, and the pivot point may be different from the geographic location associated with the represented note.

[0052] exist Figure 6B , selective reorientation of annotations in response to changing map orientation is shown. Figure 6B Map 600 is shown changing from a first map orientation to a second map orientation (the vertical axis of map 600 is now aligned east / west, as shown by compass 603). Figure 6B 6, annotation 602A has been rotated from its first orientation to a second orientation in an orientation-dependent manner about pivot point 604. Specifically, the relationship between the annotation and the underlying map feature has changed, and the handwritten letter included in annotation 602A remains legible. In contrast, annotation 602B retains its first orientation relative to the underlying map feature, thereby exhibiting orientation-agnostic behavior.

[0053] Although the above description of selective annotation redirection focuses on annotations representing free-form ink notes, other types of annotations may also be selectively redirected as the map changes orientation. For example, annotations representing computer files, image thumbnails, user-entered text, etc. may be selectively redirected to ensure that the user can still easily discern the annotation content regardless of the map orientation.

[0054] In some implementations, annotations (such as those described herein) can be displayed on a map along with supplemental information. For example, ink data can be used to illustrate a user's route, as in the note represented by annotation 602B. The computing device can analyze the ink data to estimate the length of the real-world path represented by the free-form ink line. This Fig. 6A and Figure 6B It is shown in Fig. 6A and Figure 6B , annotation 602B is displayed along with supplemental information 606. Supplemental information 606 indicates that the real-world path represented by annotation 602B covers approximately 0.24 miles. Additionally or alternatively, the displayed supplemental information may take other forms. For example, a user may associate a note with a location and designate the note as representing an important landmark. Thus, the computing device may persistently display supplemental information indicating the relative locations of important landmarks on a map, regardless of the current map view. For example, a user may associate a note with the location of a fire hydrant, and the map annotation interface may provide the user with information indicating the user's distance from the fire hydrant, as well as an arrow pointing to the fire hydrant.

[0055] As described herein, a note associated with a geographic location may additionally be associated with a notification to be presented under certain circumstances. The notification, in turn, may be associated with notification parameters that define one or more computing device contexts for presenting the notification. For example, a notification may be presented based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of a geographic location associated with a note to which the notification corresponds. Additionally or alternatively, a computing device may evaluate multiple contextual factors in determining when to present a notification, including time of day, recent communications, user preferences, internet search history, and the like.

[0056] Presenting a notification may include presenting a note corresponding to the notification to the user, and / or presenting an annotation representing the note to the user. When a note is created, the user may manually request that the note be presented to the user in certain circumstances. Additionally or alternatively, the map annotation interface may automatically determine when / if a particular note should be presented to the user.

[0057] For example, a photo may be associated with a particular geographic location. When the user arrives at the geographic location, or comes within a threshold distance of the geographic location, the computing device may automatically present the photo to the user. As another example, the computing device may determine that a particular file is a boarding pass for the user's upcoming flight, and associate the file with the location of the local airport. Thus, the computing device may automatically present the boarding pass to the user a certain amount of time before the flight takes off and / or when the user arrives at the airport, or comes within a threshold distance of the airport. Similarly, the computing device may determine that the user frequently opens and edits documents when arriving at a local coffee shop. In this way, the map annotation interface may associate the document with the coffee shop, and automatically present the document to the user when the user arrives at the coffee shop.

[0058] Figure 7 , automatic presentation of notes associated with a location is shown. Figure 7 An exemplary computing device 700 in the form of a mobile device is schematically shown. The computing device 700 may be used to render and display maps and other visual content via a display 702. Figure 7, computing device 700 is presenting notification 704, which corresponds to a computer file represented as annotation 706. Computing device 700 can present notification 704 based on determining that a current location 708 of the computing device is within a threshold distance 710 of a geographic location associated with the computer file. Additionally or alternatively, if the map location is different from the geographic location, notification 704 can be presented based on determining that the computing device is within a threshold distance of a map location 712 of annotation 706. For example, the computer file can be a coupon available at a local business, and once the computing device is within a threshold distance of the business, the computing device can present notification 704. Presenting notifications in this manner can allow a user to easily access computer files and / or other information associated with a geographic location without requiring the user to manually retrieve such information.

