GPS Archives

May 13, 2008

Links: New StreetView Stuff, WorldWide Telescope, Yahoo WOE, Dishpointer, GPSAnimator

  • New StreeView Stuff - Google pre-announced new StreetView data for New York City. The data reportedly has higher resolution data. However, so far I'm not seeing the new StreetView imagery. But, those of you concerned about seeing your face appear there - don't worry - Google has used face-detection software that "blurs" the faces in the imagery. The data is also reportedly more recent. I did notice a new "More" drop-down option that lets you turn on Panoramio or Wikipedia placemarks though.
  • WorldWide Telescope - Microsoft has surprised many of us by releasing a beta of their widely anticipated WorldWide Telescope application. Stefan Geens at OgleEarth calls it "stunning", and further says: "this is easily the most impressive thing I've seen Microsoft do in a long time...". I haven't had a chance to try installing it, but hopefully will before the week is out. I'll draw comparisons with Google Earth's Sky mode. Mickey says it has some bugs, but is definitely worth checking out. The New York Times has an interesting article describing both WWT and Google Earth Sky and compares them from a philosophical approach.
  • Dishpointer.com - Stefan at OgleEarth also has a great review of an interesting new web site called Dishpointer. This site will calculate the angle for TV satellite antennas. More importantly, it will let you see it in Google Earth so you can turn on 3D buildings and see if you might be obscured by buildings.
  • Yahoo WOE - Rev Dan Catt announced a new Yahoo capability to offer "Where on Earth IDs". Here's the Yahoo announcement. Dan focuses on the Flickr aspects of using these new ids. Ed Parsons from Google also comments positively on the Yahoo effort.
  • GPSAnimator.com - Got an E-mail from some folks who have developed an application called StarTRAX which lets you visualize your GPS tracks in Google Earth. I haven't had a chance to try it out, but it sounds a lot like GPSVisualizer.

Posted by FrankTaylor at 11:19 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

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April 29, 2008

Google Earth for Pilots

This is part of a new series exploring Google Earth uses for different professions/hobbies.

If you're a pilot, there are many ways Google Earth can be used to really enhance your trip plans both from an aviation and ground-based perspective. But, Google Earth goes way beyond just trip planning as a tool for pilots. I'm a pilot myself, and have been using Google Earth to enhance my flying experiences for nearly three years.

F16 cockpit for Google Earth Flight Simulator

Here are just a few ways you might use Google Earth as a pilot:

  • Destination familiarization - Never been to your destination airport before? Zoom in to Google Earth, and most of the time you're likely to see high resolution satellite or aerial photos to help get you familiar with what the airport looks like. You should be aware that the photos can be an average 1 to 4 years old, so things may have changed since the photo was taken (just like charts). More importantly, since Google Earth is 3D, you can get a perspective on the lay of the land. It helps to know what the surrounding hills and valleys look like. Use the search function to help find businesses you need such as rental cars, hotels, restaurants, etc. You can also get driving directions and discover fun places to visit like beaches, amusement parks, museums, etc.
  • Flight Simulator - Google Earth has a built-in flight simulator (tips on how to use). Only two types of planes are available (Cirrus SR-22 and an F16). It's not built for accuracy of flight, and the flight instrument simulation is kind of basic, so I wouldn't use this for flight training. It's intended to help give you a better perspective on the 3D terrain in Google Earth. It can also help give you a pilot's-eye view of your trip and help familiarize you with your planned approaches. Or, you can just use it because it's fun!
  • Flight Planning - I typically use AirNav to plan an initial route (I really like the ability to plan a route with low-cost fuel stops). After planning a route, you can use Google Earth to visualize it. GE will recognize searches for four-letter airport designators (like KATL). You can even get full sectional charts for overlaying in Google Earth. You can also load the DAFIF Nav Aids database for the entire world into Google Earth so you can see your primary nav aids along your route (I haven't yet seen an intersections database for GE, but you could input placemark coordinates for them if you have them). And, check out Flyagogo, a Google Maps mashup which was designed for pilots
  • Weather Planning - there are all kinds of weather tools for use with Google Earth (here's a collection of some of the best). These are not geared specifically towards aviators, but they can be another set of data until you get to your regular weather resources.
  • Flight Review - Take a handheld GPS with you on your flights, and use Google Earth to visualize your flight afterwards. Download your GPS tracks to your PC. You can then view your GPS tracks in 3D (complete with altitudes) and see what things you flew over during your trip. Here's a post describing how I do this using a Garmin GPS and some other tools to enhance the track data.
  • Sightseeing - If you're on a long trip, you might want to make sure you fly to or over some particular sight. Recently I missed seeing something really unique because I didn't check my planned flight for interesting sights. Next time I won't because I input a waypoint in my GPS to help remind me.
  • Plane Afficionados - If you like planes, you might be interested to know that Google Earth not only shows houses, but also airplanes. And not just planes sitting on the tarmac, but planes captured flying around too. There are many plane aficionados using Google Earth to discover all kinds of planes. For example, look at this collection of DC-3s. Or, this frequently updated list of planes in flight. And, there are even folks who have simulated 3D flying like this Red Bull Air Race. You can also track airline flights in near-real-time in Google Earth.
  • Aerial Photography - Maybe Google Earth will inspire you to become an aerial photographer. A year and a half ago, I had great fun flying over an air and space show in New Mexico and working with Google to put some aerial photos I took into Google Earth on the same day. That photo is now what you see if you look at the Las Cruces airport.
  • Recreational Flying - If you're into paragliding/gliding, you should check out this paragliding forum which also provides resources for recording and viewing your tracks for Google Earth.

