How to use geo_code & postal for retreaving latitude and longitude data

Using drupal you a have of big players around geospatial data. The most popular solution seems to  location in combination with the gmap macro. A big advantage is the simple setup and the stability of the modules but the future lies in the geo module in combination with open layers. Today a short intro in geocode and postal and how to retrieve latitude & longitude data with these modules.

1. drush dl geo postal geocode cck

(don’t know drush? / If you are scared of the command line just download the modules)

2.) enable the modules (don’t forget geocoded value in the CCK section)

3.) go to a content type and activate postal as an extra field

4.) add another field as type geocoded value and as widget geocoded values of another field

5.) check this article on how to show the geo data on a cloudmade map

If you want to use postal and geocode on user registration pages you need to use the CVS head version of geocode due to a bug in the current alpha1