Slashdot Mirror
Google Releases Earth to Beta
Cros13 writes "Google has released a beta of it's Google Earth software to subscribers of the existing Keyhole service. New features include 3D models of buildings in selected cities, input from your gps receiver and a better search system. I have posted screenshots here and here." This product is in competition with Microsoft's Virtual Earth, as we reported earlier.
looks a little boring
So when does John Doe get to use it?
Anyone else think of that cool map/globe from Snow Crash?
FP!
Why wasn't a link to the Windypundit article placed in the blurb?
It's just off the page and contains a lot more information.
i know all the words in that title, but i just can't parse that sentence.
Magrathea sues for copyright infringment.
So I've been living on the alpha version this entire time?
Why am I on Slashdot? I'm bored. Why am I bored? I'm on Slashdot.
Zonk, if you don't word your headlines more carefully, you're just begging people to make silly posts like this one: Earth is still in beta? After 3 billion years?
I remember seeing something similar to this in a Fat Joe music video (don't ask). I was always wondering when something like this would be released. However, as Google continues to expand into software markets, they move closer and closer to an anti-trust lawsuit.
Avarus animus nullo satiatur lucro.
Other than the "wow neat" factor, and nifty interface, what are some actual uses/features in Keyhole/Google Earth that aren't covered by things like Google Maps.
-Jesse
Nothing says "unprofessional job" like wrinkles in your duct tape.
And somewhere on earth there's a special place for people who can't use the apostrophe correctly. Wish I knew where that was.
Of course "their" might have been a better choice anyway.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
Since when does Earth belongs to Google ?
Moreover I'm worrying about Earth reaching release.
Everyone knows that vogons will destroy earth before it happens, so don't let that happen !
I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of killer sig, which this margin is too narrow to contain.
Wasn't the beta version out a long time ago? I remember getting an email about it asking me to download it about 3 weeks ago.
Ah, that's better. My dosage of Google news. Now I can start my day!
ditto. The Angry Flower would be disappointed in this news post, you illiterate buffoons.
I've noticed that Google added features yet somehow managed to break features that were already working (though they clearly state this in the release).
For example, you cannot type in cities outside the US/UK/Ca, nor can you type in a landmark (e.g. Mt. Saint Helens)
I can only assume those features are broken now because they are improving them in some way...
One step closer to the Earth program Hiro got in the book. Now if there were realtime updates of the datasets, showing things like moving cars and people, it would be cool and also very scary.
My patience is infinite, my time is not.
this world was so fucked up....it's JUST NOW being released as beta. Alpha releases are always shitty!
Nirvana/Utopia here we come!
Why bother traveling to the US or Europe to scope out targets when you can do it with this nifty new package?
http://photos11.flickr.com/16639588_c9da324958_o.j pg
Um...
Why does it look like Indiana isn't mapped?
There are lots of worse states out there...
As a Google user that is beyond you're planet, I take offense to the fact that Google *only* included EARTH in there initial release!
Wake me when they release one with a Total Perspective Vortex. I've got a fairycake craving.
--
make install -not war
"Earth Mark 2.0"
Ben Hocking
Need a professional organizer?
I can't believe people just sit down and take this. WAKE UP, Google is leveraging their dominant position in search engines to corner online mapping!
Oh wait. Providing a free, useful new service to consumers is only wrong when Microsoft does it. Sorry, I forgot.
Take the functionality of Google Maps and make it into a local application, and that's what you get here. Instead of JAvascript-powered click-n-drag scrolling, it's OpenGL or Direct3D buttery-smooth, with texture filtering to ease some of the pixelation on the imagery.
The most amazing part is the driving directions--they're plotted out in front of you on the zoomable and scrollable earth, like Streets and Trips on steroids.
The ability to measure arbitrary lines and paths, carried over from the previous version of Keyhole, adds a nifty dimension. Instead of staring at a feature in the satellite imagery and wondering, "How big is that, anyway?", you can measure it and find out. I used it to definitively settle which of the two routes I can take home from work is shorter.
For $29, this app delivers, per dollar, more fun and utility combined than anything else I've ever purchased. You can use the layering features to do extremely useful stuff, like highlight the locations of ATMs, school district boundaries, golf courses, parks, show crime statistics, and even show placemarks set by people on the Keyhole web forum ("Look! I found a cool thing here!").
Sounds a bit like I'm babbling, but this thing is seriously hella-cool.
No, I thought of the cool map/ribbon from The Ringworld Engineers.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
For the last 4.5bn years we have struggled with an alpha version of the Earth.
We can all remember Earth 0.1 , which was flat.
Earth 0.2 was spherical but still lodged in the center of the universe.
Earth 0.3 has served us well for over 200 years, but is still buggy as hell. The tectonics engine constantly crashes, causing massive earthquakes.
I have good hopes for the beta of Earth, but for the final release I, and many users like me would like a bigger planet.
... what's that out there in the Pacific Ocean? It looks like a conglomeration of floating debris centered around a couple of larger ships. And... is that a kayak? Wow, the resolution on this thing is amazing!
perl -e 'foreach(values %SIG){$_="IGNORE";}while(){}'
Can't wait 'til there is a GTA mod.