These and many other stories related to flying and Google Earth can be found in the Flying category of Google Earth Blog.

Posted by FrankTaylor at 09:55 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 03, 2008

New Contour Lines in Google Maps

Google has announced a new feature to the terrain relief maps they added last November to Google Maps. Now when you zoom in closer, the terrain shows contour lines to give you an even better feel for the lay of the land. These types of maps are the type most hikers use to plan their trips. Unfortunately, the degree of resolution at this point is not quite good enough for hiking, and the trails aren't shown by default in Google Maps. But, the enhancement is a really nice feature that enhances the understanding of the terrain and it looks excellent. I just wish they would add these terrain relief maps as a layer for Google Earth. See for yourself how they look in Google Maps - here's an example of some mountains I was just skiing in Utah:


View Larger Map

Google Earth is a great tool for planning a hike. See a recent post by John Gardiner of Google on using GE for hiking plans. And, see an example of overlay USGS topo maps and a GPS track to illustrate a hike, and also adding photos later to the track.

Also, if you want to include better topographical contour maps onto Google Earth, there's a tool which will overlay USGS topographical maps automatically for your current view. You can read about it here.

Posted by FrankTaylor at 09:34 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

March 17, 2008

Deer Blogs His Own GPS Position in Google Earth

Deer Tracker in Google Earth

[UPDATE:The batteries finally ran out on April 28th. ]

In what may be a short-lived cool geo hack of the day, a deer named "Thor" now has his own blog where he shares his GPS position every five minutes. Someone named 'Siberian' at the Google Earth Community posted how he managed to make this happen. Turns out he had collared a deer they named "Thor" with a GPS and cellphone with SMS capability. They are studying deers living in suburban areas in Pennsylvania. Siberian then hacked up a way to use the resulting E-mail to create a spreadsheet which is then converted into a file you can use to track the deer in Google Earth . The system is totally automated using free services. His post goes into detail on how this was all accomplished. Siberian is using some tools by Valery Hronusov - who has developed and posted dozens of cool geo hacks for Google Earth (see his global rainfall example). Valery came up with the idea to let the deer blog his coordinates as well. Thanks to Valery for the tip on this cool deer hack! Note: you can also view the deer's map in Google Maps.

Any bets on how long it will be before someone hunts down the poor deer?

Other examples of tracking in Google Earth:

Posted by FrankTaylor at 08:08 AM | Comments (18) | TrackBack

February 11, 2008

Wikiloc - GPS Tracks Site

Wikiloc GPS tracks in Google EarthWikiloc is a free web site which lets you share your favorite GPS tracks through a Google Maps mashup or through Google Earth. Its focus is on trails - and it shows the elevation profile as a graph with every track. Tracks can also have photos and video clips associated with them. Wikiloc won a Google Maps mashup contest in Spain in 2006, and continues to make nice improvements. The site's author, Jordi Remot, wrote me this weekend to say he has reached 10,000 uploaded GPS tracks. So far most of the users are in Europe, but he has very good multi-lingual support, so hopefully he'll get more users from even more countries.

