Google Grabs 3-D Mapping Startup
18759
Google Inc. on Wednesday branched out into 3-D digital mapping with the acquisition of Keyhole Corp. In its second acquisition this year, Google has bought a startup company that connects consumers, businesses
315037
(InfoWorld) - Google has created a searchable index of Google Earth data files, a feature that should make it easier for users to find and adopt third-party overlays for this popular mapping application. Google Earth's search engine now returns KML (Keyhole Markup Language) files which developers have created to add data to the application's maps, the Mountain View, California, company said Wednesday. "Users can now search through all of the world's KML files, making the millions of Google Earth layers on the Web instantly accessible for geobrowsing and exploration," wrote Chikai Ohazama, a Google Earth product manager in an official company blog. Google expects to later extend this capability to its mapping Web site Google Maps, Ohazama wrote. Google Earth is a free, downloadable PC application that taps a multiterabyte database of aerial and satellite images to let users "fly" around the globe using a video-game type user interface. By creating overlays in the KML file format, users can create markers to pinpoint places and provide all sorts of information about an area, making Google Earth a repository of local business listings, homes for sale, photos, architectural drawings, videos, historical facts and geographical data. KML users range from casual, individual users to large organizations like Discovery Networks, the U.S. National Park Service, the Smithsonian Institution and National Geographic. KML can also be used to add data files to Google Maps, a mapping Web site that is one of the most popular among developers for creating mashups, which are Web applications that use data and features from an existing site or online service via application programming interfaces (APIs). Online maps, in combination with local search engines, have become very popular in recent years, giving people a way to discover local businesses and attractions, obtain driving directions and view satellite images of an area, among other things. Google competitors like Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc., AOL LLC and Ask.com have made their mapping sites a high priority for development. Advertising revenue in local search engines is expected to grow from US$3.4 billion in 2005 to $13 billion in 2010, according to The Kelsey Group Inc.
686086
DigitalGlobe, provider of imagery  for Google Inc's  interactive mapping program Google  Earth, said a new high-resolution satellite will boost the  accuracy of its satellite images and flesh out its archive.
270357
Software giant hopes to challenge Google with new search technology.
470644
It's so big, you won't even need Google Maps to find it. Internet search engine Google Inc. has a new home in New York: a 300,000-square foot, three-floor office that covers a Manhattan city block.
662003
Google has bought digital map maker Keyhole Corp., extending the search engine leader's bid to fend off rivals with a toolbox that can catalog almost anything in the world.
624518
(InfoWorld) - OracleÂ is integrating one of its applications with Google's mapping service to help service providers locate customers more quickly. On Tuesday, Oracle said it had integrated the API (application programming interface) for Google Maps for Enterprise with the Field Service piece of Oracle E-Business Suite 12. Field Service helps companies manage the process of sending staff on service calls and predict when those employees will arrive at the customer sites. Using the Google Maps API, dispatchers should now also be able to find routes for their field service personnel to reach customers more quickly. At the same time, technicians can get a better sense of the location of their jobs by viewing those destinations on Google's map or its satellite images Bringing together content from a number of sources in an application or a Web site is proving very popular among software vendors and is often referred to as a mashup. Google Maps is one of the most frequently used APIs in mashups since it adds a useful visual element to applications. Oracle began theÂ rollout of E-Business Suite 12Â in January. Other new features in Field Service 12 include support for tasks lasting multiple days and the ability to track customers confirming their service appointments. There's also an administrator's portal to assist schedulers in handling jobs assigned to in-house or to third parties across time zones and geographies. The Google Maps integration is also available for Oracle Field Service 11.5.10. In other Oracle news, the vendor announced Symantec is an enterprise storage management partner for its Unbreakable Linux support program. The program providesÂ support for users of Red Hat's Enterprise LinuxÂ distribution, regardless of whether they are Oracle software users, at aggressive pricepoints. Oracle and Symantec have certified Symantec's Veritas data center software with Oracle Enterprise Linux and guaranteed to provide enterprise-level support for both the storage and the Linux offerings. The agreement covers six Veritas products -- Storage Foundation 5.0, Storage Foundation for Oracle 5.0, Storage Foundation Cluster File System 5.0, Cluster Server 5.0, NetBackup 6.0 Client and i3. While Oracle claims demand is growing for its support program, the vendor has yet to provide precise figures on user uptake. In March,Â Oracle CEO Larry Ellison saidÂ publicly that Unbreakable Linux had got off to a "very strong start" and committed his company to building a Linux business, while cautioning that such a process would take time. Â
587147
By Zhang Kun  SHANGHAI:  Move over Google Earth, there's a new kid in town.  Shanghai scientists have developed a three-dimensional (3D) mapping system that will allow users to see the sides of buildings, which is not possible to do using Google Earth.
512450
Google today added to its search technology holdings with the acquisition of digital mapping company Keyhole Corp, a move that has implications for its local search strategy and marks the company&#39;s expansion into subscription-based services.
397159
Google Inc. has bought digital map maker Keyhole, extending the search engine with a toolbox that can catalog almost anything in the world.
280141
Google gets into the Web registration business.
25512
Blog: Google has acquired a company that specializes in aerial photography, including its own digital camera system and aircraft to house it.
94908
In an attempt to level the playing field with Google Earth, Microsoft has scooped up Caligari, makers of 3-D rendering software.
266966
New ground-based city views wow the crowd Google yesterday announced the immediate availability of "Street View" - ground-level, photographic panoramas of Denver, Las Vegas, Miami and New York which allow Google Maps surfers to "navigate around a city, 'virtually' walking the streets, checking out restaurants and landmarks and even zoom in on bus stops or street signs to make travel plans":â¦
577288
Hoping to make it even easier to turn its online maps into collages of local information, Google Inc. is introducing tools that will stitch together applications from a hodgepodge of Web sites.
369742
LONDON - Google has acquired US-based digital mapping firm Keyhole Corporation , which allows users to see images of locations from space as well as close up, for an undisclosed sum.
180711
By Jeff Smith  Terrific navigational device or over the edge?  That's a question many are asking about Google Inc.'s newest map feature, Street View, which offers panoramic images of Denver's downtown streets and those of four other cities.