Google Earth - satellite imagery, maps and the power of Google Search.

Google released new free toy for their fans - Google Earth. I downloaded and played with it a little bit. I should admit it is very impressive - satellite and mapping technologies all together implemented into really neat tool that not only can give you directions, show streets, boarding, lodging, dining, coffee shops, ATMs and zip code areas, but many other things that might be handy. Maps and satellite pictures stitched into a globe with terrain effect and whole bunch of layers available that can be checked on and overlay on the desired areas... My favorite features/layers so far:
  • Terrain
  • Buildings
  • Roads
  • Adjustable Tilt
All the above turned on give you really impressive pictures of mountains or metro areas like San Diego, Phoenix or New York. Here are a few screenshots I made: NYC; Phoenix; South America; google's screenshots http://earth.google.com/sites/. Also Golf Courses, Schools, Gas Stations, even Crime Status and many others are available. I personally like the Postal Code Boundaries - the layer marks postal code areas and also shows you their zip codes, I think it might be very nice for real estate related businesses. And it sure will help me a lot finding apartment in desired area in another city that I have never been to and have no clue how far it's from my future job :) I haven't looked at all the options yet, but the program looks quite extensive and has a lot of customizations available. You can create your own places, feature them with your own pictures, link to web sites etc. It has its own built-in web browser which is pretty neat too - you don't have to switch back and forth when loading up your RAM with all the satellite pictures on your screen, otherwise it eats up your resources quite a bit. There is also a GPS feature available in paid Google Earth Plus package - haven't tried that. I think the program is worth looking into - I have great time playing with it and it is very useful if you're planning your trip to unknown places.

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