What I particularly like is that Wikiloc provides good Google Earth integration as well. You can view any GPS track you see on the site also with Google Earth. And, at the top of the web pages is a link to "discover GPS trails " with Google Earth. This is a well done GE KML file which uses regions to pull in more tracks as you zoom into a specific location. It not only shows the icons, but also provides a sample of tracks right away. Placemark icons indicate the types of tracks (hiking, biking, skiing), and if you click on a placemark you get an option to display that GPS track, or view more info at the web site. The placemarks also show the elevation profile.

One other thing I like is that in the Google Maps mashups, Wikiloc also shows the Panoramio photo layer so you can see photos from other people for locations your viewing. Of course, you can also turn on this layer in Google Earth. It's a handy way to get more perspective for a particular trail/location.

There are dozens of sites out there where you can upload your GPS track and share it with others. The best ones include ways for you to view in Google Maps and Google Earth, provide statistics about your GPS data, embed your map in a mashup on your own site, or annotate your data with other information like photos or videos. One of my favorites is Magnalox (see an example where I used it) because it has some of the broadest range of mapping features out there. Here's a list of just a few sites and tools for GPS tracks I've written about:

Posted by FrankTaylor at 08:44 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

More entries for this category:

  1. Real-Time Google Earth GPS Tracking - via Bus - February 02, 2008
  2. Guys Fly Balloon to 30 km Altitude - See it in Google Earth - January 25, 2008
  3. Top 10 New Google Earth Features 2007 - December 31, 2007
  4. Top 25 Stories of Google Earth 2007 - December 27, 2007
  5. Links: Santa Tracker, Santa Mapper Poem, VE Followup, GPS Spider - December 26, 2007
  6. Links: Maps Terrain in GE, GPS Trip Planning, Geo Lessons, and more - December 11, 2007
  7. Links: Google at the Pump, Sigdoarjo Mud Flow, Boxing Champs, California Fire Costs, New Trees - November 09, 2007
  8. Trip Status, Links: PhotoOverlay tool, CIA World Factbook, Another BMNG - October 29, 2007
  9. Links: Chinese Cop Catches Crook, Malibu Fire, EveryTrail Update, CIA WorldFactbook, Hungary Weather - October 22, 2007
  10. 2007 Wirefly X PRIZE Cup - October 08, 2007
  11. News Roundup: UFO Sightings, Free UK GE workshops, Godwit migrations, Boating videos - September 21, 2007
  12. Back to School - Educational Uses with Google Earth - September 11, 2007
  13. News Roundup: Peru Earthquake, Virtual Earth Update, Stefan's Alps Hike - August 16, 2007
  14. Sailing with Google Earth for Navigation - August 06, 2007
  15. India Maps - Local Knowledge Power - July 24, 2007
  16. TakItWithMe - Handy GPS Tool - July 17, 2007
  17. News Roundup: GE 4.1 Stuff, Plotting a Trail, Business Reviews, More Second Earth - June 20, 2007
  18. Google Earth Helping Amazon Indians - June 19, 2007
  19. Photo Finding in Google Earth - Just for Fun - June 15, 2007
  20. News Roundup - France Censors, Flickr, Seabeds, Live tracking - June 04, 2007
  21. Watch Weekend Boating Live in Google Earth - May 18, 2007
  22. Google Earth Umbrella - May 16, 2007
  23. News Roundup - Nokia N95, gCensus US, Greensburg Radar Animation - May 14, 2007
  24. Having Fun with Google Earth and SpaceNavigator - May 10, 2007
  25. News Roundup 2 - Science Visualization, Netherlands GIS, Flu Map, Nokia SportsTracker - May 06, 2007
  26. News Roundup: My Maps/YouTube, Nokia N95, Census, Arc2Earth, Show-n-Tell - April 13, 2007
  27. New Google Earth Layers for April: Darfur, Trimble, and more - April 09, 2007
