[snip]
"Keyhole combined satellite photographs to create a radically new view of the planet. Now anyone can enjoy aerial views of any corner of the world from their home computer. The software has so far been downloaded more than 100 million times.
An entire "geoculture" has arisen around the new Keyhole technology. Google Earth fans have created a blog listing the coordinates of the Seven Wonders of the World. Others have created sites where famous expeditions like that of Antarctic pioneer Ernest Shackleton can be followed precisely. And huge archives with city views linked to Google Earth maps are being built on the photo website "Flickr." "When I recently traveled to Berlin for a conference," says Hanke, "I planned my walks on the basis of the images on Flickr."
Hanke, a family man, is proud of what he has initiated. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) no longer publishes its reports on the hot spots of environmental damage in book form, he points out. UNEP has opted for an electronic format based on cartography provided by Google Earth.
The Internet community will help expand Google Earth to provide three-dimensional images. Anyone interested in participating will be provided with a program known as "Sketch-Up," which makes views of houses and streets look three-dimensional."
[snip]
"No one knows which system will win in the end. The approach chosen by Microsoft still has weaknesses, for example when it tries to render overlapping buildings as seen from above. Google Earth, of course, has to make sure its users survey their cities as completely as possible, rather than focusing on landmark sites like the Eiffel Tower."
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