Londoners Share The Knowledge

Geocoding has enabled thelondonpaper to launch an interactive map marking the city’s eateries and bars.

The online version of the freesheet has created thelondonknowledge Google map, which features reviews and ratings of restaurants, pubs and clubs across the capital.

Visitors and London natives can also use the tool to obtain listings for theatres and cinemas and to get route planner information via a link to the Transport for London site.

Associate editor Lisa O’Carroll told Press Gazette about the formation of the tool: “Every time a restaurant review went up on the site, the uploader would have to include the geocode as well.

“That’s how you can pinpoint exactly where the restaurants are because the geocoding is very specific.

“You get the postcode of a restaurant and from that you get the longitude and latitude.”

The News International publication now plans to create a mobile-friendly version of the map which will pinpoint a user’s location in the city and send details of places to go in that area.

O’Carroll also revealed that geocoding could be used in the future with news stories, adding: “In the long term, it’s possible that you could go to an area in Camden and find out which celebrities have been spotted hanging out in the Hawley Arms.”

(Not sure a fancy mashup map is needed to work that one out though - it begins with an A and ends in a Beehive.)