Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

MSN Virtual Earth Revealed

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the wherever-you-are-there-you-are dept.

jeremyw writes "A day before its official launch, MSN Virtual Earth has gone live. MSN appears to have been inspired by Google Maps in this combination of local search and mapping. Virtual Earth introduces a number of interface enhancements to the now-familiar draggable aerial web map, such as the ability to zoom in using your mouse scroll wheel, and a Location Finder to determine your location to determine your real-world location "using Wi-Fi technology." Microsoft blogger Robert Scoble claims the site may not perform at full capacity until Monday."

5 of 408 comments (clear)

  1. Not a good first impression by defkkon · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Typed in my home town including specifying that it is in Ontario, Canada.

    MSN Virtually Useless Earth took me to some little town in the US. Apparently, it completely ignored my criteria.

    I love a lot of Microsoft products, but if they're going to compete with the likes of Google Earth and Google Maps, they're going to have to do a lot better than this.

    Besides, the interface isn't nearly as clean and fast. Just my two cents.

    1. Re:Not a good first impression by ect5150 · · Score: 4, Insightful


      Microsoft blogger Robert Scoble claims the site may not perform at full capacity until Monday.

      Would that have anything to do with it?

      --
      I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.
  2. Misfeatures that bug me by team99parody · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The part that leaves me with a bad impression is that a lot of core browsr funcationality is broken which makes this really tough to use.
    • If you do a "local search" it brings up a panel with links - however if you shift-click or right-click on those links there's now way to open the new page in a new window.
    • If I hit the back button I don't go back to my previous local search results. Heck, somehow they messed with my browser button so the back button never leaves their site. I remember back when porn companies did this, but I don't expect to see reputable organizationos do this.
    • I can't right-click on the image to bring it up in it's own window -- a normal web-browser feature that is very nice for printing maps without wasting paper&ink on useless headers and footers.
    Basically, this page combines all the limitations of a web brosers with all the inconsistancies-and-difficulty-of-use of a PC application.

    The one thing that made the Internet easy-enough-to-use to make everyone comfortable with it is that all pages worked the same way (back button works) and all links worked the same way (same right-click-menu). Why does Microsoft feel a need to change this?

  3. Teraserver by TheAncientHacker · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Let's see. Microsoft did Teraserver back in 1998. I guess, by your own definition, the tables have turned...

  4. He's Dead Jim by Thanatopsis · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Stop it already, he' dead Jim. I think the servers got slashdotted. Never have seen Google go under in a slashdotting.

    --

    Thalasar