Who says you can't take it with you?
A Public Affairs makeover of the campus map and the development of an improved smartphone application means the UI can tag along no matter where in the world you go.
"We still have some buildings to add, but for the most part it's up and running and can be accessed by anyone," said Joel Steinfeldt, the Public Affairs academic brand manager.
Steinfeldt has been working on the map for the past 18 months, along with regular duties, updating information and adding precise GPS coordinates for buildings and campus landmarks.
In addition, the Web-based map offers several new features and has the capability to be updated by users through its open-source format.
For now, map entries pop up with options that include directions from campus point to campus point (by car, bike, bus or foot), photos of buildings, accessibility information and even bus stops. Over time, more features will be added, such as the location of on-campus cafes and emergency phones.
Steinfeldt said the map replaces one created nearly a decade ago, when Web-based and mobile computing were still in their infancy.
"The old map was unwieldy and had a lot of approximations," he said, "and for the mobile application, the giant, image-based approach wasn't working well. The size of the campus made it difficult to make it mobile. I always knew what it should look like, but I didn't know how to make that happen."
The new map, available on the university's home page (http://illinois.edu) uses information from several campus sources, and was created with assistance from Facilities and Services and from Campus Information Technology and Educational Services. Instructions on how to use the map appear at http://go.illinois.edu/aboutcampusmap.
The map also has several new geographical entries, including additions at the UI's Research Park and an artist's rendering of buildings under construction. Some of the more sensitive research areas, such as some animal-research facilities on the South Farms, for example, will continue to be left off the map because of security considerations.
"The beauty of it has been, once you get all of the data entered, it only takes seconds to update and manage," he said.
Steinfeldt said he studied other online maps and started training himself on the use of Google's online map-making tools.
He then teamed with Jim Wilson, the director of Web Services, and his staff to begin the development of the map portion of the mobile application.
"Actually, I think the mobile side of this map is the most important thing," Steinfeldt said. "One of the biggest problems we have on this campus is people trying to find their way around."
Wilson said smartphone users can access the map and a wealth of information through the campus home page, though plans are in the works to offer a free mobile application that would be made available through Apple's App Store.
"This really makes it easy to research any person, place or thing on campus," Wilson said. "Using the app will be much easier than opening your phone's browser and typing in the university's website or searching the Web for what you're looking for."
He said the map is just one of the features available with the mobile application. In fact, all of the general information on the UI home page - including the university calendar, admissions information, videos, campus directories, and news and features - has been formatted for smartphones and will soon be available with the touch of an adaptable on-screen icon. He said the number of features would grow with time and allow users to customize their apps.
He said the new system is more capable than in the past because the information appearing on the UI home page already is managed by Web Services staff members.
"We built a calendar that has everyone's events so we can easily tap into that," he said. "We took most of those things and combined them to create a well-rounded and valuable mobile environment. Everything we do also will be provided as a mobile presence."
In just the two weeks following its April 23 release, the site has logged 23,000 unique mobile visitors.
Steinfeldt and Wilson said the feedback has been almost all positive and they hope more users find value in the map and mobile app.
"You have to remember that this is just the beginning - this is version 1.0," Steinfeldt said. "It just gets better after this as we add more rich features and categories."