Question

I created a function to take location input, pass it to Google Maps Javascript API V2, and return a latitude/longitude/normalized address that I’ll have to split into different fields in a database (i.e. city, state, postal). I’m requiring at least a level 5/post code accuracy for the input so that the returned data from Google will always have…

• Country
• City (Locality)
• State (Administrative Area)
• Postal
• Lat/Long

Here’s some info on the JSON object structure that Google returns.
http://code.google.com/apis/maps/documentation/javascript/v2/services.html#Geocoding_Structured

Problem: For some instances, Placemark.AddressDetails will not include a postal code, while the summarized Placemark.address will include the postal code.

For example, the following input examples will return a postal code inside Placemark.address, but not Placemark.AddressDetails;

• 10437 Innovation Drive, Milwaukee, WI 53226
• MOMA
• Empire State Building –> this actually returns the postal code inside of some weird “DependentLocality” under SubAdministrativeArea.Locality

Here’s my troubleshooting code:

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.4.2/jquery.min.js"></script>
<!-- You must insert your maps API script here. -->
<script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://www.json.org/json2.js"></script>

<script type="text/javascript"> 
    $(document).ready(function()
    {
        var geocoder = new GClientGeocoder();

        $.geolocateAddress = function(address)
        {  
            geocoder.getLocations(address, function(response)
            {
                if (response != null && response.Placemark != undefined)
                {

                    var placemark = response.Placemark[0];
                    // Placemark has Post code or higher accuracy -> http://code.google.com/apis/maps/documentation/javascript/v2/reference.html#GGeoAddressAccuracy
                    if (placemark.AddressDetails.Accuracy >= 5)
                    {
                        alert(placemark.address);
                        try {
                            alert(placemark.AddressDetails.Country.AdministrativeArea.SubAdministrativeArea.Locality.PostalCode.PostalCodeNumber);
                        } catch (err) {
                            alert('What the deuce?  Why is there no postal code?... I bet you the placemark.address has the postal code.');
                            alert(JSON.stringify(placemark));
                        }
                    } else {
                        alert('Sorry, this requires at least a postal code input for accuracy')
                    }
                } else {
                    alert('Failed to geo locate address');
                }
            });
        };

        $("#location").blur(function(event)
        {
            var address = $("#location").val();
            $.geolocateAddress(address);
        });

    });
</script>

<form action="" method="get"> 
    <input title="Location" type="text" value="" id="location" /> 
</form>

Phew… Is there something I’m just not understanding about schema of Google Maps placemarks? Would I be able to solve this problem by upgrading to Google Maps Javascript API V3? (V2 JSON objects seems more intuitive IMO)
http://code.google.com/apis/maps/documentation/javascript/services.html

I’m about to throw in the towel on this. Hopefully somebody can help!

Answer 1

This has been a problem ever since the geocoding service existed.

For a bit of background, see the “bug report/feature request” I posted to the issue tracker in 2008:

http://code.google.com/p/gmaps-api-issues/issues/detail?id=606

In that thread, Pamela Fox and Thor Mitchell are Google employees who were part of the Maps team at the time.

A year and a half later, Google responded with some improvements:

https://groups.google.com/group/google-maps-api/browse_thread/thread/4d0ade19dadcda4f#

and things improved a lot, but geocoding is not an exact science.

In any case, you might be using an old version of the geocoder because I get a postal code with this request:

http://maps.google.com/maps/api/geocode/xml?sensor=false&address=10437%20Innovation%20Drive,%20Milwaukee,%20WI

That’s a direct http request, but the API V3 should be returning the same data.