For the museum's Pacific Hall, set to reopen in the fall, Ms. Ide came up with the idea to put a large map on a new wood floor, inlaid with images of islands and letters in contrasting wood to draw visitors into the sweep of the original Pacific migration to Hawaii.

WSJ: At the Side of an Expert Exhibitionist: Melanie Ide

Due to the large volume of data and detail in a traditional map pack, updates are usually done about twice a year, meaning high-construction areas can become terribly inaccurate before your maps company gives you a fresh edition.

ENGADGET: Toyota's "Map on Demand" a world's first

An 1836 map of the city shows several large islands in the middle of the river, Michigan's longest running 232 miles from the center of the state west to Lake Michigan.

WSJ: Real Rapids in Grand Rapids?

Visitors are handed a customized Nintendo DS mobile-game unit and led to a screen in the floor made up of 70 large display panels showing a detailed, animated map of Kyoto.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Once a navigation is under way, the map is topped by a large green bar showing the current step in the directions.

WSJ: Google Maps for iPhone Returns With Redesign That Makes It Easier to Use

In this rare, silk allegorical embroidery, Wisdom watches over four students viewing a large unframed map and points to a classical temple, signifying the importance of maps in higher learning.

WSJ: Charting the Role They Played | Common Destinations | Winterthur | By Judith H. Dobrzynski