[0059] Location-associated notes created by a user may additionally be selectively shared with one or more other users, allowing users to view and / or interact with notes created by their friends, family, co-workers, community members, etc.

[0060] When creating a note, the user can specify to what extent and under what circumstances the note can be shared. For example, a created note can be kept private - visible only on the device on which it was created. Additionally or alternatively, the note can be synchronized to multiple devices all owned by the same user. Such synchronization can occur via wired / wireless communication between the devices. Additionally or alternatively, the created note can be uploaded to the user's profile / account in the map data service and then downloaded by other devices belonging to the user automatically and / or upon user request.

[0061] When a note is uploaded to a map data service, the note may be viewed / downloaded by devices belonging to other users. Uploaded notes may be posted to the user's social network profile, and / or added to a public note service, such that annotations representing the note may be viewed by any other user of the map application. For example, a user may create a note including text, computer files, ink data, etc., that describes the user's recent travels, and share the note with the public via a social network. As another example, a user may create a note indicating bad traffic on a local highway, and upload the note to a map data service, where the note may be viewed as an annotation by other users in the area.

[0062] The user may additionally specify which users / user groups may see a particular annotation. For example, a user may choose to share a note with a second user. Such sharing may occur via wired / wireless communication between devices belonging to the first user and the second user. Additionally or alternatively, the shared note may be uploaded to a map data service and downloaded by the second user. For example, the first user may send a link to the second user to allow the second user to download the shared note, and / or the device belonging to the second user may automatically download the shared note without prompting the second user. Upon receiving the shared note, the device belonging to the second user may selectively display the shared note as an annotation in a map application, just as the notes described above. In some embodiments, the first user may choose to share one or more notes with a group of other users. For example, a user may share notes with his friends, family, other users within a threshold distance, business partners, custom user-defined groups, and the like. Notes may be shared individually and / or as groups / collections.

[0063] Figure 8 The diagram schematically shows the sharing of notes between users of a map data service. Specifically, Figure 8 Users 800 are shown, each of which is the owner of a different computing device 810. As described above, each device 810 can be used to present a map annotation interface. Each user 800 can use his / her device 810 to create notes associated with locations and selectively view these notes as annotations on a map. In addition, created notes can be shared between devices 810. For example, such note sharing can occur via direct communication between devices 810, via wired / wireless links. Additionally or alternatively, the shared notes can be uploaded to a computer network 820, which can be any suitable computer network, such as the Internet. Through the network 820, the shared notes can be received and stored by one or more map data services 830. As described above, through the map data service 830, other users 800 can access the shared notes through the network 820.

[0064] In some embodiments, the methods and processes described herein may be bound to a computing system of one or more computing devices. In particular, these methods and processes may be implemented as computer applications or services, application programming interfaces (APIs), libraries, and / or other computer program products.

[0065] Fig. 9A non-limiting implementation of a computing system 900 that can implement one or more of the above methods and processes is schematically illustrated. The computing system 900 is illustrated in simplified form. The computing system 900 can take the form of one or more personal computers, server computers, tablet computers, home entertainment computers, network computing devices, gaming devices, mobile computing devices, mobile communication devices (e.g., smart phones), and / or other computing devices. In particular, the computing system 900 can be used to present a map, associate notes with geographic locations, and associate notes with annotations displayed on a map.

[0066] The computing system 900 includes a logic machine 902 and a storage machine 904. The computing system 900 may optionally include a display subsystem 906, an input subsystem 908, a communication subsystem 910, and / or Fig. 9 Other components not shown.

[0067] The logic machine 902 includes one or more physical devices configured to execute instructions. For example, the logic machine can be configured to execute instructions that are part of one or more applications, services, programs, routines, libraries, objects, components, data structures, or other logical constructs. Such instructions can be implemented to perform tasks, implement data types, transform the state of one or more components, achieve technical effects, or otherwise achieve desired results.

