The Guest Map is a feature on my site that allows you to mark your exact location on a Google map with enough detail to show your house from a satellite view.

Click here for my Google Guest Map

Unless you are familiar with "Google Maps", it is highly recommended that you view the following tutorial before attempting to use the Guest Map.

The first thing you will see when you call up my Guest Map is this screen:

You can change the positioning of the map by holding down the left mouse button while clicking on the map and dragging. You should reposition the map so your approximate location is near centered on the screen. I live in Cheektowaga, NY, near Buffalo (Note the little face near Western New York). Here is the screen after I repositioned the map:

You can now start zooming in on your location. Note the scale on the extreme left hand side of the map. You can zoom in by clicking on the "+" sign at the top of the scale (Next to Alberta on the above picture), or by sliding the "-" sign on the scale upward a few markers. (Hint: Don't zoom in more than a few clicks or markers at a time or you may have problems relocating your location on the map. (You may have to reposition the map by using the "click and drag" procedure described above). Here is the screen after I zoomed in a few clicks.

Now you can zoom in some more to further zero in on your location. You should start to see streets and familiar places. Again, you probably will have to reposition the map to target your location. Here is that screen:

Keep zooming in a few clicks of the scale at a time, continuing to reposition the map to keep your location in view, until you street appears (I live on Elkins Drive). Here are two screens showing the results of that process:

Now it's time to switch to "Hybrid" view. Click on the "Hybrid" button located in the extreme upper right corner of the map. This will overlay a satellite view on you map. Here is the screen:

Success!!! Find your house and click on it. You will be given options to permanently mark your location on my Guest Map. Here is the screen:

Fill in your name, enter a brief message, fill in the link if you have a web site, and choose an icon for your marker. Click "Place" and you're done. Your icon marker is now a permanent fixture on my Guest Map. Now, whenever anyone clicks on your icon marker, the information you entered above will appear. In addition, by following the procedures outlined above, anyone can zoom in on your exact location and actually see your house!!! Pretty cool, huh?

If you don't want to go through the bother of locating your street and your house as described above, please still mark your location on the map by just clicking on your approximate location after the map initially loads.

Ready to mark your location?

Click here for my Google Guest Map