FIND YOUR WAY AROUND LONDON MORE RAPIDLY WITH STREET MAP AND UUNET UK

Street Map, the online digital map service, has significantly improved the performance and quality of its web site by outsourcing its web server infrastructure needs to UUNET UK. Run originally by its own servers with a 64k leased line Internet access, the potential of Street Map site had been held back by bandwidth limitations. From now, the site will benefit from the strength of the world's most robust Internet backbone with UUNET's FM Server service managing the site with Compaq ProLiant 2500 servers as the standard platform. Paul Bamborough, development manager and principal architect of Street Map, which is owned by Btex Limited, had originally used his own server to run the site and had a simple Internet access account. However, demand for the site could not be met by this set-up and Paul was keen to make use of a UUNET Facilities Monitored server to get greater bandwidth and performance. In addition, he was acutely aware of the costs of hosting his own site and upgrading to a faster Internet access line as well as efficiently focusing his skills on the site's development.

Following a detailed analysis of the site and performance requirements, UUNET UK built a Compaq web server for Street Map with 128MB of RAM memory on a 10Mbps connection to the UUNET backbone, thereby increasing the bandwidth of the connection from the Internet to the Street Map server by 150 times. The web server benefits from Compaq's Insight Manager, a hardware and software management tool and enables UUNET to meet and service any sudden alerts of low disk space, memory or processor problems at any time.

Paul comments, "I no longer have to worry about performance. UUNET gives us 24 hour management of the server and remote log-in facilities, while I can invest and concentrate on the content of the site and development with Bartholomews, who supply the geographic maps through HarperCollins. We are quickly seeing the cost benefits of UUNET facilities server management and have been able to divert investment into other IT areas, such as ISDN capability in the company. By upgrading the web server as opposed to leasing a faster, more expensive line, we can make the Street Map site more responsive and in tune with changing customer needs. Also, we can benefit from the back up of UUNET's very robust backbone."

Adrian Pearce, FM Server product manager, UUNET, added, "Street Map typifies how companies can benefit from access to the world's largest and most robust Internet backbone. We will work with Street Map to ensure consistent and predictable performance by the hardware installed and help them to derive considerable cost savings as well as high performance site operation."

Fast and easy to use, Street Map (http://www.streetmap.co.uk) creates digital maps pinpointing almost any location in London and major routes for the UK as a whole. Users just type in a street name or post code and Street Map will search in seconds to display a map centred on that locality. Users can zoom in or out, print the details or also embed within their own web site and company details.

Street Map also has an option whereby companies displaying a physical address on the Net can link to Street Map pages and help their customers find their exact location. At no charge, users can point a URL to Street Map's pages and they are linked by either post code or simple grid reference. So when users look at a restaurant or company URL, they can quickly find out where it is and how to get there.

In addition to this, local web sites can be added to the Street Map pages. When the Street Map pages display a map for a post code, local web sites in the Street Map database are also displayed. As a result, when users look up for a street in Central London, for example, a selection of URL s are displayed as well as basic descriptions of the site. The search engines of Street Map are also linked to the Electronic Yellow Pages and Scoot. This enables users to do a context search of the databases of the two directories to display a telephone number.