[0068] The logic machine may include one or more processors configured to execute software instructions. Additionally or alternatively, the logic machine may include one or more hardware or firmware logic machines configured to execute hardware or firmware instructions. The processor of the logic machine may be single-core or multi-core, and the instructions executed thereon may be configured for sequential, parallel and / or distributed processing. The various components of the logic machine may optionally be distributed between two or more separate devices, which may be located at remote locations and / or configured for collaborative processing. Some aspects of the logic machine may be virtualized and executed by a remotely accessible networked computing device configured in a cloud computing configuration.

[0069] The storage machine 904 includes one or more physical devices configured to store instructions executable by the logic machine to implement the methods and processes described herein. When implementing such methods and processes, the state of the storage machine 1004 can be transformed, for example, to store different data.

[0070] The storage machine 904 may include removable and / or built-in devices. The storage machine 904 may include optical storage (e.g., CD, DVD, HD-DVD, Blu-ray disc, etc.), semiconductor storage (e.g., RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, etc.), and / or magnetic storage (e.g., hard disk drive, floppy disk drive, tape drive, MRAM, etc.), as well as other storage. The storage machine 904 may include volatile, non-volatile, dynamic, static, read / write, read-only, random access, sequential access, location addressable, file addressable, and / or content addressable devices.

[0071] It will be appreciated that storage 904 comprises one or more physical devices. However, aspects of the instructions described herein may alternatively be propagated by a communication medium (eg, electromagnetic signals, optical signals, etc.) that is not retained by a physical device for a finite duration.

[0072] Storage 904 may store note-related information 912, which may include any / all information used by computing system 900 when displaying a map. Specifically, note-related information 912 includes notes 914, which may take the form of computer files, text entered by a user of computing system 900, free-form ink lines drawn on a map, etc. As described above, notes 914 may be associated with location data 916, which may define a geographic location 917 with any suitable accuracy.

[0073] Note 914 can be associated with notification 918, which in turn can be associated with notification parameters 919 that define one or more computing device contexts for presenting notification 918. For example, notification 918 can be presented based on determining that computing system 900 is within a threshold distance of geographic location 917.

[0074] Note 914 may be associated with annotation 920 , which may be a visual representation of the note displayed by computing system 900 on the digital map.

[0075] The annotation 920 may be associated with location parameters 922 that define a map location 923 at which the annotation is displayed on a map, the map location corresponding to the geographic location 917 associated with the note 914. The location parameters 922 may also define any interface elements associated with the annotation, and whether the annotation should be displayed as "snapped" or "floating."

[0076] Annotation 920 may be associated with zoom parameters 924 that define one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map.

[0077] Annotation 920 may be associated with context parameters 926 that define one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map.

[0078] The annotation 920 may be associated with an orientation parameter 928 that defines one of a plurality of annotation rotation behaviors 929, including an orientation-dependent behavior 929A and an orientation-agnostic behavior 929B. In some cases, the orientation parameter 928 may define only one of the annotation rotation behaviors 929, and the defined behavior may determine how to rotate the annotation 920 in response to a change in the orientation of the map on which the annotation is displayed.

[0079] In some embodiments, the note-related information 912 may take the form of a data file / object, and / or other discrete collection of computer-readable information. In other embodiments, the components of the note-related information 912 (e.g., notes 914, location data 916, notifications 918, annotations 920, parameters 922, 924, 926, and 928) may be stored in one or more locations and / or in one or more separate databases / archives. For example, the location data 916, notifications 918, annotations 920, and any parameters associated with the annotations 920 may be stored in an archive / directory separate from the note 914, but still associated with the note 914 by reference. Alternatively, each of the notes 914, location data 916, notifications 918, annotations 920, and parameters 922, 924, 926, and 928 may be stored as separate data files / objects and associated with each other through a note-associated database / directory maintained by the computing system 900. In general, the note-related information 912 may be stored by the storage machine 904 in any suitable manner. In addition, the note-related information 912 can correspond to a single note, and the storage 904 can save multiple sets of note-related information 912, one set for each created note. Alternatively, the note-related information 912 can take the form of a database, including different entries / information sets for each note.

