Visiting your favourite restaurant or pub may no longer be a chore. Now, pointing your cell phone in a particular direction, can precisely establish its location, and the easiest way to get there. Researchers at Britain’s Southampton University have reportedly developed a cell phone with interactive information to find local points of interest on a map. According to the research, a system called Map Snapper has been created that processes a snapshot of a printed map, captured on camera phone, and forwards an interactive version of the same map back to the handset. Symbols representing points of interest such as restaurants, hotels and festivals can be displayed, along with images, contact details and web links. "If someone is out walking and reaches a town, they'll be able to simply point their phone at the map and find out places they could go for lunch, or other information not on the map," claimed Paul Lewis, who developed the system with his colleague Jonathan Hare. Lewis, however, said that cell phones fitted with G.P.S. (Global Positioning System) receivers would not need the technology, and added that it is basically applicable in ordinary camera phones. Lewis and Hare developed the Map Snapper in cooperation with Ordnance Survey, the UK government's agency responsible for producing maps. Map Snapper software on a user's phone first sends a photo of a section of map to a central server via GPRS. "The server uses the image to generate a unique signature for that area of the map, and then finds matches in a database of signatures for all the [Ordnance Survey maps published," said Hare. Along with permanent landmarks, these maps can feature temporary events, such as local music festivals. The developers also plan to let users add their own information through an online interface.