If you are a daily user of the Maps app on Windows 10 PC or phone, you might be glad to know that Microsoft has just added some cool new features to its Maps app which now supports Windows Ink and Surface Dial accessory.
Windows Ink is an inking platform which makes it easier and smoother for you to naturally interact with your device with a pen, no matter whether you are an artist, note taker or music creator. With Maps app, if you have a pen, you can ink at any time to draw or add annotations on the map. Just start writing to point out interesting places or call out details the very same way you might do with pen and paper.
The Maps app will automatically convert your drawn line into a real route and give you directions. Voila! No need to type or search for your destinations if you already know where they are on the map.
You can even measure distance between two points of interest. If you need to draw perfectly straight lines on the map there’s now a ruler tool to make that fast and easy. Finally, you can quickly calculate directions between two points by drawing a line between your start point and your destination.
If you don’t have a pen with your device, you can also use all the ink functionality with your mouse or finger, simply by toggling the touch writing option on the ink toolbar, which is cool.
Surface Dial integration
The new Surface Dial brings even more ways to interact with the map and ink. The Surface Dial provides you another natural way to rotate, zoom or change the map perspective easily.
You can even use the dial to take advantage of the ink toolbar or move the ruler on the map, making it more natural to interact and create using both hands. Surface Dial features are available with maps not only on the new Surface Studio, but also to anyone using an up-to-date Windows 10 device with the Surface Dial off screen.
