Need a good starting point when developing APIs? We like this Wikipedia article on REST based web services. You may also like this Particle tree article on subject, too (via TRYNT).

Since the Vidar team has decided to bring online two APIs for public consumption we have a new found respect for the Yahoo Developer, Alexa Web Developer and TRYNT development teams for creating robust public web services.

We plan on launching:

• A US Geocoder
• Lon/Lat to Lon/Lat Distance Calculator

Both of these functions mesh nicely with the Vidar business strategy.

Now here is an interesting web service, USPS Address Standardization, from TRYNT Technologies. (The TRYNT guys are something else - very prolific to say the least)

And at last our (very rough around the edges) geocoding solution is online. Since we opted to utilize the CPAN geocoding engine we still need to enable a friendlier interface prior to going public.

So after downloading (for hours) and importing (for hours) we've realized a key element for any successful geocoding setup is patience.

Interestingly enough the largest problem we've identified yet is going to be large scale geocoding. Our first run solution is essentially a large scale proxy system that blends together various free geocoding solutions but with an estimated 25 million records we're going to need a bit more speed then that.

Where to next you may be asking? We plan on building our own geocoding system based on the 2005 TIGER/Line data.

We've decided to attempt to create a value-add business phone book using a combination of in-house databases, various third party databases and web services. Our goal will be to prove you don't have to be a "major" to run your own "yellow pages."

So now the important question - "What do you expect from your Yellow Pages?"

We're already planning to offer search by business name, location, type (or category) and reverse phone lookup. We are considering reverse address lookups. What are your thoughts?

Our recently launched Radio California website has been recently mentioned at Programmable Web.

While they have some capitalization issues AboutUs.org has an interesting profile on Vidar Networks. If you like our stuff we'd apprecite a rating :).

Quick and easy marker clustering? Marker clustering - What that? Marker clustering is the process of grouping sets of markers together to form new more generalized markers based on geographic proximity and relative zoom levels.

Thanks to some very handy JS code from acme.com market clustering has never been easier. Want to see a real world example? We've implemented "Clusterer" based marker clustering in Radio California. (You can get a real feel for "Clusterer" by zooming in and out.)

Introducing Radio California, a brand new Vidar Networks mash-up. Radio California is an index of California based radio stations that provide free streaming simulcasts. Thanks to Radio California you can easily find and listen to your favorite California based radio stations.

Radio California is made possible by combining data and services from GeoFeed, Google, TRYNT and Yahoo.

We've decided to revisit our local area classified ad property, CityRati. As new web services and apis are released interesting new ideas arise. With the introduction of so many new classified ad oriented apis CityRati is primed for a revamp.