Google Maps Goes Live

Congratulations to the maps.google.com team! The new Google Maps beta with directions and what I think is the best user interface for this kind of thing on the web is live. Some cool searches:

Indian Food in Berkely

Books in San Francisco

Lobbyists in DC

Acting Schools in Los angeles.

Tulips in Holland, Michigan


Things to try:

Click the pin! Check the drop shadow..

Click and drag the image.

Scroll in and out with the magnification bar.

Click in the middle of the compass to return to the original searched point.

This is pretty cool! Remember, this is still beta stuff, but it is sure neat.