http://www.technewsworld.com/story/tech/google-satellite-maps-42009.html
Google Feature Incorporates Satellite Maps 04/05/05 9:23 AM PT
The satellite maps could unnerve some people, even as the technology impresses others. That's because the Keyhole technology is designed to provide close-up perspective of specific addresses.
Online search engine leader Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) has unveiled a new feature that will enable its users to zoom in on homes and businesses using satellite images, an advance that may raise privacy concerns as well as intensify the competitive pressures on its rivals.
The satellite technology, which Google began offering late yesterday online, is part of the package that the Mountain View-based company acquired when it bought digital map maker Keyhole Corp. for an undisclosed amount nearly six months ago.
Free Access
This marks the first time since the deal closed that Google has offered free access to Keyhole's high-tech maps through its search engine. Users previously had to pay US$29.95 to download a version of Keyhole's basic software package.
A more traditional map will continue to be the first choice served up by Google's search engine. Users will have the option of retrieving a satellite picture by clicking on a button.
The satellite maps could unnerve some people, even as the technology impresses others. That's because the Keyhole technology is designed to provide close-up perspective of specific addresses.
Keyhole's previous government ties also have raised anxieties.
Founded in 2001, Keyhole raised some money in 2003 from In-Q-Tel, a venture capital firm backed by the Central Intelligence Agency. Leading up to the Google sale, Keyhole's roughly 10,000 customers included a cross-section of government agencies.
There is little reason for people to be paranoid about the satellite maps because the images generally are six to 12 months old, said John Hanke, Keyhole's general manager. "And it's not like you are going to be able to read a license plate on a car or see what an individual was doing when a particular image was taken," he said.
1) <rant> Google maps doesn't have my street. My street didn't exist in 1998. It existed in 2000. Google is way behind the curve on this one. Yahoo has my street, but has one of the streets leading up to it mislabelled. Mapquest will map the route to my house, but won't give directions for the last mile -- which is where you really, really need it. There is no good way to give anyone directions to my house just off an on-line mapping service. </rant>
2) The satellite picture, however, has my street. Go figure.
3) And 6-12 months may be a general ballpark for age of image, but more like 36 for my house. (It was taken while the house was under construction, which limits it to a 6-month period. If I knew exactly which step was done when, I could narrow it down even further -- there's a roof, but no driveway.)
4) The image for the Burning Man site was apparently taken in 2003, if I'm to believe all the comments of people who have gone to every Burning Man event since at least 2001. (And the resolution available for right there is a lot better than for the nearest real town, or so I've been told.)
Julia _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