Paying taxes to buy civilization is like paying a hooker to buy love.
Note: Google now has screenshots and Microsoft has only stated that MSN Virtual Earth service is to debut in the summer.
01/20/09
and here I'd though we had gone to gold years ago with the release of Adam 1.0...... they must have been debugging some of the problems with associated Eve software for all of these last few millenia.
I will now duck and cover.
Fly Fish? Participate in our forum
...means "mostly USA" as with other Google services? would this be worth looking at for someone from the UK?
and stil in beta. This evolution design methodology is not all that its cracked up to be... I mean really... trial and error?
The users of Earth must be mad. I wont be surprised if they cancel the project. Then what?
They're going to launch a bunch of satellites that will take maps every so often.. probably with the same frequency that GoogleBot crawls the web. ;)
Now *that* would be pretty cool. Hey, Google is here in Mountain View.. and Moffett Field & Lockheed are right down the street, they could get some stuff goin' on with NASA...
Real time satellite imaging! Imagine being able to zoom in on a baseball game that's in progress. Suh-weeeeet!
Actually, I bet that the "topless beaches in France" would become an immensely popular search...
We didn't need Google to tell us that
"All your earth are belong to us" - Google's new war cry.
Get Paid to search
Google's product has been out for a period of time already.
Virtual Earth still appears to be unavailable to users.
Looking at this picture gave me some idears... So, how about putting all this data in a new game?
;)
Behold! I present to you... (drum roll)
Grand Theft Auto : New York!
Humor note : Try our new live edition
No sig for now.
Marge: Grandpa, this flag only has 49 stars on it.
Grandpa: I'll be deep in the cold, cold ground before I recognize Missourah!
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
But the problem with your post is that you're relying on the moderators to have clicked on the links (unlikely), and to know some basic geography (unlikely).
Is this also USA only, or is Europe included?
My God gets more powerful everyday.
Well, piss. I've only got a VHS deck.
Given a choice between free speech and free beer, most people will take the beer.
...proudly announces Beta Test Invitations will be sent out within 4.5 billion years.
The virtual NYC image is Copyright 2005 State of New Jersey???
its: possessive
it's: a contraction of "it is"
It's not hard for someone with the intellect to pass third grade to get its form right.
Here's another short (p)review with screenshots.
Does this application cover the whole world just like google maps?
Its good to see that all those small towns in yurope and dusty mexico were not included. Hopefully the new Google Earth will be the same, covering the whole earth or the 50 unique and only United States.
Can't wait to have a world-wide GTA version. Kill some mariachis, then go to exile in Japan to gas some guys in a subway station, then to do an italian job in Sicilia etc.
How does Google EArth compare to NASA's excellent Worldwind application http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/ ?
Can they export to SimCity format?
Why, oh why, didn't I take the Blue Pill?
Chronic complainer...
I'm absolutely SURE that if we gave you a bigger planet, say Jupitor 0.25, that you'd complain about THAT, too. You'd probably gripe about the gravity or thick atmosphere, or excess radiation, or something.
The living have better things to do than to continue hating the dead.
...0.2 and 0.3 which resulted in the moon.
Google has released a beta of it's Google Earth software[...]
//Is this really one of the most difficult aspects of the written English language?
Submitter, please read this important memo.
The link is down but from the screenshots and other things I've read about this, it looks like a windows only application. Like picassa (googles photo program). I hope they integrate this into a browswer app because they've done a great job with mail and maps as internet apps.
Also I have this sneaking suspission the competetion will only run on ie.
Nasa has a pretty cool mapping program as well.
World Wind 1.3
http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/
The servers are a little slow but its still a handy program.
... is only $30/year for their basic subscription. It is way worth it for the entertainment value alone.
Google Earth is a replacement for Keyhole's dedicated client software. The Keyhole client gave you a much-improved interface to the online-browsable satellite imagery, albeit one that still kinda sucked.
Google Earth is a much-improved version of the Keyhole client, but it still isn't perfect. They could stand to hire a few programmers with 3D human-interface experience (e.g., game industry vets.)
In other news, Microsoft will be releasing it's competing product "Mars" in a few short weeks, with a much smaller set of features. We all of course remember their previous work with "Venus", and how that completely bombed.
Screw Earth.....I want Google to start doing free web hosting. Maybe if I bitch enough they will take over the world.
$sig$
Reality Corrupt.
Reboot Universe? [Y/N]
|
...support for Linux and support for OSX.
I would understand the loony level of support for Google from the anti-MS crowd more if these were supported as well as Google supports everything else.
I tried the prior version of this on Windows with the appropriate drivers and it was hobbled by Windows resource contention and choppy and paused. I'd like to see a Linux version. Gnome or KDE, either way.
If my grammar and spelling are off, I am [distracted/tired/careless] (take your pick)
Looks like they licensed the technology they're using to render the buildings from Microsoft.
Is this really Google Earth and Virtual Earth and not Google USA and Virtual USA?
I haven't really found any information about their coverage goals with these tools. I personally know my neighborhood well, and there are good national resources for my country in my own language too, so I imagine it's when I travel I'd find it would be nice to have a virtual Earth for this, but at the same time I can't imagine Google making this effort seen in the screenshots on more than a fraction of the actual Earth.
Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
Oh, and the guy over at vterrain.org has some ambitious goals related to this type of thing too with lots of links to sources etc...
Inignot: We are Mooninites from the inner core of the moon. ....
Err: You said it right.
Inignot: Our race is hundred of years beyond yours.
Err: Man, you hear what he's saying?
Inignot: Some would say that the Earth is our moon.
Err: We're the moon.
Inignot: But that would belittle the name of our moon, which is: The Moon.
Inignot: You and your third dimension.
Frylock: What about it?
Inignot: Oh, nothing, it's cute. We have five.
[pause]
Err: Thousand.
Inignot: Yes, five thousand.
Err: Don't question it.
RTFA and googled, but I didn't find anything to indicate that they'll offer non-Windows clients :-(
where they pay university students $3500 to write open source code over the summer.
But, hey, that's just my opinion.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
I have good hopes for the beta of Earth, but for the final release I, and many users like me would like a bigger planet.
E--N--L--A--R--G--E YOUR PLAN3T!
All-natura1 technique! No pi||s, no purnps, no mass drivers! Get a thick, firm K@ne band like your pr1mary always wanted!
Hav1ng tr0uble getting it up? Try our new sp@ce el3vat0r! V!@GRA C!AL!5, and nan0tube cable5 to GEO only $1 a d0se!
C@11 now! 1irnited t1me 0ffer!!!
I hereby place the above post in the public domain.
I smell a new series of real-world-based SIM-games.. Sim-EARTH. Sim-New-York ...
YOU ARE HERE.
that would be awesome.
filter: +3. Hey, look! all the trolls went away!
So when does a Google version of FlightGear come out? Instead of driving directions, you could get flying directions. And then fly there!
Evolution is a fact. Darwinism is a joke.
Theologians are unsure of the release schedule of this new earth, and what it's exact feature set and space requirements will be. Detractors of the new earth claim it is merely vaporware, or a superficial modification of the old earth, to which it's supporters accuse its detractors of spreading FUD. Jesus, lead developer of the new earth, has in prior interviews (Luke 13:31-32) stated that the release schedule is a closely guarded secret, unknown even to him. Those upset at griefers for explointing bugs in the current system cry "How long, O Lord?" (Rev 6:10)
The guys over at Google Sightseeing need to get a copy of this - I want to see the empire state building in 3d!
Check out NASA's World Wind software (Windows only). From their main page:
Be nice and use the BitTorrent link for the download if you are interested.
I showed this to people last year (when it was still Keyhole) as a "Technology Associate" of a county fair. I do have to say that Google has improved the interface a bit, and I like the 3D buildings.
Are you in charge of the ice cream trucks?
All I want to know is when I can use Google Maps here in Denmark...
a 3D model of Soldier Field under construction. neato
Now you are simply trying to get rid of GWB abnd his admin.
http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/ it's free and comes w/source
Lowest resolution data is 15m-per-pixel worldwide with 18" to 12" per pixel data for thousands and thousands of cities. Coverage map: http://www.keyhole.com/data Free trial: http://www.keyhole.com/ 20000 places described: http://bbs.keyhole.com/
Be seeing you, Seer
No, Google Earth is not in competition with MSN Virtual Earth. That's the dumbest thing I've heard for a while.
MSN VE is clearly positioned to be a compeititor with Google Maps. A blind man on a galloping horse can see that.
I hear it's dolphin- (and Arthur Dent)-free...
;)
The glaciers in Africa are a bit much, though...
Simon
I can understand the lack of a Linux version, because of the reduced user base...
And I can understand the lack of a OSX, due the competition with similar software from Apple, like iPhoto X Picasa, and Google Destop Search x Spotlight.
Still, I must ask: why? Why!?
---- You know how some doctors have the Messiah complex - they need to save the world? You've got the "Rubik's" complex
I really don't understand why this (or, more particularly the NASA sorta-similar app) aren't java-based. It would go a long way toward opening it up to other OS's. OK, so I can understand not having a Mac version (I don't have to like it, but I can understand it) but not having a UNIX version? I don't get it. For now, we're limited to something like 3D Weather Globe and Atlas (http://www.mackiev.com/) which is cool, but nothing like Keyhole. *sigh*
Bark less. Wag more.
You should know that terrorists don't care about landing the plane.
I had but a simple dream, to destroy all humans.
to the attempted universal translator. It will totally ruin its function. I'm an actual human (I passed the image test, so I'm not a script at least) and I still can't parse the damn thing.
Do you think they created all the buildings manually for all those 39 cities?
Or do they have a clever system for doing it?
The Google Earth forum is there on the Keyhole Community, but you need to be logged in to see it. Just create and account at bbs.keyhole.com, login, and you will be shown the "Google Earth Discussion Forum" as part of the Support area. There are hundreds of posts in interesting placemarks.
Be seeing you, Seer
NASA's FLOSS World Wind (which I've used and looks really good).
Joe Llywelyn Griffith Blakesley
[This post is in the public domain (copyright-free) unless otherwise stated]