cartography
Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...
and
publishing
Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
company that produces comprehensive
street directories
A road map, route map, or street map is a map that primarily displays roads and transport links rather than natural geographical information. It is a type of navigational map that commonly includes political boundaries and labels, making it ...
and
map
A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on ...
s. In addition to its directories, Ausway also produces laminated, folded and rolled maps of varying sizes and formats, 200dpi
digital
Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits.
Businesses
*Digital bank, a form of financial institution
*Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company
*Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...
map images, and index data. Ausway markets a
satellite navigation
A satellite navigation or satnav system is a system that uses satellites to provide autonomous geopositioning. A satellite navigation system with global coverage is termed global navigation satellite system (GNSS). , four global systems are ope ...
unit loaded with their mapping data, branded as Navway.
History
Seeking a higher quality street directory for
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
, Merv Godfrey and Iven Mackay began drawing maps by hand for their proposed directory in 1961.
Having produced road maps for petrol stations in the 1960s in his spare time, Godfrey took 12 months leave from his employer, the
Government of Victoria
The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the Executive (government), executive government of the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria.
As a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutiona ...
's State Electricity Commission, to work on the directory. Godfrey resigned from his job, and worked with his wife to complete the publication. In a second-hand
Morris Minor
The Morris Minor is an economy car produced by British marque Morris Motors between 1948 and 1971. It made its debut at the Earls Court Motor Show, London, in October 1948. Designed under the leadership of Alec Issigonis, more than 1.6 ...
car, Mackay took the drawn maps and drove around checking each road and detail to confirm them.
After five years of meticulous research and pen-and-ink drawing, their maps were ready for publication. The first edition of ''
Melway
Melway, colloquially referred to as Melways or The Melways, is a street directory for Melbourne, Being twice as expensive as its nearest rival, critics dismissed it as too expensive, however the directory's higher quality prevailed and it sold well, especially after receiving publicity from
Graham Kennedy
Graham Cyril Kennedy Order of Australia, AO (15 February 1934 – 25 May 2005) was an Australian entertainer, comedian and variety performer, radio and television host as well as a personality and actor of theatre, television and film.
He wa ...
on the popular ''
In Melbourne Tonight
''In Melbourne Tonight'', also known as ''IMT'', was a highly popular nightly Logie award-winning Australian variety show, variety television show produced at GTV-9 Melbourne from 6 May 1957 to 1970.
Overview
Graham Kennedy was the show's mai ...
'' television variety show's "New Products" segment. The directory was embraced by local residents – the word "Melways" quickly became a household name for "street directory".
With continuing success, the company grew from Godfrey's private residence in Malvern, to an office location in Mount Waverley in 1985.
In 1991, Melway Holdings changed its name to Ausway Publishing, and expanded into
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
in 1993 with the launch of the '' Sydway'' directory, into
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
in 2005 with the '' Brisway'', and into Perth in 2010 with the '' Melway Perth''.
Products
Street Directories
Current directories produced by Ausway are:
* ''
Melway
Melway, colloquially referred to as Melways or The Melways, is a street directory for Melbourne,A3-sized version of the current edition
** ''Melway Ballarat Edition 1'' - a separate directory to the Melway, containing 19 maps of Ballarat and surrounding areas
* '' Sydway'' – Greater Sydney & Blue Mountains 18th edition for 2016
* '' Brisway'' – Greater Brisbane, Sunshine Coast & Gold Coast plus Toowoomba (5th edition, released April 2010)
* '' Melway Perth'' - Greater Perth plus Albany, Bunbury, Geraldton and Kalgoorlie/Boulder (released December 2009). This street directory is derived from the Perth StreetSmart street directory
A separate directory covering the
Central Coast, New South Wales
The Central Coast is a peri-urban region lying on the Pacific Ocean in eastern New South Wales, Australia. The region is situated north of Sydney, and is filled with subtropical national parks, forests and also encompasses the major coastal wa ...
, was integrated in the ''Sydway'' directory since its 13th edition.
eway
The eway is an electronic copy of the Melway, Brisway, Sydway and Melway Perth street directories. It includes the ability to print out maps, calculate distances and quickly search for locations. It is only available for
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
, and is currently being updated in sync with the printed books.
GPS
Ausway also market a GPS in-car navigator known as ''Navway''. It includes
Navteq
Navteq Corporation (styled as 'NAVTEQ') was an American Chicago-based provider of geographic information system (GIS) data and a major provider of base electronic navigable maps. The company was acquired by Nokia in 2007–2008, and fully merged ...
mapping and routing data (as an alternative to the UBD-derived data in Sensis WhereIs mapping data). There are currently three models of Navway:
*M470 (Navway Map) - the 'base model' with Ausway-style roads, lane guidance and a Bluetooth hands-free mobile phone connection
*T470 (Navway with Traffic) - similar to the M470 but with access to the TCMSUNA traffic channel for live updates on congested and slow-moving areas
*P470 (Navway Professional) - the 'high-end model'
Ausway Android and iPhone apps
An Ausway app for Android and iPhone called Aus Map has been released. This app requires an internet connection since it downloads the map data as needed from www.street-directory.com.au. Melway, Sydway, Brisway and Melway Perth are all included along with other map scales from street-directory.com. Aus Map includes the ability to act as a GPS with onscreen direction instructions. At present (2013) the direction instructions are limited to onscreen only. No voice audio support.
Online mapping
Ausway's directory products are searchable online through
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
-based Virtual Map Australia' street-directory.com.au site. The advertisement-supported site is in competition to Whereis, a site by Sensis, the advertising and directories arm of Telstra Corporation. Sensis owns Universal Publishers' UBD directories, rivals to Ausway's publications, and use that mapping data in their Whereis site.