[0080] As described above, notes such as note 914 may take the form of user-entered text, computer files, free-form ink lines, and / or any other suitable collection of computer-readable information. Note 914 may be created by a user of computing system 900, automatically created by computing system 900, received by computing system 900 from a third party (e.g., shared by users of different computing systems), etc. Note 914 may be associated with one or more locations and represented on a map by one or more notes.

[0081] Aspects of the logic machine 902 and the storage machine 904 may be integrated together into one or more hardware logic components. Such hardware logic components may include, for example, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), program-specific and application-specific integrated circuits (PASIC / ASICs), program-specific and application-specific standard products (PSSP / ASSPs), systems on chips (SoCs), and complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs).

[0082] The terms "module," "program," and "engine" may be used to describe aspects of the computing system 900 that are implemented to perform specific functions. In some cases, a module, program, or engine may be instantiated via a logic submachine 902 that executes instructions held by a storage machine 904. It will be understood that different modules, programs, and / or engines may be instantiated by the same application, service, code block, object, library, routine, API, function, etc. Likewise, the same module, program, and / or engine may be instantiated by different applications, services, code blocks, objects, routines, APIs, functions, etc. The terms "module," "program," and "engine" may include individual or groups of executable files, data files, libraries, drivers, scripts, database records, and the like.

[0083] It will be appreciated that a "service" as used herein is an application executable across multiple user sessions. A service may be used for one or more system components, programs, and / or other services. In some implementations, a service may run on one or more server computing devices.

[0084] When included, display subsystem 906 can be used to present a visual representation of the data stored by storage machine 904. The visual representation can take the form of a graphical user interface (GUI). Since the methods and processes described herein change the data stored by the storage machine, and therefore convert the state of the storage machine, the state of display subsystem 906 is also converted to visually represent the change of the underlying data. Display subsystem 1006 can include one or more display devices using almost any type of technology. Such a display device can be combined with logic machine 902 and / or storage machine 904 in a shared shell, or such a display device can be a peripheral display device.

[0085] When included, the input subsystem 908 may include or interface with one or more user input devices (such as a keyboard, mouse, touch screen, or game controller). In some embodiments, the input subsystem may include or interface with selected natural user input (NUI) component portions. Such component portions may be integrated or peripheral, and the conversion and / or processing of input actions may be processed on-board or off-board. Exemplary NUI component portions may include: microphones for voice and / or sound recognition; infrared, color, stereo and / or depth cameras for machine vision and / or gesture recognition; head trackers, eye trackers, accelerometers and / or gyroscopes for motion detection and / or intent recognition; and electric field sensing component portions for assessing brain activity.

[0086] When included, the communication subsystem 910 can be configured to communicatively couple the computing system 900 to one or more other computing devices. The communication subsystem 910 can include wired and / or wireless communication devices compatible with one or more different communication protocols. As non-limiting examples, the communication subsystem can be configured to communicate via a wireless telephone network, or a wired or wireless local area network or wide area network. In some embodiments, the communication subsystem can allow the computing system 900 to send and / or receive messages to and / or from other devices via a network (such as the Internet).