  28. 677 US Marine Charts for Google Earth on 1 CD - March 31, 2007
  29. News Roundup - Version stats, KML Editors, GooPs, Hey What's That? - March 15, 2007
  30. FedEx Pilots "Smart" Tracking with Google Earth - February 23, 2007
  31. More Details on New Layers/Updates - February 18, 2007
  32. News Roundup - FreeGeoTools, Sprol, Subsurface, conferences, Magnalox - February 12, 2007
  33. News Roundup - KML indexing, GPS tools, SketchUp PhotoMatch Tutorial, GE Blogs - January 13, 2007
  34. Using GPS in Real-time with Google Earth - January 02, 2007
  35. Explosion of GPS mapping tools and web sites - December 07, 2006
  36. Route du Rhum - Live Sailing Race in Google Earth - November 01, 2006
  37. Google Earth Googlers in Moab Mountain Bike Race - October 05, 2006
  38. More Innovative Time Animation Examples for Google Earth - September 19, 2006
  39. GPSVisualizer Supports New Google Earth 4 Time Support - September 15, 2006
  40. My Backpacking Trip and the Lost Couple Found After Three Days - July 24, 2006
  41. Trackstick - Small USB-stick GPS with Google Earth Support - July 18, 2006
  42. Unicycling for College Money - Track Max in Google Earth - May 28, 2006
  43. Accomodation Planning for Norway in Google Earth - May 17, 2006
  44. Juicy Geography Lesson on GPS - May 03, 2006
  45. Where's Tim? Tracking Tim in Google Earth - May 01, 2006
  46. Go Flying - Flight Tracklogs for Google Earth - April 30, 2006
  47. GPS-Tour.info - A Resource of GPS Tracks for Google Earth - April 21, 2006
  48. Honda Releases Traffic System in Japan for Google Earth - April 04, 2006
  49. Ski Snowbird - April 02, 2006
  50. Sking Alta Shown in Google Earth - March 28, 2006
  51. European Speed Cameras in Google Earth - March 21, 2006
  52. Touch and Gos - February 22, 2006
  53. Emotion Map in Google Earth - February 21, 2006
  54. Panoramio - Photos of the World - January 31, 2006
  55. Enhancement to GPSVisualizer for Google Earth - January 23, 2006
  56. 3D Planes for Flight Tracking in Google Earth - January 19, 2006
  57. Transatlantic Sailing Adventure Using Google Earth - January 18, 2006
  58. Off Road Races in Dakar and Baja - January 09, 2006
  59. Google Earth for Cars - January 07, 2006
  60. Santa's Route in Google Earth - December 21, 2005
  61. 40 Highest Buildings in Rotterdam for Google Earth - December 05, 2005
  62. Near Real-time Flight Tracking in Google Earth - December 02, 2005
  63. Transat Jacques Vabre 2005 Race in Google Earth - November 16, 2005
  64. GPSVisualizer Supports Google Earth - November 15, 2005
  65. And They're Off! - November 13, 2005
  66. Volvo Ocean Race in Google Earth - November 11, 2005
  67. Another Sailor Documents Trips Using Google Earth - November 09, 2005
  68. Geocaching.com Uses Random Approximate Coordinates in Google Earth - November 01, 2005
  69. GPS/Photo Tracks - RoboGEO v2.1 Supports Google Earth - October 31, 2005
  70. Geocaching.com Officially Supports Google Earth - October 22, 2005
  71. Magnalox - GPS Story Telling for Google Earth - October 19, 2005
  72. Huge Resource of 3D Glider Tracks for Google Earth - October 12, 2005
  73. Documenting a Recent Flying Trip - October 09, 2005
  74. Garmin Buys MotionBased - October 04, 2005
  75. Middle Earth Found in Google Earth - September 28, 2005
  76. Watching Sports with Google Earth - September 27, 2005
  77. Garmin Supports Google Earth - September 26, 2005
  78. Owners of Geocaching.com Stifle Innovation - September 24, 2005
  79. Sailing the Seven Seas - September 10, 2005
  80. Geocaching Google Earth - August 15, 2005
  81. Arizona Hiking Trip - August 10, 2005
  82. Flying - Keeping a Flight Log - August 05, 2005
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