Zeus_Hunt Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 To avoid losing ground to Google Earth, Microsoft has already developed a similar solution.Bill Gates himself has announced that starting from this summer MSN will offer its users a new service, called MSN Virtual Earth.Just like Google Earth, MSN Virtual Earth wants to combine maps and satellite images with search results, allowing usersto explore a certain region up to the smallest detail.Initially, both Google Earth and MSN Virtual Earth will be available only for American users and there is no date for a possible expansion of the service.Unlike Google Earth, MSN Virtual Earth touts the possibility of visualizing a certain area under a 45 degree angle, which means that on the images offered by the service, building and other constructions will be easier to recognize.This viewing mode, also known as eagle eye view, is the result of the partnership between Microsoft and Pictometry. Google Earth is also the result of the acquisition of Keyhole and while MSN Virtual Earth will offer free access, Google will initially launch the service only for Keyhole subscribers.MSN Virtual Earth will work on Terra Server and will employ the Asynchronous javascript + XML technology, which means users won’t have to download supplementary software, like Keyhole.Searchenginewatch.com already posted a series of impressive photos related to MSN Virtual Earth.It seems that Amazon.com is also preparing a similar service for its A9 search engine.It seems like M$ wants to give competition to whatever Google does ;) After a few years I might be able to show u all my building where I live ... ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erRor67 Posted May 25, 2005 Share Posted May 25, 2005 Lol, its like War of the Worlds.. Get it?? ;)ah, pathetic joke...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoLFaN Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 little late, but that seems kind of cool.But maybe invasion of privacy? WHo knowsCool Beans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nsane Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 But maybe invasion of privacy? WHo knowsno one ever said it was displayed in realtime, you could be looking at pictures of buildings from 8 months ago :rolleyes:It seems like M$ wants to give competition to whatever Google does :blink:yeah, i remember reading a blog about a leaked M$ message Gates sent to one of execs stating "Looks like these guys, Google, are trying to compete with us." this was around the time they announced GMail, so it was awhile back. so it's only natural they'd compete with them right back :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeus_Hunt Posted June 28, 2005 Author Share Posted June 28, 2005 Google has announced today the launching of the Google Earth service which harmoniously combines 3D buildings and terrain with mapping capability and Google search.Based on Keyhole technology, Google Earth enables users to fly from space to street level views to find geographic information and explore places around the world.The application is free, has 10MB and is available for download here.Key features of Google Earth include:- 3D buildings in major cities across the United States- 3D terrain showing mountains, valleys, and canyons around the world- Integrated Google Local search to find local information such as hotels, restaurants, schools, parks, and transportation- Fast, dynamic navigation- Video playback of driving directions- Tilt, rotate, and activate 3D terrain and buildings for a different perspective on a location- Easy creation and sharing of annotations among usersLet’s say you are looking for a hotel in Denver, but you don’t have any information on the city or the hotels there. You access the application, you rotate the Earth’s globe until you reach the United States and you start zooming in. You will notice that as you get closer to the ground, cities, mountains, valleys will start to shape. After you have found Denver, type in the key word in the right-side field, in our case “hotels”, and the program will show you all the hotels in the area with detailed information.The application also lets you to choose the layers you want to display and save your searches; you can also get driving directions.Google Earth Plus is an optional upgrade ($20 annual fee) adding GPS device support, the ability to import spreadsheets, drawing tools and better printing.Google Earth Pro is for professional and commercial uses ($400 annual fee), and it provides the ultimate research, presentation and collaboration tool for location information.I have checked out this software(KeyHole)... requires a little internet bandwidth...Checked out a few buildings in Las Vegas..... :pope: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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