Google Earth urged to remove "Mount Hitler" name
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The mayor of a small town in Germany on Thursday called on Google Earth to delete a reference to a nearby "Mount Hitler" from its geographic image service, saying it was misleading.
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(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.
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A proposal before the German government to require ISPs and e-mail service providers to collect and retain a significant amount of customer data has drawn Google's ire. The company says it may shut down the German version of its Gmail service if the law goes through.
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Google can't use the Gmail name in Germany because doing so would infringe on someone else's trademark.
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Peru's "White Mountain Range" may soon have to change its name.
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An Israeli town is suing Internet giant Google for slander over a posting by a user of its worldwide mapping service that claims the town was built on the ruins of an Arab village, an official said Monday.
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A new online feature of Google Maps called Street View is stirring up a debate over privacy concerns on the Web.
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(InfoWorld) - A photo that purports to confirm the existence of a new class of Chinese ballistic missile submarine could torpedo Google's aspirations in the world's second-largest Internet market. Users of Google Earth in China should enjoy it while they can. On July 5, researcher Hans Kristensen posted what he believes is the first photo of the Jin-class submarine to the Strategic Security blog on the Web site of the Federation of American Scientists, a nuclear weapons research and opposition group. The photo,Â taken from Google Earth, is accompanied by coordinates for six other Chinese submarine bases on the same page. Although it was the People's Liberation Army Navy that docked the alleged new sub outdoors, in full view not only of the commercial satellites that Google uses but also those employed by the U.S. and other militaries, that doesn't mean that China's growing blue-water force will take kindly to being put on display. The sub photo made headlines, with a story appearing on the front page of a newspaper called "Global Military Affairs Weekend," accompanied not by the Google Earth image, but a picture of a sub so old it looks like it fought in World War II. The article stated that the submarine captured by satellite was "China's newest submarine, the Yuan class." Google hasn't fared well in China, even before the sub photo surfaced. It trails rival BaiduÂ in the local search market, and earlier this year admitted that it hadÂ "inadvertently" usedÂ part of a database from Chinese portal Sohu.comÂ to create a Chinese-language search tool. The company has come under fire for knuckling under to Chinese Internet censorship policies, such as excluding politically sensitive results from the Chinese version of its search engine. None of this includes the other difficulties Google has encountered in China, including occasional blocking of its main search engine, the blocking of its Blogspot blogging site, the inaccessibility of cached pages from its main site, and limited access to Google News. In fairness, China isn't the only country that has had weaponry and military sites laid bare by Google Earth. The North Koreans must be thrilled that most of their naval bases can be viewed by anybody with a PC and a broadband connection. That's not to mention the new security risks presented to military installations in the U.S. and elsewhere, now that hostile forces, be they terrorists or regulars, have an easily accessible aerial view of each site. For situations like this in China, rarely is the reaction immediate. With Beijing's 2008 Olympic Games just over a year from now, China isn't eager to court negative press as it seeks to present itself as more open and tolerant. Its response may also not be so public. Despite being outed by a piece of software, Google's troubles will more likely occur if it attempts to expand in China via investment or acquisition, or if it attempts to move into other business areas, especially anything involving online video. A Google spokeswoman in Beijing did not respond to a request for comment on how the submarine photo may affect the company's fortunes in China. Â
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The world's highest peak should put on a UN danger list to force action on global warming, campaigners say.
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Maps feature isn't yet available in Canada, but if it was its high-resolution images could violate citizens' privacy rights, privacy chief says in letter to Google.
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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.
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A Brazilian Indian tribe is linking up with Google Earth to try to capture vivid images that could help stop loggers and miners from deforesting the jungle and digging for gold on its vast Amazon reservation.
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A few days ago Kerry sent around this ad:  "Yesterday, the Bush-Cheney campaign, losing any last sense of decency, placed a disgusting ad called "The Faces of John Kerry's Democratic Party" as the main feature on its website. Bizarrely, and without explanation, the ad places Adolf Hitler among those faces."  "The Bush-Cheney campaign must pull this ad off of its website. The use of Adolf Hitler by any campaign, politician or party is simply wrong."  Which of course is a mistake.  I went and downloaded the video (which is just stupid btw.  Not a masterpiece by any means.) and there are shots of Hitler in there, but only from the MoveOn contest from a few months back.  Here's the problem.  The ...
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'It's only a matter of time' Adding to the chorus of critics who say detailed images on Google Earth can aid and abet terrorists and snoops, a New York state lawmaker is calling on the company to blur potential terrorist targets.â¦
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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.
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The 75th anniversary of Adolf Hitler's elevation to German chancellor on Wednesday is one the country would prefer to forget, but the ignominious event that ultimately led to the deaths of millions remains part of the nation's weighted history.
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Utah flying munition caught on camera Once in a while, something really interesting pops up on Google Earth, and we're obliged today to reader Christopher Wagner for pointing us the direction of this spendid find in the skies above Utah:â¦