A development born from Google Experimental has crept its way somewhat silently into the company’s full-fledged Maps utility, according to Ionut Alex Chitu of the Google Operating System blog. Now found in the ‘show search options’ menu, an option to restrict searches to “Mapped Web pages” offers users the chance to browse the Web geographically. So, say, you type in 'silicon valley'. You can narrow down your request to address Web pages only, and what you get are a list of links with pins respective to location; in this case, northern California.
This addition to Google Maps doesn’t operate enormously well, at least not yet. Sometimes its hit or miss with searches. You can certainly count on catching plenty of Wikipedia links to cities and specific landmarks and the like, just as you would when employing a generic Google search in the company’s main engine. Yet, after you’ve completed your first search, and subsequently make another request for someplace halfway around the world, the service will remain locked on the original view. So it seems the best process with which to search effectively when seeking multiple locations is to first pinpoint a location using the standard engine available and then focus on the Web pages option. Doing so isn't a perfect science, of course, but hey, you make do with what you're given.