iPhone and iPad in Action

Chapter 17. The Map Kit framework

This chapter covers

• Overview of Map Kit
• Adding a map to an application
• Reverse geocoding
• Annotating the map

17.1. Overview of Map Kit

Since Apple opened up the iPhone SDK, developers have been trying to find ways to integrate maps into their applications. Prior to the release of iPhone OS 3.0, there was no elegant way to do this.

One of the more popular solutions involved displaying a Google map in a UIWebView and laying another view on top to capture the user input. As you can imagine, this approach was clunky and prone to error if Google changed its web interface. Apple finally provided a solution called the Map Kit framework.

With the release of the Map Kit framework, you can now add fully functional ...