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Outreach Showcase – The Google Earth Outreach Showcase is Google’s current favorite method of sharing what it considers the best global awareness KML content for Google Earth. New content with particular significance get a special post at the Google Lat Long blog or even the official Google Blog. Today Google posted about the UNEP South China Sea Project which has developed a KML file for Google Earth describing the project (see earlier GEB post). See it in Google Earth here
. I wonder if Google will continue using the Global Awareness layer, or will do something else? -
Spreadsheet Mapping – Google posted more details about the Spreadsheet mapping tool version 2.0 which is part of the Outreach program. The tool is designed to make it easier for non-developer types to create good-looking KML content. The post mentions that one of the Outreach showcase files was created using the spreadsheet tool – the EDGE of Existence for Mammals which shows placemarks for the 100 most Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) mammalians world-wide. See it in Google Earth here
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Geo Test – One of the participants in the GE Outreach program shared how she is making basic geography tests to introduce her biology students to her material using Google Earth. She offered five example questions which you can try yourself. And, the next day Google posted the answers. This is the kind of thing I think makes Google Earth great for learning. Related: try my favorite geography quiz
(it’s about Asia) done by National Geographic Magazine. -
KML Lesson Talk – Last week, Google conducted the first in a series of talks called the Google Geo Developer Series. These talks are intended to help folks looking to develop applications using Google Earth and Maps. The first talk was entitled “Quick and Dirty KML Creation” by Googlers Mano Marks and Pamela Fox. You can watch the entire talk on You Tube. Definitely worth watching if you’re looking to learn more about KML development. A very informal hands-on talk with everyone using their laptops to try out lesson material.
About Frank Taylor
Frank Taylor started the Google Earth Blog in July, 2005 shortly after Google Earth was first released. He has worked with 3D computer graphics and VR for many years and was very impressed with this exciting product. Frank completed a 5.5 year circumnavigation of the earth by sailboat in June 2015 which you can read about at Tahina Expedition, and is a licensed pilot, backpacker, diver, and photographer.
The National Geographic quiz is very cool. I wanted to mention that we actually created an interactive version of that at http://unype.com, which asks you a question and you answer it by moving the correct location, at which point you are rewarded points. Please check it out and let us know what you think. thanks.
I still consider myself a GE newbie, but have made a few basic KMLs of my family and one with family historical places. I’ve found I was able to upload these KMLs to Google Maps under My Maps.
Now that I have a bit of experience, I was thinking about making fancier KMLs (after seeing GE’s tutorials). But I noticed that some of the more advanced KMLs won’t import into Google Maps.
So, if I were to make fancier KMLs for GE, would Google Maps reject them also? If so, I suppose I could make a basic ‘draft’ KML to make sure I got everything right, and then import them into Google Maps, then use the draft to make a fancier KML.
But maybe I’m missing something, so if there’s a way to make fancier KMLs for both GE and Google Maps, I’d love to know about it. Thanks.
I found the answers to my earlier question by watching the video in the last link on this post. Thanks.