Chapter 1. Introduction to Bing Maps AJAX Control Version 7

Bing Maps by Microsoft provide a collection of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that adds mapping capabilities to location-aware applications. The APIs, open to the public since their first beta release in 2005, can query for location or business by address or coordinates. They enable searching for routes, including traffic information; searching for geometrical shapes of geographical entities such as countries, regions, and other smaller administrative divisions. Consumers of Bing Maps APIs can geocode address, or reverse geocode coordinates via automated jobs.

All the APIs can be used with JavaScript, but server-side languages such as .Net, PHP, Ruby, and so on can also be used. The supported browsers include Internet Explorer Version 7 onwards, Firefox Version 3.6 onwards, Safari Version 5 onwards, Opera, Google Chrome, iPhone, Android, and Blackberry mobile browsers are also supported.

To access the APIs, a Bing Maps key is needed; it can be obtained at the Accounts Center available at https://www.bingmapsportal.com. Bing Maps offer a few access options, including a basic key for non-profit, educational purposes, with limited usage. For production scenarios, Bing Maps offer an enterprise key.