It is well known that maps are great for visualizing complex data sets. A simple map visualization can convey complex information better than any other medium. UMapper publisher The Sacremento Bee has utilized the power of maps to show which areas of California carry the highest tax burden. Check out the map below or see it in California taxes: Who’s paying the most? article on The Sacramento Bee.

As we prepare to officially release our Twitter Search template, some of our test maps are getting excellent publicity. The Vancouver Olympics Twitter map has been mentioned on several blogs and has generated quite a bit of buzz on Twitter. Here is the map:

The Twitter template is on its way to being released next week. Thanks to all beta testers for their helpful feedback and to these wonderful bloggers for spreading the word:

• Google Maps Mania: Twitter, Google Maps and the Winter Olympics
• Mibazaar: Winter Olympic tweets from Vancouver and elsewhere
• GIS User: UMapper See People Tweeting from the Vancouver 2010 Olympics on a map
• Jamie Forrest: Vancouver Olympics / Twitter Mashup
• LandkarnenBLOG: Olympia: UMapper zeigt Twitter Meldungen zu Olympia an

Did we miss anyone?

Contributing editor of National Geographic Traveler, Andrew Evans, has embarked on a epic adventure by taking a bus from Washington DC to Antarctica, and he is using UMapper to track it! Andrew is currently on the road and you can track his progress on twitter, blog or a beautiful UMapper map!

The map we would like to feature this week it is rather sad. The map shows the route of a funeral procession honoring fallen police officer Cst. Eric Czapnik. Here is an excerpt from the article published on OttawaCitizen.com:

Thousands of police officers will march in honour of Ottawa police officer Cst. Ireneusz “Eric” Czapnik. Roads along the route will be closed off for the procession. This map will be updated with photos taken along the procession route.

Road closures are marked in red and procession route is marked in green.

Ever since the release of the Custom Maps feature we have seen a large number of great use cases, and the map of Jackson is most certainly one of them. What makes this map stand out is the combination of a great underlying map with interactive points. Great job area332, we look forward to more great maps.