[0087] In an example, a computing device includes: a display, a logic machine, and a storage machine, the storage machine storing instructions executable by the logic machine to perform the following operations: displaying a map via the display; associating a note with location data defining a geographic location; associating the note with an annotation that can be displayed on the map; wherein the annotation is associated with a location parameter, the location parameter defining a map location at which the annotation is displayed on the map, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note; wherein the annotation is associated with a zoom parameter, the zoom parameter defining one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map; wherein the annotation is associated with a context parameter, the context parameter defining one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map; and presenting a notification corresponding to the note based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location. In this example or any other example, the note is a computer file. In this example or any other example, wherein the note is opened based on receiving user input at the annotation displayed on the map. In this example or any other example, the note is opened in an application external to the map. In this example or any other example, the note is text entered by a user of the computing device. In this example or any other example, the note is a free-form ink line drawn on the map. In this example or any other example, a label associated with a note is displayed on a map together with supplementary information indicating the length of a real-world path represented by a free-form ink line. In this example or any other example, the label is associated with a direction parameter that defines one of a plurality of label rotation behaviors, the plurality of label rotation behaviors including direction-dependent behaviors and direction-agnostic behaviors. In this example or any other example, the direction parameter associates the direction-dependent behavior with a label pivot point, around which the label rotates as the orientation of the map changes relative to the display. In this example or any other example, the context parameter includes one or more user-specified note categories. In this example or any other example, the location parameter further defines a specific step in a multi-step set of navigation directions, and when a specific step is selected, the annotation is displayed on the map. In this example or any other example, multiple annotations are collectively represented as a collection of annotations. In this example or any other example, the annotation is associated with different map locations based on receiving a relocation input at the annotation displayed on the map. In this example or any other example, the notification parameter associated with the note defines one or more computing device contexts for presenting notifications.

[0088] In an example, a computing device includes: a display, a logic machine, and a storage machine, the storage machine storing instructions executable by the logic machine to perform the following operations: display a map via the display; associate a first note with location data defining a first geographic location; associate the first note with a first annotation displayable on the map, wherein the first annotation is associated with a first direction parameter defining direction-dependent behavior; associate a second note with location data defining a second geographic location; associate the second note with a second annotation displayable on the map, wherein the second annotation is associated with a second direction parameter defining direction-agnostic behavior; while the map is displayed using a first direction relative to the display, display a first annotation representing the first note and a second annotation representing the second note using a first annotation direction; and while the map is displayed using a second direction relative to the display, the second direction is different from the first direction, display the first annotation using a second annotation direction different from the first annotation direction, and display the second annotation using the first annotation direction. In this example or any other example, the first annotation and the second annotation are associated with zoom parameters, the zoom parameters defining one or more map zoom levels at which the annotations are displayed on the map. In this example or any other example, the first annotation and the second annotation are associated with context parameters, the context parameters defining one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotations on the map. In this example or any other example, the first orientation parameter associates orientation-dependent behavior with a label pivot point about which the first label rotates as the orientation of the map changes relative to the display. In this example or any other example, the first note and the second note are free-form ink lines drawn on the map.

[0089] In an example, a computing device includes: a display, a logic machine, and a storage machine, wherein the storage machine stores instructions that can be executed by the logic machine to perform the following operations: displaying a map via the display; receiving a first free-form ink input directed to the map; creating a first free-form ink note based on the first free-form ink input; evaluating the first free-form ink note to identify the first free-form ink note as representing a handwritten letter; associating the first free-form ink note with first location data defining a geographic location; associating the first free-form ink note with a first annotation that can be displayed on a map; wherein the first annotation is associated with a first location parameter, the first location parameter defines a first map location at which the first annotation is displayed on the map, and the first map location corresponds to the geographic location associated with the first free-form ink note; wherein the first annotation is associated with a first direction parameter, the first direction parameter defines a direction-dependent behavior based on the first free-form ink note being recognized as representing a handwritten letter; receiving a second free-form ink input directed to the map; creating a second free-form ink note based on the second free-form ink input; evaluating the second free-form ink note to identify the first free-form ink note as representing a handwritten letter evaluating to identify a second free-form ink note as representing a real-world path; associating the second free-form ink note with second location data defining the real-world path; associating the second free-form ink note with a second annotation displayable on a map; wherein the second annotation is associated with a second location parameter, the second location parameter defining a second map location on the map at which the second annotation is displayed, the second map location corresponding to the real-world path associated with the second free-form ink note; wherein the second annotation is associated with a second direction parameter, the second direction parameter defining direction-agnostic behavior based on the second free-form ink note being identified as representing a real-world path; while the map is displayed using a first direction relative to a display, displaying a first annotation representing the first free-form ink note and a second annotation representing the second free-form ink note using a first annotation direction; and while the map is displayed using a second direction relative to the display, the second direction being different from the first direction, displaying the first annotation using the second annotation direction, the second annotation direction being rotated about the first map location relative to the first annotation direction, and displaying the second annotation using the first annotation direction.

