Earth, as seen by Google, is very, very cool
I just installed GoogleEarth and have been playing with it. I am rather impressed by the interface, the bells AND the whistles. But most of all I LOVE the content: satellite scans of the entire Earth for my browsing pleasure - and I can go from space to street level in an instant.I was able to zoom in on places I love, places I've been, places I've wanted to go, and even where I am right now (in my apartment on Blekholmstorget). This is an image of downtown Stockholm which shows my current Home & Work locations:
Being able to zoom in from the whole-earth view all the way down to a clear view of my apartment's roof was an interesting lesson in context. It's like the largest macro view of a Where's Waldo game that you've ever seen.
It is unlike any map that I've ever experienced (not just seen), and it DEFINITELY puts perspective on things.
The Googleites, of course, have smartly integrated local search and you can easily see restaurants (in North American cities, though not European yet) and other commercial business locations using simple toggle boxes.
While some of the folks on the Crackhouse list berate Google for not supporting Macs at launch, they are "working on it" and I'm confident they'll deliver.
I wonder who will be the first to sponsor GoogleEarth in a way that their locations are always visible from the space perspective (like a giant beacon) to try and get people to zoom-in. Maybe a Vegas casino or a desperate Ford dealership?
Regardless of the business model for this, once again, Google has blown me away. I strongly agree with Brad Hill that Earth is Google's best product so far.
Also, check out Google Earth Siteseeing - Top Ten Sites.
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