[0090] It will be understood that the configurations and / or methods described herein are exemplary in nature, and these specific embodiments or examples should not be considered in a restrictive sense, as many variations are possible. The specific routines or methods described herein may represent one or more of any number of processing strategies. Therefore, the individual actions illustrated and / or described may be performed or omitted in the order illustrated and / or described, in other orders, in parallel. Likewise, the order of the above process may be changed.

[0091] The inventive subject matter of the present disclosure includes all novel and nonobvious combinations and subcombinations of the various processes, systems and configurations, and other features, functions, acts, and / or properties disclosed herein, and any and all equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. A computing device, comprising: Logic Machine; as well as A storage machine storing instructions that, when executed by the logic machine, cause the logic machine to: associating a note with location data defining a geographic location, wherein the note is a computer file; associating the note with a markup displayable on a map, wherein the markup is associated with a location parameter defining a map location at which the markup is displayable on the map, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note; providing a notification corresponding to the note based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location; and In response to user input pointing to the annotation, the note is opened in an application external to the map.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: The label is associated with an orientation parameter that defines one of a plurality of label rotation behaviors when the label is displayed on the map, the plurality of label rotation behaviors including orientation-dependent behavior and orientation-agnostic behavior.

3. The computing device of claim 2, wherein: The orientation parameter associates the orientation-dependent behavior with a label pivot point about which the label rotates when the label is displayed on the map as the orientation of the map changes relative to a display on which the label is displayed.

4. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: The annotation is associated with context parameters that define one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map.

5. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: The location parameters also define a particular step in a multi-step set of navigation directions, and when the particular step is selected, the annotation is displayed on the map.

6. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: The annotation is associated with a zoom parameter that defines one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map when the annotation is displayed on the map.

7. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: The annotation is associated with a different map location based on receiving a reposition input at the annotation while the annotation is displayed on the map.

8. The computing device of claim 1, wherein: Notification parameters associated with the note define one or more computing device contexts for providing the notification.

9. A method comprising: associating a note with location data defining a geographic location, wherein the note is a computer file; associating the note with a markup displayable on a map, wherein the markup is associated with a location parameter defining a map location at which the markup is displayable on the map, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note; providing a notification corresponding to the note based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location; and In response to user input pointing to the annotation, the note is opened in an application external to the map.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The annotation is associated with a zoom parameter that defines one or more map zoom levels at which the annotation is displayed on the map when the annotation is displayed on the map.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The annotation is associated with context parameters that define one or more computing device contexts for displaying the annotation on the map.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The label is associated with an orientation parameter that defines one of a plurality of label rotation behaviors when the label is displayed on the map, the plurality of label rotation behaviors including orientation-dependent behavior and orientation-agnostic behavior.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The orientation parameter associates the orientation-dependent behavior with a label pivot point about which the label rotates when the label is displayed on the map as the orientation of the map changes relative to a display on which the label is displayed.

14. A computing device comprising: monitor; Logic Machine; as well as A storage machine storing instructions that, when executed by the logic machine, cause the logic machine to: displaying a map via the display; associating a note with location data defining a geographic location, wherein the note is a computer file; associating the note with an annotation displayable on the map; wherein the annotation is associated with a location parameter that defines a map location on the map at which the annotation is displayed, the map location corresponding to the geographic location associated with the note; and presenting a notification corresponding to the note based on the computing device being within a threshold distance of the geographic location; and In response to user input pointing to the annotation, the note is opened in an application external to the map.

Images